Agency Nation Radio

For whatever reason we like to sell insurance with people who normally have the same last name. It's all possible we just suffer from some undiagnosable form of mental illness to prefer to do business this way. Or there could be unexplainable benefits to selling insurance with the people you also spend the holiday's with. Because this behavior is so common, it's also hard to walk away from, especi...

I doubt that you are, because it's really hard to keep doing something you don't think is working. Not to mention you could've have missed something and waited all that time for nothing... Doesn't SEO sound great? Guess what though, if you can survive all of that, you'll be rewarded with a constant stream of leads that never runs dry. Well, I mean if you don't keep up appearances it will eventuall...

It's hard to capture and even harder to recreate, now matter what it's dangerous inside your agency. The truth is, it's so rare to find most agencies don't know what's possible if they had it. That thing, of course, is creativity and the lack of it found within the industry. That's why when someone comes in from the outside, seemingly having no business being here, blazes a trail no one's seen bef...

Is so out of control if you realized what's possible you'd spend threes times more. The problem is the mindset you approach the purchase with. That is it's something that isn't really necessary and ineffective. That mindset is easy to have not knowing or seeing the full potential effective video marketing can have on your agency. If you could you would have wished you made that investment years ag...

Are you brave enough to actually do the things you wish could be done different? It seems like everyone loves to play armchair InsurTech CEO these days, but actually making it on the field is entirely different. That first step is much easier when you have people with the level of intensity walking on each side. It's that team of people that will help finish your idea and bring it into reality. Th...

The better question is, what should they actually be doing? Because if you think you need a person, there's a good chance that you actually need a person. What isn't so obvious is the type of work this person will be doing and seeing if it can be found elsewhere, cheaper. If you don't figure out the answer to those questions before brining someone new into your agency, that might be a problem. Tha...

The only thing you have to do to get it is ask the people you're already selling. Sounds a little too good to be true, right? Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. If you're knocking down 10-15 personal home and auto policies every week, you just need to close one final expense policy to do it. Now, if you're one of those P&C guys that swore off life insurance years ago, this sale should get you back at th...

Is because of a creative culture that won't stop. Culture Tough to pin down. Easy to dismiss. Yet, Culture. As ethereal concept as it may be… is Paramount to victory. Because culture… unlike any other aspect of your business... ...is the psychological manifestation of the soul of your business. You can’t fake it. Culture is honest, candid and true. ...and it all boils down to this. You care… or yo...

If you wait until you need someone to figure out who you're going to hire, you've already lost. The chances of you finding the absolute best person for that position in a two week time span is near impossible. The big question is, why aren't you always looking for the next person you're not sure you'll need? Because if you are you'll always have the highest quality candidate ready to fill a hole o...

There's a good chance you might not even be able to ante up to today's table stakes of digital presentation. Today's consumer expects to find so much information that you might not be giving them. It's move beyond just a phone, email and website. They expect real tangible things to be delivered to the through a digital experience in the form of education and communication. If your agency isn't act...

If we all work together this is something we won't have to worry about anymore. Alright fine, yes you'll obviously still be able to lose a big account to another agent. However, if we all get our act together it won't happen because someone didn't do their job right or people hate insurance. I know it sounds a little far fetched already, but I'm pretty sure if everyone comes together from all side...

Sometimes it pays to look your best when clients need you the most. There are so many aspects to creating a video "that works" it's impossible to execute them all. Sure, eventually you might get there, but that's 12 months and 40 videos later. The faster you can be authentically good on camera, the sooner the world will open up to you and your business. That's what Ryan talks to Greg Rollett, Foun...

Do you go after a veteran that's been around the league and knows how to win now or build for the future? Figuring out this simple question alone, is one insurance agents have been struggling to answer for at least a decade. Most of the time what ends up happening is experience is over-valued and everyone discounts what the game looks like through new eyes. That's why I talked to Bogus Handzle, of...

The more you pay attention to what you say, the better your client will feel. When you hear someone say no your brain treats it the same as physical pain. Sounds crazy, but that's probably not what you want your customers feeling when they're on the phone with your agency. It's amazing how simple it can be to dramatically change the experience your clients have just by being positive and giving th...

This is definitely the easiest way to figure out what leads you need to pay attention to. The tricky part is making sure you've given them enough to do to be able to figure it out. If not, there's no way you'll ever know who your biggest fans are and which leads want to talk to you the most. Sydney Roe turns the tables on me at the dinner table to talk about the process I went through to give my l...

Unless you want to buy a really big door that knows how to handle it. It's never easy finding the right people for your agency. It's even harder when they will never care about your business as much as you do. It's impossible and expecting anything else is just asking for trouble. That's what I talked with Nick Ayers, at i80 Insurance and IAOA , about as he shares his struggles. P.S. Nick is going...

Most business leaders are pretty good at the skills their actual job requires. That means you are usually above average at selling insurance, but those skills rarely translate into being a good business leader. The crazy part is, controlling just a few core aspects within your business will dramatically improve those skills. Those 8 core principles are: Income Covering Weakness Ego, Emotion, Expec...

Are you making sure the people that want to talk to you can do it without thinking twice about it? The easier it is for people to talk to you and you talk to them, the better you'll be. If every interaction is a struggle of epic proportions for you and them you'll have wasted a lot of everyone's time. Having the proper systems and segmentation in place is vital to making sure that doesn't happen i...

What if it only took two minutes and four questions to complete a commercial insurance application? Would that sound like a much simpler insurance world to live in? Would you also have a much easier time presenting certain coverage to potential clients? These are borderline redundant questions that are a dramatic improvement from what you have probably been doing. The best part is that it is actua...

We're not focused on the person that writes the check, if we don't start they won't be writing it much longer. When you think about it, it's amazing we've been able to get away with it this long. This is the type of focus, mindset and passion that's needed to move the needle and actually do something about it. Because simplicity is really hard and what we currently have is anything but simple. In...

There's no room for followers or blame within a successful organization. If your leading the agency your people will emulate your energy, so it better be good. If not, you might have just discovered whats been quietly holding you back. It's your job to get as many people above the line as possible so they can hit their goals and as a result, so will the agency. That what Ryan wanted to talk to for...

If you do, you stand a much better chance when some needs to remember your name. In order to do that, you have to have a solid process in place that believe in blindly to success. It's that level of dedication most agents lack and ultimately why they never see results. That what I talk to Woody Brown, of The Rhoads Group , as he tries to figure out his. P.S. Woody is going to be speaking at Elevat...

It's pretty simple actually, it gains trust faster so you can spend more time selling. Why wouldn't you want prospects to be able to hear, see and know you before you do? Video give you the ability to reach into organizations and audiences you never would expect to be watching. The secret is, everyone is and not many people (see agencies) are giving them anything to watch. That's what Ryan talks t...

It's very possible you might have no idea, even if you do, it will still be fun. This is by far one of the most popular questions I get from people who are just getting to know our company. Which is fine, it's a completely fair question and it's possible we don't make the answer as obvious as it should be (we're working on that). At the end of the day if we can help you find your insurance flag an...

If you're not then you could find yourself stuck somewhere you don't want to be. That place could be filled with many different adjectives all describing a less than desirable location. If you don't approach what you want to do and where you want to do it with enough intention, you could definitely get there. That's what I talked to my buddy Patrick Muscenti, of McGown Insurance , about what it to...