Quick post - PMICast 64 now available

The latest episode of PMICast is now up on iTunes and at www.pmicast.podbean.com

Said it was a short post !

That time of the month

Well it's that time of the month again.

When I get to the end of the month and am looking at the out-standing bits of business and forms that clients need to get in to me to ensure their plans are up and running. I generally find that my state of anxiousness is proportional to the number of cases out-standing multiplied by the remaining working days in the month.

I always look forward to the call from the client in the middle of the following month which goes something along the lines of ...

"my plan is all set up now isn't it ?"

I reply "no, you never sent me your completed application form/direct debit"

The client asks "why am I not on cover" and I remind them politely that until they send back their form, literally nothing can happen to put their cover in place.

So the rest of this week is going to be a bit hectic following up of all those outstanding cases - sorry for bothering you if you're on the list but it really is in your best interests !
_________

On a different (but not totally unrelated topic) I'm really ramping up the marketing at the moment so will be hoping to welcome new clients and introducers to my business and of course many of them will find this blog - so welcome !

If you need assistance with any aspect of new or existing medical insurance I am your man - please call me on : 07792 075748 or e-mail : philknight@pch.uk.com

Thanks

Kerfuffle on Linkedin

Apparently last week there was mention of me on a Linkedin group talking about how I am the person to go to if you're an IFA who is interested in offering medical insurance to their clients.

Whilst this is true and really flattering I'm struggling to find the group and comments myself.

So this is a quick post to thank who-ever put the positive comments and of course welcome to any new readers who have come across me now following this positive publicity - proof that social media work always comes good in the long run when you use it in a non cynical fashion.

Weekend social media update

Three things to quickly announce here.

Firstly, after a 13 month break, Where's Wilson my SF TV and movie podcast is back with a Avengers (Age of Ultron). This is a fun podcast (not so serious as PMICast) that covers off SF TV and movies plus a bit of martial arts. I co-host the show with Ryan my 9 year old - it's usually quite a bit of fun so please try it out.

It's in the PMICast stream so you can find it under PMICast on iTunes and also at www.pmicast.podbean.com.

Secondly I've just put up an unboxing video (my first) for my new iPhone 6 Plus case - so please have a look at this one too. Its the Spigen Slim Armour CS and if you'e interested in buying this kind of time I'd suggest you have a look - not too many for this particular item out there. Will probably also put up a full review in a week or two. View video.

Lastly my son Ryan has wanted his own Skylanders video You Tube Channel for ages so we've just recorded and uploaded his first video - please take the time to view it - he would be pleased to pick up a few views. Watch Ryan here.

Cheers

Podcast stats update

Since I launched the PMICast podcast around 18 months ago there have been over 86,000 'listens' to the podcast on the website www.pmicast.podbean.com.

We're averaging around 200 listens to the various podcasts available (63 episodes to date) each day so something in the region of 6,200 per month at the moment. This doesn't take into account downloads from pod catcher apps and iTunes. not getting accurate stats on this at the moment but historically we were averaging around 2,500 to 3,500 per month - so I'm guessing that we're now at something in the region of 9,000 total downloads per month.

Goes to show what you can achieve from scratch with a little bit of work.

New episode of PMICast now available

I have just recorded and uploaded episode 63 of PMICast onto iTunes and here.

This is a more usual format covering off news, PMI info and ideas for IFA introducers plus a little bit about my business blog (you're here, no link required!).

I've done a little work over the last few days on working with garageband 10 - I'd moved over to this new version following issues I was having with my old workhorse iMac locking up after launching GB. The newer version of the software doesn't have quite the same facility for podcasting so I've been playing with different settings and volume levels etc. Until today hadn't really gotten it right but listening back I'm pretty happy with most of the production value. Still want to include an outdo theme as well but that's just a time thing to record and upload.

Hope you enjoy !

Better Call Saul - season opener

Just watched (yesterday morning) the two hour season premier of Better Call Saul the spin off (?) to Breaking Bad starring Bob Odenkirk as everyone's favourite morally dubious lawyer.

It seemed on paper to take a fairly one dimensional supporting character from a hit TV drama and try to make the show better than it's famous parent. Of course though, we are talking about the best ever one dimensional character and a show that never failed to impress with plot machinations and purest tension.

Some say 24 was the dawn of 'Box Set TV' but for me it was always Breaking Bad. I viewed the full series in around three or four weeks early last year and was hooked. But now the sequel, prequel, duringquel (?) is out - have you called Saul yet ?

The premise of BCS is simple, take Saul, real name Jimmy McGill and move him back to 7 years before the events of Breaking Bad and watch his slow fall from 2nd rate lawyer to 2nd rate, criminally connected TV lawyer Saul Goodman. But the show is clearly going to be so much more than that. Jumping around the Breaking Bad worlds timeline post BB to see Saul in witness protection and we're also promised (I understand) more information on events during the main BB timeline as well.

The drama is there in BCS, but this is funny, sometimes painfully funny. Saul really is the best lawyer ever as he negotiates a 'client' from a death sentence to six months parole - but oh my god the breadsticks - you just need to watch to find out more.

The scariest thing is that the most sympathetic character in the show opener is the hispanic mobster who wants Sauls' help to rip off the 'squarest' gangsters ever. The other scary thing is how good Odenkirk is. Listening to him being interviewed after filming the series some months ago he was extremely humble about his acting skills and the end result achieved for this 10 episode series (listen to his interview on the Nerdist podcast - it is great). In fact the acting is beyond excellent. As I say the character could be viewed as one dimensional but what Odenkirk does is take the tragic-comic elements and expands things so that we can see his inner being in his movements, voice and interactions with the other characters on screen. We're clearly only seeing the start of things here but the relationships with his brother and senior partner of his brothers law firm are superbly judged and bode well for drama and comic/dramatic interactions in future episodes.

This really is a one man tour de force for Odenkirk as he exists as the character in virtually every moment of the show - he is frankly hypnotic and Tuesdays on Netflix just became Water Cooler Streaming again - just like Breaking Bad.

Apple Watch

When the Apple Watch was announced in September 2014 I was at the time an Android user and looked around for Android wear options and ultimately didn't find anything I really liked the look of. The Moto 360 looked best but struggling to last a day on charge made it impractical I felt.

My initial look at the Apple Watch left me a little cold. I wasn't wowed by the design and not having an iPhone at the time I simply didn't more than glance at its functionality.

However I moved back to the iPhone Plus in December and today looked at the Apple Watch film on the store website and I am literally blown away. Not only does it seem packed to the rafters with function but it is literally breathtakingly beautiful - the little green 'I Want It' gremlin is working overtime.

New Purely Medical Insurance You Tube video now available - Introducer special

I have just uploaded an important new video on my medical insurance You Tube Channel - you can find the video here.

This one is a guide to how I work with my IFA introducers and gives a full breakdown of the advantages for them in so doing.

In case you don't have chance to watch it in full, here is a transcript of the content.

Working with Introducers - Purely Medical Insurance - episode 4

Welcome to the fourth instalment of Purely Medical Insurance - this is the only YT channel aimed at helping everyone understand a little bit about medical insurance, why you need it and how I can help you - whether you are a client or a professional introducer to my business.

in this video I’ll be talking about my work with introducers how I help them develop profitable PMI business. Whether you are an IFA, Accountant, general broker, protection specialist - in fact any professional adviser - this short video could help you increase income for your business and importantly help your clients get the right advice on medical insurance cover.

Level of Support

Over the years the PMI insurers have honed their product and service proposition into the intermediary market. Products become more technical and complex + the support offered to brokers has become focused on top producing specialists like myself. This is the 80/20 rule : 80% of the business comes from the top 20% of brokers.

The upshot is that non specialists : IFA’s, Accountants, general/commercial brokers cannot stay up to date with on-going product changes and receive none or very little support from insurers.

This means a specialist service like mine, offering subcontracted medical insurance services to my introducers is invaluable.

My experience 

I’ve worked in medical insurance since 1994 as a broker consultant for a variety of major medical insurers. When I set up my specialist healthcare practice in 2010 I decided to work with introducers as my main focus for marketing.

I may not be the only healthcare intermediary intermediary working with introducers but I am certainly the most experienced with the biggest social media presence.

Time Away from Core business 

I know that you cannot take time out from your core business areas to swot up on medical insurance, PMI is just too big an area.

• I offer a professional, transparent service and am fully FCA regulated obviously
• Each introducer has an individual introducer agreement
• Fair, pre-agreed commission sharing, more generous than most of my contemporaries 
• My marketing support includes : linkedin group, PMI podcast, public Drop Box marketing resources
• Importantly the client remains your so if things change you can take them back

Conclusion

So the aim is to create a virtous circle

I get access to new clients from my introducers.

Your clients get expert advice and on-going support in a complex product area.

Your practice derives income from medical insurance that you would not otherwise have had

For more information use the contact information in the video notes.

Thanks for watching and please remember to subscribe 

IFA's - want help with your medical insurance ?

I've been working with IFA's on private medical insurance since 1994.

When I set up my independent medical insurance practice in 2010 I made the strategic decision to access the market predominantly via IFA (and other types) of introducer. This was based on two main factors. Firstly my ability to understand and work with this sector and also the knowledge that in many cases IFA's are not well served by insurers in this sector and often lack the capacity to undertake professional advice for their clients on PMI.

I work with IFA's introducers in a number of ways, the usual one being simple passed referrals by them so I contact and support their client through the whole sales process and then on an on-going basis.

I also offer consultancy or training service on all aspects of medical insurance to advisory practices so if you want help with training on medical insurance (whether you refer leads to me or not) I am able to help.

If you would like more information on how I can help you and your clients with medical insurance please do feel free to contact me via the blog or call/ e-mail as below.

Phone - 07792 075748
E-mail - philknight@pch.uk.com