Agency Nation Radio - Insurance Marketing, Sales And Technology

Just when you think it's over, you realize it never ends. It's a constant grind that is unforgiving and relentless in it's consistency to be completed. Knowing what to do and where to start is going to depend on what you have at your disposal. Because you have to create something that goes far beyond the surface and includes something with a lot of depth and complexity. That's what I talk about with Becky Schroeder, of Senior Vice President of Marketing for ITC, about the never-ending journey. P.S. If you need help to constantly keep going, Agency Nation University can help.

Even if you are, do you have enough people staying there? It's a question many agency owners struggle and rarely want to face. It's hard to do more when you have to do it all yourself. Figuring out how to find the right people becomes a critical thinking problem with no answer. That's what I talk with Alex Dopazo, of D&A Insurance, about as he comes to grips with doing more of what he should. P.S. Learn with people like Alex how to do those things in Agency Nation University.

If not, you're missing out on a lot of productive fun your agency needs. This is by far one of the tools that can make the biggest impact on your determination. Consistently meeting new people that challenge both your skill and strategy make complacency hard to come by. If you waste it on the same place and the same people every year, it will start retracting. That's what road warrior Sydney Roe and I talk about with our secret special guest Ashley Fitzsimmons about finding the confidence to make it bigger. P.S. Elevate 18 is going to destroy your comfort zone.

The stuff we need to know needs to move faster. The slower it moves the more time someone has to think about going somewhere else. Right now we're giving them a long time to think about it. The more speed our information has the more value it picks up a long the way. That's what Steve Anderson and I talk about as he shares his thoughts on what keeps slowing it down. Don't miss Steve's new podcast The Digital Broker which launches next week. P.S. Get more information in your agency faster through Agency Nation University.

Because you'll never be able to catch up if you do. Realizing it's going to suck no matter when you start is your first major challenge.  Owing that embarrassment is the best thing you can to eventually make it turn out the way you want. That's when you'll get good enough to attract the business you weren't sure you could. That's what I talk to Woody Brown about, of The Rhoads Group, as he starts to put all the pieces together. P.S. Agency Nation emails might help limit how much embarrassment you face.

Is that they shouldn't be used inappropriately to be something they're not. It also shouldn't be the only type of video you do. Not to mention, the easier you make the more it will get done and the more that get done the more business you'll close. If you try to make it your only video strategy, you'll be spending way too much time making the same thing over and over again. That's what I talk to Ryan Sautman, of Just4You Insurance, as he shares his early adoption of proposing on video. P.S. Listen to the end to hear about the secret deal Sydney and I are offering at Innovation 18.

Is pretty amazing, even though sometimes it feels like you'll never find it. That's why it's important to stop and celebrate your first few wins because you'll remember them forever. Sometimes they even come sooner than expected and from a place you didn't imagine. But when they do the feeling the follows is one of joy and validation that you're not crazy and might be on to something. That's exactly what happened to Tracy Cotton, of Marrow Insurance, and she wants to tell you what happened. P.S. Tracy learned how to make it work inside Agency Nation University.

You have to be looking both ways with money in each hand to be able to see. If you aren't, you'll miss your chance to grab a growth tool that's on its way to increasing your agency. Because you don't need help maintaining your business where it's at. It's dangerous, possibly even irresponsible, to have an opinion on what's coming if you have no interest in finding it. There's no reason you shouldn't be able to see it, you just need to keep you head up long enough. That's what Ryan Hanley and I talk about today as we grow tired of debating these tools and how fast their coming. P.S. We're already teaching you how to use those tools in Agency Nation University.

Is to create an experience that changes their perception of space and time as they know it. That's probably more than slightly exaggerated, however should not be understated in its importance. Yes, there's a lot of information available to help reinforce a logical decision about your marketing efforts. However, that logic sometimes isn't powerful enough to motivate action. Instead, it's a demonstration of the consistent experiences possible through your marketing efforts. That's what I talk with Becky Taylor, of Ohio Insurance Agents Association, about as she contemplates her marketing possibilities. P.S. If you need help using your newly bought tools and tasks, Agency Nation University is the place to do it.

You might want to think twice before you answer, because it's hard to do if you're not ready. Once you've allowed yourself to believe this idea can work, then it's up to you to make it happen. Creating the habits and identifying the times to consistently create it help that belief grow. But you can't always listen to everyone else, because what worked for them might not work for you. That's what I talk to Terry Grier, of Strive Insurance, about as his content faith gets tested. P.S. There's going to be a lot of believing going on at Elevate 18, you should come.

No one believes them anyways. The road map is there and no wheel's need reinvented to get there, you just have to do the work. Maybe the people closest to you make the map harder to read. You don't have to take the shortest path, in fact, you'll probably get lost a couple times. Having the right mindset and determination to guarantee getting there is what will put you in the one percent. That mindset is what will keep pushing the gap further and further between you and everyone else. P.S. No excuses are allowed in Agency Nation University (if you have a few you need to get rid of).

Probably a little more than it is right now. It's possible your indifference to awesome design could be preventing you and maybe the whole industry from reaching its full potential. So much is said through the design of your agency's website, logo and other materials without you having to say a word. If it's done well it will and should look like it was effortless, which can commonly lead you to believe anyone can do it. When the truth is making it look easy is the hardest part you shouldn't entrust to someone because they know how to open Photoshop. That's what I talk to Jenn Haak, the Creative Director for Agency Nation and TrustedChoice.com, about how to help your agency clean up better. P.S. You might want to take a peek at Agency Nation University to make sure your agency is attractive enough.

Because they know what's going to happen if they do. It's the previous mediocrity that has created an immunity to the thing you want them to do the most. You probably haven't done enough work to earn the request, because the requirement increases every year. If you take the time to build a detailed process that fulfills that requirement and walks them closer to the sale, everyone wins. You have to change the language, expectation and experience people receive to make a quote more request-able. That's what I talk about with Eli Gillespie, of Gillespie Insurance Services, as he tries to figure out his. P.S. Agency Nation University is the best place to learn how to full those requirements.

Sometimes you can't see it until it's too late. But seeing it at all is the only thing that will keep you from finding more. Just because your agency can do something, doesn't mean it always should. That might be the hardest part resisting a niche regardless how right or wrong it ends up being. That's what I talk with Mike Crowley, of Crowley Insurance, about as he comes to grips with his. P.S. Learn how to attract the right niche in Agency Nation University.

One might be more important than the other, but it seems it can't be emphasized enough. No matter what, one thing is certain, you have to be willing to invest in the necessary tools to give yourself a chance to stay ahead. Those tools might look completely different for you than someone else, and that's fine. That means your investing in the things most likely to benefit your agency based on your natural skills and personality. That's what I called Rob McCarthy of GRBM Insurance and Woody Brown of The Rhoads Group up to talk about to kick off the new year. P.S. Joining the Agency Nation newsletter is also a pretty important thing you should do in 2018.

If it's not, then there's a good chance you could hate yourself at some point. You could take it all the way to crazy town, like Ryan suggests, and say the whole business is marketing. But if you really stop and think about it, is it really that crazy? I don't know, maybe not. Maybe not, because our job is to find people to sell products our companies created. If we can't do that, then what good are we? Because the business of insurance, regardless of your personal opinion, has become more of a commodity. That's what Ryan Hanley, Sydney Roe and I talk about as we contemplate the strategies and execution you need to bring them closer together. P.S. Spend a little one-on-one time with Ryan every week in the Agency Nation newsletter.

There's a pretty good chance that you are because you don't realize how long it takes. Believe it or not, your ability to show up and do the things you're supposed to is a very powerful differentiator. It's that simple difference that separates average agencies from great ones, because they can routinely do what others can't. Primary among those things is lengthy, consistent follow-up with unsold and lost customers. It's this segment of prospects that could deliver your best results if given enough attention. That's what I talk with Nancy Nicklow, of Huff Insurance, about as she breaks down how long it takes form them to give up. P.S. Did you Elevate 18 is going to be one of the crazy good places to be this summer?

Because the longer you wait the more opportunity you pass up that goes to someone else. It might sound a little crazy and potentially hyperbolic, but your ability to move faster than everyone else matters. It matters because they don't have the same fears and concerns as you do and aren't carefully surveilling your agencies every move. They are curious at best and indifferent at worst. Seeing someone new isn't going to sound as many alarm bells as you might think. That's what I talk with Bogus Handzel, of Handzel and Associates, about as he contemplates when are where they new faces should appear. P.S. Did you know Agency Nation University can help people find those new faces?

The only thing that's going to protect your agency's relevance is figuring out a way to handle all the business others can't. The industry isn't going to check with you before something big happens, and depending on who you talk to it could be a lot sooner than you think.  There isn't one skill or service that's going to save the day, instead it's an array of high level talents operating at the same time. The sad truth is you might be one of the agent's that think you're going to make, but might not.  That is unless you start to treat the impending change with a little more respect and start taking actions to move with it. That's what I talk about with Jeff Roy as he does his best to create and calm your panic attack all at the same time. P.S. Agency Nation University is a great place to how to protect you relevance.

I don't know, maybe. Someone's got to do it though. If there was every a more appropriate chicken and egg occurrence it's this. Do you need to have the business to justify the marketing person or do you need the marketing person to justify the business? It's probably a little of both and no matter which side you fall on you'll have to take more of a risk making it happen then you want. At the very least you should know what tasks to take off your plate first to make your life easier and take your marketing to the next level. That's what I talk about with Becky Schroeder, SVP of Marketing for ITC, as she shares her suggestions on how to make it happen. P.S. Did you know we have deals on Agency Nation University and Elevate 18 happening now until the end of the year?