Nothing soothes the soul like nice pavement on a long road trip. I was recently on a long road trip that took me northeast out of Colorado on Interstate 76 into the great state of Nebraska. We crossed the border and suddenly the car was quiet, and the ride was smooth. I felt relieved and happy I had finally arrived in Nebraska. Coloradans aren’t supposed to be happy they are in Nebraska, what with the old Buffs – Cornhusker rivalry and all, but the change in pavement totally changed how I felt.

The quiet and smooth ride inspired the idea that buying insurance can be a journey. The experience can be smooth or rocky, quick or time-consuming, pleasant or awful. Procedures (the road) are a necessary process in getting from point A to B, but sometimes insurance companies forget that efficient functionality is great, but if the consumer doesn’t appreciate or enjoy the process, they won’t do business with you. My road trip reminded me of what happened when I recently switched some of my insurance policies to another carrier. As part of the process, I did a lot of checking around on my own. I looked at web sites, called and asked questions, and visited agent offices from different companies.

Companies with web-sites that didn’t provide enough information, or looked outdated or clunky? Out. Companies I’d never heard of before?  Out. Customer service agents that push too hard for the sale or that lacked confidence when they answered my questions?  Out. Agents that seemed impatient with my questions?  Out.

Companies with comprehensive but approachable web sites that seemed up to date and were well organized? In. Well-known, top of mind company name? In. Competent and engaging customer service reps?  In. Agents that loved talking about their products and eager to answer my questions?  In.

In the end, it wasn’t any single interaction that won me over; it was the combination of everything. In my case, good customer interactions throughout all phases of the process led to the sale. The company that got my business did it all. They provided the smooth pavement for me to drive on, and made the entire experience feel good. It was a better ride than the Colorado side of I-76 for sure.