Allstate - Bishop Family Insurance Agency - Woman of the Year in Sales
Company: Allstate - Bishop Family Insurance Agency, Fredericksburg, VA
Company Description: The Bishop Family Insurance Agency offers a variety of insurance products to protect our customers in our local and surrounding communities. We focus on providing outstanding service while offering competitive pricing for auto, home, life, and many other insurance needs.
Nomination Category: Sales Awards Individual Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Woman of the Year in Sales
Nomination Title: She Leaves a Little Sparkle Wherever She Goes: Woman of the Year
Tell the story about what this nominee achieved since the beginning of July 2017 (up to 650 words). Focus on specific accomplishments, and relate these accomplishments to past performance or industry norms. Be sure to mention obstacles overcome, innovations or discoveries made, and outcomes:
How does someone try to define what “Woman of the Year” means? Is it a combination of impressive business achievements, employee engagement, community involvement, and the ability to juggle a growing family with a newly purchased insurance agency? If so, you will certainly enjoy reading the story behind Kristin Bishop’s nomination!
July of 2017 began a new chapter for Kristin as she was able to officially secure the purchase of a multi-million dollar book of business from one of the largest and most established Allstate agencies in the area. The mountain of work and challenges presented up until this point would have been enough for most people to change their minds and turn around. Instead, Kristin embraced the trials and tribulations presented to her and officially opened the doors of The Bishop Family Insurance Agency on October 1st 2017.
The decision to make the leap from employee to business owner was a dream that Kristin had been working on for many years and this dream wasn’t just about her, it was a way that she could create a family business that would provide for her and her family for many generations. This particular agency had already been in place for 30 years and she was told to expect at least 25% of the current customers to leave, based on industry statistics. Instead of accepting this dismal statistic, she worked with her staff to come up with retention ideas that would show these customers that by staying with her they would be making the right decision. After countless late night phone calls, hundreds of hand written letters, and many weekends spent at the office, her efforts paid off with less than 5% of customers leaving.
Throughout the year, she focused on improving the agency’s marketing strategy and digital footprint. New policies written increased over 205% from 2016 and premium generated had over 154% in growth (close to $500k in her first year of sales). Leaders within the company began working directly with Kristin to understand her best practices so that they could share them with other agencies in hopes they would generate similar success stories. Those same leaders awarded Kristin with an Honor Ring achievement status for her impressive results, something very few first year agency owners accomplish.
Sales in the summertime are typically hot for insurance companies, but so are hurricanes. During one of the best sales months ever, two hurricanes were forecasted to have a direct impact on our area. Rather than waiting for the storm to pass and clean up the mess afterwards, Kristin rallied her team to roll up their sleeves and began an aggressive proactive campaign to contact customers directly to ensure they get through the storms as safely as possible. Policy reviews were completed, coverage options suggested, and a claims advocate was hired for the agency to have an expert in house available for customers to speak with. Kristin also put together a list of senior customers who live alone and called each one to let them know that the office was thinking about them and to call if they needed anything. She provided her personal cell phone number to each person she spoke with and made sure they knew she cared.
On top of being a charismatic and compassionate business leader, Kristin is a dedicated mother and wife who has raised the bar on what successfully juggling a career and family looks like. She encourages her children to be active in the community through charity and service events and teaches them by example how to treat people with respect and dignity. She knows that one day her children will be the ones running the business and wants them to exemplify the same morals and passions that she has so that they can continue to make the family name proud and make The Bishop Family Insurance Agency a long lasting business in the community.