Gaining Trust; Use the Principle of Authority

 I admit that I have zero expertise in regards to automotive entertainment systems (It’s why I write an insurance blog, not one called “Bling My Ride”). 

In spite of this, I would like to share my recent journey to replace my car stereo and how flawless service combined with expert knowledge, in an unconventional package, taught me a valuable lesson about the principle of authority. 

Initially my issue was deciding if I should I buy online or stand in front of a wall sized display and gawk.  I immersed myself in an unrewarding day of Bing searches, and wasted several hours reading user reviews on Amazon.  By the end I was out of Mt. Dew and optimism, I resolved to head to a local shop.

Disheartened and staring amateurishly at the monolith of stereo units, I was about to call it quits.  “Do you want volume or crisp sound?” a voice from behind me asked.  I turned to find a well spoken young man with large hoops in his ears, piercings in his nose, and more ink on his arm than Motley Crue.  His coolness factor was off the charts.  However, I was about to be even more impressed.  After a few probing questions, he began to explain to me the differences of treble to bass and volts to amps.  While I watched and listened, he pushed buttons going through settings and changing screens on video displays. He did all of this while asking important desires and needs questions (something I’ll cover in my next post), like what kind of vehicle I owned.  Immediately I knew that when it came to car stereos, he possessed authority.  I ended up spending more money than I initially intended, but with the knowledge I garnered and improved acoustics, I feel like I got a steal.

While I don’t recommend the appearance of my car stereo salesman, his technique was textbook.  And like him, if you have large objections to overcome (i.e. Price), your clients need to know that you are their insurance authority.  Why?  According to Dr. Robert Cialdini, author of Influence, Science and Practice, we have an inherent trust in authority figures.  We accept, or buy-in to, their advice and counsel because our brains make assumptions that typically they’ve obtained their positions through superior knowledge and judgment. 

The good news is, if you’ve been in the industry for 2 months or for 20 years, it’s never too late to utilize the principal of authority.  Here’s 3 easy ways to get going:

1. The best advice I can give you is to never stop reading.  One publication that I recommend is American Agent & Broker.  Every month they usually focus on three or four topics of interest with well written and easy to read articles.  If you need some help with your sales technique, try Jeffrey Gitomer’s “Little Red Book of Selling.”

2. Next, obtain an industry designation.  Those include the following:  Associate in Personal Insurance (API); Accredited Advisor in Insurance (AAI); Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter (CPCU); and the list goes on. 

3. Pick a niche and become the best in it.  If you really like writing boat insurance, devote yourself to studying everything there is to know about it and become known as the best boat insurance producer in your city.  Get your name out by going to local trade shows and making contacts with local boat dealers.

In conclusion, if you want to stand out from the 1-800 direct and online competitors, or even the agency down the street, you better be doing something to set yourself apart.  Your survival and success hinges upon your ability to transform the mentality of customers who view insurance as a one-size-fits-all commodity.  Utilize the principle of authority, overcome objections by gaining trust and you're on your way to becoming a Next Generation Agent.