In the past year, we have completed or are still in the middle of at least six business valuation and perpetuation cases involving family members or key employees (one party as buyer and one as seller). These cases and the …
Summer is over and the kids are back in school. Many of us spent a week or two away from our business. It is not easy for business owners to walk away from running their business for any length of …
You can’t take it with you. Every business owner will eventually “sell” his or her business. It can either be on terms the owner defines, or it can be based on whatever happens at the end. So, if an owner …
Business owners have a lot to consider when running a successful business. Unfortunately, many do not consider an exit strategy, especially in the early years of the business. Agency owners without an exit strategy will sometimes make decisions based on …
There is a video on YouTube by Jim Muehlhausen of CEO Focus called “Stop Selling Like It is 1985.” It has some great points about the changes that have occurred in the sales process due to the Internet. The example …
Insurance producers sell roughly the same product as their competitor. The competitive edge often touted by producers is that their firm “has the best service” or “this policy has broader coverage” or some other generalization. Price is handled by adjusting …
For many businesses and employees, the standard business model is for the employer to pay the employee a fixed salary based on a basic understanding that the employee will perform certain tasks. Compensation might be altered based on some variables …
There’s a very simple formula for getting whatever you want for your agency. This is so simple it seems trivial and few people follow it. But if these steps are followed, agency owners can create anything they want in the …
What ingredients make up a good account manager? What do you look for in terms of skills, knowledge, education and experience? Which responsibilities should management give them? The answers to these questions – which will vary by agency – determine …
It’s time to get out the crystal ball to think about what trends might help or hurt the agency in the coming year. By being proactive and strategic, agencies could stay ahead of the competition. And if today’s trends can …
