11 SUREFIRE TACTICS TO GAIN CONTROL OF RECEIVABLES by Ken Buehler If you have a receivables problem, now is the best time to contain it. Most agencies with receivables problems believe th...

Before you buy an agency, check out these tips. If you're planning to purchase an agency, these guidelines are essential...

24-7 SERVICE PAYS by Pegi Flahault A recent survey indicated that the vast majority of agents surveyed believed their customer base did not want 24/7 service, voice mail, e-mail or anyth...

But, this article is about the fundamentals of marketing and communications for an insurance agency (or any consumer facing business's marketing). In my opinion, if you can stick to nurturing these fundamentals regularly, then all the advanced and future enhancements will come naturally. It doesn't matter whether the role you play in the agency is Principal, Producer, CSR, Admin or any customer facing role, in more ways than one, these fundamentals should apply to you.

A CHRISTMAS CONTRIBUTION Clients appreciate receiving Christmas cards and letters. It's nice to know that someone out there cares and wants to be remembered. Several years ago, IMMS received a me...

Suppose a local bedroom community just finished an Insurance Services Office (ISO) public protection classification inspection and was...

A CREATIVE WAY TO SELL 'UMBRELLAS' IMMS Member Wayne Smart of Fry, Jordan & Wilson, Inc., South Boston, Virginia sells Personal Umbrella insurance by the bucketful. Here's how: Wayne tapes a pape...

A FINAL REASON TO lsquo;GUIDE FOR COMMERCIAL LINES REFERRALS by Gil Simonds In the previous article, I promised to provide one last reason to guide for referrals...

A HEALTHY MARKET? PERCEPTION IS REALITY by Chris Burand A recent study by Zurich U.S. revealed what I believe could cause big problems for agents and brokers in the near future. The probl...

This article should challenge your thinking and management style and create new opportunities for you to build more Personal Lines sales. To improve your sales, your staff must change how they see themselves, develop their own reasons for doing what you want them to do, establish strategies to use the skills they already have, and adopt new ways of communicating.