If you’re in sales, you know the feeling. It’s the middle of the night about two weeks after starting a new job. You were enthusiastic and could hardly wait to get going. Now, your head is full of doubts. You try to shove them aside, but they don’t go away. “Everything is new,” you tell yourself. “I just need to give it a little more time.” However, the doubts keep coming back.
The gap between what you were told about the job and what’s actually happening grows wider by the day. After about three weeks, you finally ask yourself, “Have I made a mistake?”

If you're in sales, you can identify with this situation - about two weeks after starting a new job, you begin to doubt your decision. You detect a widening gap between what you were told to expect and what actually occurs. After only a month on the job, you conclude, 'I think I made a mistake.' You're probably right, because salespersons seem to be more prone to selecting the wrong job. Too often, their profession's tendency to stress the positive and minimize negative factors extend into their approach in choosing a job.

Dear (Customer Name), I'm writing you today for two reasons: one, to thank you for being a valued customer of [Your Agency Name] and, two, to ask you for a favor...

CRM OR MARKETING? by Patricia Czech Customer relationship management is a broad term that includes everything from call center routers to complex analytics, and budget allocations and d...

DEALING WITH THE PRODUCER WHO'S LEVELED OFF by Dave Kahle If a producers performance is lagging, heres how to turn the situation around. Every manager has, or will, c...

ESTABLISHING A MARKETING DEPARTMENT - AND WHO SHOULD RUN IT by Catherine Oak and Bill Schoeffler Agencies that establish an effective centralized marketing department as...

EVERYONE WANTS A WINNER by Tom Barrett As sales and marketing professionals continue conversations about increasing productivity, decreasing expenses, and boosting sales, the same c...

HOW TO BE A HIGH-PERFORMING FIRM by Catherine Oak, CIC, AAI The more effectively you sell, market, and service, the more valuable your agency. ...

HOW TO DEAL WITH A WHOLESALER by Ed Bordenave, CPCU, ARM In today's world of complex and ever-changing exposures, one of your most important allies is an Excess ...

JOB DESCRIPTION: MARKETING MANAGER OBJECTIVE: Under the direction of the agency manager, plan, lead and control an effective marketing function to ensure the development, maintenance and gr...