The 9 Point Hard-Core Corona Survival Checklist for Insurance Agency Principals

If you’re weary of Corona-this and Corona-that, this checklist is for you…

We’re some weeks into this crisis. Are you weary? 

I sympathize. This is a terrible time in so many ways. A week or so ago, some thousands of our neighbors had spring weather and summer barbecues in mind. 

Not one of them thought they’d die alone on a hospital bed with a plastic mask around their face. If they were lucky enough to get one.

But, if my sympathy - or your fatigue, confusion or anxiety - inhibits your performance in any way, I withdraw it. Nothing can get in your way now.

And, I urge you, as leader, deal with your fatigue, confusion and anxiety ASAP.

There are times we lead through the bliss of good times. And, then, there are bad times. 

Looking you right in the eyeball, you know this to be true: compared to most of human history, this is still good times. 

But, to those of us raised in the modern era, it sure doesn’t feel that way. 

If you believe - as I do - that insurance matters...and if you believe - as I do - that the entrepreneur has a responsibility to their enterprise, if not to society itself, then it is time to summon up courage.

If ever there were a time that will divide those who deserve to lead this industry from those who deserve to follow, that may be today.

So, having survived many a crisis - recessions, wars, deaths, negative cash flow, launching a startup in the last recession, not to mention a variety of my own strategic blunders - I offer a 9 Point Checklist.

Not just for survival. But, to thrive in crisis.

1. Burn this list.

Read it first. Then, burn it, shred it, delete it. And, make your own. 

Every good pilot reviews the checklist before they hit the sky. If they’ve flown once. Or 10,000 times.

More important, they rehearse for crisis. Extreme turbulence: they know the X things to do. Mechanical failure: they know the X things to do. 

You do the right things. You do them in sequence. And, you don’t do anything else.

In the event you haven’t prepared for this crisis, your checklist is your mental model. 

Decide what’s on it. Read it throughout the day. Let it guide your behavior.

Add to it. Cross things off. Keep it alive.  

The world will fight you, distract you, discourage you.

Your list keeps you focused.

My list includes these (very overlapping) categories: 

• Leadership
• Communication
• Technology
• Insurance issues
• Finances
• Strategy
• Marketing
• Planning for ‘getting to the other side’

2. In case of emergency, place the oxygen mask on your face first…

Self-care? Makes you want to gag, eh?

Sound too selfish now? 

Forget it. People follow strength. They follow confidence. 

This is the big game. Coach yourself through it. Sleep right. Eat right. Breathe right. Taking care of yourself is suddenly non-optional behavior. Church. Meditation. Rock ‘n Roll. Whatever gets you right.

Here’s a simple edifying practice: daily gratitude. All-day long. (This is the Oprah Section of my checklist. Read it anyway.)

Here's a start. Grateful to be in an industry with more built-in shock absorbers than most. Grateful that your supply chain doesn’t start in a Chinese factory. That you didn’t take over Dad’s restaurant business. Grateful for the runway to get through this. This list never ends.

On my list, grateful for modern technology. I can see my family - from Canada to Vietnam - every single day.

Lots to be grateful for. Makes it easier to find confidence. More fun, too.

Have you noticed this on phone calls: that even some tough-guy business colleague says ‘you take care, too’ with a little choke in his throat? Like every business call is a call to be human? 

Anyway, you take care, eh? 

3. Leadership: Time for a Steady Hand

It’s your lucky day. You got called up.

Of course, you’re nervous. Plus, you have the same distractions, worries and anxieties as those you lead.

Yes, time for courage. (Wouldn’t it be nice if life only called on your courage when you knew you were bigger than the challenge? Hmmm...I don't think that qualifies as courage.)

A good game plan for leadership is: 

• Tell the truth. People want you to interpret the events in their life. 
• Paint your vision for the future.
• Share a believable strategy for getting there.
• Explain how everyone fits into that strategy.

It always starts with the truth. Now more than ever.

Action item: listen to my conversation with Dr. Robert Hartwig - this industry’s ‘chief economist.’ 

Nobody gives a clearer assessment of the potential impact of Corona on the economy, the industry and the independent insurance agency. Every serious principal must listen.

Then, when you’ve gathered your thoughts, get clear on the two or three things you’re going to say. And say them. Over and over. And over. 

Overcommunicate. And, use that communication to be the signal above the noise.

Right now, your first audience is team, team, team. They’re needier than ever before. And, you need them more than ever before. 

The great irony is that they'll see you less at the very moment you need to be there more. (The Modern Insurance Agency was made for this moment.) Modern technology solves half the problem.

Your leadership solves the other half.

You also need to privately confront the questions that will be on the minds of your team. Extended sick leave? Should you boost comp to producers for client acquisition? Are we going to stay remote after the crisis? Will you offer it to people who want it? Be prepared.

Consider calling every single member of your team. From your top manager to your new receptionist. Listen more than you talk.

Your other mission-critical audience, of course, is your client base.

• Don’t send them ‘7 tips on staying safe during Corona.’ For goodness gracious, that train left weeks ago. More noise on top of noise.
• Tell them you’re grateful. If tears are running down your face when you write your clients, it’s probably a pretty good message.
• Make sure they know how to do business with you.
• Tell them about your team. Clients care.
• Remember the three critical elements of relationship: be present; be meaningful; be human. 
• If you haven’t invested in a reliable client communication system, right now, you’re wishing you did. Fix that. That was yesterday’s job.
• As an aside: marketers recommend you consider removing any pix of crowds in your marketing. It’s off-setting right now. You may have someone check your campaigns. (And, tell your marketer.)

The other audience: the marketplace in general.

Smart marketers are generally agreeing on a common strategic direction for this right now. Focus on ‘audience expansion’ not ‘customer acquisition.’ Then, when the time is right, you’ll have the flock to guide into your marketing funnel.

How? By doing precisely what I described above. Be present. Be meaningful. Be human.

(Modern Insurance Agencies are so much better prepared for this crisis than other agencies. They’re already doing much of this.)

4. Technology: Use Good Tools. Use Them Right.

This breaks into two chunks. 

• Remote technology needs to be protected from viruses, hackers and other security breaches.
• Remote employees need the right tools and you need the team to use them the right way.

(Again, Modern Insurance Agencies were ready for this before it happened.)

You need to consider how you’re going to deal with this little checklist (save this list):

• Remote login/VPN
• Ascertaining if you’re operating system is secure
• Setting up 2 Factor Authentication
• Protecting against Corona-related scams (employees need to be alerted)
• Virus protection
• Take-home equipment
• Security updates...and more.

Action Item: Listen to my conversation with Brad Ruben, President, Archway Computer. He answers all those questions. In 45 minutes, you’ll have an Action Plan that will give you peace of mind.

Regarding those remote employees, if it isn’t already a routine practice, you’re about to get a crash course in remote. 

When I first ‘authorized remote’ - 10 years ago - I had time to think about it, thrash out my emotions about it, study it and create protocols and disciplines.

You don’t have that luxury.

You need to learn the tools. Pick the best ones. Manage like a manager. Seeing people in cubicles in not managing.

Negotiating work products and KPI’s, coaching to success and holding account is managing. And, that is not place-contingent.

You’ll be a better manager when you get through this.

Action Item: Read Remote: Office Not Required by Jason Fried and David Heinmeier Hansson.

NOTE: I’m interviewing David in about a week. Connect with me on LinkedIn to make sure you get the announcement. (Also, I’ve been remote - off and on - for 25 years. With up to 40 employees. I will be sharing my best secrets, but I don’t have that on the calendar yet. Again, connect with me.)

5. Insurance. (Yes, Corona Is an Insurance Issue.)

Your clients will have questions. (Their attorneys may suggest some ‘answers.’)

Is this covered by Business Income? What about the Civil Authority clause? 

What about liabilities? What if someone claims to get infected by a business or an employee?

What about home office workers? (Including your own.) What’s covered? What’s exposed? What about when someone is driving computers to a worker’s home - and is injured? 

Are clients getting ‘gig jobs’ during the crisis? What should they know? 

When it comes to the technical and legal implications of insurance, I turn to Bill Wilson, the former Assoc. VP of Education and Research at the Big I. I interviewed him the other day. (Recorded it, of course!) That conversation goes live in about two days. Again, connect with me on LinkedIn, and I’ll make sure you get a link. Very important.

You and your team must know what to say.

6. Finances: Time to Count Some Beans

I’ve pulled an enterprise off the cliff of demise four times in my career. (I put it there once or twice myself.)

When I was hired to manage a turn-around, we ran cash flow projections every week.

The first projection showed we had 45 days of cash. That’ll keep you focused.

You should: 

• Run cash flow projections based on reasonable and worst case scenarios. If they indicate trouble, you need a plan. Cut expenses. Get a line of credit. BE the line of credit. Make decisions now.
• Assess your book of business. Look for niches and classes that may give you trouble, depending on the length of the crisis. Be prepared for a worst-case scenario.
• Make realistic reductions in your new and existing client income projections.
• Look for gaps in your book that should be filled. For example, should employees - with an army of new homeworkers - take a very serious look at cyber? Hunt for ways to protect your clients. They don't need claims now!
• Do everything possible to strengthen and deepen existing relationships. This is THE time to be the agency you dreamed about and that your clients didn’t even know how to dream about. (Again, Modern Insurance Agencies are miles ahead. Get Modern.)

7. Strategy: You Still Need to Build the Future.

My friend, Bill Hartnett, navigates 11crew-member sailing vessels. No job matters more.

If he puts them in the wrong place, no amount of speed and strength on deck will win that race.

When there’s a storm ahead or currents change, the strategy changes.

What is your strategy now, navigator? At some point, you'll be through this. And, you'll find your agency pointing in the right direction. Or not.

As I indicated above, your customer acquisition efforts may take a back seat.

For example, I’ve had a major product launch booked for April. But, I took that out of the driver’s seat and put it in the child seat in back. 

I’m focusing on two things. Audience expansion. (By being present. Delivering value. Being human.)

And, internal ops. I’m designing and refining my internal marketing and support processes. Now, when I do launch, it’ll be clean, elegant and beautiful. (Marie Kondo for business.) 

And, I’ll have a bigger audience.

Ideally, your short-term strategy - getting through this - aligns with your long-term strategy: an agency that knows where it's going and how it's going to get there.

You can get through this with: a stronger team, better tools, and a genuine path to growth.

Pick your strategy.

8. Marketing: If You Love Customers…

Marketing? In a crisis? 

I like Drucker’s definition of marketing. The entire enterprise...as seen from the customer’s point of view. 

Marketing never stops because customers never stop.

And, yes, the entrepreneur has an obligation to the enterprise itself. It’s the job. To get and keep customers.

• Carefully examine what your agency is doing right now to deepen relationships with existing customers. Deepen by giving value. Deepen by extracting value. (Give first.)
• Brainstorm how you can make those relationships more meaningful - to your customers. Communicate more. Communicate better. Lead them. Comfort them. Advise them. Be the agency they recommend to all their friends and colleagues because of how well you took care of them in hard times.
• Identify key segments of your book. Communicate messages that are only valuable to them. Niche your messaging. (Again, those Modern Insurance Agencies are lapping the competition.)
• Get in front of the bigger marketplace with value. Build your list. Create Lead Magnets that drive them to a Landing Page. Get their emails and nurture them. Provide leadership to the marketplace. Not just customers.

9. Your Private List. After the Brouhaha Settles Down.

When you finally get the moment for a quiet cup of coffee, it’s time to have ‘that conversation’ with yourself: what kind of agency do you want in the future?

I’ve more than hinted. The future belongs to The Modern Insurance Agents. 

They have the tools. The strategy. The culture. The speed. The relationship with the customer.

They can adapt.

The old-school agency is dying. It's done it's job and it did it well. But, now? It’s sacrificing income. Sacrificing value. Sacrificing the potential to make a bigger impact.

You’ve got questions to answer. About who you want for your customers. How you will get them. How you will onboard them. How you will guide their journey. About how you will provide such extraordinary value you’ll get that marketplace monopoly you’ve quietly dreamed of.

About where you will play and how you will win. 

The path to the next level is laid out in front of us. In The Modern Age of Insurance, that path is laid out by The Modern Insurance Consumer.

If this crisis caught you flat-footed, do not let that happen again. 

This crisis - a pandemic - has been the most predictable mass catastrophe. (Google: history of the human species. It happens. Over and over.) We should have been much more prepared. Especially in the risk management industry.

This crisis caused tens of thousands of insurance agencies to ‘go remote’ in panic. That should not have happened. (I’m one of so-many that has urged agencies to consider its benefits. I’m one of many that has exhorted agencies to consider the demand that upcoming generations would have on remote work. But, this could all be done 'tomorrow.' Sigh.) 

The future belongs to The Modern Agency.

Once again, it’s your lucky day. You’ve been called up.

Time for courage. Courage to change. Courage to be better. Courage to leave the rest of the industry behind. 

Now. Burn this list. Go make your own. 

Did I miss anything? Anything you see differently? Please share your thoughts. If you got value, please tell me or pass this on. Thanks so much. And, take care, eh?