January 6, 2007 by Steve.

As you are surfing the web you may have noticed some web site that add a logo to the address field in your browser. Called a Favicon (which stands for “Favorite Icon”), it is a customized icon image that you can add to help your web site stands out from the crowd. Every time someone navigates to or bookmarks your site, your customized icon will be displayed in their Favorites folder in place of the generic Internet Explorer logo. This function cannot be turned off and is completely transparent to the browser. Your site can become much more noticeable among the other bookmarks, something that may help you draw more repeat visitors.

Creating your own Favicon is an easy process. First, you’ll need to design your icon. Because the image size is 16×16 pixels, you need to keep the detail to a minimum and use only a few colors. You’ll need to make a file called “favicon.ico” in authentic icon format. It is important to note that an icon file is not a bitmap, and a bitmap file cannot be renamed with an .ico extension. There are a number of different online Favicon programs that will help you create your version. Google for Favicon to see the options.

After you’ve created your icon and named it correctly (favicon.ico), you have a few choices: First, you can place a copy of your icon in the root directory of your Web site where most of your pages likely reside. If you have a large site with multiple directories, you should place a copy of your icon in each directory. Once this is done visitors to your site will automatically see your new logo.

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January 2, 2007 by Steve.

Some agencies (I wish I could say most agencies) are finishing their strategic planning for 2007 and beyond. Typically this includes establishing financial goals for the new year as well as projects that need to be completed. Below I have provided my view on the trends that you should be aware of as you go through your planning process. Use these thoughts to make sure you are considering all of the information you need to make your agency as successful as you can in 2007.

Generations: We have been spending quite a bit of time talking to people, reading and researching generational differences. I have become convinced agencies that ignore these differences do so at their peril. I believe that agencies need to create different sales approaches as well as customer service approaches that take into consideration the different needs and expectations of prospects and clients based on their age. You will be seeing a lot more information in TAAR in 2007 to help you understand the impact on your agency and how you can adapt.

Moore’s Law: Gordon Moore, founder of Intel Corporation, said that computing power doubles about every 18 months while the cost remains constant or drops. Moore continues to be right. Computing devices will be more powerful and less expensive. Cell phones will be more like computing devices than a simple phone. Wireless technologies will allow Internet access anywhere. This type of access changes things. Producers can be anywhere to access agency data and information. Internal staff can work from anywhere as virtual employees. And customer service expectations are changing.

Information Security & Privacy: This access to information creates new and potentially dangerous exposures for agencies needing to protect their client information. An agency stores more personal information about their clients than most any other organization. Additional legislation will be enacted (both federal and state) creating legal responsibilities to safeguard this information. Most agencies we talk with have no idea the legal peril they face. This has to change.

Electronic Document Management: With all of the technology available to us it seems we produce more paper than ever. Agencies are taking the first steps to scan and store the paper they receive. The next phase, electronic document management, is coming rapidly. The changing client expectations I mentioned above will require agencies to allow their client to view agency stored electronic documents. The agency culture change required is a major shift for many agency staff. Giving up the paper is hard. The hard part when implementing a document management systems will be to change the workflow at the same time.

Client collaboration: I mentioned this last year and it is still important. The value you bring to your clients is not just processing their transactions. Your value is the expertise you provide to protect against unforeseen losses. This continues to be one of the most difficult transitions for an agency to make. In the past, transaction processing was defined as good customer service. In the new environment that is being created transaction processing is expected, excellent customer service is something much more.

Another tool you can use to understand the trends you are facing is the Agent’s Council for Technology (ACT) paper on important technology and consumer trends. You can find it by going to www.independentagent.com/act. Having a better understanding of the trends you face will help you plan effectively.

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