The Tennessee Agent

Tennessee agent the

A P R I L / M AY 2 0 1 1

VOL. 53, NO. 2

“In my opinion, the battle will be between the iPad and various Android tablets.”

See Tech Bit article on page 17

IN THIS ISSUE Considerations Before Adding a Tablet to Your Desktop A New Number One E&O Education Preview of the 2011 Convention

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OFFICERS Glen Page, CIC, CPIA President Page, Chaffin & Riggins Insurance 8122 Walnut Run Cordova, TN 38018 Ph: 901-755-5526 email: glen@pcrins.com Elaine Morton, CPIA President-elect Morton Insurance Agency, Inc., Bartlett email: elaine@mortonagency.com Steve Peay Vice President Boyle Insurance, Memphis email: stevep@boyle.com Lorrie Palmer, CIC Secretary Holman and Holman, Springfield email: lpalmer@holmanandholmanins.com Donnie Hogan, CIC Treasurer Fred M. Smith & Son, Inc., Springfield email: donnie@fredmsmith.com Leighton Bush, CPIA Immediate Past President Bush Insurance & Financial Services, Nashville email: leighton@bushins.com

N AT I O N A L D I R E C T O R June W. Taylor, CIC, CPIA, CPIW, DAE Wilkinson Insurance Agency, White House email: june.taylor@wilkinsonins.com

DIRECTORS Carl Butcher, CIC, CPA C. L. Butcher Agency, Knoxville email: carl@clbutcher.com Tina M. Hutsenpiller, CPIA Hutsenpiller Insurance Service, LLC, Mt. Juliet email: tina@hutsenpillerinsurance.com Joseph P. (Joe) Kerr, CIC, CPIA Kerr Insurance Services, LLC, Brentwood email: joe@kerrinsurance.net Britt Linder, CIC Peterson Insurance Services, Inc., Bartlett email: britt@peterson-insurance.com Herbert Montgomery Clay and Land Insurance Agency, Memphis email: hmontgomery@clayandland.com Bill Oglesby, II, CIC, CPIA Brown Insurance Group, Crossville email: bill@brown-insurance.com Barry Wilson, CIC Mid-South Insurance Office, Inc., Memphis email: bwilson@mid-southinsurance.com

TA B L E O F C O N T E N T S April/May 2011 Vol. 53, No. 2

Articles Convention Education Preview The 2011 convention offers education that will appeal and instruct all agency and company personnel. Earn C.E. credit by attending NFIP flood training and a preview class of the Insurance Success Seminars. Professional speaker and marketing consultant Ted Janusz leads sessions on social media and on effectiveness and efficiency. And, agent-to-agent roundtables will offer the opportunity to share and learn from colleagues. . . . . . . . . . .7 Let “P” Represent Professional, not Problems Billy Akin, president of Professional Consultants & Services, consults on legal insurance issues and serves as an expert witness in insurance cases. Drawing from professional observation he shares insight into professionalism. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11 Homeowners—the New Number One The new number one what? E&O claim. Utica National agents E&O consultant Curt Pearsall elaborates. . . . . . . . . . . .14 Producer Personality Traits The personality trait of producers influences their success on connecting (or not) with would-be clients.

Omnia Group senior consultant Carletta Neal explains three personality traits and their pluses and minuses. . . . . . . . .17 Tablets, Tablets Everywhere In the market for a tablet computer? Read Gregg Marshall’s “Tech Bit” article on tablets before you buy. . . . . . . .17

Columns Welcome New Members . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5

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President’s Perspective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5

Pamela D. Cass, CPIA, pcass@piatn.com Director of Education & Convention

PIA Calendar & Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21

Sandy Clive, CPIA, sclive@piatn.com Director of Member Services Lochiel Gaines, lgaines@piatn.com Director of Communications, Trade Show Coordinator Liz Maden, lmaden@piatn.com Director of Accounting Services

The Tennessee Agent (ISSN 1081-566X) is published bimonthly by the Professional Insurance Agents of Tennessee, Inc. Statement of fact or opinions expressed in any article are solely that of the author and does not imply opinions of the officers, directors or staff of PIA of Tennessee, Inc. The publishing of any article or advertisement does not imply endorsement by PIA of Tennessee, Inc. No material within this publication may be reproduced in whole or in part without the consent of the Editor.

Editor: Lochiel Gaines, lgaines@piatn.com Advertising inquiries should be made to the Editor, The Tennessee Agent, 504 Autumn Springs Court, A-2, Franklin, TN 37067.

Telephone 615/771-1177 Fax 615/771-3456 Email – lgaines@piatn.com Website – www.piatn.com

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Welcome, New Members Active/Agency

Associate/Company

Dedric Pearson Pete Mitchell & Associates Memphis

Mike Gleghorn GMAC Insurance Winston-Salem, NC www.gmacinsurance.com

Kyle Pierce Womack and Holland Fayetteville

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THE TENNESSEE AGENT April/May 2011

President’s Perspective B Y G L E N PA G E , C I C , C P I A

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y the time this article goes to print, we will be very close to the 76th PIA of Tennessee annual convention. The date is June 9th through June 11th and is being held at The Marriott Shoals Resort & Spa located in Florence, Alabama. This is a very beautiful facility and conveniently located for most every one. We have a great room rate of $109 (plus tax) per night.

Florence is a beautiful and historic city with many things to do for adults and children. Our conventions are always a family affair.

I can’t say enough about the conventions that PIA of Tennessee conducts each year. If you have ever been to one, you know exactly what I’m saying. We have a great trade show giving you the opportunity to meet with insurance companies and vendors and explore new ideas. The educational opportunities are tremendous with several seminars available offering you the opportunity to gain knowledge and also receive continuing education credits. These seminars are conducted by very knowledgeable instructors and are well worth the time attending. I feel that the networking you get by meeting and talking with other agents is immeasurable. Just meeting with old friends and renewing friendships from previous conventions is well worth the time.

This year we are also expecting agents from Alabama and Mississippi to attend. This is an exciting opportunity we are exploring and hopefully we get good response from these two states. It is a winwin situation for all involved. I am excited about the opportunity we have to meet and network with these agents and their personnel.

I have always been passionate about our conventions and feel that the time and money spent is well worth it. If you have never attended a PIA of Tennessee convention and trade show, please give it a try and I think you will agree with me. If it has been a while since attending, come on back. I don’t think you will regret it. All said it is not too late to register. To get registration material, contact the

office staff in Franklin at 1-800-875-7428. You can also go online at www.piatn.com/convention. If nothing else, call me and I will do everything except drive you there! So pack your bags and let’s have a good time at “the Shoals.”

I want to thank everyone who attended the Day on the Hill in Nashville on the 9th of March. We had great meetings with our senators and representatives in the General Assembly. We also had a very productive meeting with the new Insurance Commissioner, Julie McPeak, and some of her staff.

I was very much impressed with her insurance background and knowledge of the insurance industry. It was good seeing the Assistant Commissioner, Larry Knight, whom we have met with several C O N T I N U E D

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• A nationwide network of insurance agents on the Internet. Why be on the internet alone when you can network with agents across America?

• We’ll take care of your web presence so that you can continue to sell insurance.

• Email for your staff • Custom-designed websites • Website hosting • Search engine placement on the Top 50 engines • FREE edit time monthly to keep your site up to date • Discounts for PIA of TN members • And so much more.

Cost? Pennies or dollars per day — you choose.

We’re the ONLY web design, web hosting company created BY an INSURANCE AGENT FOR the INSURANCE AGENT! XChange Insurance Network (formerly The Tennessee Insurance XChange)

Toll Free: (877) 377-1212 E-mail: Info@XChange Insurance.com Website: http://www.XChangeInsurance.com THE TENNESSEE AGENT April/May 2011

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Convention Education Preview Thursday, June 9

Friday, June 10

NFIP Flood Training Approved for 3 hours C.E.*

Social Media Demystified Everywhere you turn there are articles and information on social media. Ted Janusz will help you to make sense of what social media is, how it works and how your agency can benefit from the resource of social networking. Ted is a business adviser on face-to-face and electronic social networking. He was featured writer in the “PIA National Agency Marketing Guide” and is a member of the National Speakers Association. Some of his clients include Verizon, The Limited, McGraw-Hill Companies and Nissan.

This seminar will address basic flood insurance issues, as well as more advanced components. At the conclusion, attendees will understand how to build a flood insurance policy from the ground up.

Experienced attendees will develop a better understanding of the standard flood insurance policy’s major coverage area, FEMA’s elevation certificate, and increased cost of compliance coverage. *Special note for P/C-licensed agents who are subject to the state’s C.E. rule for the renewal of their license: The Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance has approved a rule that requires such agents to complete a one-time, threehour flood class before the first license renewal that follows January 1, 2012. This NFIP flood training seminar will fulfill this C.E. requirement.

Turn Your Technical Knowledge into $$$s Submitted for 3 hours C.E. This workshop will provide participants with an overview of the three-part Insurance Success Seminar curriculum which leads to the coveted Certified Professional Insurance Agent (CPIA) designation. Attendees will learn valuable tips on consumer expectation, account development and retention, and interpersonal communication skill.

Agency sales managers, account managers, producers, internal support staff and company marketing personnel will benefit from their attendance.

Agent-to-Agent Roundtables Connect and learn from your peers in straightforward, informal discussions on a range of timely topics. Attendees will select the topics they are most interested in discussing and rotate to the discussion table where they can share their view and experiences, ask questions, and hear solutions.

Saturday, June 11 Closing General Session Ted Janusz returns to lead a fun, fast-paced entertaining closing session. Attendees will take away valuable insight into how to be more efficient and more effective. You’ll leave with information on how to achieve personal and career advantages that ultimately can create a more profitable and successful agency.

THE TENNESSEE AGENT April/May 2011

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Let “P” Represent Professional, not Problems BY

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as it lately crossed your mind that the “P” in PIA stands for “professional”? From my experience, may I encourage you—no, urge you—to to act as a professional agent in practice, not in title only! Perhaps some of my experiences will encourage you to this end.

After working with an insurance company for almost thirty years, being associated with an excess and surplus lines agency for several years, working as a licensed agent, and activities as a legal consultant and expert witness, I have seen insurance problems from almost every angle.

I will mention a few legal cases with which I have been involved as an expert witness over the last few years. These capsules of information are shared to help you be a more professional agent.

Names have been changed to protect the innocent…and the guilty.

Billy L. Akin, CPCU, ARM, is President of Professional Consultants & Services, Inc. in Hendersonville, TN. He does legal insurance consulting and expert witness work and can be reached at 615-826-7294 or bakinpcs@aol.com.

His website is www.pcandsinc.com.

1. There was the case of agent, Mr. Cover U. All, who worked for an independent agency that advertised their risk management services. For several years the agency placed coverages for a company called Leaving It To You, Inc. The agent knew of a contract between the insured and another large corporation with which they regularly did business. That contract contained a provision that was, in my opinion, overlooked by the agent, Mr. All. Over the years the agency had reviewed contracts for the insured and had been sure that coverage was in place to handle the provisions of the contracts. A very large claim involving the contract provision became, to say

the least, a major problem for the agent.

2. Another case involved an agency CSR by the name of Ms. Share The Load. For years Ms. Load worked with an insured named Multiple Companies, Inc. and did a great job of helping with their insurance needs. One day when Ms. Load was evidently unavailable, another CSR took a call from Multiple Companies, Inc. and erroneously placed, or failed to place, coverage for the proper corporate entity.

Evidently, if the call had been referred to Ms. Load, the CSR who traditionally handled this account, the error would not have been made. More costly problems for the agency.

3. When using an excess and surplus lines broker, often including a sub-broker between the agent and risk bearing insurance carrier, special care should be taken. There was the case involving agent, Mr. What Date Change, where a request for a “no known loss” letter came down through the series of brokers and back to the carrier while the agent did not notice that a change in policy inception date had taken place. You guessed it, a large loss occurred between the two dates in question, creating. More problems for the agent who seemed unconcerned about “trivial details.”

Again, my advice is to utilize E & S carriers when needed but be alert to increased possibility of mis-communication with the additional layers of agents involved.

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4. I recall an agency that we shall call Not Careful Enough, Inc. that placed a huge liability account with a carrier that subsequently became insolvent. This action took place in spite of warnings about the company and instructions distributed within the agency about potential financial problems. The agency properly notified its other insureds who had been placed with this carrier, and replaced the accounts with financially sound companies. With agency personnel changes and communication breakdowns, the first the insured knew of a carrier problem was when a tremendous liability claim was reported. Another factor complicating the problem for the agency was the fact that the policy was written on a “continuous” basis with no specific expiration date, so long as premiums were paid, etc. As in the children’s fairy tale rhyme, when old Mother Hubbard (the insured) got to the cupboard (the insurer) the cupboard was

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bare (broke).

5. Another lawsuit was brought about by the actions (or lack thereof) of an agent whom we shall call Ms. Watch Me Closely. The particular insured in this case was insurance illiterate and heavily relied on her agent of many years to protect her assets. In fact, leading up to this situation, the insured had been involved in an accident and was aware of how a seemingly small incident can result in a huge financial loss. She had specifically asked the agent to see that her policies were there to protect her assets, and be certain that limits were very high. To her credit, the agent arranged for an umbrella policy for this insured “to properly protect her assets”. Although uninsured motorist coverage was discussed, and this coverage was on the primary automobile policy, the agent failed to see that this coverage was not on the new personal umbrella. In a few months, the daughter of the insured was killed by

the negligence of an uninsured motorist.

Enter, the lawsuit, against the agent.

These summaries admittedly are admitted grossly simplified to make a point. Believe me, lawsuits can be very complex and can take many hours away from your productive activities. Sure, it takes more time to document a conversation or agreement, but not near as much time as will be involved with attorneys and the courts. The cost of settlement of an errors or omissions claim is not just the settlement amount but the hours agency personnel spend on research, document production and testimony.

By the way of disclaimer, these remarks are not intended as legal advice nor intended to interpret or apply any legal statutes or case law. Hope this helps. Keep learning, keep caring and always act as the professional that you are. •

Homeowners—the New Number One B Y C U R T I S M . P E A R S A L L , C P C U , A I A F, C P I A

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or many years, commercial casualty (GL, Umbrella) was the number one underlying loss type. However, in reviewing final 2010 results, there is a new number one in town…

Homeowners. Just short of twenty percent of all errors and omissions claims allege issues dealing with the Homeowners line of business.

Drilling down further, there are several issues to look at. Valuation is one of the major issues; dogs are not exactly E&O’s best friend; and carrier binding guidelines round out the top three. In addition, Utica is experiencing claim activity dealing with issues surrounding personal property that would be better covered under an inland marine policy or floater. Let’s examine each of these in more detail.

Curtis M. Pearsall is Special Consultant to the Utica National E&O Program.

Valuation For many years, carriers have been providing their agents with various tools to determine the appropriate Homeowners limit. These are designed to provide, when given the proper accurate inputs, a respectable, somewhat accurate estimated value for the home.

The key is “proper accurate inputs,” as without these, the output may not be a valid representation of an appropriate Homeowners limit and definitely should not be relied upon.

Many would contend that even with the proper inputs, the calculated value may not be accurate due to significant fluctuations in the price of homebuilding products. When calculating the amount, advise the customer in writing that this is not a guarantee the home can be replaced for this amount.

For homes with a degree of unique-

ness, it is questionable whether the estimators should be relied upon at all. In many of these situations, calling in a licensed appraiser may be the best answer.

Based on the economy in your area, it is possible for customers to buy a home for much less than it would cost to actually replace it. Communicate to your customers that there is no correlation between market value and replacement cost. Related to this approach, some individuals contend the customer should advise you, as the agent, the amount for which they want the home insured. This does have some merit, provided the customer thinks of what it would cost to replace the home as opposed to its market value.

Dogs Dogs are becoming much more of an issue, largely due to the unknown breed of many dogs. If your customer contacts your agency to state they are getting a dog, they might not know the actual breed combination given the crossbreeding that takes place. With carriers experiencing losses involving dog bites, they are trying to find ways to address this issue.

When you receive that call, advise your customers, verbally and in writing, that there are certain breeds insurance companies have put on their “prohibited” list. To avoid any problems down the road, the customer should try to ascertain the breed of the dog they are considering. Posting this information on your website would be beneficial for those customers who might not contact you verbally. It wouldn’t be surprising at C O N T I N U E D

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some point for carriers to include in their policy form a list of dog breeds excluded in the policy.

Carrier guidelines Each of your carriers has specific guidelines detailing the circumstances that allow you to bind without first securing their blessing. They do this for a reason. It provides your agency with the ability to bind coverage for those risks that meet the guidelines. It also provides your carriers with recourse against your agency if a risk you bound without their blessing and that does not meet their guidelines suffers a loss. As noted by the claim example below, carriers take these guidelines seriously (and so should your agency): The agency wrote coverage for a log

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cabin for an insured through a carrier they represented. The client had been with another carrier and had a history of late premium payments and reinstatements. The new carrier claimed they would not have written the risk had they known of the prior history of the risk and, in addition, stated they do not write coverage for log homes. The agent knew it was log home, but did not disclose that to the carrier. After paying a loss of $532,117, the carrier filed suit, alleging the credit history and distance from a firehouse (which was understated) were not disclosed, and had they been, they would not have written the risk. They did not bring up the aspect of the house being a log cabin. There was also a question of fact regarding a discussion between the agent and the carrier before the risk was written. The agent said she

disclosed the credit history over the phone and was given a green light to write the risk. The underwriter denies this. The case was settled by paying the carrier the full amount, $532,117.

Some “lessons to be learned” from this example: • Provide your carrier with a full and accurate description of the risk.

• If you discuss the risk with the underwriter and they give you the go-ahead, document the conversation back to the underwriter and put a copy of this documentation in the file.

• Stay on top of the guidelines and don’t bind a risk you don’t have authority to bind. There is no upside to misleading your carriers.

Homeowners coverage or inland marine floater?

There are many scenarios where there are coverage differences between insuring an item under a Homeowners policy as part of the contents limit as opposed to insuring those items on an inland marine floater. While there may be some coverage for jewelry under an HO policy, with most forms, mysterious disappearance is not a covered peril. This peril is typically covered under a jewelry floater. Plus, items that are breakable would probably not have breakage coverage unless insured under a floater. In addition to these peril issues, establishing the proper value is more common with a floater and thus at claims time, the customer is more apt to get a fairer settlement.

It is definitely recommended you advise your clients, verbally and in writing, that when they receive their policy they must review it to ensure everything is in order. The agency should also review the policy to make sure it matches what was requested.

Take the time to educate your staff on these issues. With Homeowners now the leading underlying line of business in E&O claims, this education may just save you from such a claim. •

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Calendar of Events PIA LOCAL CHAPTER MEETINGS

PIA ANNUAL CONVENTION

• East Tennessee Contact Ron Welch, 865/689-6254

• 76th Annual Convention & Trade Show June 9-11, 2011 Marriott Shoals Resort & Spa Florence, Alabama

• Memphis Second Tuesday of every month in Memphis Contact Steve Peay, 901/766-0200 • Chattanooga Fourth Tuesday of every month in Chattanooga Contact Nancy Brannan, 423/892-6427

Classroom Education CPIA INSURANCE SUCCESS SEMINARS • CPIA 2 August 4, 2011 in Nashville 7 hours C.E.

• CPIA 3 November 3, 2011 in Nashville 8 hours C.E.

Online Education P R E - L I C E N S I N G E D U C AT I O N • Online Study and Traditional Self-Study Property & Casualty, Life & Health, Series 6 & 63

CPCU) C.E. approved courses in all 50 states and D.C., the American College, the CPCU Society, the CFP Bord. Available 24/7. www.piatn.com/education/ceu.com

• Agency Orientation for New Staff

• Learn.net (PIA National) Tennessee-specific courses; 12 hours for most.

Ethics, flood, E&O, healthcare reform, long term care partnership, and more. www.piatn.com/education/learn.net

• Delivering Quality Service to the Customer and the Employer

D E S I G N AT I O N P R O G R A M S

TRAINING FOR NEW EMPLOYEES For employees with less than 12 months experience

• Personal Lines Coverage Basics 12 hours C.E. credit • Commercial Lines Coverage Basics 12 hours C.E. credit C O N T I N U I N G E D U C AT I O N O N L I N E • CEU.com (The American Institute for

• Personal Lines Coverage Specialist (PLCS) Online self-study; C.E. approved • Commercial Lines Coverage Specialist (CLCS) Online self-study; C.E. approved www.piatn.com/education/designationprograms

2 0 1 1 E D U C AT I O N P A R T N E R S Accident Fund of America • Arlington-Roe • Bolton & Co. • Grange Insurance PIA Advantage Services Corp. • ServPro • U.S. Risk Insurance Group • Utica National Insurance Group THE TENNESSEE AGENT 13 April/May 2011

Producer Personality Traits B Y C A R L E T TA N E A L

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Carletta Neal is a Senior Sales Consultant for The Omnia Group from Tampa, Florida. She specializes in personnel selection/management and helps clients increase employee productivity.

Contact her at 800-525-7117 x 1226 or via email at cneal@omniagroup.com

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necessary evil is how some people might describe insurance. A producer’s job, of course, is to turn this kind of misguided, industry-swiping thinking around and make the whole experience of purchasing insurance pleasant—or at least something that’s perceived as being a little less than loathsome.

Unfortunately, insurance products can’t sell themselves! They just don’t have the same exciting allure of golf course homes, luxury cars, or dream vacations in Hawaii. Unlike salespeople in the real estate, auto, or travel industries, producers can’t easily entice buyers with pretty pictures or slick ads. Your product is invisible, and while it is invaluable when needed, on a day-today basis insurance seems to offer clients no tangible benefits.

To a great extent, one’s ability to succeed in insurance sales depends on how well he or she can mentally and emotionally connect with would-be clients.

Because of this, insurance producers— perhaps more so than professionals in any other sales industry—need to be able to communicate with a wide range of people, gain attention, inform, empathize and reassure. They need to be able to convince everyone and anyone— from the loud-mouthed know-it-all, to the quiet professional, to the apprehensive cynic.

In order to interact effectively with others, a clear understanding of one’s own personality and inherent behavior must be gained, whether these are atypical of sales or not. Even if less than ideal, a producer’s unique traits can be utilized in sales as long as they are recognized for what they are and channeled properly. What follows is some notable

personality traits and their pluses and minuses.

Networkers Producers who easily strike up conversations, relax around strangers and project a friendly demeanor often have a clear advantage over shy, quiet types when it comes to sales. Their charm and enthusiasm can be hard for anyone— including apprehensive prospects—to resist! These charismatic dynamos are not all highly assertive, though; many prefer to come across as more of a trusted friend than a self-serving business monger. They’re likeable, and they know it. They despise arguments, debates or confrontations.

If you see yourself or an employee in this Networker personality group, know that social skills are the strengths. They will help open doors that might remain sealed to others! However, the challenge may be to overcome a fear of hurting others’ feelings or seeming too pushy; this fear, if not erased, can cause Networker producers to lose out on some sales. Their sales performance may be uneven more often than not.

Guard against being dictated to by a perspective client. Maintain the upper hand. Smile and stay upbeat, but insist on a buying commitment or at least an immediate follow-up appointment so the closing process moves forward and the sale hastens.

Be aware that very staid individuals could have some trouble relating to very vibrant, expressive producers. If a prospective client gives one-word answers, he or she is probably not angry, sad or sick—just predisposed to being C O N T I N U E D

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frugal with words and expecting others to be so as well. When speaking to these types, be more serious, less flamboyant and don’t generalize. Stick with the bottom-line facts about your policies and save the hype and humorous anecdotes for more outgoing prospects.

Administrators Producers who stay attentive to details and assume the role of a cautious, understated consultant may find that clients appreciate their service-mindedness and candor. Does this sound like you or one of your sales people? If so, know that the strong points are an accommodating nature, a helpful disposition and the ability to spell out facts.

Existing clients and prospects probably appreciate the Administrator producer’s thorough analysis of the policies they want. Make sure, though, that technical jargon is kept to a bare minimum. Don’t over-explain. Not everyone is able to quickly process complex information.

An understated business approach might be perceived as a breath of fresh air by anyone who’s recently fallen prey to shark-like, fast-talking sales pros.

Keep in mind, however, that a conscious effort to be more assertive might need to be made when making a sales presentation. Otherwise, some people might mistake a more laid-back attitude for one that lacks drive and determination.

Try to seem more enterprising and self-serving, especially around those who appear to be bold and demanding.

Most buyers prefer doing business with someone they can relate to, so reading the personality of a prospect and then becoming a bit of a chameleon helps. A producer’s basic personality can’t be changed, but his or her behavior can certainly be modified, and should be, if doing so will enhance the chances for sales success.

Intimidators Producers who are opportunistic may seem naturally suited to sales scenarios.

They typically possess the resilience and desire to win what’s needed to sell insurance successfully in today’s unpredictable, volatile market. They usually find it easy to pressure others into decisions and often keep score of their victories by counting their commission checks. If this sounds like you or someone on your staff, the strength here is forcefulness.

Other assets are a thick skin and an ability to apply pressure so others comply with requests. Be careful, though, as too much of a good thing becomes a liability. Coming on too strong will seem intimidating and dictatorial. NOBODY likes a condescending, cocky wise guy.

Temper boldness. Exhibit patience. A sense of humor also can soften an overly aggressive image. Make sure the Intimidator producer personality provides excellent follow-up service to clients. They’ll appreciate knowing there’s a genuine concern for their best interest. Repeat business and referrals C O N T I N U E D

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will be the reward when customers enjoy working with their producer.

times over the years. It was a very good and informative meeting. If you have never attended the Day on the Hill, I encourage you to do so next year.

Information goes out to membership prior to the visit and staff can assist you with details.

I am looking forward to seeing each and every one of you at the Convention.

Safe travel and God bless. •

Android or iPad apps require. You could have custom apps running in days instead of weeks or months. Many of the exciting possibilities for tablets will be custom apps making your business more effective.

You need to start thinking about creative ways tablet computers can impact your business. That might include getting a tablet to experiment with. And I suggest you look around as you are doing business to see how tablets are being used, or where they might be used.

There is definitely a tablet in your future, the only question is just which one and when. •

Conclusion Every producer exhibits his or her own response to other people and environments; it is this uniqueness that opens the door to both opportunities and challenges. Once the ways to best capitalize on those opportunities and override those challenges are realized, success is maximized and it becomes much easier to stay way ahead in any sales game! • PIA Member Benefit: PIA members receive a free Omnia Profile when they start to use The Omnia Group’s services.

Contact Carletta or visit The Omnia Group website at www.omniagroup.com and tell them you are a PIA member.

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Gregg Marshall, CPMR, CSP, is a speaker, author and consultant. He can be reached by e-mail at gmarshall@repconnection.com, or visit his website at http://www.repconnection.com.

Tech Bit Tablets, Tablets Everywhere

BY GREGG MARSHALL

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sually, the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in January ends up having a “theme.” This year it was tablet computers. Low cost Android tablets seemed to end up being the theme. How many were there? The estimates vary, but easily 80 to 100 new tablets were on display. And it seemed like one in every four Chinese or Korean exhibitor had a tablet computer in their booth. Of the 100 new tablets introduced at CES, 60 to 70 likely will never get released, and it wouldn’t surprise me if 80 to 90 of the 100 don’t exist by next year’s CES. Google, the primary creator of Android (technically it is open source, but in practicality it’s being entirely driven by Google), hasn’t even released the version of Android, Android 3.0, code-named Honeycomb, that will officially support tablet computers. It’s due in March or April. Most of the tablets on display were running one of the Android 2 versions, although a few of the really cheap ones were running Android 1.7 or 1.9.

If you are in the market for a tablet, one of the first questions you need to be asking during this transitional period is whether the vendor is going to be releasing upgrades, especially to Android 3.0. A lot of the early inexpensive entrants will likely never make it past Android 1.9, if they even get that upgrade. And the problem is getting an enforceable commitment for those upgrades.

I’m not sure a local retailer has a lot of power over a Chinese manufacturer’s product development.

Another big decision you need to make before selecting a tablet is the touch screen technology.

There are two: capacitive and resistive. The iPad uses a capacitive touch screen, as do a few Android tablets. It is generally a bit more expensive, doesn’t work with gloved hands or most stylus options, but is very responsive and allows multi-touch gesturing.

Most of the other tablets use a resistive touch screen, which is less expensive and works well with a stylus (if you are thinking of business applications, checking boxes and filling forms are likely

needs which for many people are more comfortably done with a stylus). But resistive touch screens can be unresponsive to just a finger and will be limited in their multi-touch options. Resistive touch screens have a wide range of responsiveness, from just short of requiring a stylus to being indistinguishable from a capacitive touch screen. The touch screen technology makes it important to actually play with any options; you can’t just order a tablet based on its specifications.

Interestingly the normal differentiators for computers, processor, memory, and storage capacity, are less important for tablets.

The reason is tablets really need to be viewed as a user interface to the cloud, be it websites or internet stored data (that includes video). As a result, as long as the tablet works to your expectations you really don’t care what processor it has, very unlike the “old days” when your processor determined your operating system which determined your application options.

There will be Android tablets with screens all the way from 5 inches (not really much bigger than the full sized smart phones) through 12 inches. To a point, increasing screen size will mean increasing costs.

On the other hand, in some applications smaller might be better. For example, a 7 inch tablet might be a great personal media player, letting you watch video on the go. And 7 inches is the screen size of my eBook readers. But if you are going to be doing much data entry with the on-screen keyboard, you’ll find a 10 inch or larger screen much more useable. Unfortunately the screen resolution doesn’t necessarily increase with corresponding increases in screen size.

While the lack of maturity of the Android options might suggest the iPad as the better option, one feature of Android is its app builder, which lets relatively inexperienced developers build custom apps without the significant programming native

In the In my my opinion, opinion, the battle will battle will be be between iPad between the the iPad and various various and Andoid tablets.

Android tablets.

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