The Insura-Preneur Podcast

Rosalie Donlon - Managing Editor at National Underwriter, Property & Casualty, PropertyCasualty360.com

Insurance Journalist Shares Detailed Survey Data About Industry
Rosalie Donlon is the Managing Editor at National Underwriter, Property & Casualty, and PropertyCasualty360.com. She has more than 20 years of professional publishing experience as a writer, editor and content acquisition strategist. Before joining ALM Media LLC in-house, Rosalie was the contributing author and editor of several insurance industry and legal publications, including Employment Practices Liability, Guide to Captives and Alternative Risk Financing, and 2015 Retirement Plans Facts. In this discussion Rosalie comes armed with data from a survey conducted in partnership with PIA National, National Underwriter, and NMG Consulting, about how agents & brokers are feeling and responding to trends and issues in the industry such as dealing with succession and perpetuation, growth plans, reduced commissions, relationships with carriers, the aging of the industry, and more.
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.

Jim Schubert - President & CEO at Southern States Insurance, Inc

2nd generation owner shares how he grew the agency by leveraging modern tools & tactics
Like a lot of insurance agency or brokerage owners today, Jim Schubert was pulled into the family business through the circumstances of life - and during his time there he has helped Southern States Insurance grow into one of the largest independent insurance agencies in the Southeast United States. So how do his agencies emails achieve over a 50% open rate? How did he receive almost 450 referrals in one year? How did he develop a blog that generates leads? Listen to this fantastic discussion and discover how Jim Schubert is taking old-school tactics and making them new again.
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.

Barry Rabkin - President of Market Insight Group

Veteran Insurance Analyst Shares How Technology is Changing How the Industry Attracts and Retains Customers
Barry Rabkin’s forty plus-year insurance career has been driven by curiosity and passion to analyze the “why and what” about technology’s potential impact on insurance commerce, markets, customers, and channels. Rabkin worked for insurers for 17 years mostly in marketing and market research departments across all major lines of business; consulted to insurers for 8 years while employed with Arthur D. Little, IBM, and BearingPoint; and led insurance strategy analyst practices at technology analyst firms in the US (IDC, Meta Group) and UK (Ovum). His areas of analysis include customer experience, marketing and distribution, channel management, mobility, geospatial, and the Internet of Things. Rabkin has delivered presentations to insurance audiences across the globe (including London, Sydney, Auckland, Singapore, Stockholm, and Zurich) concerning the role technology could play in the industry to get and keep customers.
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.

Tony Cañas - Co-Founder of insnerds.com, Best-Selling Author, Speaker, and Middle Market Underwriter

Insurance industry's 'Voice of Millennials' shares what insurance must do to capture the hearts of this crucial generation
Tony Cañas is a young insurance nerd, blogger, and speaker. Tony has been a leading voice in the industry's effort to recruit and retain millennials in insurance - helping the industry understand how to engage this demographic that will soon make up more than 50% of the workforce. In this eye-opening discussion with Michael Jans, Tony Cañas shares a 5 step plan for the industry to attract this crucial generation - and keep them engaged. Get a pen and paper ready - you're going to want to take notes!
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.

Brett Allen - Assistant Director of Social Enablement at The Hartford

Social Selling Expert Delivers 3 Step Plan to Generate Leads from Social Media
Brett Allen enables insurance agents & brokers to connect with their marketplace using authentic content and proven engagement tactics built upon social psychological compliance principles and strengthened by years of real-world experience. For over a decade Brett has been helping small businesses and marketing specialists expand their online reach, increase credibility, stay in front of their marketplace, and convert social traffic into warm-market leads. In this discussion Brett shares a 3 step process to leverage social media to produce leads, practical tips for generating traffic through LinkedIn and Facebook, and valuable insight on blogging and content creation to drive your marketplace to you.
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.

Lucas Jans - Vice President of Product & Co-Founder of Agency Revolution

Insurance technology mastermind reveals how agents & brokers can use email better than any other industry
How do you write automated messages your customers want to receive? What are technologies do agents & brokers need to pay attention to today? With everything that's been changing - what has stayed the same? Discover these answers and more in surprising and informative discussion with Lucas Jans, Vice President of Product & Co-Founder of Agency Revolution. In 1999 Lucas created ZipDrip, the first automated email system for insurance agencies & brokerages, he later went on to build The Quantum Navigator, the first social media network for agents & brokers and has been at the center of developing some of the most important technolgies in our industry. Don't miss this discussion.
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.

Chuck Blondino - Director of Agency Capabilities and Programs at Safeco Insurance

Cutting-edge Safeco research reveals how top agencies achieved 86% growth
Take notes. Chuck Blondino joins the podcast for a can't-miss episode armed with hard data about what the fastest growing agencies working with Safeco are doing to rise to the top of the marketplace. Chuck has been at Safeco Insurance for 23 years, as a commercial underwriter, underwriting manager, assistant director of commercial sales, region manager, marketing director, and now as director of agency capabilities and programs. Throughout Chuck’s career the one constant has been helping independent agents grow. Chuck’s team at Safeco today includes the Bricks and Clicks team, the Customers For Life team, and Safeco’s Marketing Solutions Center. Chuck believes independent agents can take back market share and grow in personal lines business just as they do in the commercial market.
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 Jans - Insurance Marketing Guru, Founder of Agency Revolution

Michael Jans discusses the stark choices old-school insurance agents face in today's marketplace
We're joined by Rick Fox so we can once again turn the tables on Michael Jans and put him in the hotseat! Together they discuss what Michael has learned and observed from interviewing the top minds in the independent insurance channel. Discover the risks Michael Jans thinks insurance agents & brokers are opening themselves up to if they rely on what worked 10 years ago, and the mindset that today's thriving agents & brokers use to make their customers love them.
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.

Jeremiah Desmarais - Best-Selling Author, Keynote Speaker, Insurance Marketing Authority

Insurance marketing mastermind shares how successful agents find ROI.
Jeremiah D. Desmarais is a 23-time award-winning financial marketer, TED Speaker and philanthropist that has been featured on Forbes, CNN, and Worth. His work has generated over two million insurance leads and helped advisors in over 51 countries generate over $300M in sales commissions. Labeled “One the greatest marketing minds in the financial industry”, he’s a sought after speaker, coach and private mentor to advisors, carriers and marketing organizations. He was key in building one of the top 17 fastest growing insurance software companies in the country on the Inc 500 List in less than three years – hitting a record 1503% growth. He then turned around the marketing systems at a multinational insurance automation firm to increase sales by $26M in only 9 months – effectively tripling sales prospects within 60 days. The firm went to be sold for $1.2B a short time thereafter. His #1 best-selling book, SHIFT: 201 Instant-Action Proven Marketing Strategies to Sell More Insurance and Financial Products Now is available on Amazon
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.

Randy Schwantz - Author of 'The Wedge'

Commercial Insurance Sales Guru Delivers Step-By-Step Advice To Build Sales Systems
Author of the classic insurance agency sales book, 'The Wedge', Randy Schwantz has a deep and detailed discussion with Michael about how to build really great systems to make your insurance agency or brokerage as effective as possible. Learn all about how to map a conversation to always be prepared, provide value and close sales - get details on a hiring process guaranteed bring the right producer into your agency or brokerage.
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.