Although golfing and selling have a lot in common, for most producers they're like night and day...

GOOD NEWS/BAD NEWS by Mike Manes Before the days of political correctness, there were great 'good news and bad news' jokes. 'Did you hear the one about the doctor who told t...

GOOD TELEPHONE SKILLS MEAN SUCCESS by Jack Burke Nearly 20 years ago, as manager of a growing automotive leasing company, I was researching specialty bus manufacturers to represent. It ha...

GOODWILL VALUE IN AN INSURANCE AGENCY by Al Diamond If you think 'Goodwill Value' has something to do with the amount you contribute to the March of Dimes every year, you better t...

GREAT PASSERS! IMPROVE TWO-WAY COMMUNICATION by Michael Manes You might be passing along great ideas - but are your listeners receiving them? Who are Joe Montana, Terry Bra...

GROWTH VS. PROFITABLE GROWTH by Chris Burand Revenue growth for its own sake doesnt make sense. In an industry that prizes sales, its no wonder that so many sales p...

GROWTH-LOADED PRODUCER COMPENSATION by Al Diamond Use this plan to give your producers an incentive to target growth, while protecting the agency from financial losses. Ev...

HAPPY EMPLOYEES INCREASE EFFICIENCY by Grace Bauer Some employees are actually happy in their jobs these days, and for good reason. The wave is starting to swell as more and m...

HARDENING P/C MARKET SHOULDNT STOP GROWTH IN LIFE/HEALTH SALES by Emily Huling A lot of agents are breathing a sigh of relief over the hardening of the Property/Casualty market, but ...

GETTING IT STRAIGHT
Marketing may be second nature in large companies, but smaller firms tend to have a tough time implementing, managing, and monitoring an effective marketing strategy. The title of 'marketing director' is often conferred on the person designated to answer requests for sales literature, or the title is added as an afterthought to the role of the sales manager who thinks that marketing is just an alternative spelling of 'sales.'