I am the master of two Irish Soft-Coated Wheaten Terriers, Bridget, the “do as I please diva,” and Brady, “the obsessive hunter.” They love me unconditionally, always greet me with abandon and just somehow know the right time to just lie quietly next to me. This past winter, I decided obedience training would get me closer to feeling unconditional love for them.

After six weeks of training, a transformation had taken place. Bridget became the “come when called diva” and Brady the “calm, occasional hunter.” The gist of what I had learned is that the secret to a loyal, well-behaved dog is frequent and consistent communication along with positive attention and regular exercise.�

We can learn a lot from our dogs. I’m not suggesting that building loyalty with your clients is as easy, but I can guarantee that consistent communication with your clients and prompt attention to their needs will go a long way to making them your customer forever. In fact, your clients who participated in our Broker Services Survey told us the following about their broker’s communication with them:

• 74 percent value regular communication from their broker
• 9 percent cite lack of regular communication as a primary reason to look for a new broker
• 53 percent would like to hear from their broker monthly
• 60 percent would like to hear from their broker three months in advance of renewal

It’s hard to argue with those statistics. Broker Briefcase makes communicating with your clients easy.
On the benefits side, employers are loving all of the health care reform educational Legislative Briefs for them, and the Know Your Employee Benefits flyers, posters and payroll stuffers for their employees. Or, with open enrollment season upon us, why not offer your clients one of the many open enrollment tools or educational flyers? If you’re a P&C broker, the hundreds of new industry-specific articles and flyers make it easier than ever for you to offer content that your clients will value.

Oh, and don’t forget about some other great lessons you can learn from your dog – take naps, enjoy long walks and if something you want seems buried, dig deep until you find it!