I'm Starting My Own Agency

[Jerbond]

Well I have 1 year of brokerage firm experience. I am starting my own agency. I have my E&O coverage, am going to write through a couple of GA's- Superior Access and NIA. I'm going the GA route to get my feet wet. I know in the future that direct appointments is soooo much better. Real time quoting, access to underwriting, etc. But I realize that that is in the next 6-12 months. I am going to specialize in P&C- commercial business as well as auto, and home. I am signing up for FSC for the personal lines rating system. I think I have a pretty good pipeline of business through networking as well as some financial planning friends of mine. I would like some feedback from you seasoned vets as far as pitfalls with GA's, Acord forms and the such, as well as any tips to help me get up and running. Thank you. Oh and by the way- this is in LA, California

 

[SethHorner]

Superior Access has done me right. They are a good company. I got started a couple of months ago and have not had any problems.

Best of luck out there!

 

[mtnmusic]

Well I have 1 year of brokerage firm experience. I am starting my own agency. I have my E&O coverage, am going to write through a couple of GA's- Superior Access and NIA. I'm going the GA route to get my feet wet. I know in the future that direct appointments is soooo much better. Real time quoting, access to underwriting, etc. But I realize that that is in the next 6-12 months. I am going to specialize in P&C- commercial business as well as auto, and home. I am signing up for FSC for the personal lines rating system. I think I have a pretty good pipeline of business through networking as well as some financial planning friends of mine. I would like some feedback from you seasoned vets as far as pitfalls with GA's, Acord forms and the such, as well as any tips to help me get up and running. Thank you. Oh and by the way- this is in LA, California

Two things you need: A toll-free 800 number and your own website. The 800 number will cost you under $10 a month and the website about the same. My website is www.bmgbrokers.com and I did the design using templates available through the server. It's an easy thing to do and you don't have to hire anyone as a consultant/designer. You can be on the web within hours and add or edit pages as you need them.

 

[thecarguy]

Seth, please PM me. I would like to ask you some questions about working with Superior Access.Thanks

 

[redsquash]

Superior Access has done me right. They are a good company. I got started a couple of months ago and have not had any problems.

1) Whose name appear on the policy? Your, or Superior Access?
2) Did they give you access to all the carriers they list on their website (Travelers, Safco, Hartford etc)
3) Do they charge any upfront cost? How much
4) What is your %age for commission

Thanks

 

[rayholt]

I'm in the same position you are, except I strictly sell health insurance. I've looked into GA's and they are definitely the way to go when getting into the industry. They should offer extensive training and lots of resources on marketing yourself. If you have a year of experience, make note of everything they were doing right, and everything they were doing wrong. Make sure you don't do any of the wrong stuff... it's easy to pick up someone else's bad habits. Also, find a mentor and be ready for long hours.

walterrayholt.com

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1-800 number, good idea. Creating your own website without a designer, bad idea.

Here is why... we'll take bmg for example. Flash is out! Unless you are MTV.com flash is all in what it says "flashy", it serves no business purpose. Having a splash page is just one more step someone doesn't want to go through to find information and it annoys everyone who has already been to your site. There is a 3 second rule. When someone comes to your site, they evaluate it in 3 seconds if it's 1. professional looking 2. has the information they need and 3. can they perform the task they are looking for within 2 clicks. Think about it... when you're browsing the web how long do you stay on a page. All of about 2 seconds, maybe 3.

But... if everyone who is going to your site are from strong referrals they will be more apt to jump through all your hoops to get a quote or request your service. Everyone else, not so much.

Also, you'll end up with web pages called 1.html, 2.html, and so on. If you are thinking about wanting to pop up on a google search you can forget it. Also, using tables for layouts are really bad. xhtml/css is now standard.

I could go on and on, but more people know that hiring a consultant is a good idea rather than risking it on your own. You may save a dollar now for every $50 you'll be losing in the future. Underestimate the internet and a good quality website you won't be able to compete for long.

If you need a website let me know.