How to Expand Your Team Without Adding Payroll
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.
Six Agency Challenges that Smart Start Can Solve
Because we work closely with independent agencies, we have the inside track on challenges that can inhibit agency growth. It’s likely you’re dealing with some of these roadblocks yourself. Here’s how to overcome them.
Challenge #1: You’re focused on either personal or commercial only.
Like most agents, you’re very knowledgeable and focused on one type of business – personal or commercial. You’ve been hesitant to branch out because of the complexities of commercial lines or not knowing where to start with home and auto.
Smart Solution: We do the work for you.
Smart Start was created for agents who want to expand their offerings but might not have the knowledge to do so. Utilize a rater for personal lines or our online portal for commercial lines’ requests and we’ll take it from there! No need to familiarize yourself with complex policy details.
Challenge #2: You’re short staffed.
There are countless reasons you may need some extra help. Your team members may be out unexpectedly for a variety of reasons. You may have a surge of new business or a time-consuming client with a hard-to-place risk. Maybe your business has grown some, but not enough to warrant hiring another person.
Smart Solution: Leverage on-demand support.
Leverage Smart Start support to avoid being shorthanded. Our underwriters and personal lines risk specialists are on hand to assist and bind coverage for you within 24-hours. We’re available when you need us, and because all policies are placed in a service center, their extended customer service hours are convenient for all parts of the country. Plus, you never have to spend time and money recruiting and training the Smart Choice team!
Challenge #3: You’re too busy to focus on prospecting.
You know you could generate more sales if you just had more time and resources to spend on prospecting. Plus, you’re worried that your team doesn’t have time to give more clients the service they deserve.
Smart Solution: Shift your resource allocation.
Use the Smart Start team to handle more back-office support tasks so your in-house team is free to focus on finding and writing new business. With Smart Start on your side, your capacity can easily expand to support new business.
Challenge #4: Overhead costs have skyrocketed.
Wages, rent, office supplies – everything has become more expensive. You need to control costs.
Smart Solution: Outsource instead of hiring.
Get precisely the level of support you need without increasing your agency’s fixed costs by partnering with Smart Choice. There’s no minimum commitment and you can shift work back to your team whenever you wish, so it’s a no-risk solution.
Challenge #5: Clients are taking more time.
In the wake of countless natural disasters and a hard market, it’s very difficult to find affordable coverage. Renewals are no longer easy – they’re eating up a lot of your time. New placements have become more challenging, too.
Smart Solution: Lean on an expert partner.
Leverage Smart Start’s comparative rater platform to access real-time quotes from national personal lines carriers. You’ll have more options for your clients. Smart Start’s Personal Lines Risk Specialists can help you place high-risk properties. If you’re writing a commercial client, let Smart Start Commercial Lines experts do the work for you! We help agents start writing business immediately without waiting on lengthy appointment processes. Plus, commercial policies auto renew, there are no premium volume requirements, and you’ll receive competitive commissions.
Challenge #6: Clients expect you to shop every year.
You’re not the only one feeling the impact of inflation. Your clients are struggling, too, and customer loyalty is declining as a result. This forces you to shop their coverage every year to keep them satisfied.
Smart Solution: Shop faster with Smart Choice.
With access to all the top markets and strong carrier relationships, Smart Choice can access the best rates and coverage for your clients – which means they’ll have no reason to look elsewhere.
Add Smart Start to Your Team
If you need more support for your business but are not in the position to hire right now, make Smart Start an extension of your team. Agencies like yours use the Smart Start platform to create a competitive advantage for their businesses. It’s like having additional, knowledgeable producers in your agency to help you write business faster and more efficiently, without the overhead and payroll expenses.
When you use Smart Start:
- You don’t need an appointment to access top national carriers. Just use the online platform to receive real-time quotes.
- You receive the support you need. When you electronically submit your quote, our team of Commercial Underwriters or Personal Lines Risks Specialists takes over from there. For Personal Lines, your Risk Specialist will run motor vehicle reports on the appropriate carrier website. If all information is accurate, the policy will be sent back to you to obtain approval and payment from your customer. We will bind the policy with the carrier.
- There are no premium volume requirements. Write as much or as little as you want.
- You’re always informed. Policy information is available in the Smart Choice management system and is displayed in your agency portal.
- You’ll receive competitive commissions. Payments take place on the 1st and 15th of each month. You’ll also receive a detailed commission breakdown to track exactly what you’re earning.
Work smarter – not harder – with Smart Start. If you want to grow your business without hiring more staff, the Smart Start Platform gives you the resources you need!