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Good Rates and Good Neighbors

Hi – My name is Jessica and I’ve worked at TNSCymfony for about a year and half.  In that time I’ve had the opportunity to work in a variety of different industries, finally settling in to the insurance industry over the past year.  Oh yes, I’m talking about property/casualty, auto, life and homeowners insurance. If you’re thinking this doesn’t apply to you, take a moment to think about how much money you spend on insurance in a month, a year.  Or better yet, think about the last time you had to file a claim with your insurance company…  So, yes, it’s that important.

Ok, let’s start off with the obvious stuff – Advertising.

Advertising in the insurance industry is all about brand promise.  I’m sure you can think of a few tag lines off the top of your head (or maybe I just read too many insurance blogs):

Geico - “Save you 15 % or more on car insurance”

State Farm -“Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there”

Do these phrases resonate with you?  Do they make you want to seek out their insurance?  If not, maybe their funny, bizarre, perhaps more serious commercials catch your eye... no?  If you’re like many other people out there, you’d say you’re just looking for the best rate and that’s it.  Well, I’ve got news for you – it’s not all about the rate.

After over a year of reading about the ongoing quests for the “best” care/home/life insurance, I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s not just about price.  Many people post on message boards and blogs about their rates and their experience with specific insurance companies.  For the most part, these people have exposure to at least two or three different companies, switching primarily because of poor customer service, or negative experiences when having to file a claim.

Initially, yes, people want the best deal in town (often asking complete strangers possibly on the other side of the country about what they should be paying for car insurance), but then comes the life change (the accident, the baby, the flood, etc.) and all of a sudden these people are wishing they had better customer service or an agent that was more explicit about their coverage and rates go right out the window.  I’ve read too many instances of people not getting enough money for the house/car because they didn’t know the fine print of their insurance policy. 

Insurance companies are only as good as what they can do for you when things go wrong.  It’s a tough business but there’s a unique opportunity here – to listen and respond to the specific needs of their customers.  

  • Companies do not want to compete on rates alone in the market.  Progressive and GEICO have pretty explicitly carved out that portion of the space, so move on.
  • Social Media gives insurance companies the opportunity to respond to the needs of their customers, far beyond straight rate comparisons.  
  • With so many people asking complete strangers for insurance recommendations, a company could establish itself as a trustworthy knowledge base for people to research their overall coverage needs, breaking free of rate only competition. 


A recent Cone LLC study confirmed that not only are people looking for company involvement in social media, but 85% of social media users believe a company should be present AND interact with consumers via social media.  It’ll be those companies who listen to their customers and evolve to meet their particular needs that end up truly delivering on their brand promise in the end.  

Posted by Jessica Poulin on February 4, 2009 at 05:31 PM | Email this post Permalink

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