The cluster concept has been a popular one for doctors, dentists, realtors, and others for many years. Insurance agency clusters have been around for a few decades, but interest in them intensified during the hard market of the early 1980s. At that time, smaller agencies banded together to protect themselves against increasing carrier demands brought on by tighter market conditions.

HOW WELL DO YOU KNOW YOUR CLIENTS? by Curtis Pearsall How well do you know your clients? Do you fully understand their needs and exposures? Knowing your clients is absolutely crucial to your...

Selling isn’t about making sales — it’s about engaging customers, entering into a conversation with them, and letting them respond when they’re ready to buy. That’s called marketing, and marketing makes sales. In this article, John Graham uses Krispy Kreme Donuts as an example of how a company finds ways to create excitement and build customer loyalty.

SPREADSHEET BUSINESS EQUATION by Virginia Bates If there are two phrases that turn agency principals off, they are probably 'work process engineering' and 'business planning.' The for...