The insurance industry has gone crazy! What was once a conservative, well organized method for protecting people, their belongings and their business has exploded. A marketplace full of direct to consumer coverage, peer to peer insurance, marketing based on buying preference and 24/7 customer service using chatbots is reality. Technological support for the insurance process […]
With 40+ years in the insurance business, all of it on the independent agency side, I just don’t understand what the problem seems to be. Maybe it’s professional arrogance. A sense of smugness brought on by significant knowledge and a desire to return to the days when independent agencies generated stable and significant income. It […]
Technology…it’s invaded nearly every aspect of our lives today. It’s almost impossible to function without it. Did anyone ever dream the time would come where you would actually take time off to avoid using technology? There is no business more affected by technology than insurance. It’s changing the way we operate our business. It’s creating […]
Do you know where I am writing this article from? I could be writing it from my office at IIABNY. Maybe I’m doing it from my home office. I like to spend time at Starbucks drinking coffee and writing, so maybe it was written there. I love visiting Vermont, so for all you know I’m […]
Strange title? Not really. This article isn’t for everybody. If you don’t realize your business is in jeopardy or don’t care, this article isn’t for you. If you don’t see any reason to change the way you have been operating for the past 10 years, this article isn’t for you. If you think social media […]
The independent agency system is under attack. New competitors fueled by technology and oblivious to the protection needs of the consumer are trying to take over the personal and small-to-medium business market. We see it happening, we’re concerned, but we just aren’t moving quick enough to deal with the threat. Both independent agents and the […]
I’m astounded by the lack of response by independent agents to the significant increase in competition for their clients. Not responding is a mistake. The competition is growing daily and it is no longer isolated to personal auto insurance or even just personal lines. This new competition is after small-to-medium commercial accounts as well as […]
While developing information for a producer mentoring and sales program, I realized prospecting is totally different today than it was when I was an independent agent. Like many things in our world today it’s changed because of technology. Even more importantly it’s changed because consumer attitudes and buying practices are different. Even many traditional baby […]
By now you’ve probably heard of Lemonade, the so-called “peer-to-peer” insurance company offering home, condo and renter’s insurance in New York. It rolled out recently, touting itself as a new brand of insurance company designed to take the typical insurance company and turn it into a new hybrid that is highly automated, competitively priced and […]
The independent agency business is going through a metamorphosis. The slow but steady caterpillar that served the public so well for so many years has become wrapped up in a cocoon of change and now must break out into an agile and quick flying modern day butterfly if it intends to survive. There are many […]
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