It just means you have more time to make sure you eventually do. It's also possible your job could get a lot easier if you delegate that initial ownership to someone else. Of course, that's likely a risky proposition you might be unwilling to take. If you are, then it might be time to get serious about helping your employees get better at what they…

If you have then you know how powerful it can be to see something done first. Then you know exactly what to do to get started and how to follow the path to success. Of course, this path will not only show you where to go it will have people to help along the way. That's when you'll have a chance to figure out exactly what your strengths are and how…

It's easy to dismiss the idea of constantly capturing your expertise for future distribution. However, if you can find the dedication, you'll create a process that produces endless authentic interactions. If applied and distributed properly should allow you the opportunity to reach people far beyond your previous or traditional methods. Because it'…

There's definitely an argument to be made for constantly trying to stabilize every big change you make. If you don't, you could end up moving on to the next thing before your first big change was strong enough to stand on its own. But make no mistake about it, finding that first shift is hard to do and should be the only thing you're focused on if …

Starts by committing to something on a level that most would consider too risky or downright impossible. However, that's what it takes most of the time to get people's attention and motivate them to participate in real-world activities. Event marketing has far more to offer than free pens and stress balls to really show people what your agency is a…

It definitely should if you can figure out a way to make sure everyone has a chance to see it before they talk to you. That might seem like the craziest homework assignment you've ever heard of, but it's certainly one of the most effective ways to scale your information. Think about all the time you would save if you stopped having the same convers…

Might start with a conversation about expectations and how far your agency is willing to go to match them. Outside of that, there are a ton of challenges when it comes to recruiting and retaining good young insurance talent. Even when you do find someone interested in the industry, there's a good chance their initial expectations are misaligned wit…

If you're committed to playing the long game sometimes you need to wait a few years before something will work. It's possible that in those early days it barely scratches the surface of generating any useful business. However, if you're able to stay the course and keep your head above water the whole time, things could take off in a big way. That b…

Because at the end of the day that might be the only thing you need for people to find you. Until you start creating playlists on your YouTube channel it's hard to see what your real focus has been. At that point, the numbers don't lie and there's no hiding from your real video marketing passion. The only question you need to ask then is if it's so…

That depends on what's included in the total package. If it's not a highly useful set of tools that's when things get questionable. Because simply paying for the possibility of future updates is a tough ask. It's even harder when you realize going with a local option rarely offers the latest and greatest. That's what I talk to Nick Thalhammer, of C…

It doesn't matter how many you have, every single one represents a massive achievement. That's hard to fully appreciate on a small scale when the weight of each one feels too light to notice. However, when you approach your agency with the mentality of a master builder, you'll probably know where everything needs to go. The problems start when you …

It certainly improves your chances the more intentional you are about the people close to your agency. Because it's great to be able to toss a wide insurance net, but it's also just as effective to shoot one that's specific. No matter how long you've been in the insurance game, it's always interesting to talk about the best place your business coul…

Things get really interesting when you realize you had it the whole time. It was just up to you to do something about it in a consistent and effective way. That can start by simply putting existing components together in a unique way to create something new. It's during that assembly process that you'll discover a new idea people can't stop talking…

Because you should spend most of your time and effort on other things. Things like crafting a compelling message that makes people take action on what you want. That is something that can easily happen when you're able to create pages for their specific needs. It also helps if you can ask for the information you need to decide how serious they are …

You're able to start a conversation based on something much more than just insurance. If approached with enough dedication, it has the potential to resonate for an extended period of time. The biggest challenge beyond that dedication will be your proficiency to execute it effectively. Because it has to come from a pretty deep place of authenticity …

If not, you could miss a solid opportunity to put your competition out of business. Regardless of how aggressive you get, there's something to be said for knowing your numbers. It's this information that makes sure you're making the most of every policy you sell. It's also the best way to know if and when you're wasting your time on that new policy…

Might need to become something you do no matter what for it to really take hold in your agency. The most interesting part about the whole thing is it will only be the start of the one-off pieces of content you create. That means you should get comfortable with the idea because it's an easy way to do something people don't expect. If you really want…

If it does, then you make it a lot easier for people who want to do business with you. Because no matter what, they will Google your agency and will find what you've decided to provide them. It's also important to have the right mindset and understand the reality of your current situation. There's no way you'll instantly start generating hundreds o…

It all depends on where you want to go and how long of a trip you're willing to take to get there? There's nothing wrong with living in that wheelhouse, in fact, most agents have a hard time staying long enough. It's important to talk about what you know really well, but there are no rules about what you need to know before you talk about something…

That opportunity comes in the form of allowing clients to self-serve as much of the insurance experience as they want. Those experiences could be as simple as ID card requests, or simply getting started with the quoting process. The biggest challenge usually comes in deciding what parts of the process will be mandatory. Because there's an infinite …

It starts by figuring out a way to bring consistent value to them in a way that makes their life easier. Of course, that can happen in many different ways, but you'd be surprised at how a little education can go a long way. Most of the time your referral partners are savvy enough insurance consumers to know which policy provides the best value. All…

The real answer is going to depend if you're interested enough to find one that will. Because it's easy to get restless with the thing you're good at and get distracted by something you're not. That something is twice as dangerous when there isn't enough premium to go around. The scariest liability is allowing it significantly distract from the bus…

Because insurance isn't always the first thing someone wants to come and talk to you about. That's why it's insanely beneficial if/when you can provide them countless conversation entry points. Not only will it be much easier to start those conversations, but it will also give you more stable (common) ground to stand on. Most of the time, the more …

There are certainly different opinions on what works best, the trick is figuring it out for your agency. What might be more important than building that consistent relationship is properly setting communication expectations. That's what really has a good chance to destroy any relationship your agency has regardless of how long you've had it. The sa…

Because if it doesn't, there's a good chance you just got lucky and haven't taken full advantage of its power. That luck generally leads to an endless stream of wasted opportunities that never received proper consideration. Of course, there are a couple of easy things you can do to prevent it from happening. However, they generally involve a few to…

There's a good chance it will be very obvious from the start because things will be more difficult than nessacary. At least that's ussually what happens when we run into clients we should run the other way from. Because somewhere along the way we'll talk ourselves into the idea of wanting to do business with them. In reality, we should have listene…

You might have to lead by example at first for the rest of the agency to see how impactful they can be. That means providing a solid example of what a good one looks like and help encourage and coach the rest of the staff to give it a try. Of course, sometimes there aren't enough examples or encouraging words in the english language to compel some …

That depends if you want to stick with your bread and butter or try to find something new. This is as good of a time as any to take a chance and try to sell insurance in a way you never have before. When you do that it's important to remember it's not a race to what generates more leads, but instead more revenue. That's really when you know if your…

You introduce a level of frustration into the buying process that could and should be easily avoided. The only thing you have to do is take the time to explain the number of ways the answer depends. In reality, you now have the opportunity to describe what your perfect client looks like to maximize profitability. You just have to be dedicated to fi…

Sometimes it's easy to get sucked into the hype and overlook the two areas your website needs to excel. Because if you refuse to focus on these people, you'll make it much harder on your digital marketing efforts. That's when you really need to decide if you know enough to be dangerous, or if your limited knowledge can become a hazard. What has the…

You'll dramatically increase your chance of making substantial progress to match your recent motivation. It might sound easier said than done, but sometimes things don't need to be overcomplicated. Coming home with pages of notes and lengthy lists from any conference or event is great. However, almost always you're going to try to bite off more tha…

It's vital to realize how strong you need to be to reach your desired destination. Maybe you never looked far enough ahead to give yourself adequate time at each stop. Either way, your dramatically increasing your chances of sidetracking your efforts or canceling the trip altogether. The easiest way to avoid all of it is to work your way backward f…

It all depends on how able and willing your agency is to do different things. Because if you can do something most people can't that will be easy for people to see. The biggest challenge is realizing that thing is likely not as difficult as you thought it would be. It just becomes a matter of if you enjoy it the most out of all your insurance optio…

The only thing you have to do is lower your expectations and take a chance on being somewhere important. It might sound easier said than done, but if you do you'll increase your chances for a successful introduction to inspiration. Which will allow you the opportunity to execute on ideas that have the potential for people you've never meet to feel …

There's nothing worse than when you sell something short of what it can ultimately become. The part that's really not fun is it's pretty easy to do and really hard to recognize. However, if you're willing to commit to the process and make sure you know where you're going, the results could be surprising. The biggest challenge will be finding enough…

If you haven't then there's no stopping the number of times your clients will try to cross it. Sometimes it's impossible to avoid unnecessarily or excessively going back to a client to deliver different information. It's these repeated deliveries that over time slightly splinter their confidence in your insurance ability. We should know what to exp…

It's definitely hard to learn how to be really good at more than one thing at a time. However, that's exactully what happens to a lot of new young producers trying to master digital marketing and general insurance skills. It takes a long time to learn each on their own, that's why it's so important to take advantage of every little bit of help you …

First, things get interesting when you realize one has a limit and the other doesn't. Second, It gets even crazy if/when you admit you've always pushed the limit on the wrong end. The only type of information that's too much is what you ask prospects for. However, it's going to take much longer for them to get tired of hearing you say smart things …

It starts with your interest in attracting more business in the states you can actually sell a policy. That seems crazy, but otherwise, you're putting your content at a much greater risk to waste more leads then you can use. While it might be a "flashy" success story it will actually end up being your greatest marketing failure if you're unable to …

It's easy to underrate the outcome of congregating in the right place even for short periods of time. This dismissive attitude is usually a result of underwhelming expectations based on disappointing previous encounters. However, every now and then your curiosity is rewarded and you find yourself surrounded by a group of people in the industry you …

It all starts by making sure you give them something to easily recognize and offer them a seat at your new kitchen table. This is probably the simplest video marketing tip that you can follow to liberate yourself from paralyzing overcomplication. That liberation starts by establishing the most important character of your videos, besides you, which …

Because sometimes specifically organized brass tacks are hard to find just laying around. Sometimes it takes a little extra work and creativity to connect the dots to the most useful and relevant information. On the other hand, there's plenty of sound bite spouting, headline readers who struggle to dive below the surface. Then it becomes a matter o…

It usually starts with letting your passion and personality lead the way out into the real world. Because it's out there where people are looking for it the most and can't wait to pay attention when they find it. Real life event marketing has limitless potential beyond free pens and brochures to captivate and inspire what your agency is all about. …

It's hard to think of an industry that has the best and worst compensation model all at the same time. The power and beauty of renewal income is a huge draw for plenty of journeyman sales professionals to the insurance industry. It's this same payment structure that has gotten the best of plenty of agents who couldn't figure out a way to play the g…

Starts simply with your ability to find your absolute best clients a lot easier. If you try and talk to everyone, you'll end up talking to no one. Of course, that's the last thing you want to happen in your agency and why it's nessacary to get more specific. It doesn't matter if it's when the policy needs to be purchased, how old the person buying …

If you don't then you'll make it a lot harder to find the holes in your insurance game. Of course, you want to do everything you can to improve your chances to close a sale. However, sometimes encouraging competition forces you to get a lot stronger much faster. It's developing this confidence that builds your insurance strength both internally and…

It just needs to be long enough to solve the whole problem so people can decide if they want you to help them. Of course, that might be an oversimplification of a slightly more complex problem, however, remains the majority of the solution. The length of your content isn't worth obsessing and over thinking, because the only thing that will come fro…

It starts by making sure it can afford the most current table stakes customers set. Even then, most of the time we find ourselves struggling to pay an overdue with more piling up every day. It could be something as simple of understanding what SEO work actually needs to be done and how valuable it is. Then it becomes a matter of making one small be…

Starts and stops with the titles of your content, because without good ones there's very little chance anyone will be able to find you. It's always the first and easiest thing to mess up when starting your content journey. There needs to be the same if not more attention paid to that handful of words as is to the entire piece. Almost always it star…

The truth is, it doesn't really matter, the hardest part is pulling the trigger on how it's going to get done. Because if it's truly important to the success of the agency and you're not getting it done, it's your job to find someone who will. Of course, most of that is easier said than done, but no matter what your first step should be to break th…