The Renewals Revolution: How a Strong Brand Can Drive Success

Towards the end of 2022, we spoke to several Underwriters and Brokers about their experiences heading toward the 1:1 renewals.?

On reflection, this was a tough time for everyone.

How do we make our next renewals season better; by reflecting on the hang-ups, battle scars and the role of brand?

Words that cropped up a lot were?‘emotional’?or?‘rational’.?

Emotional meaning worried, scared and unable to see the bigger picture. Rationality was seen as being the positive opposite of this. Balanced, measured and considered.

Here is the kicker.?

Everyone that works in insurance has spoken about?"The?Relationship" as the most significant part of doing business.

A relationship describes an understanding, dependence, alliance, and kinship.?

It is certainly emotional when you move beyond?‘work’.

Renewals happen annually and are not always straightforward - they’re nuanced and that's why you need people on the other side of the conversation.?

It's essential.

So, the relationship is important, people are important, and knowledge and experience are of course all important.

If it’s a?‘hard’?market, it’s difficult for the broker to get people interested, so the underwriter holds all the power as they can set all the terms. The broker is finding it hard to place the business, as fewer underwriters are interested in the business.

If it’s a?‘soft’?market, the broker holds all the power as they can go anywhere, and there's lots of capacity?(lots?of markets) to place the business.

How might brand help to make the experience slicker during renewals?

“Be clear about how to engage”

• Where does it start? face-to-face? Conference? On-Island? In office?

For Brokers, it might mean where are we meeting and how are we meeting. If it's face-to-face it is understood that you might bring printed packs for discussion, is this still the best way? When we travel to conferences or march between offices have the Underwriters / markets made that journey essential or is there another way? On Island are you hosting or do you have people travelling between offices? This is all about efficiency and presence.?

For Underwriters, it might mean how you network, how you ensure you get first refusal, and that you are the product and partner of choice (leading where appropriate) and easy to do business with.?

Does the WHOLE experience reflect any of your brand values?

• How deliberate are your venue choices?
• What does it say about you(individual) and the halo effect of your brand??
• Do you pick a venue closest to the individual for their convenience?
• Do you pick a venue based on the atmosphere because they provide the calmest/most enjoyable environment?

For Brokers, it might mean a place to speak more candidly, to share informal thoughts on markets or home life without being overheard. An opportunity to unwind or reset following difficult conversations.

For Underwriters, it might mean how we host people and clients coming to us. Whether we can provide capacity or not we need people to enjoy their time with us and leave on positive memory. Deliberate choreography of every interaction.

Ensure a positive feeling as a consequence of interacting with you

• What are we doing to help our relationships with clients on both a business and personal front?
• A lot of brand is carried through the culture and people you’ve assembled - do your people reflect the brand or simply work for it? Your culture cannot be copied but processes and technology can be bought and updated.
• Telephone calls - quick? long? voicemails?
• Note-taking and follow-up - Digital or handwritten
• Emails - Exchange of information? an invitation to connect?
• Sending/receiving documentation

For Brokers, it might mean using multiple interfaces and portals just to get the information they need. This can be time-consuming - who makes my life easier? They may be under a lot of pressure searching the capacity market - can they pose a question easily and on their terms with timely feedback? What role are the underwriter support assistants playing in processing all the data around a risk? Might the speed this processing takes place influence how positively people see your brand??

For Underwriters, it might mean being accessible rather than available.?(See?our other article here).

So what is the key thread connecting all of the brand elements supporting the renewals process?

It’s not the product or the name above the door, it’s the relationship - it’s people you get on well with, personalities you gel with and the environment and processes those interactions take place.

Now the dust has settled and people are reflecting on their experience ask your people to think back over the last 3 to 6 months as they’ve been trying to get this work bound. What would make the relationship better?