Nationwide's Thresher: Best Agents Growing in Commercial and Financial Services

He says Nationwide has seen continued growth in its direct channel. Sometimes, the direct channel acts as a lead for agents, he notes. “We still have a fairly high percentage of customers who start on the Internet that actually either bind in our call center or bind with a local agent, so the agents are benefitting from it in that sense.”

But he adds that the company’s best agents are adapting to the marketplace. “I think they also realize that the future for agents is in financial services and commercial,” Thresher says. “Customers are deciding to go direct for personal lines, and that’s their choice. So our best agents are growing their agencies in commercial and financial services, and still serving the customers who want an agent in personal lines—there just are fewer of those today.”