Is the independent insurance agency channel healthy?

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pageltd
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Re: Is the independent insurance agency channel healthy?

Post by pageltd »

Just looked it up...looks interesting and should be the model for all insurance companies going forward.
www.joinroot.com
Seems like real-time insurance pricing will be the defacto model going forward.
What people won't like is that it tracks you. So it's a double edge sword. Even the younger generation are going to get tired of big borther knowing everything about them:
https://www.cnbc.com/2018/10/05/new-kin ... -move.html
George Page
www.pageins.com
BADTROUT
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Re: Is the independent insurance agency channel healthy?

Post by BADTROUT »

I agree on the increases being a problem, but the solution of requoting everything is like throwing ice cubes in a fire. No offense to those that do... it's common practice and reaction to the problem... even logical.
It does however matter less to your sales reps, and more to the program managers that dont know what a great guy you are, you are just a statistic to them.

So, what to do...

If your management system has something like mine (EZLynx Retention Center) it compares last years versus this years premium and any changes based on the downloads... essentially using existing data versus creating a new quote. People notice 38%, they dont care about top 3 consistency. So I set a threshold of 10% increase, I get a red flag, an auto email goes out to review with us because we dont like what we see. I also love the fact that puts us in a proactive (I'm on your team) basis with our clients.

Since doing this process effectively alongside educating the client AT THE SALE and EVERY ANNUAL CLIENT REVIEW to let them know if they get ANYTHING that looks goofy, or a price increase from the carrier, of which we have many... to CALL US IMMEDIATELY.

I stress those points because setting the precedence for them to reach out, not angry at us, but upset, and needing our help is far less tedious. The change is in the agency from reactive to proactive, thevchange in my customers is my agent is here to help.

I went from retention in the 60s and 70s with each carrier to solid 80s, and agency hovering at 90.

George. Sounds like we do much of the same... just worded differently.
Uwe Philip Kirch
President/CEO Rocky Mountain West Insurance
President/CEO Horizon Agency Systems
Horizon can help you start or grow your independent insurance agency
https://horizonagency.systems
pageltd
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Re: Is the independent insurance agency channel healthy?

Post by pageltd »

BADTROUT wrote: Thu Mar 14, 2019 7:24 am George. Sounds like we do much of the same... just worded differently.
Agreed.
George Page
www.pageins.com
Jesse Cunningham V
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Re: Is the independent insurance agency channel healthy?

Post by Jesse Cunningham V »

BADTROUT wrote: Thu Mar 14, 2019 7:24 am Since doing this process effectively alongside educating the client AT THE SALE and EVERY ANNUAL CLIENT REVIEW to let them know if they get ANYTHING that looks goofy, or a price increase from the carrier, of which we have many... to CALL US IMMEDIATELY.
I think this is the answer to the original post question "Is the independent insurance agency channel healthy"

If we were not IAs then you wouldnt have that option. If you only represented one company and they increased 20% on average across your book....then what?

So to me, this is the power of being an IA.
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BADTROUT
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Re: Is the independent insurance agency channel healthy?

Post by BADTROUT »

Honestly, In a private client and larger specialized CL sense maybe... however, root, pie, lemonade, name your price, cake and more are commodotizing the industry.

The notion that we will always be relevant should heed warning from travel agents... remember them?

Adapt, and you'll survive. Specialize and you'll survive, slave to the present, you're dying like a frog in hot water.

That said, 20 years? Yeah I think we are all pretty safe, it's the next generation, they best be innovating, and adapting.
Uwe Philip Kirch
President/CEO Rocky Mountain West Insurance
President/CEO Horizon Agency Systems
Horizon can help you start or grow your independent insurance agency
https://horizonagency.systems
pageltd
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Posts: 148
Joined: Wed Jan 25, 2012 7:05 pm

Re: Is the independent insurance agency channel healthy?

Post by pageltd »

The industry is fully commoditized, as is every type of business on Earth. Google recently acquired part of Applied. Private client? That's what every customer relationship should feel like, to the provider and client alike. It's about relationships.
George Page
www.pageins.com
BADTROUT
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Re: Is the independent insurance agency channel healthy?

Post by BADTROUT »

pageltd wrote: Sun Mar 17, 2019 8:43 am The industry is fully commoditized, as is every type of business on Earth. Google recently acquired part of Applied. Private client? That's what every customer relationship should feel like, to the provider and client alike. It's about relationships.
Agreed on the "should" feel like... what I am talking about though arent the clients you have, but the ones you'll be trying to obtain in the future. I have plenty of kids (20s and 30s) coming in... now... but I also have seen a shift in my 20 years toward much less emphasis on this by the younger folks.

Look at your neighbors... do we know them like we used to? (in general terms, not literal) I remember people dropping in for dinner, block parties, and less government dependency. We used to depend on our neighbors, family, and church for our social network, and our social programs.

That said, much of this is still alive and well, probably more so the further East, and North you are by my experience, but it's a shift none the less away from the relationship of others into a more compartmentalized world. Are we as an industry, and as ia's healthy? Yeah, I think we are, but I worry about the severe technology gap between the speed of light expectations of the new next consumer, and the antiquated mainframe world of the carriers.

We, and our carriers best innovate, and fast. Again George, you are right, the "private client" feel should be something we give all of our clients regardless.
Uwe Philip Kirch
President/CEO Rocky Mountain West Insurance
President/CEO Horizon Agency Systems
Horizon can help you start or grow your independent insurance agency
https://horizonagency.systems
pageltd
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Posts: 148
Joined: Wed Jan 25, 2012 7:05 pm

Re: Is the independent insurance agency channel healthy?

Post by pageltd »

Innovate? It's happening right now, but not by many IA companies. Big data, and the application of AI, will make us obsolete basically.
George Page
www.pageins.com
BADTROUT
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Joined: Wed Mar 13, 2019 10:32 pm

Re: Is the independent insurance agency channel healthy?

Post by BADTROUT »

Case and point, look at AOL, eBay, Yahoo, MySpace... they in some way shape or form are still around... but relevant? Nah, any one of them could have been Amazon, facebook, or Google.

They got good enough and complacency set in. I know younger people even saying, what's myspace?

Travelers Hartford, State Farm, Farmers etc etc are going to have to do way more, way faster than merely developing a mobile app.
Uwe Philip Kirch
President/CEO Rocky Mountain West Insurance
President/CEO Horizon Agency Systems
Horizon can help you start or grow your independent insurance agency
https://horizonagency.systems
pageltd
Insurance Journal Addict
Posts: 148
Joined: Wed Jan 25, 2012 7:05 pm

Re: Is the independent insurance agency channel healthy?

Post by pageltd »

Mobile app? Yeah, even some of the agent portals are severely lacking...
George Page
www.pageins.com
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