Brian Jardine is crystal clear on what is behind his success as a broker: “At the end of the day it’s communication.”
“Communication is of the utmost importance in our line of business,” says the specialist in commercial and residential real estate insurance.
“Keeping in constant communication with your client helps you stay on top of their true insurance and business needs and that’s what sets us apart; we’re not one of those types of broker that sends you a bill once a year, we want to get out there, get in front of you multiple times throughout the year.”
It is this approach that Jardine, who started his career in Toronto as a large commercial underwriter with one of the world’s leading insurance carriers before moving to Calgary, credits with the excellent working rapport he has developed with his customers.
“It allows us to stay in tune with your business; a good broker stays in tune with their client all year round; that’s what sets us apart, making sure we are in tune with our client’s needs.”
“As much as we procure insurance from insurance companies, at the end of the day our client is who we work for, we want to make sure we’ve always got their back, that we’re on their team, and that they’re taken care of.”
Accordingly, Jardine prides himself on helping clients facilitate the structure of their insurance programs to maximize the dollar amount spent without compromising the protection they need.
“I think part of what makes us successful is that we can instill those values into our clients, that we are there for them; we’re there to protect them, there to take care of them, that we’re going to be there whether good or bad, we’re going to be there for them; that’s the kind of thing I always preach to our clients: we’re there for you.”
And that notion of being there for the client helps offset the broker’s bugbear: customers so sensitive to price that it is a consideration that outweighs all others.
“Some customers out there will chase the cheapest price, but I think those types of philosophies can really come back to burn them. There are a lot of clients out there who truly value the service that a broker can bring and a good broker can pass that message on properly to these clients; that it’s more than just the cheapest price. You want to make sure you’ve got somebody backing you up. Whether it’s a claims situation whether it’s a coverage issue, whatever the case may be. You’ve got to be there for them, regardless if it’s good news or bad news.”
