10 TIPS TO GARNER QUALITY REFERRALS by Bill Cates In this document, Bill Cates offers 10 tips you can act on quickly that will start to increase your flow of quality...

A JOINT VENTURE IN A SMALL TOWN by Ron Rensink The heated debate over bank activity in the insurance business has focused primarily on happenings in major metropolitan areas, where huge blocks of bu...

Here's a letter I received recently:
Dear Dave:
I am the manager of a four-person Life/Benefits department of a P/C agency. The agency is set up with profit centers such as Personal Lines, Commercial Lines, Surety, and Life/Benefits. Each profit center shares in the common overhead of the agency office supplies, salaries, etc.
I have no problem having my department pay for what it uses.

ANALYZING CUSTOMER PROBLEMS by Mary Beth Bolen The best customers are your existing customers. Some agree with that statement and some don't. There are some customers you'd probably rather b...

BANKS, AGENTS, AND PROFITS by Paige Proctor A recent survey by the IIAA and ABA (American Bankers Association) showed that 70% of bankers and 57% insurance agents think they can operate together and...

COMMUNICATE WITH EMPLOYEES! by Al Diamond Treat your employees like customers - not children! Most agency principals have owned one or two agencies and have been ...

COMMUNICATING THE GRAND VISION by Jack Burke Today, a good friend gave me a phone call that reinforced the importance of communication within an organization. To understand this s...

CREATE WEALTH BY SHARING IT by John Jaques Over the last several years, I've noticed that higher-value, faster-growing, and superior-profit agencies have a strong willingness to sh...

'Nothing happens until somebody sells something.' Traditionally, in the independent insurance agency that 'somebody'...

CSR PROFIT-SHARING INCENTIVES Here are suggestions for CSR incentives: For CSRs who remain with the agency for a full year, split 25% of the increase in the commission incom...