2020: A Berry Insurance Year in Review

It’s official, 2020 is a year for the record books. There is just no other way to say it.

I think it's fair to assume that over the last nine months we’ve all experienced a range of emotions. Sadness, anger, despair, loneliness, grief, confusion, frustration, and many more. 

But despite all that, there has also been happiness, joy, comfort, and gratitude. 

So instead of talking about the negative, I thought today, as we close out the year, I’d share with you what has happened with Team Berry Insurance this year, and what we’re excited to have come in 2021.

New Partnerships

This year we brought on two new insurance companies - Plymouth Rock and Hanover. We’re always seeking to find the best insurance solutions for our clients and we were so excited to be able to bring the policies and products offered by these Massachusetts-based companies. We’re also expanding our offerings to include Safeco Insurance for our Rhode Island neighbors, and should be ready to launch those policies in January of 2021. 

A Growing Team

While Corin Cook technically joined our team in December of 2019, we want to recognize what an incredible addition she has been this year. Corin supports every function of our agency, and her work has created additional opportunities for cross-collaboration in our team. 

We’re also very excited to have brought on two new team members this year - Nick Richards, a personal lines sales executive and Rider, our VP of Puplick Relations. Nick & Rider jumped right in and have been making an incredible impact on our agency. We’re so excited to have them on board! 

And our team is growing more as we speak. We’re currently hiring for a full-time videographer position, so if you know of anyone who might be a great fit for our team, be sure to let us know!

New Technology

Many of our clients have been receiving video messages from our team this year. We’re not actors by any means, but we’re all becoming more comfortable behind a camera, and we’re excited to be able to offer a new way to communicate with our community. In addition to video messages, we’ve been scheduling client meetings via Zoom and Microsoft Teams so that we can continue to serve our clients safely. If you want to chat via video, feel free to schedule a call anytime!

Oh, and if you’re reading this, you’re also visiting our brand-new website! Take a look around, enjoy the amazing pictures by our friend and client Shannon Matos Photography, and be sure to stop over to our Learning Center where we spend time answering every insurance question we receive. (There’s a lot in there, so be sure to subscribe for updates that happen about twice a week).

Internally we’ve implemented several cloud-based systems so we can share documents and files seamlessly, no matter where we are, and we’ve used video services to host team meetings and send communications to our entire team. And because we all need a little comic relief these days, we’ve been using a private team Facebook group to socialize and stay connected personally.

New Locations

Ok, well, we haven’t actually opened any additional offices, but we have given our team the flexibility to work remotely so that we can continue to stay safe. Our team has been connecting from Holden, Franklin, Uxbridge, Bellingham, Bridgewater and even Pawtucket, RI. No matter where we are, we’re here for you.

National Accolades

If you know anything about us, we’re not big on boasting. I mean, don’t get me wrong, we think we’re the best around, but we’re also not putting up billboards or creating commercial radio spots about it. It's just not how we do things around here. But just the same, I’d be lying if I didn’t tell you how proud I am of our team for earning Rough Notes Magazine’s Agency of the Month in September. To be recognized by a national publication for being a top insurance agent in the country is something we’re incredibly proud of.

Personal & Professional Development

We’ve made mistakes. (Pretty sure I have made more than anyone else). And we’ve learned from them. But we also strive to always improve and grow. And not just in insurance knowledge, but in communications, team work, service, and more. We have taken online courses as a team, read books as a team, and share what we are learning so that we can always strive to improve. 

Sense of Gratitude

This year has given us all an overwhelming sense of gratitude for life. We are grateful to have amazing clients, many of whom have been with us for decades, and have shared their stories and support with us over the years. We are grateful to have partnerships with financially strong insurance companies and with vendors that support our business and who spark creativity in our team. We are grateful to be a part of the Franklin, MA community and to be a part of the Moseley Mill complex community, who have all been incredible during these crazy times. We are grateful to be deemed an essential service to our clients so that we can continue to operate and be here for you when you need it.

Finally, we are grateful to have a team of professionals and caring individuals, who come to work every day and give their best to our agency. Thank you Team!

We asked our team what they are most thankful for this year, and here’s what they had to say:

Kim: 2020 has pushed me beyond my comfort zone both as a parent and at work and I couldn’t be more thankful for those life lessons. I’m thankful for the opportunities at home and at work that allowed me to grow as a parent and as an employee.

Shelly: I am most grateful for good health for myself and my loved ones, having good friends, and snuggles with my furbabies.

Chris: I am grateful for the way we have all embraced 2020 by staying on top emotionally and not getting down in the dumps. I am also thankful for how we have partnered with a vendor/consultant that not only helped design our awesome new website but has also challenged us to grow individually and as a team.

Kaitlyn: I am incredibly grateful for the extra time spent at home with my kids. We’ve started new traditions and have enjoyed time “slowing down” together as a family, instead of always feeling over-scheduled and on the run to practices, events and more.

Nick: I am thankful for a new beginning at Berry Insurance. I am thankful for being able to spend so much time with my son for the majority of 2020. And most of all, I’m thankful to be onto 2021.

Stacy: I am thankful for spending more time with family and being forced to come up with fun ideas to do as a family. I have enjoyed family bike rides, firepits, hikes and when the weather allowed- many many hours lounging by the pool. I have had to focus more on the positive this year to keep my mind away from all of the negativity and that has been eye opening. I feel that I take less for granted and appreciate things more.  

John: I’m thankful for my wife and my girls, and also for a company that handled such a trying year in such a successful way.

Laura: I’m thankful my family has been healthy this year, for acts of kindness I see daily, and for the sacrifices doctors, nurses and first responders make for us.

We’d like to thank everyone for their continued support this year. We are eternally grateful to you all. We are so excited to see what 2021 brings. Cheers!