Ready to fly?

Planes, trains and automobiles. Trams, buses and bicycles.

We pick our means of transport based on budget, availability, prestige, access etc.

So how do you want to travel in 2013? Not so much literally, but conceptually.

Are you looking to launch, or just hum along?

A plane can’t take off without getting to the runway – do you know what obstacles await? And how might you overcome them?

Food for thought as we wind down 2012.

Chances are that your insurer will profit in the long run.
But can you afford to be right?

Let’s not kid ourselves. Insurers are in it to make a profit. If they are doing a good job, they are pricing the policies in a way where they will receive more money than the claims they will need to pay out in the long run. As consumers (in general), we wouldn’t want it any other way. Otherwise, the insurers would not be able to provide the protection we need.

But do we want to win as individuals? Well, yes and no. Of course we want our insurers to pay out if we become  sick or should we die prematurely. But that is not really a win. Practically every client has stressed to me at some point, ‘I hope I never have to make a claim’.

Personally, I hope that I get to spend a lot of money on insurance throughout my life without ever having to claim. But isn’t that a waste? No, as it provides me with valuable protection should things go wrong.

And while we may trust ourselves to deliver, it not unreasonable for people to doubt this.

We’ve all been let down. Things can and do go wrong.

And why SHOULD clients trust us?

Being trustworthy does not automatically mean people will trust you.

I guess it starts with trustworthiness. – something that we can know implicitly.

But does our knowledge of this ‘fact’ automatically transfer to others? It is neither automatic nor is it guaranteed.

Not only do we have to act trust-worthily, we need to continuously communicate our commitments, values and expertise (all while providing updates on ‘what’s happening’).

This illustrates one of the important roles played by thoughtful and deliberate branding.

From Solicitor to Barrister – Will Her Income Change?

A new client of mine will soon transition from an employee solicitor to a self-employed barrister.

She doesn’t have income protection insurance at the moment and the standard response to any application made now will be ‘How do we know she is going to maintain her current level of income?’.

As a result, the only cover type available will be an ‘Indemnity’ policy which has the disadvantage of allowing for claims to be reduced if her income has declined (compared to now) at the time of claim.

After some extensive research and delicate negotiation, I have found a leading underwriter who is prepared to offer her an ‘Agreed’ contract on the basis of common sense (rather than guidelines).

This solves her problem entirely.

I love getting results for my clients such as this one.

To celebrate the Smileys I’ve put together a short video on why financial advisers should ‘bother’ about social media. Hope you like it.

I’m proud and thankful to say that I I am one of 12 finalists and here is the full list in alphabetical order (makes me finish last almost every time if we go by surname):

• Charles Badenach @CBadenach
• Marshall Brentnall @MarshBrentnall
• Jenny Brown @JBSFinancialJB
• Dean Johnson @DjohnsonDean
• Matthew Leech @MattLeech
• Steve May @InsideWealth
• David Rae @1DaveRae
• Nick Sinclair @NickQSinclair
• Naomi Rosenthal @Naomi_Tudor
• Liam Shorte @SMSFCoach
• James Sutherland @onlineadviser
• Aaron Zelman @aaron_zelman

I was recently at home when my baby took her first steps.

I am now leaving work to see my eldest in her first ballet concert.

Risk Insurance is my passion but nothing compares to the joy these activities give me.

At least I can see the runway now.

Seat-belts on. Look forward to flying soon.

It is both exciting and little scary  and it reminds me of those days before I became a father for the first time.

I hope I am not over-confident, but somehow I know that things are going to be just fine.

I am speaking to this client (a fast growing business) because one of my long-time friends is one of the partners / keypeople. So why can’t they just trust me?

And then I start to put myself in their shoes… I can see that I haven’t really articulated the sort of value I can provide in my advice and service both today and tomorrow. I have merely been an order taker for the level of cover they are seeking.

I know that my quotes are really great value and that the quality of product I’ve recommended is also top-notch. I know that my research is thorough and that I consider the widest array of providers and policies. But how do they unless I illustrate or explain that to them.

Having great rapport is a wonderful start, but without showing value (not just in terms of economy), I can’t expect the business to come my way.

I guess you always have to earn it.

I can’t say that I can really compare it to other platforms but I can say that once you get going, it is quite simple to use and is clearly very powerful in terms of what it can do.

It’s also a bit like when you are interested or have just bought a particular type of car, all of a sudden you notice so many similar cars on the roads. So too, WordPress is behind so many of the websites and blogs I encounter each day.

Well done WordPress team!