Proactive vs. Reactive

Too often over the last few months, I've met with people who have been "OK" dealing with their current broker. I always start off each meeting by asking "Tell me about your renewal process," and too often do I hear that the broker waits until the last minute to give a quote or even go out to market for renewal. The broker, of course receives such a high percentage increase from the carriers, that they are afraid to tell their client, until it's the last minute and the client has no other choice but to agree.

The brokers' I have just described, and there are many of them are the REACTIVE type. A reactive broker waits until the last minute - they are stagnant in their service and don't respond to clients unless the client reaches out to them (sometimes the client has to "light a fire" before they actually respond)... I don't know about you, but if I'm paying someone a commission, I want excellent service and no that my broker is going to bat for me and trying his/her hardest to get the best rate possible, especially in this economy.

My number one goal is to be as proactive as possible. If I'm proactive, then I can guarantee my clients the lowest rates possible because I manage the process throughout the year, rather than having the process manage me during renewal time.

Proactive (descriptive of any event or stimulus or process that has an effect on events or stimuli or processes that occur subsequently) "proactive inhibition"; "proactive interference"
(of a policy or person or action) controlling a situation by causing something to happen rather than waiting to respond to it after it happens)

Reactivity is a phenomenon that occurs when individuals alter their performance or behavior due to the awareness that they are being observed. The change may be positive or negative, and depends on the situation.

Would you rather have a Proactive Broker or a Reactive Broker?