There are several things to think about if you are a captive insurance agent who is considering becoming an independent agency. You are not a novice. You have the advantage of industry knowledge because you have worked in the insurance industry for a long time. Nevertheless, there will be some difficulties. However, with great preparation […]
How can an owner grow their agency most effectively? Hiring and developing qualified staff is a key differentiator between successful growth agencies and their peers. For many owners an essential starting point begins with a focus on recruiting and hiring. Agencies that grow faster than their peers prioritize revenue-generating activities. Growth can be achieved by […]
Successfully Navigating through a Volatile Insurance Market Inflation and higher gas prices continue to drive cost increases and volatility. It’s important to learn how our agents are navigating a volatile insurance market. Personal and commercial insurance premiums will continue increasing (10% and greater) as carriers cite underlying factors such as material shortages (car and parts […]
Having an established new client onboarding process is an essential foundational element that impacts retention and client loyalty (see article: Key Performance Indicator – Understanding the Impact of Retention and Renewable Income on Agency Growth). Determining what makes a successful client onboarding program varies from agency to agency. A few questions to consider with respect […]
What is the biggest challenge your agency faced in the past year? The biggest challenge over the past year has been continuing to grow our agency while navigating through a “new normal” world and the hurdles it has thrown at us. For one, we have had many customers lose their jobs or become more price-conscious […]
Retention is the life blood of an independent insurance agency’s business. As agency owners consider planning, emphasis on new business generation often takes precedence over retention goals. Considering it costs a typical business five-to-seven times more to acquire a new client than retain an existing client, agency owners will benefit by allocating resources towards increasing […]
What is the biggest challenge your agency faced in the past year? The biggest challenge the agency faced in the past year was moving the office to a new location. The logistics of locating a new office in another town and all the minutiae of moving that accompanies it was a lot to manage. Handling […]
As independent agencies evolve to become more efficient in helping clients through the insurance buying process, commercial comparative raters are becoming an increasingly essential part of an agency’s technology plan. The ability to streamline the commercial digital distribution process poses both an opportunity for independent agencies who embrace this technology, and a threat to those […]
Recently during the 2021 Annual Meeting, Jack Hertvik referenced studies indicating that highly digitalized agencies are growing significantly faster (one study showing +60%) than their competition. Many agencies are embracing new technology for growth at a rapid pace and the gaps between those that do versus those that do not are increasing significantly. Most agencies […]
What is the biggest challenge your agency faced in the past year? The biggest challenge we faced in the last year is coping with the Pandemic. We made keeping our customers and our staff healthy and safe our number one priority. It altered how we did business, meaning we locked the doors and only allowed […]
