1. The Savings Data Is National- One of the most important pricing factors for car insurance is location. For example, car insurance prices in Lancaster, PA are significantly cheaper than New York, NY. In addition, some car insurance companies tend to have more competitive prices in specific states and even counties. However, most insurance companies use National data to promote their average savings on television and it may not be an accurate picture of how competitive they are on a local level. Car insurance prices are very similar to real estate, it is all about location, location, location.

2. The Savings Data May Not Be Current – I understand that it takes time to compile National savings data for these commercials, however, one car insurance commercial I saw had fine print on the bottom of the screen saying the data was from 2007. Nearly every car insurance company has increased prices since 2007 and some insurance companies have taken double digit prices increases in 2010. Depending on when the last time a car insurance company increased rates, a car insurance commercial even with data from a year ago may be completely out dated.

3. The Savings Data Is Not The Whole Story – My biggest pet peeve with any marketing claim about saving money is that the savings amount is not only part of the story. The other half, and more important part, of the story is how often the savings occurs. A company with just 1 customer who saved $400 per year can make the same claim as another company who saved 10,000 customers an average of $400 per year. However, the only thing talked about in car insurance commercials is the savings amount. If you are shopping car insurance, wouldn’t you want to talk with the company who saves customers money and does it often?

Someone once told me that you can crunch data to make it say anything you want. Keep this mind the next time you see a car insurance commercial and how much you could save if you switch.

After 45 years, b.i.g is now doing business in so many new ways compared to 1996 or 1978 and especially 1965. In the past, everything was paper intensive. Our shelves were full of manuals that told us the rules of doing business. We rated auto policies by hand using a pencil, paper and calculator. Polaroid cameras were the rage for taking instamatic pictures of homes that were insured. There were rows of file cabinets full of folders that contained the customer information and policies in force. Communication was only by mail or telephone until the arrival of the fax machine and the computer.

Today, at b.i.g you will see a business that uses computers to do just about everything. Technology has pushed businesses into a new frontier and embracing it takes courage and a will to change. We have accepted that at b.i.g.  It began with adding other insurance carriers and the adoption of a new paperless system. It continues with our entry into social media. On our new website you will find our staff blogging insurance tips for families and business as well as links to our twitter and facebook accounts.

Speaking of staff, we now have one of the best groups of employees in the history of the agency. You will find them competent, energetic and willing to go the extra mile to meet your needs.

b.i.g is prepared to meet the future. Even though we commenced to do business in 1965 we are just beginning. So, thank you to our loyal customer base for making our journey and our 45th anniversary possible!