THE BALANCE SHEET DOES MATTER! by Chris...

THE BALANCE SHEET DOES MATTER! by Chris Burand Chris Burand explains why a balance sheet definitely matters in an agency sale. The degree to which it matters depends on the quality of t...

THE CUSTOMERS OF AN INDEPENDENT INSURANCE AGENCY by Gary Holgate As a consultant, the first questions I ask agency owners concern their customers. This provides me with a feel for the agency and...

THE ELEPHANT HUNTERby Al Diamond Before you acquire an agency, make sure you acquire agency experience. I was recently contacted by a smart young agent who had come into the bus...

THE FOUR FACES OF PROFITABILITY: PART I by Diane Herbert and Pamela Millard Even if you see a healthy profit when you look at the bottom line, you might want to consider your profitability...

THE FOUR PILLARS OF AGENCY MANAGEMENT by Bill Schoeffler and Catherine Oak There's no single ideal way to set up and ad...

THE HARDENING MARKET: PROBLEM OR OPPORTUNITY? by Jack Burke I never sold an insurance policy in my life, unless you include Credit Life insurance and Automotive Extended Care c...

THE ILLUSION OF SERVICE by Al Diamond I recently tried a little experiment. Two agencies that I encountered expressed a great deal of pride in the degree of service provided by their staf...

THE IMPACT OF CLUSTERS ON AGENCY VALUE by Chris Burand In this document, Chris Burand addresses the question of how an agencys value is affected when it doesnt own...

Are independent insurance agents on the verge of extinction? On the MisFortune 500 list of endangered occupations? You might think so after reading some of the press. For a different perspective, Kevin Stipe offers his observations of current and past trends and market conditions to prove that we’re not necessarily going the way of the dinosaur and the door-to-door encyclopedia salesman.