Insurance agents may not have the best reputation, perhaps due to the aggressive sales tactics some deploy.
One agent who was trying to attract customers at a mall in Tampines allegedly brushed one passer-by the wrong way for a whole other reason.
The passer-by, a parent by the name of Ms Nazreen, wrote on Facebook that the agent attempted to speak to her about different financial policies by tempting her child with a balloon.
After answering a few questions, Ms Nazreen was told that she did not fit the customer profile. The agent then took back the balloon from her daughter’s hand.
Ms Nazreen took the opportunity to call the agents out for their marketing gimmick and warned others about the “cheap” ploy.
Ms Nazreen shared a Facebook post on Monday (13 Jun) morning, detailing her experience with a pair of insurance agents in Tampines.
Source: Facebook
As she was walking around a mall in Tampines, Ms Nazreen and her daughter were approached by a lady with a penguin balloon.
The lady then asked the child if she wanted the balloon. Naturally, the two-year-old girl was delighted and accepted the offer.
Having noticed the booth the lady had walked from, Ms Nazreen was aware that she was an insurance agent, as the lady proceeded to ask her a few questions.
After answering them, the insurance agent allegedly deemed that Ms Nazreen didn’t fit the potential customer profile.
She then apologised and took the balloon back from Ms Nazreen’s daughter before walking away.
Horrified by the decision, the pair walked away from the insurance agent.
Moments later, another agent, presumably a colleague of the first one, approached them.
The other agent attempted the same approach but this time, Ms Nazreen told them off for targeting her child and said,
Do not tempt her only to take it back cause I don’t fit your (her) profile.
Hearing this, the other agent approached her manager, supposedly to seek clarification.
She subsequently returned only to confirm that she was “unable to give the balloon”.
Evidently upset by the encounters, Ms Nazreen took to Facebook to call the agents out for what she describes to be a “low and cheap move”.
She explained that although adults can know when they’ve fallen for a marketing gimmick, young children may not be able to fathom it. So for a child to receive something only to have it snatched away without good reason, to Ms Nazreen, is “absolutely disgusting”.
Considering the poor customer service, Ms Nazreen also expressed her doubts about engaging the agents at all.
MS News has reached out to the insurance company for comments and will update the article accordingly when they get back.
The agents’ actions can be quite hurtful, especially for kids who have no idea what’s going on.
But it’s worth keeping in mind that the agents may have been simply following a directive from a supervisor.
Regardless, gifting a balloon would barely hurt their bottom dollar. And if that could make someone’s day, we’re sure it’s a payoff worth making.
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Featured image adapted from Google Maps.
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