Acquisitions and Agency Value
Growth by merger or acquisition is still a popular and valuable tool, despite the economy being on hard times. One of the main reasons it remains popular among agencies is because it is a way to show growth even with …
Why Agency Strategic Planning Is Important
A strategic business plan is very important to assuring the success of a business. Yet only 15 percent of small businesses actually have a plan! It may seem like a daunting task to write out the firm’s strategic business plan …
New Fiscal Cliff Taxes and Insurance Agencies
We are all familiar with the old saying, “the only thing certain in life are death and taxes.” With the new tax laws that came into effect for 2013, we know this is really true now! Capital Gains and Flat …
Business Disaster Planning
Each year businesses and individuals are impacted by disasters. However, a disaster does not have to be widespread to paralyze an agency. Every business (including your clients) should have a Disaster Preparation and Recovery Plan. The better the plan, the …
Planning for Uncertainty
The traditional business plan includes short-term and long-term goals, and projections. But how do you plan when you can’t guess what will happen? Some things are shifting faster than you can keep up with, while other things can drastically change …
Why Not Cluster?
Size does matter. Small agencies can give the client a warm and fuzzy feeling, but they usually can offer only basic products. For those who need to be larger but don’t want to give up their autonomy, a cluster may …
How to Grow Your Own Producers
Finding a good, qualified producer has always been difficult. When one finds a good producer, that person might be restrained by a contract from another agency or specialize in a line the agency does not sell,or the person could be …
How to Exploit Current Trends for 2013
One needs to understand and exploit current and future trends in order to be proactive. It is easy to predicate trends by understanding recurring cycles and applying that knowledge to the current insurance marketplace. So what will 2013 be like …
How to Create a Simple Business Plan for 2013
Creating a business plan does not have to be a daunting task. Yet, only about 15 percent of agencies have a written plan or track to follow, according to a recent agency survey. Now is a good time to plan …
8 Rules for Family Run Businesses
Family businesses can be a blessing or a disaster. The root of a well-run family business is grounded in treating it like a business, not as an extension of the family. Below are guidelines any family business can follow to …
