Following up posts earlier in the week, a quickie post now to confirm that this weeks episode of the PMICast is now live at www.pmicast.podbean.com and also on iTunes - search for PMICast.
Friday, 29 November 2013
Thursday, 28 November 2013
A dose of the ManFlu
Well it's been around two years since I had a proper cold but I sat in a meeting on Monday evening and felt it all starting - pounding head, blocked nose and sore throat tightening up and then like a fool did a full 90 minute karate workout yesterday evening, aided by performance enhancing Nurofen. The net result is of course I feel pretty lousy today and have been working at less than 75% of capacity today. This is of course why I've just finished my normal days work (at 7.30pm) and am now typing up a quick blog post - I really could have done everything I did today in around five normal work hours but I just had to do the work out and make myself poorly.
Still the main benefit of being 'poorly' is an excuse for an early night - after I'm a Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here of course !
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Still the main benefit of being 'poorly' is an excuse for an early night - after I'm a Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here of course !
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Wednesday, 27 November 2013
Watch out for PMICast episode 13
My usual day for posting the medical insurance podcast is Tuesday.
As has been the case quite often recently I simply haven't had the time to get the podcast uploaded so far this week. Hopefully it should be available tomorrow or Friday - the topic is the journey of a personal purchaser of medical insurance and hopefully will build on the discussion last week and be of use to professional introducers (last weeks episode, number 12 was my second introducer special). Anyone who is interested in medical insurance cover for themselves or their clients should check out number 13 when it goes live. I'll be talking about the information I need to price a new or switching plan and some of the process that I undertake as an independent adviser.
I will of course blog here when it is available so all my readers know.
As has been the case quite often recently I simply haven't had the time to get the podcast uploaded so far this week. Hopefully it should be available tomorrow or Friday - the topic is the journey of a personal purchaser of medical insurance and hopefully will build on the discussion last week and be of use to professional introducers (last weeks episode, number 12 was my second introducer special). Anyone who is interested in medical insurance cover for themselves or their clients should check out number 13 when it goes live. I'll be talking about the information I need to price a new or switching plan and some of the process that I undertake as an independent adviser.
I will of course blog here when it is available so all my readers know.
Friday, 22 November 2013
Working with professional introducers
My podcast this week was on the subject of working with professional introducers and focused mainly on how to come up with the right kind of client to refer to my practice so I can advise them on medical insurance. The 'cast looked at segmentation/lead generation both in the personal and corporate space.
In addition this week I have also send out my November marketing missive to my IFA and Accountant mailing list of current and prospective introducers with some additional information on how my work can be for the benefit of both their clients and the financial status of their practices.
If you are a new reader to this blog as a result of either the sales e-mail or the podcast earlier this week then welcome. If you would like to consider working with me I would be happy to be of assistance.
One of the key issues I like to stress at the initial point of developing a relationship with a new introducer is building credibility. By this I mean that I understand that a new introducer really has no idea who I am or what my capabilities are. In this respect I stress two things. Firstly I'm always happy to have an initial chat on the telephone - this way we can see the cut of each others jib, so to speak. In addition I think it is immensely important to develop an effective footprint and strategy on-line. Although this isn't definitive, Linkedin, Facebook, Twitter and blogs/podcasts like mine give people new to me an important chance to get to know how I work in advance of considering if we can work together.
With the above in mind, please feel free to contact me on : philknight@pch.uk.com and I would be happy to send you on to any of my on-line resources or arrange an initial telephone meeting.
__________
In addition this week I have also send out my November marketing missive to my IFA and Accountant mailing list of current and prospective introducers with some additional information on how my work can be for the benefit of both their clients and the financial status of their practices.
If you are a new reader to this blog as a result of either the sales e-mail or the podcast earlier this week then welcome. If you would like to consider working with me I would be happy to be of assistance.
One of the key issues I like to stress at the initial point of developing a relationship with a new introducer is building credibility. By this I mean that I understand that a new introducer really has no idea who I am or what my capabilities are. In this respect I stress two things. Firstly I'm always happy to have an initial chat on the telephone - this way we can see the cut of each others jib, so to speak. In addition I think it is immensely important to develop an effective footprint and strategy on-line. Although this isn't definitive, Linkedin, Facebook, Twitter and blogs/podcasts like mine give people new to me an important chance to get to know how I work in advance of considering if we can work together.
With the above in mind, please feel free to contact me on : philknight@pch.uk.com and I would be happy to send you on to any of my on-line resources or arrange an initial telephone meeting.
__________
Tuesday, 19 November 2013
Introducer Special episode of PMICast
Around 11.00am today the new ep of PMICast recorded earlier should go live.
This one aims to offer some information for current and prospective introducers and is to launch some enhanced work I'm planning with introducers in 2014 - the aim being to generate more leads for my practice whilst giving my introducers (and prospective ones!) more support and marketing info to consider.
In addition I'm also launching a PMI 'helpline' for any prospective introducer (with no strings) aimed to help them with any aspect of medical insurance - UK and international. Basically any query, any professional adviser has on medical insurance will be answered 8.00am to 8.00pm Monday to Friday.
For assistance call : 07792 075748
__________
This one aims to offer some information for current and prospective introducers and is to launch some enhanced work I'm planning with introducers in 2014 - the aim being to generate more leads for my practice whilst giving my introducers (and prospective ones!) more support and marketing info to consider.
In addition I'm also launching a PMI 'helpline' for any prospective introducer (with no strings) aimed to help them with any aspect of medical insurance - UK and international. Basically any query, any professional adviser has on medical insurance will be answered 8.00am to 8.00pm Monday to Friday.
For assistance call : 07792 075748
__________
Monday, 18 November 2013
Damn lies and statistics
According to Yorkshire Water who wrote to me today they are making my money go further, investing their profits and really pushing to improve their service to their customers.
Given that as a carbon based life form I need water to survive this is a lovely thing and I really appreciate their kind efforts.
There is however a problem. According to the letter YW sent me they are having to put their prices up by an average of £ 22 per household per annum. Again this seems eminently fair - £ 2 per month for all this extra service and presumably 'better' water (although those pesky oxygen and hydrogen atoms always seemed fine to me as they were).
Still a problem though. My bill is actually going up by £ 8 per month which mathematically is a lot more than £ 22 per annum - in fact it is £ 96 per annum. I'm assuming I'm obviously not average - we have two adults and two kids in our household so there's clearly no way a family of four could even be considered remotely average.
Joking aside, I would contend that Yorkshire Water are a bunch of fibbers who in have fiddled the statistics to come up with a ridiculous rigged statistic that in no way reflects real life and are taking advantage of an effective monopoly position they have inherited.
Given that as a carbon based life form I need water to survive this is a lovely thing and I really appreciate their kind efforts.
There is however a problem. According to the letter YW sent me they are having to put their prices up by an average of £ 22 per household per annum. Again this seems eminently fair - £ 2 per month for all this extra service and presumably 'better' water (although those pesky oxygen and hydrogen atoms always seemed fine to me as they were).
Still a problem though. My bill is actually going up by £ 8 per month which mathematically is a lot more than £ 22 per annum - in fact it is £ 96 per annum. I'm assuming I'm obviously not average - we have two adults and two kids in our household so there's clearly no way a family of four could even be considered remotely average.
Joking aside, I would contend that Yorkshire Water are a bunch of fibbers who in have fiddled the statistics to come up with a ridiculous rigged statistic that in no way reflects real life and are taking advantage of an effective monopoly position they have inherited.
Wednesday, 13 November 2013
Sleepless in ..... St James
Had a call from a poorly relative at 1.30am this morning and had to accompany them to St James Hospital in Leeds - they were admitted at 5.30am and I got home this morning at around 6.00am.
I'm finding the lack of sleep invigorating and would recommend it highly, maybe operating heavy machinery wouldn't be a good idea !
I'm finding the lack of sleep invigorating and would recommend it highly, maybe operating heavy machinery wouldn't be a good idea !
Tuesday, 12 November 2013
Find out about underwriting on medical insurance
I recorded and uploaded the 11th episode in Season 2 of PMICast (the only medical insurance podcast in the UK) today.
This one features some information around the different types of underwriting presented as a 'frequently asked question' type overview. I hope that it is of interest and would ask you to post a review on iTunes (US or UK) if you like it.
If you would like to consider medical insurance please feel free to e-mail me on either pmicast@gmail.com or philknight@pch.uk.com
_________
This one features some information around the different types of underwriting presented as a 'frequently asked question' type overview. I hope that it is of interest and would ask you to post a review on iTunes (US or UK) if you like it.
If you would like to consider medical insurance please feel free to e-mail me on either pmicast@gmail.com or philknight@pch.uk.com
_________
Monday, 11 November 2013
Question :How can you tell when a is lying ? Answer : When they open their mouth to speak
Recent experiences drive me to wonder if in certain occupations telling the truth is a worthwhile experience.
It's a well worn stereotype that second hand car salesmen can be economical with the truth and it is not for me to cast judgement or aspersions as to whether or not this is an accurate description.
I spoke to several second hand car sales people over the weekend and the representatives of one large regional company (who shall remain nameless) intrigue me. Their company stance is that their approved used cars are so competitively priced (they check their stock against other retailers both regionally and nationally and cut prices to be the cheapest in the area etc) that the price on the windscreen is the lowest they can possibly offer. The net result is that there's no negotiation on prices or part exchange valuations (because they know exactly what they can get for your car etc).
Assuming the above to be true and their vehicles are the cheapest, I actually commented that I'd almost prefer them to add a few hundred quid to the price they show on the windscreen so at least I'd be able to go through the charade of bartering and feel (however wrongly) I'd got a better deal.
So assuming this stance is accurate and this company is the cheapest in all the land, then I'd actually rather they'd lie to me so I could be more involved in the process. Not sure what that says about me, the company in question or the motor trade in general.
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Watch out for PMICast coming to a pod catcher near you tomorrow - we will be re-visiting medical underwriting for personal clients tomorrow.
It's a well worn stereotype that second hand car salesmen can be economical with the truth and it is not for me to cast judgement or aspersions as to whether or not this is an accurate description.
I spoke to several second hand car sales people over the weekend and the representatives of one large regional company (who shall remain nameless) intrigue me. Their company stance is that their approved used cars are so competitively priced (they check their stock against other retailers both regionally and nationally and cut prices to be the cheapest in the area etc) that the price on the windscreen is the lowest they can possibly offer. The net result is that there's no negotiation on prices or part exchange valuations (because they know exactly what they can get for your car etc).
Assuming the above to be true and their vehicles are the cheapest, I actually commented that I'd almost prefer them to add a few hundred quid to the price they show on the windscreen so at least I'd be able to go through the charade of bartering and feel (however wrongly) I'd got a better deal.
So assuming this stance is accurate and this company is the cheapest in all the land, then I'd actually rather they'd lie to me so I could be more involved in the process. Not sure what that says about me, the company in question or the motor trade in general.
__________
__________
Watch out for PMICast coming to a pod catcher near you tomorrow - we will be re-visiting medical underwriting for personal clients tomorrow.
Saturday, 9 November 2013
Autonet Insurance ...... NOOOOOOOO !!!!!!
Now I work in insurance and if I don't follow up client leads then put simply I don't earn any money. I however am not a 'hard seller' and I always try to walk the fine line between chasing outstanding issues with clients reasonably without 'bothering' people.
I cam across an insurance business who work to a slightly different process than this. This week I used the car insurance 'bit' of Quidco (the cash back website) to look at some insurance pricing options for either an A4 or Q3 I'm considering when I change my car in 2014. I unfortunately for speed sake used my real mobile number on the data collection of the website. This was on Monday afternoon at around 4.00pm.
Since then I have had six calls from the people who provide the car insurance service : AutoNet Insurance. Each call has come from a different phone number (one mobile, three landlines, two 0845 numbers and one routed through a foreign exchange of some sort) the aim obviously is to prevent the recipient of calls knowing who's calling and avoiding a familiar number.
They won't take no for an answer and keep calling - this will not work with me, I will not be bullied into buying from them and surely no one else will either - it seems a pointless and totally non customer facing attitude to writing new business.
Please avoid like the plague !
I cam across an insurance business who work to a slightly different process than this. This week I used the car insurance 'bit' of Quidco (the cash back website) to look at some insurance pricing options for either an A4 or Q3 I'm considering when I change my car in 2014. I unfortunately for speed sake used my real mobile number on the data collection of the website. This was on Monday afternoon at around 4.00pm.
Since then I have had six calls from the people who provide the car insurance service : AutoNet Insurance. Each call has come from a different phone number (one mobile, three landlines, two 0845 numbers and one routed through a foreign exchange of some sort) the aim obviously is to prevent the recipient of calls knowing who's calling and avoiding a familiar number.
They won't take no for an answer and keep calling - this will not work with me, I will not be bullied into buying from them and surely no one else will either - it seems a pointless and totally non customer facing attitude to writing new business.
Please avoid like the plague !
Wednesday, 6 November 2013
Problem with Mavericks OSX 10
Had an annoying issue with my iMac running Mavericks, the new version of OSX.
The system slowed down over the space of 15 or 20 minutes before lunch then stopped. First it had constant kernel errors (the spinning beach ball) then it froze completely. Nothing would rouse it so I ended up having to do a hard reboot. Then on reaching the grey screen the thing froze there interminably. I ended up having to command and R to OSX recovery mode and reboot from there having repaired both the main and start up disks in Utilities. The whole process from start to finish took over 90 minutes - given that I had a similar crash on installing Mavericks and had never had any previous problems on the same Mac with Snow Leopard, Lion or Mountain Lion I'm assuming the issue is with Mavericks.
With this in mind I'm going to reiterate my earlier advice from a previous post (following the install issues I blogged about) and suggest that current users of previous versions of OSX 10 hold off on installing Mavericks pending some improvements and an update to the OS, hopefully to follow soon.
Tuesday, 5 November 2013
New (long delayed) episode of PMICast - my medical insurance podcast is now available
Well I've finally bitten the bullet and managed to record another episode of PMICast and uploaded it to the site and iTunes. Sorry for the delay - I think I've missed two or three weeks I think. The problem has just been finding time and a quiet place to record with relatives visiting, half term breaks and so forth - hopefully I can settle back into a more regular schedule for the rest of season 2. It may be that the weekly schedule was a little ambitious - so although I'm going to aim for weekly it might move to every second week instead lets see.
The new episode is aimed mainly at purchasers of medical insurance so please recommend the 'cast to anyone who needs new cover or would like a review of their existing plan either personal or group.
__________
The new episode is aimed mainly at purchasers of medical insurance so please recommend the 'cast to anyone who needs new cover or would like a review of their existing plan either personal or group.
__________
Monday, 4 November 2013
Introducer Support - how I add value
Followers of my blog and the introducers I currently work with rely on my support to assist them in advising on private medical insurance for their clients.
Why would an IFA refer business to a specialist intermediary like myself in the first place ?
Expert Advice in a technical area
Increased range of support for client
Develop a new area of business
No effort to expend
Marketing opportunities and material
An additional income stream
In short, my aim to is to offer my introducers a holistic service covering all aspects of prospecting for, marketing to and then advising clients on individual and corporate health insurance products.
For assistance with any of the above - if you're an IFA, accountant or other professional adviser - get in touch to discuss how my practice might be of assistance.
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