Dedicated Sales Approach

How can broker principals get more productivity from their account executives (AEs)? Give them back their creative energy and let them polish their networking skills. However, their lack of discipline must also be turned into advantage through a “business development center” (BDC).

Most brokerages structure their operations along “servicing lines”, rather than sales. Thus, you have the typical separation of personal and commercial lines, with producers and customer service representatives working within self-contained units. This service focus is fine – as long as you have a steady stream of business walking in your door or ringing your phone. If not, you will find your staff focusing on a dwindling number of accounts to service.

Few brokerages realize the significance of a separate business unit dedicated strictly to new business. The BDC acknowledges the reality of AEs’ strengths and thereby shore up their weaknesses with a highly disciplined approach to sales. This strategy creates a smoothly functioning sales system that ensures nothing slips through the cracks when it comes to targeted, highly profitable clients. The BDC is an important stage in taking sales to the next level and achieving “vertical growth”. It acts as an administrative arm for busy AEs who are sometimes mired in the day-to-day tasks of setting up appointments, responding to calls and creating correspondence. But, it also serves an important scouting role in spotting potential new business opportunities.

COORDINATED FOCUS

Coordination is the critical role of the BDC. This of course requires a coordinator. The BDC coordinator’s job is not to make cold calls for new business or to get coffee for office meetings. Rather, the role is one of a catalyst for setting up key appointments, following up with important clients and helping to close the deal.

Pre-sale activity includes parceling clients according to “A”, “B” or “C” criteria and profiling prospects. The BDC coordinator is a critical filter, ensuring the appropriate level of service and attention for specific clients. For busy AEs, this process takes the administrative headaches out of the picture and replaces them with a streamlined system that focuses on new sales and renewals. This pre-sale activity also involves doing the dirty work to set up the AE for that crucial appointment. This may mean researching everything about the client’s background, business or industry, risk exposures, current premiums and so on. The BDC coordinator not only makes the AE look good, but also makes his/her job a lot easier.

After important meetings or sales presentations with “A” and “B” clients, the BDC coordinator takes care of post-sale activities – a role most AEs acknowledge is not their strong suit. These activities could include handling requests for more information, follow-up letters and clarification of any agreements. It could also extend to whatever AEs require to meet target client needs: event planning, seminars, public speaking opportunities or other communications, such as informative articles. In fact, the BDC coordinator should have total control of all AEs’ calendars. Furthermore, he/she sets all appointments and handles all sales- related correspondence. Essentially, the coordinator acts as an “assistant sales manager” for new and renewal business.

The BDC coordinator can also add an entrepreneurial edge to the sales system. With access to important client information, the coordinator can look into developing new niche programs. For instance: Where does the brokerage excel? What kind of programs are proven winners? What ancillary groups or markets make sense to pursue?

CROSS-SELLING

Another opportunity is using the BDC coordinator as a pivotal point person in cross-selling. This is one area in which brokerages have faced numerous challenges. The main obstacles to cross-selling are discipline and implementation. While all brokers acknowledge the benefits of higher retention figures for clients with multiple policies, few have the resources or processes in place to ensure that accounts are tapped for full potential. A strong BDC coordinator can fulfill that role and follow through with rounding out accounts. The sky is the limit when it comes to where the BDC coordinator can make a contribution.

That is one of the reasons why skill selection, hiring and training are crucial for this position. The prospective coordinator should have a good mix of service and sales capabilities. While he or she will not actively sell to clients, there is a nimble, opportunistic mindset required for this position. BDC coordinators should be adept at sifting through information, spotting opportunities and implementing effective follow-up plans.

PROVEN SUCCESS

Does the BDC work? For brokerages that have tried it, the answer is an overwhelming “yes”. It frees up time for AEs to focus on what they do best: networking, prospecting and closing sales presentations. These skills involve certain kinds of behaviors and unfortunately, discipline and administrative follow-through are not among them.

The BDC compensates for that weakness. A successful brokerage has to have both “high performance teams” with complementary skill sets and a smoothly functioning sales and service system. The BDC puts in place a highly disciplined system to complement the soft skills of AEs.