Latest Sales Headlines

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Nov 18 2007 // The Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCI) elected new officers during its annual meeting in Boston recently. Robert Joyce, chairman and chief executive officer of Westfield Group, was elected as the...

Agency Ideas Newsletter Introduces New Sales Web Site for Agents

Nov 12 2007 // Cary, N.C.-based Agency Ideas, the publisher of Agency Ideas Newsletter, an independent subscription-only sales and marketing newsletter for property/casualty agents, has introduced ProducerIdeas.com, a membership-only Web...

‘Self-franchise’ your own agency

Oct 27 2007 // Virtually every agency entertains visions of expansion. Multiple offices mean a greater geographical reach, more market share, and higher revenues. But on the flip side, they can translate into a duplication of services,...

Establish an authentic small business department

Sep 24 2007 // The small business insurance market has grown in importance to agencies and companies alike. Yet, despite the favorable attention given to this profitable arena, too many agencies still treat small business as they always...

Exporters’ insurance: A world of opportunity

Sep 24 2007 // Companies moving into international markets could be exposed to risks not insured under domestic policies In the past 10 years, it has become much easier for U.S. companies to venture into the global marketplace. Advances...

People

Sep 24 2007 // The National Association of Professional Surplus Lines Offices selected officers and directors for the trade association’s 2007-2008 term. The new officers are: President – Mary Ellen Rozzell,...

People

Jul 23 2007 // The Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. has named Thomas M. Marra to the newly created position of president and chief operating officer. Marra, currently a member of the company’s board of directors and president...

Safeco Announces New Sale Regions, Field Leadership

Jul 18 2007 // Seattle-based Safeco has announced it has expanded its sales organization from five to nine regions, and has named executives to lead two of the new territories. “Independent insurance agents have consistently told...

People

Jun 18 2007 // Gregg Effner has joined The Main Street America Group as assistant vice president of distribution management. Effner will be based at the headquarters in Jacksonville, Fla., and report to Doug Eden, senior vice president...

Jun 18 2007 // People Kansas-based Brooke Franchise Corp., a subsidiary of Brooke Corp., elected Kyle L. Garst as its chairman and chief executive officer, and Dane S. Devlin as its president and chief operating officer. Garst was most...

How to avoid common producer sales management mistakes

Jun 18 2007 // There is more to working with producers than just paying and praying. It also takes continuous in-office supervision. Some agencies are fortunate enough to have the time and talent to coach their sales staffs. Regretfully,...

Personal Lines LEADERS

Jun 4 2007 // About the Personal Lines Leaders: The Personal Lines Leaders in this special feature are taken from Insurance Journal’s Top 100 Property Casualty Independent Agencies as reported in April. This list utilizes only the...

Personal Lines Profile

Jun 4 2007 // Cook, Hall & Hyde Inc. East Hampton, N.Y. Owner(s)/principal(s): multiple 2006 personal lines premium: $22.1 million No. of personal lines insurers: NR Cook, Hall & Hyde Inc., founded in 1947, is a regional...

Okla. Commissioner Flexes Regulatory Muscle in Marketing Flap

May 22 2007 // Oklahoma Insurance Commissioner Kim Holland is flexing her regulatory muscle in an investigation of Medicare marketing that has uncovered misconduct by some insurance agents, The probe led to an appearance before a U.S....

Medicare Fraud on Rise in Mississippi

May 22 2007 // Insurance agents have sold fraudulent Medicare plans to an estimated 1,000 Mississippians over the past year, forcing them to spend months untangling the mess to regain coverage under a traditional Medicare program. State...

People

May 7 2007 // Steve Taylor has been promoted to regional sales director for Encompass Insurance in New York and New Jersey. Taylor joined Allstate in 1978 as an underwriter trainee. He was promoted to various management positions in...

Mentoring process is at the core of new producer development

Apr 23 2007 // Most high performance, high growth independent agencies have a lot in common when it comes to finding, hiring and mentoring new producers: They dedicate the necessary time for their mentoring program and couple the...

The Quickest Way Insurance Agents Can Increase Sales

Apr 11 2007 // The most important thing insurance agents have to realize is that direct mail campaigns, bus bench advertisement, newspaper ads, yellow pages ads, cold calling, and door knocking does not work. It’s a major reason...

Mentoring process is at the core of new producer development

Apr 9 2007 // Most high performance, high growth independent agencies have a lot in common when it comes to finding, hiring and mentoring new producers: They dedicate the necessary time for their mentoring program and couple the...

‘Free agents’ and other 2007 management trends

Apr 9 2007 // What are the trends agency management owners should pay attention to? Here is a list of the key issues that many firms are struggling with today and a few suggestions on how to handle these trends. 1. “Free...