"There's Not Much Money in Insurance..."

[MrGolf]

As a disclaimer: this post is not in any way meant to brag and/or gloat. Rather I hope it is construed as positive encouragement for anyone who has been told that insurance is a bad career. As with any career, if this becomes your passion, you will be most successful. I'm still learning that myself, I suppose

To think, this is what my high school teachers and college professors told me when I always told them I would go back home to work for my family's insurance agency that was started in the late 1920's.

This month alone we have wrote in new commercial business:

Plumbing contractor (package and work comp): $33,000

New venture restaurant/sports bar (package and work comp): $11,000

Paper/plastics recycler (work comp): $89,000

New venture long haul trucker (liability, cargo, GL, work comp, excess): $367,000

And still hoping to nail down a sawmill work comp at $30,000 and a concrete contractor at $50,000.


Yeah, not much money in insurance.

Glad I didn't listen to my teachers...

 

[insurance1822]

^ Right on. And I must say I'm jealous about those numbers. I majored in Cardiac Rehabiliation and all my professors used to complain about me becoming a 'suit' instead of working in the field.

I crush all their incomes and I'm half their age.

Insurance rocks!

 

[Heather]

Your family must be so proud to have a business that stood the test of time like that. That is my entire goal in life to be able to build some thing here for my kids and grandkids to take over some day.

 

[insurance1822]

^ I'm pretty sure by the time our kids are grown up....our business model will be phased out like travel agents. We still have people our age & older who want local agents & want somebody to talk to.

When our kids grow up, internet & mobile platforms will be the go to and brick/mortar insurance agencies won't exist IMO

 

[MrGolf]

Heather - Thank you... I was fortunate to have a great opportunity. I consider myself lucky more than anything.


Ins1822 - I usually agree with you on here, but I'll have to differ on that last post. I think there will always be good agents around even in spite of the internet and cyber-business model. Now, I do think that personal lines will (and already is) become a commodity. But commercial clients and businesses will always want sound advice from someone they can speak to and that they know. I think agencies that focus on commercial lines will still be around even when our children are grown and beyond. The exposures and risks inherent to commercial needs a strong understanding of the business on the ground and the only way for companies to make that work is through agents.

 

[indienoise]

Heather - Thank you... I was fortunate to have a great opportunity. I consider myself lucky more than anything.


Ins1822 - I usually agree with you on here, but I'll have to differ on that last post. I think there will always be good agents around even in spite of the internet and cyber-business model. Now, I do think that personal lines will (and already is) become a commodity. But commercial clients and businesses will always want sound advice from someone they can speak to and that they know. I think agencies that focus on commercial lines will still be around even when our children are grown and beyond. The exposures and risks inherent to commercial needs a strong understanding of the business on the ground and the only way for companies to make that work is through agents.

I kind of agree, and kind of don't. Someone who is adept at sales will always thrive, no matter the circumstances. No doubt we all need to make sure we have automation in place more and more as time goes on, but it's not like it requires much effort to keep personal lines in force - it already kind of takes care of itself.

I'll continue to go after standard and preferred business as long as it's profitable and the business sticks. Folks like ins1822 here might bash nonstandard business, but that's not so easily stolen away by direct writers and huge online agencies, BECAUSE they've got no local presence. And as long as I've still got a hand in the largest buy-here pay-here lot in town, and dealing with the types of customers that brings anyway, I'll gladly earn another income off insuring all these "bums" without expending any effort.

Because of the nature of the business, I see my kids and my brother-in-law's kids having a long-term, profitable business relationship.

 

[insurance1822]

^ Hey I've always said if you can make money on non-standard bum business then by all means...make money on it. I wrote a filthy bum w/ GMAC yesterday for $6,000 so that $720 commission is just as good as $720 from Travelers (it just may not be around as long.)

And yes I agree that COMMERCIAL agencies will always be around.

 

[shawnmwalker]

I worked in NS for the first part of my Career. It was great. I loved the wheeling and dealing that was done there. Ins1822 is correct. there is money to be made there. It is made in a different way. It is a different model with a different profit margin but it works.

Just like Commercial thread starter. He is reading this thinking, yikes, Personal lines.... There is no problem with it either, it simply is a different sales pitch and with different profit margins.

 

[1963]

There is some merit in all the posts I have read so far. However, we have always dealt in a service-oriented business. Because of that, the effective agents find a way to put the client's needs front and center; it is ALWAYS the focal point. No matter the mode or method used, at some point in the process folks are going to search for a professional agent for valid advice coming from a REAL person they can converse. Yes, they may choose to go it alone and use the internet for their purchase, but at the end of the day, clients will come asking you to straighten out the mess they are in, advise them what to do, or ask you about your product. Don't know how you deal with them; I charge them for a limited amount of time before any info is exchanged. Time is valuable!

 

[marindependent]

Wow nice factoids. Thanks for the poist