As I write my fourth Chairman’s Voice column, it is turning much cooler in Oklahoma and the leaves are really falling. Nanette and I recently made visits to the Kentucky and Indiana conventions; both were very well attended with lots of activities, contin
Don Grauel has seen it more than once: a client who balks when Grauel walks in carrying a 15-page sales presentation. “Younger people expect bullet points,” explains the president of L.E. Goldsborough & Son, Inc., a Baltimore-based multilines agency. “And
Are you a broker or agent looking to acquire another agency or part of the leadership at a carrier that is contemplating a merger or acquisition of another company? What is your brand strategy for after the deal has closed? You may not have realized that
Call it what you want, but few pop stars and fewer businesses have understood the intricacies of Madonna’s genius of reinvention and the inevitable end of the business cycle. Learn from the branding expert. While Madonna soars, everyone else seems to stum
There are times when being a manager can make you a media target. The larger your organization, the greater the odds of something embarrassing happening that ends up for the world to see on YouTube.
Recently, I ran into a 1904 quote about IIABA’s purpose: “The agency movement is built upon common loyalty to a common cause, the union of all agents in defense of the rights of a single agent…” I love that sentiment. It is our union—our numbers—that cont
For agencies that have spent years building a local footprint with traditional marketing and branding tools, it may be daunting to hear others assert that success in today’s marketplace requires extensive e-marketing expertise and a dynamic online presenc
When a football coach positions his defense, he spreads players over a wide area. Some line up to the left of the ball, and others line up to the right. Some take stances near the line of scrimmage, and others position themselves away from it. Many cluste
Which are you more likely to believe: a company representative telling you how great their product or service is, or a recommendation from another person about how it worked for them? If you’re like most people, the words from a fellow consumer pull more
Regardless of how much money your agency earns in a year, there are a number of branding challenges common for all independent insurance agencies. How many of the following seven challenges have you found yourself facing?