I second the endorsement of LIS for their proactive, process-oriented X-Data gathering and compilation. As with anything, you get what you pay for. Good luck.

Can’t comment on clusters, and I wouldn’t say that SIAA the right answer for all agencies, though larger agencies that don't want to acquire or hire additional producers may well benefit from the Master Agency model and strategy. Smaller agencies with fewer markets and no profit sharing, and who wan...

I have made it a policy to always be willing to trade value for value. Quantifying reciprocal value will typically answer the question. That said, I have always found that paying it forward returns value to me beyond my original expectations. It's just good mojo.

Whatever choice is made, consider the prevailing trend in information systems. Desktop and server based systems are rapidly being replaced by cloud services. Unless you have a in-house team of crackerjack IT specialists, migrating to cloud-based applications is a virtual guarantee of lower costs and...

I used to use direct mail for marketing purposes, and I emphasize "used to." With less than a 1% response the ROI never cut muster for me. Think about the your own response to direct mail advertising. How often do you respond, let alone purchase? After throwing good money after bad for lon...