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08/13/2019 · 6 min read
Turn cold leads into lifetime clients with Nato Guajardo's relationship marketing system: lead with value not a quote, automate follow-up over 90 days while keeping conversations personal, and measure touchpoints and retention, not just policies sold. 97% of leads aren't ready today, but they buy later if you're still there.
06/18/2019 · 7 min read
Bryan Falchuk's framework has four parts: identity precedes behavior (decide who you are before you change what you do), systems over heroics (build pathways that run without motivation), small wins compound (one percent better across five metrics changes a P&L), and adversity is data, not destiny.
06/12/2019 · 7 min read
Double production with half the staff in four steps: document every recurring workflow, automate the handoffs (lead routing, follow-ups, onboarding), hire by output rather than by function, and measure weekly dashboards. Audit your team's time. Anything over 40% low-value is a systems problem.
06/04/2019 · 6 min read
Your lead source data is probably lying to you. The five numbers that matter: cost per lead by source, 5-minute contact rate, quote-to-bind ratio, 12-month retention, and lifetime value. Scale what works, kill what doesn't.
05/27/2019 · 6 min read
InsurTech wins where the work is commoditized (personal auto, renters) and loses where it is complex. Independent agents survive by leaning into commercial lines, high-net-worth, and consultative coverage, then using back-end automation (raters, CRMs, remarketing) to one-person-leverage a book that used to need three.
05/24/2019 · 6 min read
Serial entrepreneurs build durable businesses by treating tiger mentality as stamina (not aggression), letting personal loss deepen their purpose instead of disqualifying it, leading with generosity that attracts better people, and gaining compounding wisdom from diverse ventures. Single-focus operators burn out faster than multi-purpose builders.
05/21/2019 · 6 min read
Dan Herrenbruck runs an $18M book in Florida without writing home insurance. He writes 500 new items a year just to maintain the book, funded by always-on marketing, service-driven retention without the bundle anchor, and hiring run like a marketing funnel.
05/09/2019 · 6 min read
Run an agency the way DAC runs Fortune 500 brands: own local search before anything else, treat brand as every digital touchpoint, integrate paid and organic, and track three numbers (cost per lead, cost per acquisition, retention). Data without action is expensive trivia.
05/06/2019 · 7 min read
Insurance agency culture wins when the owner designs it on purpose. Skip Nichols and Josh Kelley (the Sock Dudes) cut turnover by giving the team a shared identity, visible leadership, and zero tolerance for culture killers. Comp plans come second.
04/26/2019 · 6 min read
Scale an insurance agency without burnout by delegating every non-licensed task to virtual assistants. Document the SOP first, hire one VA per task, track ROI on freed hours, and keep all licensed decisions in-house. Wessly Anderson runs three companies on this stack.
04/24/2019 · 6 min read
Track four numbers to grow an insurance agency: retention rate, close ratio by lead source, policies per household, and average premium. Mark Noffsinger ran this scorecard for 30 years at Allstate and built a $12 million book. Everything else is noise.
04/09/2019 · 6 min read
Most P&C agents leave money on the table in flood because the line looks like a low-commission headache. The opportunity: flood policies renew almost universally (lender-required), other agents refer their clients out, and flood becomes the entry point to homeowners, umbrella, and rental cross-sells. Specialize and dominate local search.
04/04/2019 · 6 min read
Broadcast media teaches insurance agents to lead with the audience's problem (not the product), bring personality, post consistently, and adapt content to each platform. Mark Jeffrey grabs attention in three seconds from a traffic helicopter. The same discipline closes social media leads.
04/02/2019 · 6 min read
Preston Schmidli's digital playbook for independent agencies: build content that earns attention by answering the questions prospects Google at 11 PM, integrated funnels that convert traffic into appointments, and tracking that shows cost per bind and lifetime value by source.
04/01/2019 · 6 min read
Agents who thrive after going independent shift from product seller to problem solver, from managed to self-directed, and from brand borrower to brand builder. They also build a strategic-thinking practice, a morning routine, weekly metrics, and a regular mental reset, before the captive mindset eats them alive.
03/24/2019 · 5 min read
Preston Schmidli left captive for independent only after he built a digital marketing engine, carrier relationships, and operating capital first. Independent freedom without systems is chaos. Timing beats courage. Diversify lead sources before any captive-versus-independent decision is even on the table.
03/14/2019 · 5 min read
Insurance agency comp plans work when they pair a livable but uncomfortable base with tiered commissions, 60-90 day activity ramps, retention bonuses at 6 and 12 months, and public scorecards. All carrot breeds coasters. All stick breeds turnover. Hybrid wins.
02/20/2019 · 6 min read
Career changers from law enforcement, military, fire, and teaching crush P&C sales because they already own the hardest skills: thick skin against rejection, needs-based questioning, calm under pressure, and routine discipline. The technical insurance side is learnable in weeks. The human side takes years.
02/13/2019 · 6 min read
Accounting technology like QuickBooks plus accountability systems make insurance agents stronger by automating monthly profit reports, connecting sales metrics to financial data, and putting close rates, retention, and revenue on a team dashboard everyone can see.
02/06/2019 · 5 min read
Trademark your agency name with the USPTO, write a privacy policy that matches your actual data practices, and have an attorney review every producer and vendor contract older than three years. A few hundred dollars upfront prevents five-figure problems later.