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PROGRAMS REINVENTS KEY INDUSTRY EVENT VIRTUALLY
Businesses in the U.S. and around the globe are navigating a “new normal,” including travel and social gathering restrictions that prohibit the face-to-face meetings previously seen as critical to growth and development. Despite these new obstacles, Zurich continues to find creative ways to connect one-on-one with customers and distribution partners in engaging ways to deepen relationships and showcase our strengths and capabilities.
One recent example was the action the Programs team took when they discovered that the premier trade association event, Target Markets Program Administrators Association (TMPAA) Mid-Year Meeting, was canceled.
Traditionally, the Target Markets mid-year meeting is a two-and-a-half-day, in-person event that serves as a key connection point for hundreds of program professionals.
"For Zurich, the collaboration with current and prospective Program Administrators (PAs) at Target Markets plays an important role in both maintaining and winning the profitable business needed to meet our strategic growth commitments," said Head of Programs Sales, Ryan Whitney. "Even though the meeting was appropriately canceled, our team felt it was important to create an opportunity similar in structure that fostered dialogue and demonstrated our commitment to deepen our relationships."
Leveraging our video and web conferencing tools, Sales Regional Vice Presidents Dave Beighley and Pete Rasmussen came up with the idea to hold Virtual Target Markets meetings to maintain this important touchpoint with current and prospective Program Administrators.
"Pete and Dave did a great job maintaining the structure of a typical Target Markets meeting," said Whitney.
"Working with the Head of Marketing for Alternative Markets, Mike Maher, and his team, an online invitation was created and sent to targeted PAs announcing available meeting times for the same days the original Target Markets meeting was to take place. Additionally, for every meeting a Program Administrator accepted, Zurich would make a donation to TMPAA Charities in the PA's name."
Overall, the virtual meetings accomplished much of what the Programs team hoped for. Rasmussen shared, "We were able to hold 18 meetings with current and prospective PAs that would not have happened if we didn't take initiative and get creative."
Beighley added, "We were able to have greater participation from our entire team and connect with PAs on several levels regarding our business and today's market. We were also able to support our communities with a $900 contribution to TMPAA Charities, which helps fund efforts that support our armed forces, helps alleviate poverty and provides scholarships to students in risk management or insurance-related degree programs."
Whitney concluded that this type of engagement helps to position Zurich as a leader in the Programs space.
"Our time with our PAs is valuable, and by quickly adapting to the situation and recreating this important touchpoint, I think we made a good impression," he said.
PA feedback also supported this perspective, with most saying this was a valuable touchpoint. "It's so great that Zurich dedicated this time to bring our two teams together," shared one PA. "You are the only carrier that has done this for us since this all started."
Another PA shared, "I can't tell you how much I appreciate Zurich making this time for us. Even though we communicate frequently on our current programs, we thank you for making this time. It's good and refreshing and helps bring some semblance of normalcy during this time."
Zurich is committed to keeping open the crucial open lines of communication with our valuable Program Administrators and plans to continue to hold future PA meetings and events virtually. Beighley said, “Program Administrators like the format, they like having access to the broader team, and the intimacy is still there. Plus, PAs like the efficiency of it. There’s no travel expense, we can schedule meetings quickly. It’s a very efficient way to do business.”
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