In order to be an effective leader, you must first understand the needs of your employees. But that is only the first step. As a team, understanding the voice of the consumer is your most important goal. You must build relationships, lead by example, and most importantly, understand customer needs. But how can you do all of that at once?

Start slow.

Rome wasn’t built in a day. Start with one goal at a time. The first step to understanding the voice of the consumer is to understand the needs of your employees. Once you can cater your leadership to that, everyone can begin to focus their effort on the customer. Having a streamlined process in your agency where everyone has the same goals and works together to reach those goals is imperative to your success. And working towards goals is made possible by creating goals – goals centered on the customer’s needs.

The fact of the matter is this: customers are less loyal and less trusting than ever before. With the ease of the Internet and comparison shopping, it can be difficult for an independent insurance agency to stay afloat. However, when it comes to insurance, you know that your customers have needs. The path to satisfy those needs, retain customers, generate leads and bundle policies lies in understanding those needs.

• Put yourself in their shoes. It may sound cliché but walking a mile in someone else’s shoes is the best way to learn about their needs. Imagine you are shopping for insurance, what are the most important aspects to you? Ask your staff to do the same and brainstorm what you come up with.

• Anticipate future changes. You have to stay ahead to get ahead. Simply put: focus on what your customers will want tomorrow, not what they want today. Remain involved in their lives. If the Jones family just bought a new home and were previously renting property, you can anticipate they may need homeowners insurance relatively soon, right? How can you cater a policy to their needs… before they even ask?

• Learn WITH your customers. The best way to find out what someone needs is to simply ASK THEM. Talk with your most loyal customers about what it is that has kept them coming back. Talk with your previous customers about why they left. And ask anyone you can what they need from the insurance industry. You may be surprised to hear the responses.

It won’t always be easy to focus on anticipating future needs and understanding customer satisfaction qualifiers – but it will certainly always be worth it to the success of your agency!