On Point Podcasts
Take a Leap for Real Time
What will you be doing on Feb 29? In this podcast, independent agency champion Stu Durland, Vice President of Seely Durland Insurance and Co-Chair of the Real Time Campaign, discusses the many excellent benefits his firm has realized by implementing Real Time agent-carrier workflows. Real Time is more than a technology. Rather, he states, “it is a workflow that leverages technology to provide operational efficiencies.” Listen to the podcast - Added February 6, 2012
Being Young In the Insurance Industry
One of the things Peter and Rick like best about doing the “On Point” podcast series is the opportunity it gives them to speak with bright young men and women who are new to the industry and are excited about their future as independent agents. Typically, they are aggressive, smart, hard working and committed to a high standard of sales and service excellence. This podcast with Insurance Agent and Author Matt Brown is no exception. Listen as Matt explains his roadmap for success. Listen to the podcast - Added January 23, 2012
3 Key Challenges Facing Agents in 2012
In this podcast with Bob Rusbuldt, CEO of Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America, Bob articulates what he believes are the three biggest challenges facing independent agents and brokers in 2012. He also outlines several IIABA initiatives, such as Project CAP, that are being launched to help agents meet the three challenges of 1) needed revenue, 2) regulatory and legislative activities, and 3) changing consumer behavior. Bob explains why he’s optimistic about the future of the IA distribution system and why he believes the year will offer new opportunities. Listen to the podcast - Added January 9, 2012
End of Business as We Know It?
In this On Point podcast, Chris Amrhein, Chief Fun Officer of Insurance is Fun discusses with Peter and Rick what it might mean to be an “agency of the future.” We all agree that the expectations of the connected consumer are placing new demands on the way we transact business. Demographic and diversity shifts are changing the face of both the consumer and the agency employee. Add the rapid advancements in technology into the mix and the entire world of insurance is being transformed. This discussion doesn’t provide a definitive answer to what the agency of the future will look like but it does begin to raise many of the issues that need to be addressed. (And stay tuned for more on this topic from Peter and Rick in 2012.) Listen to the podcast – Added December 12, 2011
Virtual & Remote …From China!
Yes, China. In this podcast Roper DeGarmo, President of Signature Personal Insurance explains how he started his successful Mission, Kansas independent agency and now runs it from his home near Hong Kong. Listeners will find his creative and effective use of communication technology to provide efficient and timely service to his high-net-worth cliental interesting and informative. The technology piece is an obvious component to his success. Yet, according to Roper, “The real key to success is having a highly trained, smart and committed staff—it is all about the people.” Listen to the podcast – Added November 29, 2011
A “Taste” of ACT
In this podcast, Peter and Rick talk with Jim Armitage, the new Chair of the IIABA’s Agents Council for Technology (ACT). If you are not familiar with ACT and the wide range of initiatives it is spearheading to improve agency workflow, you’ll want to listen as Jim provides an overview. “One of the goals of ACT is to research and evaluate trends that are having or will have and impact on independent agents and enable them to be proactive rather than reactive in response to new trends,” Jim says. For example, the newly formed Agency of the Future Workgroup will begin to research and discuss how the many cultural and societal shifts or transformations will influence the way agencies will need to operate to meet the changing needs of consumers. Jim also discusses how agents and carriers can join and participate in ACT. Listen to the podcast - Added: November 14, 2011
Staying Personal in a Digital World
In this episode, Peter and Rick talk with James McQuivey, Ph.D. VP, Principal Analyst at Forrester. James was the featured speaker at the recent ACT (Agents Council for Technology) meeting in Minneapolis. His talk, entitled “Welcome to the Era of Experience: How You’ll Have to Adapt to a Hybrid Digital/Personal Customer Relationship,” truly resonated with the participants. Listen as James expands on a main theme of his talk: the idea that today’s success means you have to seek digital efficiency while maintaining personal intimacy. Listen as he explains how independent agents and brokers can achieve this balance and thus build customer trust and loyalty.
Listen to the podcast - Added: Monday, October 17, 2011
Disaster Preparedness and Recovery
After a short sabbatical, Peter and Rick are back with their popular “On Point” podcast series. In this episode, Rick and Peter talk with Paul Banuski, Marketing & Communications Coordinator for Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of NY. Listen as Paul talks about how IIABNY leveraged the ease and power of social media to respond to Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee and the flooding they caused. He talks about the many lessons learned from this experience—including the fact that social media offers our industry a wonderful opportunity to tell our story and reinforces the value of the independent agent distribution system.
Listen to the podcast - Added: Monday, October 3, 2011
9 to 5, Charles Dickens and More
What is considered work, where people work, how they work, and when they work has changed from the traditional 9 to 5 and “bricks and mortar” work paradigm. Listen as Rick Morgan and Peter van Aartrijk talk with Chris Amrhein of insuranceisfun.com about how these changes are providing new opportunities but also new challenges. Is our industry ready to embrace and adapt to the change? What are the tradeoffs? For example, Chris wonders if we have the skill sets needed to properly manage a largely remote workforce.
Listen to the podcast - Added: Monday, July 11, 2011
A Glass Half Full
In this episode of On Point, Peter and Rick are joined by Lisa Parry Becker, VP of William B. Parry & Son Ltd., based in eastern Pennsylvania. “It’s a great time to be an agent,” Lisa says. She acknowledges the challenges presented by the tough economy and the continuing soft market but also sees this as a time of great opportunity. Lisa shares how the efficient and effective use of technology such as Real Time have made it possible for her agency to continue to provide the level of service her customers have come to expect from this fifth-generation agency. Lisa also discusses the agency’s recent move into social networking and how she sees using these tools to create increased awareness with customers and prospects. Listen to the podcast - Added: Monday, June 27, 2011
More Podcasts
- Who Do You Trust?
- Monitor, Measure, Test, Tweak – Repeat
- Are Your Customers Accepting the ‘Best of the Worst?
- Mobility & Consumerization of IT
- Progressive is Serious About the IA Distribution Channel
- Challenges and Opportunities – A State Association Perspective
- Working on Your Agency vs. Working in Your Agency
- Business Intelligence Coming to an iPad Near You
- A Chat with “Foremost Insurance Guy”
- 10 Minutes to Success on Facebook
- 100 Basis Points: The Value of A Brand
- A Brand Build Around Knowledge
- Agent of the Future
- 5 Branding Principles to Live By
- Social Media: Why Is It So Hard?
- Getting to Know You Through Social Media
