Getting a carrier appointment for a new independent agency is not easy. Carriers want to see an existing book of business or a commitment to a certain premium volume within a certain time frame. Thus, becoming part of a group that has master agency contracts is the way to go in most cases. There are...

You may want to check out my website, it will allow you to list your agency for sale as well as find a listing of business brokers that specialize in Insurance Agencies. I beleive these brokers charge anywhere about 4% to 5%, but it may vary as each broker may include different services. Often times...

Many carriers have been innovative offering different options for Insurance Agency E&O coverage. One that I like is the aggregate deductible, where your annual deductible is capped at a certain number of claims per year. For example, if you have a catastrophic event and you have 5 E&O claims...

There are a number of producer schools that can help educate you about both sales and product training. This is very different than any pre-licensing training you may have had before, as most pre-license courses focus on legal principals and passing the exam. Product training does exactly what it sa...

I have a list of management systems on my site (which is linked below), also Steve Anderson of The Anderson Agency Report has some good things on this. His information is at http://andersonagencyreport.com/

1. What is the initiations cost? 2. What is your membership fee or commission split? 3. What other costs are involved? 4. What additional services do you offer? - Is a management system included? - Is E&O insurance included? - Are quoting or other agency support services included? - What other i...

Island Girl Agent:
Do you have the URL to your state's DOI that spell out these "specific rules?"

In the past, Insurance Agencies needed spacious offices to handle staff, file cabinets, supplies and a number of other items. Thanks to the Internet age, this has all changed. Once you go paperless, you will no longer need file cabinets. A desk drawer file cabinet should be enough to store those imp...

There are all kinds of agency networks across the U.S. and worldwide. Many of these groups refer to themselves as “clusters,” but there are also franchises, alliances, and other types of networks. Regardless of what they call themselves, they are basically master agencies; that is, a group of retail...

I have had experience with PIIB, they are a fine organization, I am not sure of this group out of "China," I doubt any DOI will license anyone out of China or any other foreign country, something does not sound right. I have a list of nearly every cluster group on my website, there are man...

meytai wrote:Good post for me.. i've been working for mom for 6 years.. i'm about to start my own agency soon.. need the best advice!!!

What is your insurance background? Do you intend to start an independent agency?

Agencies that sell for a premium do so because of the quality of the book. What does a quality book mean? Here are some characterizes of a quality book: 1. Well rounded accounts with a minimum average of 2 policies per account 2. Policies with high liability limits and even more so, accounts with um...

Consider hiring a consultant, most if not all of those who consult with Insurance Agencies have had prior experience as an Agency Principal or Executive. They know what works and what doesn't work. I have a list of consultants on my website.

Each cluster or alliance group has different arraignments, some member agencies get paid direct, but some go to the cluster and then the cluster pays the agency. My research tells me that there are really no two groups that are alike, though there may be some similarities. Review each group’s websit...

I recommmend joining an agency cluster group, alliance or network. There are more of these groups than ever and they really want to add agencies. You should ask a group about all their appointments, including if they have an appointment with Philadelphia.