CEO Newsletter: In the midst of month five of our ongoing pandemic, all businesses have had their resiliency tested and put on full display. Whether you anticipated our country still being in this situation or not, it has been an interesting test of our ability to adapt rapidly to meet changing needs in a changing world.

The first half of 2020 has been interesting, to say the least. We are facing unprecedented times as we try to manage our work and personal lives from home – working remotely, participating in zoom meetings, juggling school schedules and workloads, while doing our best to continue the roles and responsibilities of our own jobs.

As working remotely continues for many, with no clear picture on when we will be able to return to a fully normal work schedule, it can be difficult to maintain our motivation and drive. To that end, we are sending along some thoughts and resources from various sources that we have compiled, on how to maintain your efficiency and productivity while working remotely.

Four months ago, Jill attended a seminar on how to keep her customers and prospects thinking of her, and not her competition. One simple method was sending a personal thank you note to everyone who met with her.

Hackers throughout the globe are attempting to take advantage of people working from home during this time. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency recently issued an alert that offers guidance on defending against COVID-19 cyber scams. Use these tips to keep your home network secure while working remotely.

There’s no doubt about it: the COVID-19 pandemic has changed the way we do business. It’s likely most of your commercial customers are struggling. You yourself may be fighting to keep your agency afloat. It may even be tempting to press pause on communicating with your commercial customers and wait out the pandemic — I strongly encourage you to fight that impulse.

Who would have thought we would be facing such an uncertain future just a few short months ago? I think many of us believed this would be a temporary disruption, and now many states are facing an undetermined amount of time that businesses will be shut down, which is a scary prospect for much of the population.

Smart Choice®, remains the nation’s fastest-growing independent agency network, after partnering with over 350 new agencies in the first quarter of 2020, and reaching a milestone of 8,000 agency partners this week.

There is a prevailing thought amongst P&C agents that Excess, Surplus and Specialty lines markets are only used for those one-off type risks, or poor and high risk business. While E&S is certainly used for placing one-off risks, it is also a good home for risks that have been denied by a standard carrier for a variety of reasons.

Unlike other demographics, the affluent account segment is seeking peace of mind and protection, not just low prices. This lower price sensitivity means that these customers are looking for a trustworthy agent to help them find the proper coverage, and once they find that agent, they are likely to stick with them.