Saturday Morning's are feelin alright.....

We've been trialling Saturday morning trade for a couple of months now. It's all been done with basically no advertising. Considering our present business size, going too hard on something with limited staff resources could backfire, so it's been softly softly. Since we started the business in September 2011 we have had a very clear road map. Business planning is paramount to any businesses success, but for us it wasn't just planning growth, resources, overheads etc, we made a very clear and conscious decision from day one to have a set of business morals and community awareness that were unbreakable.

For us the business is our lifeline, but it is also a window into who we are as individuals. There are any number of Insurance providers around so how do you stand out from the others in your area. For starters when planning our business and when amending and massaging our business plan our first thought it 'how does this impact our clients and our community?' Saturday morning trade is a clear example of this. Our region on a Saturday can resemble a ghost town. We spent nearly a decade living in South East Queensland. Primarily Toowoomba and The Gold Coast. From a consumers perspective these areas had the benefit of most services and retailers being open on the weekend. Not all but at least you knew someone in a service you wanted would be available. There is no reason why regional areas should miss out. Insurance Brokers would rarely open on a weekend unless by appointment and this is not a criticism. We all love a full weekend and a chance to watch the Saturday morning cartoons. However if we are going to have a number of points of difference to our competitors then giving up 3 hours on a Saturday to help the community cant be a bad thing.

Take this last weekend for example. OK so most know our office is in the RTA building in Taree which opens on a Saturday. We saw the usual number of Green Slip customers. However our hopes were that people would realise that they now can get the full array of Insurance products on the weekend, not just Monday to Friday. We had a lovely couple from Gloucester who purchased a Caravan. In they came after hearing by word of mouth that we were open and we sorted out their caravan through a quality Van Insurer, then moved on and arranged cover for the towing Landcruiser. Nothing unusual but for the clients who had to drive 85 kilometres back to Gloucester on what can best be described as a "tired road" they wanted the peace of mind that their vehicles were covered prior to the trip. No one else was open. Another existing client dropped in for a coffee and we sorted out their home and contents insurance. For us it's not a massive money spinner. For you, it's relaxed, it's convenient and it's there when YOU need it.

OK so as General Insurance brokers our core business is not home and contents or caravans, but we aren't that arrogant to shut the door on non core clients and direct them somewhere else. Insurance has and always will be a 'Community Chest.' It's the premise that insurance was born from thousands of years ago. The premiums of the many are there to cover the losses of the few. Meaning we all share the load as you never know who and when it will be needed. It is now seen as a corporate world with return of capital and shareholders the key. Yes this is now part of our industry but the essence remains the same. So why have a community chest if the community has no one wanting to open it for them? Some banks and building societies open Saturday morning which I think is fantastic and they will say they can do your green slip and business insurance. Yes they can, but this is on a 'no advice' model. Meaning it's a transaction driven by price and not first considering your personal needs and situation.

It doesn't sound like much but our Saturday Trade is our way of working with the community. A business should be community conscious, ours puts the needs of you before our own. The methodology of working and living by a certain set of morals and with others in mind first will hopefully flow onto success within our business. After nearly 2 years this is proving to be true. Spread the word, when other Insurance providers are sleeping in, IAA Mid North Coast is there when you need us.