In Part 1 and Part 2 of our articles on Insurance Brokers: Benefits and Costs, we’ve explored why you would use a Broker and what the direct and indirect costs and savings can be. In the final part of the series, we look at whether:

Is there any benefit in going through a small Insurance Broker? 

For us, at Strive this also translates to: 

Why would I choose to insure with Strive – a small, family-owned Brokerage?

We are sure that on the odd occasion when we can’t answer every single phone call, or if it takes an extra day or two to reply to an email, it must cross some people’s mind whether going with a small, family-owned Insurance Brokerage is the right thing to do, instead of a big company with a call centre or lots of staff ready to take your business.

We have talked about this quite a bit as a team. What is our point of difference from the insurance companies and the larger Brokers? Why do people stick with us? And, in what we see as the greatest compliment for a business, why do people recommend their friends, family or peers come to us as well?

We are very proud of the fact that our Brokerage is family owned and that our employees – all three of us – are family. From the very beginning of our business planning, before we even officially opened Strive, we consistently talked about not wanting to grow so big that we need to employ a large team.

We want to know who our clients are, and we want our clients to know who we are. We want our clients to know that they are being looked after by the people who have a very invested interest in the ongoing success and reputation of Strive, not just whether or not they receive their fortnightly pay.

We believe our size, and the fact that we are family-owned and operated, put us in a better place to understand our client’s unique and often complex circumstances. If you own a business, we know firsthand how much your business means to you. We know that the more successful your business is = the more financially secure you (and your family if you have one) are. If you’re insuring your personal assets, we also appreciate how important that financial security is – because we need to do the same for ourselves and our family.

Strive Insurance may not have a call centre, but that isn’t necessarily a negative. Those call centres often require you to speak to a new person every time you call. You’re often dealing with inexperienced staff who are relatively new to the insurance industry. Even the benefit of being able to get through day or night doesn’t always apply - a lot of call centres aren’t necessarily open 24/7 - or at least not all the departments you might need to talk to. When you call us, you get to speak to our team who know you, know your circumstances and are 100% committed to providing you with the best service possible, all backed by Jamie having over two decades of insurance experience.

At Strive Insurance we:

· Can be flexible with our work hours to be as responsive as possible to claims, urgent new policies, and meetings around your business commitments. We are not restricted by rosters, overtime, or needing management approval for working ‘outside the box’

· Are passionate about genuinely helping people. We will be honest about whether you are better off sticking with your existing policy or insuring direct – even though that is a lost opportunity for income for us. We will take the time to explain things you’re unsure about or answer any of your questions. We enjoy creating social media posts that help educate people about insurance – this blog is another step in that direction. We believe that the better-informed people are, the better off they will be financially in the long run, regardless of whether they are our clients or not

· Understand the pressures and complexities of owning a business. We know what it’s like to be finance, marketing, admin, and IT all rolled into one. We’ve experienced the times when income is tight and expenses – sometimes even insurance! – can seem like more of a hassle than they’re worth or too overwhelming to deal with in amongst your other priorities. We want to deliver the same professionalism, respect, expertise, and understanding to you, that we would expect for our own business and family

· Value each and every one of our clients. Our book of clients will never be so big that you become ‘just a dollar sign’. Our business is successful because our clients stick with us and refer their friends and family to us, so regardless of how big or small a client is, they are all important to us

Since we started Strive in early 2016, our business has grown primarily due to our clients referring us to other people because of their own positive experiences and their trust in us. We value that trust and we work hard every day to maintain it and ensure those referrals are justified. We believe that our quality of service and the value we place on our clients’ trust and confidence far outweigh the small conveniences large companies can sometimes offer over a small, family-owned business. We hope that if you are one of our current clients, that you agree! And if you’re a potential future client we would love to show you that our actions speak even louder than words!