Trends & Traits of Successful Agencies Part I: Business Planning Series
Chris McAtee | Agency Brokerage Consultants
Meet Chris
• Insurance M&A professional and consultant
• 10 years in the insurance industry with retail & wholesale agencies, MGA’s and Program Administrators
• Over 100 transactions within the insurance industry representing deal volume $250M +
Agenda
• Finances
• Marketing
• People
• Processes / Operations
Finances
Finances
• Financial benchmarks
– Compare your operating performance against industry averages • Growth & Performance Standards (GPS)
– The National Alliance for Insurance Education & Research
• Best Practices Study
– Reagan Consulting & the Big I
Finances
• Accounting – Solid accounting practices
– Reconcile financials with the management systems and carrier statements
– Track monthly revenues per carrier statements, track agency bill deposits and commissions, compare against company financials.
– Hire CFO when they grow to certain level
Finances
• Budgeting – Budget each year
– Keep > 3 months of working capital (operating expenses
– Don’t spend what isn’t theirs
– Disciplined spenders
Finances
• Investing – Prioritize investing for growth
– Keep personal lifestyle and expenses in check
– Invest in your marketing and people
Marketing
Marketing
• Develop a marketing plan
Marketing
• Stats – Average agency spends 3-5% of revenue on marketing
nationwide
– Roughly 65% of agencies report having no formal marketing plan
– Over 55% of agencies do not track where their leads are coming from or their ROI
Marketing
• Niche marketing • Faster organic growth
• Higher retention and profitability
• Better competitive edge
• High keyword ranking online
Marketing
• Agency Website Functionality – In-depth content
– Testimonials
– Blog
– Social media
– Mobile ready
– Local search ranking
People
People
• Your agency is only as good as your people!
• Hire people that: • Have the right attitude
• Are of good moral character
• Like to learn and will listen
• Build and maintain a strong team
• Minimize turnover
Process
Process
• Deliver in all areas of business
• Successfully manage the agency – Accounting
– Staff
– Marketing
– Sales
– Customer service
– Legal
Is this you?
Traits of successful agency owners
• High risk tolerance
• Financially disciplined
• People-oriented
• Delegate well
• Students of their business
• Action-based and adaptive
Thank you!
• Thank you for your participation in today’s webinar.
• We hope to see you on October 29th for our next webinar in the series: S.W.O.T. Analysis
• You will receive a copy of the slides/presentation
• Feel free to e-mail Chris with specific questions at: [email protected]