Commercial Lines

Referring to Wal-Mart's upcoming redesign of its Web site, one analyst said it will give retailing a "jolt" and another said it will "change Internet retailing." Evie Black Dykem, of Forrester Research, Inc., said, "It will be the shot heard round the retail world." When the world's largest retailer stakes its claim on the Internet, many predict that life will never again be the same. "The power to navigate the world at the click of a mouse is a force that is transforming our lives like none before," wrote the editors of Business Week. A few paragraphs later, they added, "Anyone with a computer is a citizen of the world-and a richer world at that."

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

How do you become an insurance agent? How do you get clients? Do you need to be educated in order to sell insurance? Do you need to know about Instagram Ads? These are all questions that many potential insurance agents have, but they shouldn’t stop them from getting into the industry. With the right attitude and some helpful advice, you can succeed as an insurance agent regardless of your experience or lack thereof. Here are six tips that will get you started on the path toward success as an insurance agent.

Confusion over agency bill vs. direct bill options has caused an E&O claim or two. Curtis Pearsall illustrates the consequences of this confusion with an example.

Producer: Hello, (PROSPECT NAME), this is (PRODUCER NAME) from (ABC AGENCY). I enjoyed meeting with you in (MONTH), and I was...

Why Is the Referral Process the Most Powerful Way to Sell?

Without question, selling through referrals is the most powerful way to build your practice; not to mention the most enjoyable. Producers who really love prospecting for business through cold calls are rare birds. My guess is that you're not one of them. In this age of voice mail, increased competition, and everyone being super busy, cold calling has become less effective.

Bob Kerrigan, one of the most successful agents alive, says, "The way of the world is to meet people through other people. And the referral is the warm way we get into their lives."

Independent Agency System carriers that rank high on the Gomez insurance Web site index probably congratulate themselves on their achievement - the result of hard work, creativity, and spending in the nine or ten-digit range. But what if these high-ranking carriers are scoring well in the wrong game?

Suppose Gomez and other Web ranking services have no idea what they’re talking about? What if they base their evaluation criteria on an implicit misunderstanding of the insurance business? What if "winning" means embracing a bankrupt business strategy?

Ten years ago it took $5 million in total agency revenues and about $30 million in Property/Casualty premiums to land on the top 100 agency list. Now an agency needs to have in excess of $10 million in revenues and $60 million in premiums to make the cut. Ten years ago the average independent agency in the country had $250,000 in total revenues with six to seven people. Today the average is close to $600,000 in revenues, also with six to seven people. To use a phrase from Bob Dylan, "the times, they are a changing."

Most agencies plan, measure and record the sale of new business, but very few take the time to really control the loss of business to the agency. It is the opinion of our firm that no agency really profits if business keeps coming in the front door and going out the back.

Do you regularly negotiate such contractual issues as commission rates, growth goals, etc. with your companies?

Congratulations to the 57% who responded, “Yes!” Based on those positive responses, it appears that agencies of all sizes are negotiating. Negotiations aren't limited to larger agencies. If these agents weren't succeeding in their negotiations, even in a hard market, they'd be giving up. Although 57% is a good percentage, I'd love to see this number keep growing. If you aren't negotiating contractual issues with your companies, isn't it time to begin?