FYI Express - June 2014 by Eddie Emmett

More Information about Georgia Insurance Agents Alliance Membership at www.FYIExpress.com

EXPRESS “What You Don’t Know Can’t Help You!” … Eddie K. Emmett, Editor / Publisher

If it’s free … It’s for me! In This Edition IF IT’S FREE … IT’S FOR ME!............ 1 INSURANCE EXPO 2014 AGENDA .... 3 IS CUSTOMER SERVICE GETTING WORSE?........................................ 6 CYBER LIABILITY, YOUR AGENCY & YOUR CLIENTS ............................... 8 WHAT TO DO WHEN A PRODUCER DEPARTS - WITH YOUR ACCOUNTS ................................................... 10 FREE CAN BE A GREAT CUSTOMER SERVICE STRATEGY ..................... 26 HOW TO TAKE ELECTRONIC SIGNATURES ................................ 35 HOW TO ACCEPT CREDIT CARDS, DEBIT CARDS AND ELECTRONIC CHECKS AT NO COST TO YOUR AGENCY....................................... 38

“If it’s free … It’s for me!” is the phrase I teach all attendees to my seminars on Internet Marketing & Social Media. It’s also very apropos when speaking of Insurance Expo 2014. For example: Thursday afternoon from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. you can be brought up to date on all things going on at the GA DOI. Your teachers are Commissioner Ralph Hudgens and his staff. You may earn 3 hours CE and attend the Trade Show for FREE! Then make plans to hang out at the Aggressive Insurance Poolside Party starting at 6:00 p.m. Free Food, Free Drinks, Free Music. You might want to take advantage of the Sonesta room rate of only th $94.00 before the June 24 cutoff. Friday afternoon from 1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. explores “The Next Big Deal” Listen ... that noise you hear is opportunity knocking! Did you get in on the Obamacare Confusion" Some agents made over $100K. What's the next Big Deal"?

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50 Years of Bonding with Agencies

Insurance House, Southern Insurance Underwriters and Strickland General Agency are celebrating a combined 150 Years of Bonding with the Insurance Industry. In honor of their Golden Anniversary, IE2014 is giving away 3 hours CE (150 minutes) to all attendees.

Immigration Reform comes to mind. Cyber Liability is another. eSignatures is definitely on the list. Attend this seminar then complete your active participation by visiting each of the Exhibitors in the Trade Fair from 3:00 - 6:00 p.m. to earn 3 hours Association CE

This CE is free to everyone but you must register online at http://www.fyiexpress.com/agents-csrs.html since seating is limited to the first 240 registrations.

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More Information about Georgia Insurance Agents Alliance Membership at www.FYIExpress.com Want more? Now you have to pay. Thursday morning from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. you’ll learn everything you need to know about “How to Evaluate, Buy & Sell a ‘Mom & Pop Insurance Agency”. These 3 hours Ethics CE costs $25.00 unless you have a company-sponsored discount code. What will you learn?

Friday morning’s CE seminar is a fast-paced overview of all the things you can download from the Internet to make your agency run more smoothly, profitably and get more online visibility. These 3 hours Ethics CE costs $25.00 unless you have a company-sponsored discount code. What will you learn? 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.: 3 hours Ethics CE

“How to Evaluate, Buy & Sell a ‘Mom & Pop’ Insurance Agency!” Topics: 99-point Evaluation Checklist – You really didn’t think it was just the last 12 month’s income, did you? Automation – Lack of an Agency Management System cuts your perceived value by 50%. If you don’t have one, pick up one at IE2014 Trade Show. e-Signatures, apps & payments – Want to easily add to the value of your agency? Start selling online with e-Signatures for all your insurance products and services. Your clients will love you and you have a proven business model to enhance the agency value. You will increase business so easily that you might change your mind about selling! Internet Presence – So what does your Internet Presence have to do with agency value? Think about it … prospective buyers will check you out online way before contacting you personally (& they will have already formed an opinion of your operation). “Tail” E&O – You can’t sign off your liabilities unless all parties agree. And it is impossible to get approval from all of your current and recent policyholders. Employee Agreements – Did you know that some employees think the book of business belongs to them and plan to take those policyholders with them if they can’t get along with the new owner? Fortunately, agency owners have a new way to discourage that practice. It’s called “Cyber Liability”. Cyber Liability – State & Federal cops take PI Theft very seriously. Not only do they go after the thieves but the agency owner for losing the data. BTW … do you have permission to share your policyholder’s Personal Information with a potential buyer? You’ll learn all the above and much, much more! FYI Express

“If it’s free … It’s for me!” Since most of the folks in my seminars start to complain that their heads are bursting with ideas and information, I’ll have complimentary aspirin on hand. Bring your iPads and laptops to enjoy the Free Wi-Fi and have a “Hands-On” experience. Still not enough? Stick around for Saturday morning.

Saturday, July 12th “How to be #1 in your niche”: 3 hours CE 3 hours Ethics CE costs $25.00 unless you have a company-sponsored discount code. “Being busy does not always mean real work. The object of all work is production or accomplishment and to either of these ends there must be forethought, system, planning, intelligence, and honest purpose, as well as perspiration. Seeming to do is not doing.” Thomas A. Edison There's a step-by-step procedure needed for any successful program. 1.

Confirm customer need

Find suitable solution

Train employees in this special niche

Zero in on local prospects

Put in place targeted promotional material

Follow the simplified formula in this seminar and you are guaranteed to be #1 in all niche products offered by your agency. Page 2 June 2014

INSURANCE EXPO 2014 “Licensed to Sell!” July 10 – 12, 2014 Sonesta Gwinnett Place in Duluth, GA All Under One roof You spoke and I listened. You wanted a place that could host the South’s Best Insurance Industry Trade Fair, the Best Continuing Education Classes, the Best Insurance Agent Party and the Best Hotel Rates … all under one roof … and at affordable prices.

Why Should You Attend? It is 3 days of non-stop action and brand-new education designed especially for the Independent Insurance Industry.

Earn up to 24 hours Continuing Education!

Pay for only as much as you need! But wait … there’s more! Free Trade Fair, Free Hospitality Suites, Free Continuing Education … we’ve got it all.

You got it! Sonesta Gwinnett Place will be the place to be on July 10-12. Single, Double, Triple, Quad Rooms are only $94.00 if reserved by June 24, 2014.

Agent / CSR Online registration at http://www.fyiexpress.com/agents--csrs.html Exhibitor / Sponsor Online Registration at http://www.fyiexpress.com/exhibitors--sponsors.html IE2014 Agenda

More info at www.FYIExpress.com

Insurance Expo 2014 Continuing Education Agenda

Thursday, July 10th

1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.: 3 hours FREE CE Commissioner Hudgens and his staff are going to bring you up to date on the plans for GA’s Insurance Industry

9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.: 3 hours Ethics CE

This CE is free to everyone but you must register online at http://www.fyiexpress.com/agents-csrs.html since seating is limited to the first 240 registrations. Attend DOI Update and Trade Fair and earn 3 hours Association CE Credit (max 3 hours per year)

3:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.

“How to Evaluate, Buy & Sell a Mom & Pop Insurance Agency!”

Free Trade Show

Topics: 99-point Evaluation Checklist – You really didn’t think it was just the last 12 month’s income, did you? Automation – Lack of an Agency Management System cuts your perceived value by 50%. If you don’t have one, pick up one at IE2014 Trade Show. e-Signatures, apps & payments – Want to easily add to the value of your agency? Start selling online with e-Signatures for all your insurance products and services. Your clients will love you and you have a proven business model to enhance the agency value. You will increase business so easily that you might change your mind about selling! Internet Presence – So what does your Internet Presence have to do with agency value? Think about it … prospective buyers will check you out online way before contacting you personally (& they will have already formed an opinion of your operation).

Trade Show Open Bar sponsored by United Auto Insurance Group. Free admission to everyone except marketing reps from non-participating companies. They are “Persona non Grata” Look it up. 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. Poolside Party Your mission, if you choose to accept it, is to enjoy the hors d’ouveres and open bar sponsored by Aggressive Insurance.

“Tail” E&O – You can’t sign off your liabilities unless all parties agree. And it is impossible to get approval from all of your current and recent policyholders. Employee Agreements – Did you know that some employees think the book of business belongs to them and plan to take those policyholders with them if they can’t get along with the new owner? Fortunately, agency owners have a new way to discourage that practice. It’s called “Cyber Liability”. Cyber Liability – State & Federal cops take PI Theft very seriously. Not only do they go after the thieves but the agency owner for losing the data. BTW … do you have permission to share your policyholder’s Personal Information with a potential buyer?

6:00 p.m. – 11:00 p.m. More Receptions in Hospitality Suites Sonesta Gwinnett Place has 8 Hospitality Suites. Dinner on your own

You’ll learn all the above and much, much more! IE2014 Agenda

More info at www.FYIExpress.com

Friday, July 11

th 3:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.

9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.: 3 hours Ethics CE

Free Trade Show

Saturday, July 12 “If it’s free … It’s for me!” I’ll demonstrate the latest arsenal in free tools for enhancing your agency’s web presence, social media, video, agency automation. Aspirin will be on hand in case your head explodes. Bring your laptops & iPads for “Hands-On” Training. 1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. : 3 hours FREE CE “The Next Big Deal” Listen ... that noise you hear is opportunity knocking! Did you get in on the Obamacare Confusion" Some agents made over $100K. What's the next Big Deal"? Immigration Reform comes to mind. Cyber Liability is another. Attend this seminar then complete your active participation by visiting each of the Exhibitors in the Trade Fair from 3:00 - 6:00 p.m. to earn 3 hours Association CE 50 Years of Bonding with Agencies

“How to be #1 in your niche”: 3 hours CE “Being busy does not always mean real work. The object of all work is production or accomplishment and to either of these ends there must be forethought, system, planning, intelligence, and honest purpose, as well as perspiration. Seeming to do is not doing.” Thomas A. Edison There's a step-by-step procedure needed for any successful program. 1. Confirm customer need 2. Find suitable solution 3. Train employees in this special niche 4. Zero in on local prospects 5. Put in place targeted promotional material Follow the simplified formula in this seminar and you are guaranteed to be #1 in all niche products offered by your agency.

Insurance House, Southern Insurance Underwriters and Strickland General Agency are celebrating a combined 150 Years of Bonding with the Insurance Industry.

All attendees can get a free Excel spreadsheet of all prospects with a specific need within 31 mile radius of their office.

In honor of their Golden Anniversary, IE2014 is giving away 3 hours CE (150 minutes) to all attendees.

Let’s say you think being the #1 expert in plumber insurance in Brunswick, GA would be a good idea.

This CE is free to everyone but you must register online at http://www.fyiexpress.com/agents--csrs.html since seating is limited to the first 240 registrations. Attend Roundtable plus Trade Fair and earn 3 hours Association CE Credit (max 3 hours per year)

IE2014 Agenda

How many plumbers do you guess are there? It took me less than 3 seconds to create an Excel spreadsheet of 52 plumbers serving Brunswick, GA. And every one of them needs insurance. I can do that with any special niche. More info at www.FYIExpress.com

More Information about Georgia Insurance Agents Alliance Membership at www.FYIExpress.com They are very proud of it, and they tell the world about it, thereby educating the consumer on what really good customer service looks like. As a result, customers hope to get this level of service from all of the companies they do business with. That just makes it harder for companies that aren’t quite as customer focused, and that is a good thing. Companies that really want to compete and stand out are being forced to raise the bar and give customers a better experience. It can only be good for customers – and good for business. So, how does a company begin to not just meet, but exceed the customer’s expectations? How do they raise the bar? A good start is to identify the typical customer’s journey. Determine all of the main touch-points or frontline interactions. Think of each of these interactions as a link in a chain. If there is a weak link, figure out a way to strengthen it to eliminate or mitigate problems and customer complaints. Look at the strong links and determine what might be done to make them even stronger. At the same time, take a look at what is happening behind the scenes to support these front-line interactions. The systems and people behind the scenes can make or break the front-line customer experience.

Is Customer Service Getting Worse?

There is no doubt that some companies aren’t good at delivering customer service. But what about the ones that try, yet fail? Is it that they are bad or getting worse? Maybe not. Maybe they are failing because the bar has been raised and the customer is expecting more. Maybe it’s just getting harder.

“Customer service isn’t getting worse. Customer service is getting harder.” This was the message that Barak Eilam, the CEO of NICE, a technology company focused on customer experience solutions, shared with an audience of customers at the recent NICE Interactions users conference in Las Vegas. How profound. And, he’s right.

Shep Hyken is a customer service expert, professional speaker and New York Times bestselling business author. For information contact (314)692-2200 or www.hyken.com. For information on The Customer Focus™ customer service training programs go to http://www.thecustomerfocus.com. Follow on Twitter: @Hyken

Surveys in the customer service world are coming back and indicating that customers perceive customer service to be worse than last year. W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University finds that in 2013 customer problems climbed to 50% from 45% in 2011 and 32% in 1976. Yet, at the same time companies are marketing and bragging about how they provide great customer service.

Here’s my take. The customer is smarter than ever when it comes to customer service. The best companies are becoming benchmarks for others to aspire – not just in their own industry, but across all industries. Companies such as Apple, Amazon, Zappos, Ace Hardware, Ritz-Carlton, Nordstrom and others are consistently top performers in the world of customer service.

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Introduces New Mobile App

CELESTITE POLICY SCAN - Photo Upload Made Easy

Simplifying the new policy submission or new vehicle endorsement process by allowing Insurance Agents to capture required photos and upload them directly onto the specific policy. AVAILABLE NOW FOR IPHONE & ANDROID SEARCH For - Celestite Policy Scan



Marketing Jim Childs (770) 840-5077 Jim.Childs@aggressiveusa.com Janice Cantrell (912) 398-5295 Janice.Cantrell@aggressiveusa.com David Emmett (770) 490-7861 David.Emmett@aggressiveusa.com

More Information about Georgia Insurance Agents Alliance Membership at www.FYIExpress.com Our new Cyber Program will provide you with a strong response. It offers a streamlined underwriting approach without a long detailed application. We can link your agency to an automated platform that describes the coverage and processes quotes, binders and policy issuance. Our carrier is a market leader in this class and offers a competitive product, with limits, SIR’s and underwriting guidelines specifically tailored to the SMB market segment.

Cyber Liability, Your Agency & Your Clients It seems every day some business gets hacked and their data exposed to the world. It’s no secret that identity fraud and data breaches of the personal information held in trust by you or your customers are becoming a huge exposure. In fact, most of the associations tracking these crimes have stated that small businesses have become the target of choice for hackers and fraudsters.

We’re offering this program to our members to be used in two ways… First, protect your own agency.

And, “Nearly six out of ten (59%) of SMBs do not have a contingency plan outlining procedures for responding and reporting data breach losses”

You have data and data risks and need comprehensive and affordable protection. Think of all the personal information you have on clients and prospects. What would you do if you suffered a data breach? Simply go online and purchase. Limits are up to $1 million. All documents are issued instantly. Take advantage of these risk management tools right away.

— National Cyber Security Alliance and Symantec Small Business Survey How it happens… Lost or stolen laptop, unsecure smart phones, or hacked systems

Visit www.goagents.com/FYIExpress Next, protect your clients

Fraudulent purchase orders used to buy goods in the company name

All of your SMB customers are at risk, and the exposure to a small business can be devastating. Not only will you add value and help protect your clients, you will strengthen your relationships, deliver the optimal or “best deal” available and reduce your own E&O risk along the way. Leave the administration and fulfillment our new program partner while you build a new source of incremental, recurring revenues.

ID Thieves who impersonate the company to collect account receivables A disgruntled former employee selling the personal information of your customers. Why are small businesses targets?

SMBs having less than $10MM in revenue and 50 or less full time equivalent employees automatically qualify for our pre-pricing – the quotes are already live. Simply bind and print. (For data risk liability, select the Core Cyber™ program. To add business identity protection/business identity insurance, monitoring and alerts, choose SB Core Protector which is the flagship program providing the most comprehensive protection, i.e. cyber liability, business identity, employee identity coverage and more…)

Credit limits are higher than most individual victims Lack of formal internal data security used by larger companies Businesses control large amounts of Personal Identifying Information of others (credit card transactions, file records, customer and employee data) Delayed reaction times to discover a problem

Many experts agree that when it comes to SMB ID Theft and Data Breach exposures it’s not a case of ‘if’, but ‘when’. Don’t run the risk of becoming victimized without the proper coverage, and take steps to point out these exposures to all of your SMB customers.

The consequences of fraud or a breach... Financial loss and damage to credit ratings Negative impact on future revenues Damage to the company brand and reputation.

We encourage you to check the link to the program to learn more and make this coverage part of your new and renewal placements. In today’s market these data risks are simply too serious to ignore.

Loss of customer confidence and loyalty Disruptions with vendors and suppliers We are pleased to announce a new strategic alliance to provide all of our members with a Cyber Liability program specifically designed for your small to medium sized customers. FYI Express

Free Cyber Liability CE seminar on Friday afternoon at Insurance Expo 2014. Page 8

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Giving agents and organizations new products and benefits. Increase sales. All online. Easy to use.

OFFERING HIGH QUALITY NICHE PRODUCTS Home Warranties Appliance Protection Plans Auto Service Contracts Power Sports Service Contracts Pet Health Insurance Boat Insurance Discount Medical Plans Individual Identity Theft Business Identity Theft GoAgents is proud to be working together with the highest valued companies in the industry to bring you niche products, enabling you to cross sell and increase revenue with new and existing clients.

Questions? Call us at: (Toll Free)1-855-854-7387 or Learn More online at www.goagents.com

More Information about Georgia Insurance Agents Alliance Membership at www.FYIExpress.com The best non-compete terms involve a prohibition from “directly or indirectly soliciting, accepting, servicing or otherwise diverting” those active accounts that the producer produced during his employment at the agency. Furthermore, that type of “non-piracy” clause prohibits the producer from soliciting any other policies or clients that are active in the agency, were active in the last year, or were solicited in documentable fashion by him or anyone else in the agency during the last year.

THEFT OF ACCOUNTS By Al Diamond www.AgencyConsulting.com What to Do When A Producer Departs - With Your Accounts A wise person once said that the real crises in life are not those about which we worry, the real crises tend to arise out of the blue on a Tuesday afternoon when you are generally feeling pretty good about life. That is when the call came in from the agency – referred by his association. “Mr. Diamond, we have just lost our key producer and do not know what to do!” My first question in this case was exactly the same as it has been in the last 20 such calls. “Did you have an employment contract?” When an employment contract has not been executed with valid non-competition clauses, I tend to get a sinking feeling. Perhaps we can still work with the client to save his business. After all, the producer sold the business as an employee of the agency and the agency has serviced, marketed and administered the account, not the producer; but we have lost the contractual “high ground” that makes retention or pursuit of damages much easier. Understand here that all non-competes must be “reasonable” in all respects in order to be enforceable. They are to be no longer, broader or tighter than minimally necessary to protect the value of the agency. In this case, the agency had executed an employment agreement with the producer when he was first hired over ten years ago. That led to the important second question, “Was the Non-Compete and/or NonPiracy Clause territorial, or pertaining to a stated book of business?” So many agencies still have contracts that are territorial as well as time sensitive. They state that an employee cannot compete within a specified area (25 miles, a city, county or stated territory). Unfortunately, the courts have generally not agreed to the validity of territorial non-compete clauses. The general principal accepted by the courts is that you cannot totally prevent a person from continuing his career in his chosen field (his “trade skills”) in the area in which he resides or with which he is familiar – unless you pay them a lot of money for it, such as to the seller of an agency.

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Of course, the clause extends to any type of involvement or association by him with an agency soliciting these accounts and puts a reasonable time element on those restrictive covenants. Most states will accept 2 or perhaps 3 years for a producer; perhaps 1 or 2 years for a CSR who is licensed. This permits the producer to continue his career (selling insurance), but not to his former employer’s clients and prospects. Happily, our new client had such a contract with account-sensitive, not territorial-sensitive, non-piracy clauses. The third question is just as important to the validity of the contract as the first two: Was signing the contract a condition of employment – or – was there “timely and legally sufficient” consideration given for signing the contract if the employee was already employed by the agency? By the way, their customary Christmas bonus cannot suffice; it must be new and “fresh” consideration and ordinarily a minimum of several thousand dollars depending on the anticipated danger of that particular producer to the agency following their departure; perhaps much, much more or a new Lexus would suffice if he has a substantial book. If the contract was signed as a condition of initial employment, you are safe. If you had employees sign a contract after they were employed (or revised the contract to take any benefit away or reduce its liberalism), the only way to assure validity is by rendering consideration (usually money, but perhaps a non-cut employment provision for a couple years or some such) and having the employee sign the contract (or revisions thereof) with a specific notation therein that such consideration was expressly given and accepted by the employee in exchange for the non-piracy. By the way, that consideration should not be nominal. $100 to have a producer sign a non-compete and nonpiracy for the first time may not be considered valid by a court, especially if there are remedies spelled out in the contract, because it constricts his rights without reasonable consideration or remuneration.

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www.underwritersinsider.com

More Information about Georgia Insurance Agents Alliance Membership at www.FYIExpress.com

Theft of Accounts Continued from page 10

In this scenario we advised the agent to take the following steps:

It appears (whether right or wrong) that the producer would have jeopardized his job if he did not sign away his competition rights.

1. Write a personal letter to all of the clients generated or serviced by the producer advising them of his departure and that the agent (or a representative) will visit them soon to assure continuity of coverage and service. Note that persistency with a carrier will assure the best treatment on renewal or in the event of a loss.

It’s also advisable to keep a time line and give them at least a week minimum to review and contract and have it gone over by their own attorney if they wish; you do not want to be accused of coercing them into signing without the benefit of counsel.

2. Send a Newsletter or Bulletin to all other clients with a few articles of general interest and a notice that the producer has left, wishing him well, and naming the successor producer and/or servicers that are available to meet any insurance needs.

The producer in this case signed the contract as a condition of employment, so we were safe so far. “What’s the problem?” I asked. It seems that the employee joined another local agency and suddenly our client was facing a flood of BOR (Broker of Record) letters, surprise non-renewals and clients who would no longer return our agent’s phone calls.

3. Working with his attorney, get temporary injunctions against both the producer and the agency specifying the offenses that have been committed, and offering to avoid further legal action if they a) return the accounts that have been lost, and b) avoid any further solicitation of any accounts covered by the contract.

Obviously, the producer was soliciting. The agent could prove this because some of his clients who were also his friends tipped him off to their solicitation by the producer with exceptional knowledge of their accounts. Obviously, the producer had stolen agency confidential information to prepare him for the theft of agency clients.

4. If you had our recommended expanded restrictive covenants in there, you’ve also provide that cannot even “accept” a protected client – and just because the state insurance code says the client can take his business to anyone she chooses, that has no effect on your contract that says the producer is prohibited from accepting such business even if the client searches him out totally on her own volition.

(Editor’s note: This could be considered a data breach forcing your agency to use it Cyber Liability coverage … if you have any!) The agent said he did not want to make a big deal of the solicitation, if we could only make him stop! He would even SELL the producer some accounts that he seemingly controlled. I told the agent that if that was the attitude that he wanted to take, I would give him my advice FREE, but would not represent him. This surprised the agency and he asked me why I would take that position in such a clear-cut situation.

5. If the solicitation continues, SUE THE BASTARDS! In the old West, when someone took your cattle, you first asked for them back (in case the herds just got mixed up). If they proved their criminal intent by denying or continuing the wrongdoing, they were prosecuted and hung!

If an agency has valid contracts with non-competition and/or non-piracy clauses and does not enforce them one time, it likely invalidates the restrictive covenants of his other producers in the future since a court or arbitrator may determine that the supposedly protected information is now of public knowledge, and therefore no longer protectable. After all, how does he pursue the next departure when the second lost producer simply states in court that since the agency did not pursue the first lost producer, he felt that pursuing those clauses in this case is discriminatory (and it is) and an unknown amount of otherwise confidential agency information appears to be public knowledge? We always seek what is RIGHT and pursue it with dogged determination until the situation is resolved. Luckily, RIGHT has prevailed in most instances.

Note that the agency can also invoke the Uniform Trade Secrets Act, which precludes the theft of trade secrets such as a customer list and/or expiration dates or contact points, etc., regardless of whether or not there is a contract between the agency and the producer. Such a list is called a protect “compilation”, since it is a unique list valuable only to an insurance agent; it is compiled in a special way for a special target group, and we not be valuable to say a plumber – but is extremely valuable intellectual to any insurance agency. By the way, it’s useful to restrict the theft of both “confidential information” and “trade secrets” – the former being defined under case law (common law) decided in your state, and the latter being a creature of statute defined by the legislature; so by specifying both, you’ve much more effectively covered all the ground you wish to protect. Continued on page 14

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More Information about Georgia Insurance Agents Alliance Membership at www.FYIExpress.com

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More Information about Georgia Insurance Agents Alliance Membership at www.FYIExpress.com

Theft of Accounts Continued from page 12

You can make a business decision as to whether to provide that the substantially prevailing party shall be entitled to collect their attorney’s fees from the other side. If that’s not in there, the agency may gain some advantage by the mere threat of out-spending the renegade producer and causing no end of time spent answering interrogatories and sitting through depositions and the like with no chance of him collecting his [substantial] attorney’s fees from you even if he should win. On the other hand, the threat of having to reimburse you for your attorney fees could double his risk of losing, and scare him into honoring his non-piracy just on that basis alone. Make no mistake; these actions can be extremely expensive on both sides. The producer could be forced to spend more than $10,000 defending himself in a couple of weeks just for openers if the agency pursues an immediate temporary restraining order and escalates things from there rapidly.

One can also throw in the federal Uniform Trade Secrets Act; which then forces the producer to defend himself in both state court and federal court at the same time in the event there is a substantial amount of money at stake and you can persuade a federal prosecutor to go after him criminally for theft of such trade secrets. NOTE: Do not threaten the producer with being prosecuted for a crime; just go to the prosecutor first, and they’ll let the producer know they are being investigated for theft – otherwise, you can be convicted of extortion yourself. WHAT ARE THE DAMAGES? Too many contracts do not specify the damages done or the values of those damages. Those contracts that do specify the levels of damages are rarely broken. There are various types of damages, including amongst others: Level One Damages – The revenue value of the lost accounts. The lost accounts will accumulate lost commissions for every year they would have stayed in the agency. Each agency has two types of business; that of average duration, and that of extended life. If you randomly sample your dead files you will identify the average life of accounts that have died (initial inception date to termination date) and, with enough in the sample, could determine the average life of accounts by type. Measure the life to termination of the accounts lost to the departed producer to determine if they fall into the average category and calculate the remaining revenue value to each policy/account. If an account has been with the agency more than double the average life, it is an extended life account and should be valued as if its life to the point of theft was its “half-life”. Level Two Damages – Asset value decline to the agency. If your agency is worth $X intact including the book of business and growth generated from that book in the future, how much less is it worth without that book of business? Agency Consulting Group, Inc. or other agency valuors can determine the value of your agency with and without the stolen business to add that measure of damages. Level Three Damages – If a stolen book of business has proven to be a generator of referrals, the value of the expected referral accounts over their lifetime is another measure of damages.

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The best contracts will spell out the damage calculations (often referred to as “liquidated damages”) in the event of a theft of accounts. Once this form of contract is accepted and signed, there is little chance of a producer breaking the non-compete or non-piracy clauses upon his termination. By the way, another major avenue of attack here is to go after the departed producer’s new agency for “tortious interference” with business contracts in the event the successor agency is aware of the non-piracy and proactively encourages or assists the producer in the piracy of accounts. In most states that can result in multiple damages plus attorney fees against the successor agency; potentially a great deal of money. Often a carefully worded threat letter from your attorney to that agency can in and of itself stop the piracy in its tracks when the other agency owner figures out how much its actions could cost him – he’s the deep pockets. Please make no bones about it. The primary value of an insurance agency is in its book of business. The greater the retention and growth of the accounts, the more the agency is worth. The solicitation of an agency’s accounts represents THEFT, pure and simple. This theft is worse than the burglary of jewelry from your home. In the case of jewelry, you have lost the value of the pieces once (and any emotional attachment you may have had to them). In the theft of accounts, you lose the revenue value of the accounts EVERY YEAR. Offering to “sell” the stolen accounts to the thief makes as much sense as telling the burglar that you’ll forget about the theft if he will compensate you for the lost jewelry.

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. . . b e c a u s ey o u rc a l l s s h o u l d n ’ t b el e f t t oc h a n c e ! •Re d u c ey o u rp h o n eb i l l b y2 5 %o rmo r e •Un l i mi t e dn a t i o n wi d ec a l l i n g •Un l i mi t e di n c o mi n gl i n e s-n ob u s ys i g n a l s . . . e v e r ! •Ca l l q u e u e st ok e e py o u rc a l l e r sa r o u n d •P l a yy o u ro wnme s s a g e st oc a l l e r so nh o l d •Au t o ma t i ca f t e rh o u r sr o u t i n g o i c e ma i l me s s a g e sd e l i v e r e dt oe ma i l •V •Re a l c u s t o me rs e r v i c ef r o mr e a l p e o p l e f o rmo r ei n f o r ma t i o nc h e c ko u to u rs i t e , c a l l u s , o rc o mes e eu sa tI E 2 0 1 4

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More Information about Georgia Insurance Agents Alliance Membership at www.FYIExpress.com Some customers aren’t worth doing business with! When I use that line in at some of my speaking engagements, it’s almost always is met with applause. In other words, it’s okay to fire a customer – certain customers! Abusive and disrespectful customers can bring down the morale of the company. They can take the fulfillment out of the employees’ jobs. They can suck the positive energy out of the culture. They put employees into a bad mood. And, they can make it bad for the next customer. A company’s culture that evokes the customer is always right rule is just fine until the customer is wrong to the point of being abusive. Then it creates a dilemma for the employee. It gives a customer the advantage in that they can bully an employee, pushing them to a point of being very uncomfortable. It makes an employee apprehensive about what is the right or wrong thing to do. It can take away an employee’s dignity and selfrespect. It can also cause an employee to lose respect and resent his or her manager and even the company. The customer is not always right. And some customers aren’t worth doing business with. It’s okay. Toxic customers may be bad for you and your company’s health. One of my favorite topics to write and speak about is about what happens when the customer is not right. I love to say it… The customer is NOT always right! But, they are always the customer. So if they are wrong, let them be wrong with dignity and respect.

It’s okay for customers to be misinformed or make a mistake. However, sometimes the customer is not only “not right,” they are abusive and disrespectful toward the people who are trying to do their best to help them, our employees. I decided it was time to resurrect this concept after hearing the same story three times in a week. It’s an old Southwest Airlines Herb Kelleher story that I first heard years ago. The short version is that a passenger kept writing the airline about how unhappy she was. She didn’t like the boarding process, not having an assigned seat, a small bag of peanuts versus a meal and more. After a number of letters, one of them finally made its way to Herb Kelleher, the CEO of the airline. He took the time to respond. He wrote: We’re going to miss you. Love Herb

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This simple response sent a clear message to the customer: We appreciate you, but it’s not working out. It also sent a message to the employees. We appreciate you, and we value you to the point that we’re willing to put you ahead of the customer. FYI Express

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11 questions to ask before making an agency purchase by Emily Huling, CIC, CMC

Over the past couple of years, successful, young agency owners have been getting calls from older agency owners who want to sell their business and retire. Based on the number of calls I’ve recently been receiving, the pace of these buying opportunities is dramatically picking up. Buyers, here are eleven questions I recommend asking, in no particular order, to determine whether to make the purchase or to help decide under what conditions. 1. Would you fold the business into your office or keep the other location open? If you’ve never had a second location, there are a lot of challenges – technology, staffing, management, profit – that go along with that. I have a client who chose to keep the second location open. After one long year of discovering firsthand about these challenges and making very little profit to show for it, he said to me, “I want my time back.” He then rolled the business into his one main location. 2. Should the selling owner(s) stay on? Lots of sellers will tell you they want to retire, but they really don’t. They want to sell the agency to leave the business ownership work to someone else, but they want to stick around. If you do negotiate an arrangement to keep the former owner employed for transition and retention of business, set up steadfast rules to be followed with regard to account handling, carrier dealings, CSR assignments, use of the agency management system, following procedures, etc. A lone wolf in your operation conducting business his or her way can wreak havoc on your operation. 3. How can you maximize carrier relationships? Answering this involves a lot of work. If the book of business is profitable, your carriers are chomping at the bit to pick it up and the selling agency carriers will work hard to appoint your agency, retain the business, and hopefully pick up more business from your agency. Research, analyze, and thoroughly discuss before making any decisions.

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4. What’s really in that book of business? What’s the chronological age of the book of business? How much underwriting has been done? Are any carriers in the process of re-underwriting a book of business? What are the classes of business? What limits and coverages have been offered? Do they meet your agency guidelines? Do a thorough examination and audit of the business. One of my clients, a CSR, said to me about a new purchase, “Our new agency clients, limits, and coverages are very different from our book of business. It’s a big challenge.” 5. Are there any business deals or promises that haven’t been revealed? The last thing you need as a buyer is a disgruntled employee who says, “I was promised ….” I’ve heard about promises that involve buying the agency, buying the book of business, salary and bonuses, work arrangements, and so on. Avoid surprises and ask. 6. What non-piracy or non-compete agreements are in place? Many agencies don’t have anything in place for CSRs who are the front-line agent for the customers. Agency buyers have had CSRs leave and take a lot of business with them. Address this upfront. Speak with an attorney about creating and offering a non-piracy agreement (with remuneration) at the time of the purchase. 7. What’s the current level of management and accountabilities at the selling agency? Job descriptions? Performance reviews? Personnel manual? Adherence to all of these? No two agencies operate alike. Better to know up front about this than find out later. 8. Are you willing to reassess everything in your agency to make this work? Management practices, staff effectiveness and job fit, account assignments, work flow and procedures, technology usage, job responsibilities, and so on. To maximize potential and profit, the entire agency operation should be examined. 9. Will the people be on board? Both from the selling agency and your employees? Meet with each person separately to inform, solicit questions, listen, and observe. Continued on page 20

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June 2014

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11 Questions Continued from page 18 10. What’s the new agency culture going to be? For me, this is the best part. I love helping bring together two good operations to create a new, improved topperforming agency culture combining the best of both and eliminating what doesn’t work. People want to work on a winning team and will have clear ideas on what that looks like. Let your people actively participate in building their new agency culture.

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11. Is the agency profitable? “Yes,” you say. Income minus expenses shows a profit on the income and expense statement. Wait, not so fast! The agency owner owns the building and is not paying rent. His wife is handling the books and receives modest compensation. The owner is taking less payroll out of the business than you can afford to take. One of the employees is not covered under the benefits package in exchange for extra time off. Review the numbers closely and have a trusted financial advisor examine the figures. Not just for accuracy, but to determine how under new management the figures could change. Can adjustments be made and still show a profit?

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It’s a great time to buy an agency. Asking the right questions will help assure your purchase is a positive and profitable one. HU

Emily Huling, CIC, CMC helps the insurance industry create top-performing sales and service organizations. She can be contacted at emily@sellingstrategies.com. She’s a frequent presenter at industry conferences, on the national faculty of the Society of CIC, and is the author of “Great Service Sells”, “Selling from the Inside”, and “Kick Your ‘But.’” For information on her products and consulting services and to subscribe to her free monthly newsletter, visit www.sellingstrategies.com. Emily Huling Selling Strategies, Inc. P.O. Box 200, Terrell, NC 28682 Phone: 888-309-8802 Mobile: 704-516-5114 www.sellingstrategies.com

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Looking for Markets? We Are Your Solution The Atlas General Difference Atlas is a National Full Service Program Manager offering a wide range of insurance solutions including workers compensation, contractors general liability and BOP, available for apartments, auto services, convenience stores, restaurants, offices and taverns. Now writing trucking-local (no new ventures, $10,000 minimum), artisan contractors, healthcare, assisted living, hospitality, auto service repair, and many other classes. Atlas has expertise in developing and underwriting specialty programs with a variety of insurance carrier partners. We are committed to providing exceptional services and unique options for our clients. Best of all, we have no premium volume commitments to become appointed with us. For marketing information, please contact: Shane Cosey, Marketing Rep 404-593-3336 or shane@atlas.us.com

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What Is the Single Greatest Marketing Advantage? By Victoria Eden Do you want to know what marketing advantage will catapult your advertising results into a higher stratum? Of course you do. Well, there is ONE fundamental marketing concept which underlies all other complexities, which if applied to your lead generation campaigns, would make a HUGE difference in your success rate. I'll let Gary Halbert tell you this important datum in his own words. (Gary Halbert is one of the greatest copywriters of all time.) This is his lesson: "One of the questions I like to ask my students is: 'If you and I both owned a hamburger stand and we were in a contest to see who could sell the most hamburgers, what advantages would you most like to have on your side to help you win?' The answers vary. Some of the students say they would like to have the advantage of having superior meat from which to make their burgers. Others say they want sesame seed buns. Others mention location. Someone usually wants to be able to offer the lowest prices. And so on. Whatever. In any case, after my students are finished telling me what advantages they would most like to have, I usually say to them something like this: 'O.K., I'll give you every single advantage you have asked for. I, myself, only want one advantage and, if you will give it to me, I will (when it comes to selling burgers) whip the pants off all of you!'

A thorough knowledge of target marketing would be helpful however just using the data contained in this article can propel you in the right direction to improve your advertising success. I guarantee that as you move away from spray-and-pray, scatter-shot marketing into targeted-audience promotions, your quantity and quality of prospects will increase commensurately. If you also apply good lead generation tactics, you could become a competent marketer happily working through a fat stack of hot leads Finding Your “Starving Crowd” Dominos Pizza’s success was literally and figuratively built on the core strategy of locating a starving crowd. When they started up, Dominos restaurants were located near college campuses. They advertised the slogan, "30 minutes or less, guaranteed”. They made no promise of quality ingredients or even good taste, just speed of delivery. Why was that a successful plan? Because college kids are hungry, don’t cook, are impatient and many smoke wacky-tobacco that gives them a huge case of the munchies. What better target market for pizza delivered fast? The "starving crowd" principle illustrates the importance of two corners of "The Golden Triangle of Marketing". That concept states that any marketing campaign will succeed in direct ratio to the degree of alignment between (1) the market, (2) the message and (3) the media. [Get $633.91 of how-to-market information FREE here.]

'What advantage do you want?' they ask. 'The only advantage I want,' I reply... 'is... a starving crowd!' Think about it. When it comes to direct marketing, the most profitable habit you can cultivate is the habit of constantly being on the lookout for groups of people (markets) who have demonstrated that they are starving (or, at least hungry) for some particular product or service." Hungry Prospects = More Sales If you are like most business owners, you think you need a better location, lower prices or better or more products to sell more. While all those do have value, none will take you as far and get you there faster than working with "a starving crowd". And there you have it in a nutshell. The single greatest advantage you can have to make your marketing work like gangbusters. Choose well to whom you advertise. Simple, right? Um, not so much. It will take some thought and probably some trial-and-learn to get it right, to find the “starving crowd” best-suited for your agency.

Finding Ideal Prospects Keep in mind, your ideal prospect may not be aware he or she needs you and your product. A good offer placed correctly can fix that problem. As an example from my own playbook, I wrote a booklet called, How to Pay for Your Alternative Healthcare with Tax-Free Dollars and Financially Survive a Medical Disaster! I advertised it in publications and to lists that gobble up all data on natural health – my starving crowd. They didn't know anyone could solve their problem but the title promised a benefit they REALLY wanted. The leads I received were red hot! (See my earlier article, "What is Good Bait for Attracting Prospects?" for more on that strategy.) Why? Think about it. When you are not shopping for a car, you pass up all those ads in the newspapers and magazines, you don't pay attention to car companies on the radio or TV, you never peruse Auto Trader and don't talk to your friends about car models. But, the moment you decide to shop for a car, all the avenues of that information instantly become intensely interesting. Continued on page 24

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Social Media Using social media channels can help you grow your business. Social media not only strengthens your relationship with existing clients, but also enables you to reach new potential clients. Here are some tips to help build your agency brand online. Create multiple streams: Facebook pages aren’t enough anymore. Blogs, Twitter handles, and Flickr accounts, for example, are useful in providing you and your agency with a strong online presence. Manage your social systems: Once you’ve created your channels, share content that displays your knowledge, credibility, and influence. Post consistently and frequently and be sure to interact with others. Social media is not a one-sided communication tool. Share engaging content: Accuracy and facts are important, but content also needs to capture the attention and interest of your followers. Explore different ways of sharing information: video, photography, and stories are just some examples.

Let your personality shine: Add personal touches that reflect you, but keep it professional.

Get mobile in two minutes! You know how frustrating it is ... you go to look up a business website on your smartphone and are unable to find the important information you were looking for - the phone number or address, for example - because the website was too tiny to read. It's more than just a frustrating moment - if it's happening to your customers, it's costing you money. 61 percent of smartphone users (your potential customers!) will click away if they don't find what they are looking for right away. For just $99, FYI’s Mini-Mobile can mobileoptimize your website, with the information most important to your customers front and center - your business phone number, its address and its email address. With a 30-day money back guarantee and a one-time only $99 fee, what do you have lose? Nothing! Other than potential customers who can't access your website, that is!

Monitor feedback and activity: Respond to comments and questions appropriately and in a timely fashion. Make content shareable. FYI Express Page 23

Contact eddie@FYIExpress.com June 2014

More Information about Georgia Insurance Agents Alliance Membership at www.FYIExpress.com Single Greatest Marketing Advantage

the financial section of the paper or by the obituaries. (I think anyone who peruses the obituaries must have mortality and/or money on their mind.)

Continued from page 22 That's what happens in the minds of your soon-to-be prospects. When a purchase is contemplated, they become information junkies on the subject.

For auto insurance, work with car lots, especially loan specialists and partner with full service car washes or repair facilities.

So, what may trigger a starving response for your products? What follows is NOT a comprehensive list, just a few quick ideas off the top of my head.

Homeowners’ policies could result from partnering with realtors and mortgage brokers, even remodeling contractors. (I’d choose high-end projects like full-lot re-landscaping, room additions or deluxe kitchen upgrades.)

Life insurance: newlyweds, new parents, new homeowners, new retirees who haven't selected joint and survivor options on annuities and anyone who has recently experienced a death (especially if it had dire financial consequences). Auto insurance: recent car buyers, new or used, homes with 15-year-olds soon to get a driving permit (homeowners should yield full coverage instead of bare bones policies). Homeowners insurance: home buyers, home refinancers, recent re-modelers, the time period following a disaster heavily shown on the news – fire, flood, tornado, etc. Annuities: affluent homeowners with college-bound high school students, CD owners tired of rolling surrender fees, teachers who do or should participate in 403b plans, micro businesses that are thriving and need to add a simple pension plan.

You get the idea. There is much to know about marketing but you should be able to improve your advertising response incrementally as you acquire knowledge on the subject. That's how I did it years ago, implementing each new tidbit to my agency's promotions, making lead generation increasingly easier. Now, I have no worries about how to find abundant interested prospects. So remember, no matter what kind of promotions you choose for your practice, always direct it to a hungry audience. That is the fundamental that trumps any fancy media or flashy technology. The absolute best marketing advantage you could ever hope for is a starving crowd. Present those specific people with a good offer that commands their attention and you'll never again worry where your next sale will come from.

Health Insurance: micro sole proprietors or partnerships with no company plan, new layoff COBRA participants, parents whose employer does not contribute to spouse or children’s coverage. Investments: Recent job changes or layoffs from companies with 401k plans, recent promotions to management or executive positions. Don't forget to review your client files to hunt out your easiest sales to your best clients. Brain storm. It will be soooo worth the effort. Once you identify the “who” and which triggers make them hot for what you sell, how do you find them? Well, consider what media those prospects pay attention to and place your ad where your starving crowd is already looking. Here are a few more suggestions to "prime the pump" for how to find your starving crowd: To find families with dependent children, obtain permission to put a tri-fold flyer (with a GOOD OFFER) in the waiting room of pediatric, orthodontic or ob/gyn practices, day care centers, kiddie gyms (mommy and me classes) or resale/consignment stores for children’s and maternity clothes. For people needing money solutions (life insurance, investments, annuities and rollovers.) befriend the HR manager of companies who are downsizing. Place an ad (with a GOOD OFFER) in FYI Express

Would you like to know how to get more clients easier? Visit www.MoreClientsEasier.com to get $223.55 in exclusive how-to-market publications by mail (NOT just a download!) Just cover shipping and handling. Victoria Eden is the author of How to Get More Clients Easier, How to Supercharge Your Sales, Target Marketing: How to Select and Dominate Your Ideal Niche and Little Know Tips and Tricks for Marketing Financial Products, and two monthly newsletters. She accepts a limited number of speaking engagements at insurance associations, seminars and webinars. Reach her via www.MoreClientsEasier.com/contact1 or by fax at (770) 200-1611. © 2014 Victoria Eden. All rights reserved. Page 24

June 2014

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Free Can Be a Great Customer Service Strategy

Ron’s story reminded me of Chris Zane, who owns a bike store in Connecticut. Known for his amazing customer service, one of Chris’s tactics is to not charge the customer for anything that costs less than a dollar. For example, a customer who needs a master link, which is a small part that holds the chain together, doesn't have to pay for it. Zane says, “The cost to me is virtually nothing. We’re not going to chase the pennies — we’re looking at the long-term effect of giving someone a master link. And you should see the look on people’s faces.” It turns out the tactic of free costs Zane less than $100 annually. A small price to pay for loyal customers who are worth thousands of dollars over time. By the way, you can read about Zane’s philosophy about this in his book, available on Amazon.com. Sometimes there is no monetary value at all. It’s just a little effort, taking time out to do something nice for a customer, or a potential customer. I’m reminded of one of our newsletter subscribers who sent in a story about how he had car trouble and was stranded on the road. A limo driver was passing by and asked if he could drop him off at a service station, at no charge. He was just being a Good Samaritan. It paid off because the gentleman with the car trouble owned a company that now hires his new friend to drive him to and from the airport. Sometimes free can be a great customer service strategy. It adds value, promotes good will and builds trust with your customers. All good things that can eventually lead to customer loyalty! Shep Hyken is a customer service expert, professional speaker and New York Times bestselling business author. For information contact (314)692-2200 or www.hyken.com. For information on The Customer Focus™ customer service training programs go to http://www.thecustomerfocus.com. Follow on Twitter: @Hyken

Sometimes one of the greatest ways to provide great customer service is to give something of value away for free. It doesn’t have to be anything big or expensive. It can be something small. Really small. It just has to be valuable to the customer.

Think about the owner of the restaurant that buys his regular customers a drink or a dessert. Actually, that’s not small enough. I’m talking really small. Something that costs a dollar or two; maybe less. What prompted me to write about this was an email from Ron Baker, president of Gracey-Backer, who saw me speak several years ago. The short version of the story is that Ron was pulled over by the police one night for having a burnt out brake light. The police officer didn’t give him a ticket because Ron promised that he would get it fixed immediately. He went to the closest full-service station, and the mechanic quickly replaced the bulb. Ron asked, “How much do I owe you?” The mechanic said, “This one’s on me.” Ron was dumbfounded and at the same time delighted. Ron said, “I wasn't even his customer, but I am now! I used to buy gas at the discount gas station a few blocks away and save a penny a gallon – maybe 20 cents on a tank full. Not anymore. I now get my gas at the Exxon station.”

Our Newest Member Benefit Do you write Commercial Lines Insurance? How would you like to have an Excel spreadsheet of Company Names, Addresses, Websites, Social Media, and e-mail addresses (if available) for any specific type of risk you can name? Current members can get the information on up to 200 of these risks within a 30 mile radius. Want to try? Are you a member in Good Standing? Send your type of commercial risk and zip code to eddie@FYIExpress.com.

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A real $15,000 account By George Nordhaus George@AgenciesOnline.biz When an agent says he or she has just sold a $15,000 account, I am not quite sure what they mean. At a seminar some years ago, Jack McMahan, now head of PLICO Insurance Agency in Oklahoma City (but then a marketing consultant) asked those of us in attendance how much money we could make on a $15,000 account.

Answers were all over the place, but most ended up in the 10-15% commission range…maybe $1500 on the account. Jack replied: “Small business is worth far more than you think, yet many small insurance agencies are following the “one and done” concept. My argument is to rethink small business accounts, then round out those accounts on a very deliberate basis.” Jack then explained that when he was referring to the $15,000 account, he meant that we should make $15,000 INCOME on that $15,000 gross premium account. His point, since made many times over, was that we walk away from much of the money-making opportunity from most commercial accounts….simply because we don’t see the huge potential in them. He illustrated the income possibilities: Gross C.L. premium, $15,000 Income: $1,458...commission $3,168… health insurance $3,300…human resources, PEO sale $3,000…life insurance and perpetuation $4,000 …personal lines sales to account’s employees. Sure, Jack knew that most of the agencies in attendance didn’t have the facilities…or the size…to carry through those ambitious cross-selling opportunities. But his point was crystal-clear: Most of us do not even think in these terms… We never fully understand that by NOT selling the entire insurance-oriented products that many accounts need, we are walking away from income…and in particular a chance to lock in the account forever. Action Item If you aren’t large enough to be able to offer all of the above, you might still make financial arrangements with those who CAN bring those products to your table. Anything to lock commercial accounts…

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those

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Father’s Day jokes A small boy was at the zoo with his father. They were looking at the tigers, and his father was telling him how ferocious they were. “Daddy, if the tigers got out and ate you up…” “Yes, son?” the father asked, ready to console him. “ …Which bus would I take home?”

Joe: What does your father do for a living? Jon: He’s a magician. He performs tricks, like sawing people in half. Joe: Do you have any brothers or sisters? Jon: Yep, four half-sisters and a half-brother. Son: Dad, do you know the difference between a pack of cookies and a pack of elephants? Dad: No. Son: Then it’s a good thing Mom does the grocery shopping!

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Create a QR Code for clients to scan while sittng at your desk. I’ll show you how to do it for free at Insurance Expo 2014. Please scan this QR Code with your Smartphone and “Like” FYI Express

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Exempt Employee Overtime Pay: Is It Permissible? Q&A

Fortunately, the exemption regulations allow employers to provide exempt employees with additional compensation above their stated salaries without jeopardizing the exemption or violating the salary basis requirement, as explained in 29 C.F.R. §541.604.

By Robin Thomas, Managing Editor Can you pay exempt employees extra compensation, above and beyond their regular salary, without jeopardizing their exempt status? Find out what the FLSA regulations say about overtime and other forms of additional pay for these employees.

Specifically, if the exempt employee is guaranteed a minimum weekly payment of $455, he also may be paid a commission on sales or a percentage of profits on sales or even additional compensation based on hours worked beyond the normal workweek. This additional compensation can be paid on any basis, including a flat sum, bonus payment, straight-time hourly amount, time and one-half, or any other basis, including paid time-off.

Q: We will need several exempt employees to work extra hours this summer to complete a special project. Can we pay them for the additional hours they will need to work, such as by providing them with overtime or extra paid days off?

Recent court decisions have upheld the FLSA’s approach. For example, in Anani v. CVS RX Servs., 730 F.3d 146 (2d Cir. 2013), the court found in favor of the employer holding that the pharmacists were not hourly employees, even though their pay was calculated as a function of hours worked, because the employer guaranteed the pharmacists' base pay, which exceeded $455 per week, and the hourly premium pay was only for hours over 44 per week. And, in re RBC Dain Rauscher Overtime Litig., 703 F. Supp. 2d 910 (D. Minn. 2010), the court rejected the overtime claims of securities brokers, paid principally on a commission basis subject to offsets and adjustments, because it was permissible for pay to be adjusted for cancelled trades, errors, expenses and other trade-related issues, which affected only the calculation of commissions not the payment of the guaranteed minimum amount of $455 per week.

A: As a general rule, you are not required to pay exempt employees extra for additional work since these employees are “exempt” from the overtime requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). However, the regulations explaining the FLSA exemptions do allow employers to provide exempt employees with extra pay without jeopardizing their exempt status. (Download free Salary Administration model policy including HR best practices and legal background.) The FLSA exempts from its overtime provisions certain executive, administrative, professional, outside sales, computer-related, and highly-compensated employees who are “paid on a salary basis,” often referred to as the “white-collar” exemptions. The FLSA regulations define salary basis, in 29 C.F.R §541.602, as the payment on a weekly or less frequent basis of a predetermined amount constituting all or part of compensation, without reductions for variations in the quality or quantity of the work performed. Thus, you are not required to pay exempt employees any more than their agreed upon salary, even when they perform extra work.

One final point – if you find that you are paying an exempt employee extra compensation on a regular basis, you may need to reevaluate that employee’s pay. This pattern may mean that the employee’s job duties have been increased for the long term, not just to complete one-time projects. Thus, it may be time to consider giving the employee a more permanent raise.

However, many employers feel there is a legitimate need to provide extra pay to maintain good employee relations. For example, an exempt employee may take on additional job duties to fill in temporarily for a coworker on leave or, as in your situation, may work longer hours than usual to complete a special project. In these cases, additional pay shows that you value the extra work and that you recognize that the employee is, in effect, going “above and beyond” the usual job requirements.

© 2014 Personnel Policy Service, Inc. All Rights Reserved. HR Matters is a registered trademark of: Personnel Policy Service, Inc. 4965 US Highway 42, Suite 1000, Louisville, KY 40222 Tel: 1-800-437-3735 - Fax: 1-800-755-7011 www.ppspublishers.com - www.instanthrpolicies.com www.hrpolicyanswers.com - Twitter @ppshrpolicies Connect on Linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/robinthomas/36/357/931/

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June 2014

For Comprehensive Mobile Homeowners Insurance, put your trust in a company that has been insuring homes for over 50 years.

National Security Can Provide You With: • $100,000 Maximum Policy Limits • $100,000 Maximum Policy Limits • AAIS Special Form 3 Policy • Homeowners AAIS Form 8 Policy • 20% New Business Commission • 15% New and Renewal Commission • Partnership Profit Sharing • Partnership Profit Sharing • Fast Online Policy Issuance • Fast Online Quotes, Policies & • Direct Contract with National Security Endorsements • Replacement Cost Option • Inspections Provided by Company • Discounts for New Home and 50+ • Easy Payment Options – Monthly Age of Insured EFT, Quarterly, Semi-annual, Annual • Easy Payment Options

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More Information about Georgia Insurance Agents Alliance Membership at www.FYIExpress.com

remedy inconsistencies, simply go to that particular directory or site and edit your data. If we do not find your listing in a business directory, it may be that we could not find your NAP data or that we could not identify NAP data as belonging to you because of NAP inaccuracies. There are circumstances where a site might only post your name and URL, without your address or phone number. This is not considered a true citation. In this case, the report indicates a red X for "not present" even though a partial NAP exists. Competition Walkthrough The Competition Report looks at how visible your company is, compared to your most optimized competition online. The competitors shown here are based on a Google query using the primary keyword used in Google+Local (Google Places). This keyword is typically the most competitive for ranking. By understanding what your competition is doing, you can better determine what needs to be done to catch and outrank them. We analyze the presence of each competitor on the Big 3 search engines and identify which citations are highly related to your area and industry. We identify the most important local directories for your business. We will show you exactly how well each business is optimized, as well as provide additional citation sources where it would benefit you to add your NAP data (Name, Address and Phone #). This report provides a nice snapshot of everything you need to do to start to build an online marketing campaign designed to outrank your competitors.

Run Your Agencyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Free Visibility Report at www.FYIExpress.VisibilityScore.com Local Walkthrough The Local Report analyzes your local listings on Google, Yahoo and Bing. Based on the phone number, we are able to scan and identify listings in Google+Local (Google Places), Yahoo LocaI and Bing Local. Any duplicate listing can affect this score. In addition, we have identified factors that seem to influence rankings. These influences are based on analysis of over 4,000 Local Business Listings in order to understand how to achieve higher rankings for them in the Search Engine Report Pages (SERPS). Using these key factors, we assign a score to each individual section of your report. For example: Is your listing claimed? Do you have 5 categories? Do you have an adequate number of positive reviews to determine whether your listing meets the criteria proven to be important by our expert analysis?

Reputation Walkthrough

***PLUS: we are able to monitor your Google+Local. This is a big plus, because Google+Local is recognized in the industry as being notoriously buggy. Directories Walkthrough The Directories Report shows where your business is listed, how it is listed, and also where you are not listed. The purpose of this report is to identify citation acquisition problems, allowing them to be fixed successfully. Google looks at the consistency of your NAP (Name, Address and Phone #). The more consistent it is, the more trust Google has in your business, and this will typically result in a higher ranking. Creating consistencies across all directories has proven to be difficult, given all the different data aggregators and data entry points in use these days. It is important that your NAP matches exactly across all directories. We have identified any inconsistencies in your NAP by highlighting them in the name column, address column, or phone column. To FYI Express

The Reputation Report scans several review sites and reports back on those reviews. We look for your business on various search engines, local directories, and review sites; analyze your 5-star reviews on each; display the 10 most recent reviews; report on the overall sentiment from each review site; and then display the average. You can quickly glean important data from this report, which allows you to discover possible reputation management issues and take immediate action to correct them. In addition, this report finds and displays online mentions of your business. These mentions are assigned a "sentiment score." The overall sentiment is displayed in the top section as a summary of all sentiment scores combined. Keyword Ranking Walkthrough The Keyword Ranking tool shows you where your keywords rank on Google, Google+ Local, Yahoo, Yahoo Local, Bing, and Bing Local.

Run Your Agencyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Free Visibility Report at www.FYIExpress.VisibilityScore.com Page 34

June 2014

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