Customer Service
Thursday, February 23, 2012 |
posted by Lori Power |
Posted in: life insurance, customer service, benefits, benefit plan, insurance, insurance products |
I like ice cream. I am a little kid at heart in that respect and there is nothing like a nice evening, out with the family and an ice cream cone to widen the smile.
So, there we are at our favourite ice cream shop, a major chain, no real competition in the marketplace and the people behind the counter (not the teens everyone expects to blame this on, people old enough to know better with teens worked into the mix) are slouching, sloppy, leaning on the counter and generally uninterested in the job at hand. There is no focus, no attention to detail, no thank you for spending the premium prices that they charge for iced milk! The order is placed and we are waiting. The shop is not busy and there is a general feeling of inactivity. We have the singer in the back putting the burgers together with ninja (you think I am putting on and I am not!) chops complete with sound effects. There is the wipper snipper, dish towel flinging cashier and I wonder how any orders are being filled.
Wonder no more, they weren’t. As we headed outside, the cars in the drive through were backed out to the road!
Our order for a family of four, just on ice cream, covered the salary of one of the eight employees I counted inside for at least an hour and a half, so there is no question there is enough money coming in the door, can no one take the time to ensure that these people stand up straight, take pride in their job and get the work done the way it is suppose to get done to the best quality available? Or is it just that they really have no competition for their product and hence no real need to treat the customer better? We are all just so used to buying our ice cream there that we don’t even think about going anywhere else.
This type of attitude transfers, I realize, into a lot of areas where we spend money. As creatures of habit, we are use to buying our groceries at one location and our gas at another and so when the service slides, do we notice? Maybe, but then we just continue on . What if we were to try something different - test the waters and see what a difference service makes to our overall enjoyment of the product.
When looking at your benefit plan and all the benefits provided for the employees, what would it hurt to test the waters, see the difference some innovation, some attention to detail, some grateful recipients of your business, makes to the overall experience?
I have to say, my ice cream would have tasted a whole lot better going down had it been given with a smile!
Celebration
Wednesday, November 16, 2011 |
posted by Lori Power |
Posted in: quikcard, quickcard, insurance, group insurance, group benefits, benefits, benefit coverage, benefit products, insurance coverage, life insurance |
Anniversaries, birthdays, family events and other special occasions are wonderful time markers. They symbolize growth and maturity, both personally and professionally.
It is truly unfortunate that sometimes the only professional time markers you hear of are the BIG ones: 10-25-50-100 years. What about all the hard work that goes into a business all those other years? As we start to poke our heads out of the current recession and reflect on all those businesses that didn’t make it through, join us in giving thanks that we’re still here, striving each day to do what we do best.
As with many companies, we too have passed some mile stones, although none of the BIG markers, but worth celebrating in any event.
- It has been 47 years since the ADSC (Alberta Dental Service Corporation) founded the original company. Dentists working for Dentist providing innovative dental benefit plans for companies in Alberta.
- It has been 22-years since the birth of Quikcard Solutions Inc. providing self-directed, self-funded health and dental plans with more flexibility, and certainly more cost effectiveness than traditional benefit plans.
- 12-years is the marker since Quikcard moved from being an Alberta based company, to a national company, offering their unique suite of services to all business in Canada (except Quebec) by opening a second office in Nova Scotia.
- The last three years marked another evolution in our growth, moving us to provide both insured and self-insured benefit plans through Quikcard Benefits Consulting Inc.
Many of our clients have grown and continued with us through every stage of progress and development since the very beginning and for that we thank them for their continued support.
For all of our clients that have joined with us, or are considering joining us now, many thanks for your business and trust in our services.
As we grow, age (don’t tell anyone) and mature (hopefully) both personally and professionally, we promise to continue to strive to offer the very best solutions in employee group benefits.
And for all of you celebrating a birthday, anniversary or a special milestone, take stock and enjoy your day. You have earned it!
Stop the Insanity
Wednesday, August 10, 2011 |
posted by Lori Power |
Posted in: employee benefits, life insurance, group benefits, benefit coverage, insurance, insurance coverage, group coverage, benefits, benefit products, insurance products, quickcard insurance, benefit plan, coverage, health spending accounts, health spending account, group insurance, employee coverage, employee group benefits |
Everyone in business knows the old adage of insanity … continually doing the same thing and expecting different results. The same applies to Employee Group Benefits.
Time after time, employers get fed up with their current benefit plan- the benefits being provided and, especially, the pricing. However, instead of looking for something different, something to stop the cycle, they typically just change the carrier and/or broker.
So, what has been accomplished in this scenario? Either the existing broker or a new broker suggestspricing can be established with a new insurance carrier where the company can get better pricing with no loss of coverage. It’s a good deal and typically employers go for it, saving around 10-12% over the existing rates. Inevitability, time marches on, once again the pricing has gone up and the cycle repeats because there has been no real change to the benefit plan.
In essence nothing changes as the business owner has enacted the same old strategy, but expected different results.
It can be different with the introduction of Strategy, Analysis, and Planning.
A good plan analysis will review the existing plan design and measure it against the overall business objectives of the company. This means reviewing the history of the benefit costs and claims, measuring results, accounting for the money being spent on coverage and comparing it the money being spent to provide the coverage. A benefit plan should mirror the business plan, being just as fluid and changeable as the business over time. And, just like a good business plan, the owner should know all the ins and outs of how everything should be working compared to how it is actually working.
To stop the insanity, look at what is important to the plan members, understand the pricing, and ensure catastrophic events are covered. Then plan and implement strategic solutions which ensure superior coverage and price stability over time so the cycle of insanity is stopped.
We Mean What We Say
Tuesday, July 12, 2011 |
posted by Lori Power |
Posted in: life insurance, hsa, health spending accounts, group benefits, group coverage, group insurance, benefits, insurance coverage, insurance plan, insurance |
I was listening to the radio and an advertisement came on for Lube-X narrated by a fellow with an excellent, what I would refer to as a ‘western’ voice: “We say it. We mean it. And more importantly, we do it,” he intoned at the end of the spiel.
How important is that in a world full of commercials and mass media? A lot of companies ‘say it’ and obviously they ‘mean it’ but it wasn’t the ‘we do it’ that grabbed me … it was the ‘more importantly’ part of his slogan, because he is right. It is one thing to say it, but it is much more important to do it. Said another way, you can put the worm on the hook to bait the fish and you can catch the fish, but can you prepare the fish in a meal that is both edible and likable? That truly is the challenge.
We can … we are right there with Lube-X … we say we create “easy, affordable, flexible benefit plans” and, you know what? We do!
Our plans follow the KIS (keep it simple) approach and many initially accuse us of being too easy because they have been conditioned to complication in the benefits world … but when broken down, benefits are not complicated.
Our plans are affordable. We consistently (yet another great word that has meaning) provide savings for our clients. These are not just words that sound good, these are words with meaning that we put into action.
Flexible. There are not many brokerage companies that can claim they offer benefit plans to single, incorporated professional corporations as well as large multi-nationals. We do. And we do this while always keeping our services consistent. We build to suit. We listen to our clients and provide benefits that suit their needs because each company’s benefit plan is as unique as a finger print and should be treated as such.
Are you unique?
Of course you are!
Don’t you deserve a benefit package that is as unique as your business approach?
Of course you, and your employees, do!
Give us a call to learn we really do mean what we say!
Benefits So I can Understand Them
Wednesday, March 23, 2011 |
posted by Lori Power |
Posted in: life insurance, insurance, group benefits, benefits, benefit coverage, insurance coverage, insurance plan, group coverage, experience benefits, insurance products, benefit products |
Having been in the insurance arena for a number of years, I know insurance one of the harder topics to understand. The language of insurance is polluted with jargon making it difficult for people to relate and understand how it applies to them. By the time clients are at my door, it takes hip waders to get though all of the misconceptions they have been burdened with over the years.
In an era of abundant communication through such venues as twitter, blogs, facebook and the internet, in general, it should be easier to understand services like insurance and benefits, but it’s not. Sometimes those misconceptions are created through the legalities necessary in the business. Legalities aside, I will try and explain benefits in an easily understood way.
Life Insurance, it’s the lottery that ALWAYS pays out … you pay your premiums each month, like purchasing your ticket each week, and eventually someone wins because death is a sure and certain event.
When it comes to group benefits, Life Insurance, Accidental Death and Dismemberment (AD&D), Dependent Life Insurance and Long Term Disability are four of the most common insurance products. Pricing for these is not significantly different from one insurance carrier to another as it is based on national pooled information. If we consider these four as the “insurance” side of our benefits, then pricing for these would be much like going to the pumps for gas … there really is little difference. What makes the difference is the quality (in each consumer’s opinion) and the size of the tank. The size of the tank meaning how much insurance is purchased.
The other side of a benefit plan is a where consumers live day-to-day. That’s where they purchase services such as prescription drugs, health, vision and dental care. We’ll refer to these benefits as experience benefits because they are based on consumer usage. Think of these like going to the grocery store. At any one of the big grocery chains, the price difference between the same cut of beef can be significant depending on how much is required, the supply the store has on hand, their supplier and even the time of the year it is purchased.
Shopping for these benefits takes strategy and know how. The plan design, or list of benefits (groceries), necessary for your company makes a big difference in price.
Providing coverage just to have a plan in place is one thing. Providing coverage or benefits that actually meet people’s expectations and needs is what makes the difference. For the person who requires prescriptions, a least costly alternative makes all the difference. Having a good benefit plan doesn’t mean busting the pocket book, it means knowing what you are purchasing and purchasing the right products for your business.
Do you know what benefit coverage your company needs? What means are you using to learn that? How does your company adjust for the changing needs?
