The Insura-Preneur Podcast

Marc Petersen – President of American Advantage: Petersen Group

The New Content Marketing for Insurance Agents – Why and How!

Here’s what’s different about insurance marketing today: do it right and you’ll never make a cold call and never, ever sell on price again. Need proof? Listen to Michael’s conversation with Marc Petersen, CIC, President, American Advantage Insurance:

• Learn about the lead magnet that brought $80,000 in new income this year – and is on pace to exceed the agency’s $150,000 goal.
• Get crystal clear on the psychology behind the new content marketing (and understand why Marc’s new clients thank him for the agency’s marketing!)
• Discover how to get started on the new content marketing – so that it’s easy, effective and lucrative.

Today’s consumer has changed. This conversation – between Michael Jans and Marc Petersen – reveals precisely how to reach today’s consumer on their terms… and get them to call you before you call them. This is the future of insurance marketing in action. Please do not miss this important conversation.

What are other agents & brokers doing to thrive? What are the biggest trends affecting the retail insurance agent & broker? What are the most important strategies and tactics you need to grow faster? Find out here in the Connected Insurance Podcast, where Michael Jans discusses the biggest issues affecting the independent insurance agent and broker with the industries leading figures. 

Mike Alexander Jr. – President of ABM Insurance and Benefit Services, Inc.

This agent’s marketing machine reliably clips along at 20% annual growth

Mike Alexander bought a 500 policy agency around the turn of the century. This year, he’s hitting $3,000,000 agency – and gives credit to the marketing machine that consistently brings business, week after week after week. Discover:

• How Mike manages an ‘integrated marketing system’ that predictably makes this phones ring. (You may be surprised that Mike – a savvy direct marketer – still unleashes direct mail on certain niches. Most impressive: he knows how many leads he’ll get before he hits the mailbox!)
• The simple way that Mike changed his ‘job’ at the agency – and why that triggered an onslaught of new business. (Every agent can start this immediately.)
• The powerful method Mike uses to nurture his customer base (hint: NO LESS than 12 nurturing touches a year) and how his customers respond by buying more.

Mike doesn’t hold anything back in this inside view of his winning insurance marketing strategy.

What are other agents & brokers doing to thrive? What are the biggest trends affecting the retail insurance agent & broker? What are the most important strategies and tactics you need to grow faster? Find out here in the Connected Insurance Podcast, where Michael Jans discusses the biggest issues affecting the independent insurance agent and broker with the industries leading figures.

Clinton Houck – Digital Agency Specialist at State Auto Insurance

Load your ‘marketing cart’ with boxes and bags of practical advice you can put to work tomorrow!

Roll up your sleeves for a master class on marketing in the modern age. Clinton Houck is the Digital Agency Specialist at State Auto – a company well respected for bringing the IA channel into the modern age. He ran a ‘bricks n’ mortar’ agency. He ran a ‘pure digital’ agency. And, now he shares the secrets of successful digital marketing to agents throughout State Auto’s territory. Discover:

• What Clinton strongly recommends for ‘quick wins’ and immediate results. (If you’re looking for noticeable results at no cost, check this out!)
• The single most important number for you to watch. (And, why 99 out of 100 agencies miss it… even though it’s simple and powerful!)
• How agencies are changing their organizational structure to meet the market in the modern age. (That’s right, the market changed, but that doesn’t mean we need to be left behind!)

If you’re thinking, ‘I’d like to get my hands on PRACTICAL advice!’ you came to the right episode of the right podcast. Clint shares tips you’ll have in place by Tuesday – with impact you’ll feel for years. Don’t miss this exciting conversation between two of the industry’s most passionate marketers, Michael Jans and Clinton Houck.

What are other agents & brokers doing to thrive? What are the biggest trends affecting the retail insurance agent & broker? What are the most important strategies and tactics you need to grow faster? Find out here in the Connected Insurance Podcast, where Michael Jans discusses the biggest issues affecting the independent insurance agent and broker with the industries leading figures.

Mike Albert – Co-founder of Ask Kodiak

what’s wrong with commercial insurance today?

Mike Albert, co-founder of Ask Kodiak has some ideas about what’s wrong with commercial insurance. And, he’s actively working on fixing some of the problems. This seasoned insurance and technology veteran shares his insights freely:

• How to preserve the strengths of the commercial lines placement process (and he believes that it has some built-in strengths) without making customers wait so long (or worse yet, buy inferior insurance!).
• THREE WORDS that agents need to hear if they’re going to thrive in the modern insurance world. (You probably guessed it… it absolutely has something to do with being different!).
• Advice to commercial agents who want to thrive in the future – and what that future looks like for today’s agent.

Please join this insightful and powerful conversation, as Mike holds nothing back on how insurance can be better…and what we can do to make that happen.

What are other agents & brokers doing to thrive? What are the biggest trends affecting the retail insurance agent & broker? What are the most important strategies and tactics you need to grow faster? Find out here in the Connected Insurance Podcast, where Michael Jans discusses the biggest issues affecting the independent insurance agent and broker with the industries leading figures.

George Wynne, Senior Executive of Corporate Development and Josh Morgan, Vice President, of Keystone Insurers Group

Podcast Guests from Keystone Insurance Group Share What the Best Agents Do Differently

We have a special double-feature for you today. Not one, but two guests from the revered Keystone Insurers Group have joined us for an information-packed episode.

What do the best do differently than the rest? This is the question we pursued in this lively conversation. And if anyone knows the answer it’s these two guests. Long-time industry insiders. N, they both have a bird’s eye view on what’s really working in the field.

George Wynne and Josh Morgan are high-ranking executives with the Keystone Insurance Group, one of our industry’s most respected networks. They share freely how they see the agency force dividing into three different groups. (Pay attention here: only one of those groups will own the future.)

Don’t miss this important and lively conversation about the future of insurance!

What are other agents & brokers doing to thrive? What are the biggest trends affecting the retail insurance agent & broker? What are the most important strategies and tactics you need to grow faster? Find out here in the Connected Insurance Podcast, where Michael Jans discusses the biggest issues affecting the independent insurance agent and broker with the industries leading figures.

Anson Ross Thompson – Co-owner of The Thompson Group, and Owner of The Loft Publishing Company

Building a Growth Agency That Supports the Lifestyle of Your Dreams

What’s more important than insurance? Well, LIFE. And, this podcast guest has figured out how to build an agency that grows like a machine – year after year – and supports the lifestyle of his dreams. You may recognize Anson from a recent cover of Rough Notes where he’s pictured in the agency’s tye-died VW bus. Discover:

• How he set up a branch agency 1200 miles from home – and gets both of them to operate almost automatically. (Hint: he’s been based in Indiana for more than 20 years…but fell in love with Colorado. A story you’ve got to hear!)
• How he adds FUN to the insurance experience – and why that’s been so important to his consistent growth. (And, why it makes it sooooo easy to stand out from the ‘vanilla’ crowd of insurance agents.)
• Why he put naked pictures of his mom and dad on a billboard next to the road (and, what they thought about it!).

If you’re in the mood for an upbeat and optimistic take on what insurance is today – from a daily practitioner – don’t miss this conversation with Anson Ross Thompson, CIC, CRM.

What are other agents & brokers doing to thrive? What are the biggest trends affecting the retail insurance agent & broker? What are the most important strategies and tactics you need to grow faster? Find out here in the Connected Insurance Podcast, where Michael Jans discusses the biggest issues affecting the independent insurance agent and broker with the industries leading figures.

Ely Kaplansky – President & CEO of Kaplansky Insurance Agencies, and Chairman of the MAIA

From Zero to $80 Million in Sales...

Why do some agents thrive when others do not? You’re about to get an answer every agent should pay attention to. Why? Because Ely Kaplansky has earned the right to every agent’s attention.

This industry leader delivers a master class on agency growth. He started a scratch agency. Now he’s got 75 employees generating $80 million in sales. Ely holds nothing back as he shares:

• The game-changing decision he made as a very young insurance agent – and how that transformed his life forever. (Most agents play at this. Ely simply did it – and never looked back.)
• Those parts of the business Ely attends to in order to maximize this year’s (This helps explain why Ely is in the top 5% of Best Practices EBIDTA.)
• How he embraces the challenges every agent faces today – new technologies (hint: he’s a user!), changes in consumer behavior, the rise of the millennials and more.

This is a ‘do-not-miss’ conversation with one of the industry’s top performing agency owners. Every agent who’s serious about growth and serious about today’s insurance climate must make this conversation a top priority.

What are other agents & brokers doing to thrive? What are the biggest trends affecting the retail insurance agent & broker? What are the most important strategies and tactics you need to grow faster? Find out here in the Connected Insurance Podcast, where Michael Jans discusses the biggest issues affecting the independent insurance agent and broker with the industries leading figures.

Robert Hartwig – Director of the Center for Risk and Uncertainty Management, and Clinical Associate Professor at the University of South Carolina, Past President of the Insurance Information Institute

Robert P. Hartwig, Ph.D., CPCU: The Big Picture on Insurance – What You Need to Know

Dan Kennedy used to say, ‘School’s never out for the pro.’ Well, school is about to start. And our teacher is one of the most respected observers the insurance industry has ever known. If you want to know how to ‘boost your agency Instagram followers by next Tuesday,’ this isn’t the podcast episode for you

But, if you want to know – and you should – the current state of the industry, the forces that are driving it, where it’s going and how to respond strategically, drop everything and listen.

Many consider Dr. Hartwig to be the voice of the industry to the public. You may have heard or seen him on ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, CNBC, Fox, PBS and the BBC. Or, perhaps you’ve seen him quoted in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, USA Today, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Financial Times, BusinessWeek, Newsweek, U.S. News & World Report, CFO, Fortune, Forbes, The Economist and many others throughout the world.

There’s a reason the world has called on Dr. Hartwig to explain insurance. Few understand it as deeply as he does. Take this rare opportunity to learn from one of the industry’s most esteemed masters.

What are other agents & brokers doing to thrive? What are the biggest trends affecting the retail insurance agent & broker? What are the most important strategies and tactics you need to grow faster? Find out here in the Connected Insurance Podcast, where Michael Jans discusses the biggest issues affecting the independent insurance agent and broker with the industries leading figures.

Manny Barbosa – Senior Digital Marketing Trainer at Safeco Insurance

Manny Barbosa: What Agents Are Doing to Thrive Today

Manny Barbosa. Deep in the ‘real world’ of insurance marketing. Manny is a Senior Digital Marketing Trainer with Safeco Insurance – and he knows what’s working in agencies throughout the US. Don’t miss this warp-speed training that Manny gives on the state of insurance marketing. Social media. The most effective digital strategies. Content creation. Manny delivers!

• What’s that critiical first step in marketing that almost guarantees you’re going in the right direction (and, if you miss it, absolutely guarantees that you’ll fail!)?
• FACT: Safeco’s 2018 Growth Survey reveals that 56% of agents have a marketer on staff…how does your agency stack up?
• After working with and researching thousands of agencies, Manny shares some of the biggest mistakes agencies make today – and how to avoid them.

Agents throughout the US know Manny. Many have attended his trainings or heard him speak. If you have about 40 minutes, you’ll get a rapid-fire and practical education on how to get your agency to the next level.

What are other agents & brokers doing to thrive? What are the biggest trends affecting the retail insurance agent & broker? What are the most important strategies and tactics you need to grow faster? Find out here in the Connected Insurance Podcast, where Michael Jans discusses the biggest issues affecting the independent insurance agent and broker with the industries leading figures.

Michael DeLaGrange – Founder & President of Insurance Lounge

Is this the insurance agency of the future? (It’s already here.)

Everyone knows insurance agencies are changing. Or need to.

Here’s an agent who’s re-thinking the entire ‘agency idea’. Yes, it has a digital side to it. But, it’s also bricks ‘n mortar. That said, I think if you walked by it, two things would happen. 1) It would catch your eye, and 2) you’d go, ‘Wow, that’s an insurance agency?!’ (Then you’d walk inside to check it out.)

Like a lot of insurance agents, Michael DeLaGrange took over the family agency. He ran it. Got bored. Then, reinvented it. In this can’t-miss podcast episode, the founder of Insurance Lounge reveals:

• How he thinks insurance agencies need to be re-engineered and re-designed to attract today’s consumer.
• What he did to raise seed funding for this already profitable agency – to take it nationwide. (Does $2,000,000 get your attention?)
• The little things he did to dramatically change the ‘look and feel’ of his agency (things that you very well may want to put on your to-do list)

You may or may not agree with everything this forward thinking ‘insura-preneur’ does. But, you’ll probably agree with his premise: that agencies need to change to keep up with today’s consumer. Don’t miss this conversation – as Michael and Michael hold up a mirror to the agency system… and ask you to take a hard look.

What are other agents & brokers doing to thrive? What are the biggest trends affecting the retail insurance agent & broker? What are the most important strategies and tactics you need to grow faster? Find out here in the Connected Insurance Podcast, where Michael Jans discusses the biggest issues affecting the independent insurance agent and broker with the industries leading figures.