Blog

You want to grow your agency and you know you could – if only you had more help. Hiring new team members is an expensive and complicated next step, and fortunately, there’s an easier way to grow before you reach that point. With our Smart Start programs, you can access the support you need to expand your personal and commercial lines business without the time and expense of recruiting and adding payroll.

Moving into 2023, independent agents who wish to grow will have to adopt different mindsets than in the past. As carriers continue to tighten risk guidelines, implement cancellations and rate hikes, and reduce appointments, they will look to partner with growth-oriented agencies.

The beauty of being an independent agent is that you’re often aligned with a number of carriers and partners who have done a lot of work for you, versus only having access to the carrier you work for as a captive agent.

Mark Brandt, VP of Commercial Lines at Smart Choice, sat down with Andy Wittgren, Director of Select Sales at Cowbell Cyber, for a Q &A on the state of cyber insurance today.

Independent agents are all too familiar with how challenging it can be to find success. Over the years, insurance networks have emerged as a prime way to help independent insurance agencies find their footing, connect with carriers and achieve their goals.

Hard Market and Rate Hikes: If you’ve been in the industry for any length of time, you know it’s cyclical. We are currently experiencing a hard market unlike any other we’ve ever experienced as we exit an unprecedented (at least in our modern lives) pandemic. Supply chain issues, labor shortages, inflation, inventory shortages – they’re all contributing to alter our industry’s delicate balance. 

The last three years may have forever changed the future of the insurance industry. Changes that had been taking place in an industry historically slow to adopt technology were forced to accelerate during the unexpected pandemic of 2020.

It is critical that independent agents are knowledgeable in current commercial construction loss trends to ensure that their clients are protected from potential losses and actively taking steps to avoid losses that could be costly and damaging to their businesses.  

One of my early career positions was with a Fortune 500 manufacturing company. They were innovators, market leaders and had one of the top twenty most powerful brands in the world. To my surprise what they also had were scores of partners.

Feeling the squeeze from inflation, claim settlement increases, and competition from the big national personal lines carriers? It’s time to concentrate on commercial insurance. Now, writing commercial insurance does face its own headwinds

Smart Start Commercial continues to grow and expand our portfolio of markets and products to help our agents win more new business. With the challenges of Personal Lines pushing more agencies to diversify into

Self-improvement is a journey that begins with a single step - and that first step is taking the initiative to act. When you take initiative, you are taking control of your own destiny. You are charting your own course and setting your own pace.