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The Road Less Traveled No more
handoffs. Beware the lady behind the desk. Come in from the snow. If it hadn’t suddenly started snowing, I would have used the outdoor ATM. I might never have gone inside the bank and ended up in the line that led to the teller who asked me if she could help. I never would have had the opportunity to see the system work. No snow, no lesson learned. But it did start snowing, and, as Robert Frost put it so well, “that has made all the difference.” Since I was going to have to wait in line anyway, I returned the teller’s smile and asked if she could give me any information on a new type of business account I’d noticed on the bank’s Web site. I fully expected a referral to the person my wife calls “the lady behind the desk.” My wife claims that no matter what she asks a bank teller, unless it involves making a deposit or withdrawal, he or she always responds: “I’m sorry, you’ll have to talk to the lady behind the desk about that.” And, of course, that lady, sitting behind a “new accounts” or “customer service” or “branch manager” sign, will invariably be busy with another customer already referred by the teller. So my wife waits, sits and reads brochures about mortgages and safety deposit box options until either she leaves or the lady behind the desk finally has an opening. But on this day a truly remarkable thing occurred. “Sure,” the teller chirped, “I have that information right here!” Whereupon she pulled a brochure from a file next to her window and opened it on the counter between us. She then described the new type of account and all of the other types of accounts I might want to consider. She volunteered that, if my business were a sole proprietorship operated in my personal name, the fees would be considerably lower if I were just to use a personal account in my name. If, however, I were using a business name or were not organized as a sole proprietorship, I could only use a business account. She explained that, since I already had personal accounts with the bank, there was a business account that would tie in all those accounts and cut my bank fees and minimum balance requirements. They also would include their online bill paying option, normally an extra cost, for free! To say I was impressed was putting it mildly. I dropped a note to the bank manager to tell him so. Could a similar interchange have taken place in your agency? If I were your client, would I be told I needed to talk to your equivalent of “the lady behind the desk” who may just be at lunch? Would I then have to wait in the agency reception area reading boring brochures (or this wonderful magazine) until she returned? Are your people trained so that anyone in your shop can handle my questions? This doesn’t mean everyone must know everything, but rather they must know the basics such as coverage requests, change requests, certificate requests and billing inquiries. Is there a computer terminal nearby? Why not have all of that information easily accessible so all the staff can handle inquiries? As clients are increasingly exposed to other firms or to your competitors who are able to deliver such timely service, their willingness to endure your delays and handoffs will fade, as will their account from your book of business. Is it time for your agency to come in out of the snow?
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Copyright © 2001, 2002, 2003 Amrhein and Associates Inc. |