Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of New Jersey

Transcription

1 Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of New Jersey New Jersey State Trusted Choice Reimbursement Program Receive up to $750 in reimbursements for Trusted Choice co-branded agency advertising and/or marketing expenses. Please read the following rules and regulations thoroughly this is a new program for Program Overview IIABNJ s Trusted Choice Reimbursement Program was developed to help IIABNJ members extend their agency s consumer branding efforts in their local or regional community. By taking advantage of the State Trusted Choice Reimbursement Program your agency can: Establish and maintain a presence in your market. Capitalize on the value of being a Trusted Choice agency among current and prospective consumers. Leverage existing Trusted Choice advertising and promotions. Legitimize yourself and your business as a trusted agent. Generate interest in your business and its services. Differentiate yourself from other insurance providers. Program Policies IIABNJ will reimburse 50% of the total cost of eligible invoices to a maximum of $750 during the Trusted Choice Reimbursement Program. For example: invoices totaling $500 will receive a $250 reimbursement, invoices totaling $1000 will receive a $500 reimbursement, invoices totaling $1500 will receive a reimbursement of $750. The program will run from November 1, 2014 through April 30, 2015 or until funds are depleted. No funds will be issued prior to November 1, 2014 or after April 30, Reimbursements submitted outside of the program eligibility timeframe will be declined. All funds are available to member agencies on a first-come, first-served basis according to the postmark or electronic receipt date. Partial applications will be returned. An agency may submit as many applications as they wish until they have used their allotted reimbursement maximum. No agency may receive more than $750.

2 In order for an agency to qualify for reimbursement, the agency must demonstrate that they are using the Trusted Choice brand on a day-to-day basis by including, along with the application, any one of the following samples showing the Trusted Choice logo: agency letterhead, envelopes, business cards, website, or agency signage. All costs submitted for reimbursement must be verifiable. All purchases, advertising activities, sponsorships, and other marketing promotions must take place within the reimbursement program time frame of November 1, 2014 through April 30, Activities falling outside of this time frame are non-reimbursable. Agencies who received reimbursement dollars under a previous program, or the national program, may not submit for reimbursement dollars under this year s program for the same expenses/invoices. Double reimbursement is not permitted. Only new expenses are eligible for reimbursement. Agencies must be in good standing to receive reimbursement dollars i.e. no outstanding invoices or bills owed to IIABNJ. Program Eligibility Promotional Products Promotional products or agency marketing materials include, but are not limited to: brochures, ID holders, folders, apparel, client/prospect give-a-ways (pens, calendars, USB drives, magnets, and similar items), etc. Promotional products/marketing materials eligibility requirements: All products must be purchased and paid for between November 1, 2014 and April 30, All products must include the Trusted Choice registered logo at a minimum of 20% of the available print space. All reimbursement applications must carry a complete proof of what the actual product will look like with the agency and Trusted Choice brand. This can be a printer s proof or photograph of the product. Incomplete proofs, i.e. logos or designs sent without showing the artwork as part of the full product, will be returned. Advertisements Advertisements include, but are not limited to: print, online, outdoor, radio, and cable advertising. Yellow book advertising, or other online or print telephone book advertising, is not eligible for reimbursement. Advertising eligibility requirements: Reimbursements are provided for media purchases, design, and production costs only. Market research is ineligible. Advertisements must include the Trusted Choice registered logo accordingly: - Online Ads: The Trusted Choice registered logo must cover a minimum of 10% of the ad and the logo must be proportionate to the ad size. Online ads must direct users to a web page that includes the Trusted Choice logo. A proof of the ad and the click-through URL are required for reimbursement.

3 - Print and Cable Ads: The Trusted Choice registered logo must cover a minimum of 10% of the ad space and be proportionate to the ad size. - Radio Ads: All scripts must devote a minimum of 10% of audio to the Trusted Choice brand. - Outdoor ads: The Trusted Choice registered logo must cover a minimum of 10-15% of the ad, be proportionate to the ad size, and be clearly visibly from 150 yards. All advertising purchases and activities must take place within the program time frame of November 1, 2014 and April 30, Ads that run outside of this program time frame are ineligible for reimbursement. For example: A five month advertising campaign that runs from September 1, 2014 January 31, 2015 will be reimbursed only for the three months that fall under the program time frame of November January. Marketing Promotions Marketing promotions are proactive, outbound activities designed to promote the agency within the local or regional community. These activities include, but are not limited to: local or community sponsorships (sporting events, athletic teams, competitions, community events, etc), exhibiting at local/regional/community events, direct mail campaigns, outdoor agency signage. Marketing promotions eligibility requirements: Reimbursements are provided for sponsorship or exhibit fees, design and development of trade show signage (banners, exhibit booths.), design, print, and mailing costs of direct mail campaigns, and direct mail list rental fees. All events and activities must take place within the program time frame of November 1, 2014 and April 30, Participation in events or mailings that fall outside of the program time frame are ineligible. The Trusted Choice registered logo must be prominently displayed on any sponsorship or trade show materials with the logo size being equal to the agency s lettering or logo. Direct mail campaigns are required to carry the Trusted Choice registered logo at a minimum of 10% of the print or online space. The logo must be proportionate to the ad space. Agency signage must carry the Trusted Choice registered logo at a minimum of 10-15% of the signage space, be proportionate to the ad size, and be clearly visibly from 150 yards. Ineligible Items The following items are not eligible under the state marketing reimbursement program: - Day-to-day business materials including, but not limited to: business cards, envelopes, letter head. - Website development, maintenance, updating, and/or design. - CAP digital marketing programs. - TrustedChoice.com Advantage Plan subscriptions - Yellow book, or other phone book, online or in-print advertising.

4 Other Additional programs and initiatives will be given consideration and reviewed by members of the Trusted Choice Committee should they not fit clearly within any of the categories above. Professionally produced, customizable print, radio, and online ads, as well as direct mailers, are available for agencies to customize and download free of charge at The Trusted Choice Committee (comprised of fellow members and company representatives) reserves the right to review and reject any reimbursement applications that it deems inappropriate, that does not meet the eligibility or logo requirements, and/or that it deems unworthy of matching fund dollars. Required Documentation All of the below items must be submitted together. Incomplete submissions will be returned. 1. Claim Form: Found on the last page of this document. 2. Verification of Expenses: A signed contract or invoice. 3. Sample of Item: Includes one of the following: printer proof, photograph of item, advertisement tear sheet or proof, advertisement script, sample of item. 4. Additional Use of Brand: Additional use of the Trusted Choice brand on: agency letterhead, envelope, business card, website, or agency signage. If your application is approved, you will receive a reimbursement check within two to three weeks of the date your application was received.

5 IIABNJ Trusted Choice Reimbursement Program Claim Form Agency Name: Contact Name: Mailing Address: Phone: Program Type (circle one): Advertising Marketing Promotions Promotional Products Name of vendor you are advertising with, purchasing promotional products from, or name of organization you are sponsoring: Type of advertising, marketing promotion, promotional product being purchased: Time frame of marketing or advertising activities or when and how the promotional products will be used: Your Cost: Notes/Comments: Submissions should be forwarded to the attention of Stacey Villano at IIABNJ via: Mail: PO Box 3230, Trenton, NJ Fax: