Ask any independent producer and they will tell you: Prospecting, selling and closing are difficult. That's why not just anyone can succeed in this business, for it is one that many enter without formal training and are left to sink or swim during those first few years with little guidance or support. NU spoke with three veteran producers to get 10 solid ideas on how to sell better, from finding new business, to presenting to clients, to saving deals about to go sideways.

Floyd Mays is a past president of the Professional Insurance Agents of Virginia and D.C. and is hailed by his colleagues as a natural salesman. The Floyd Mays Insurance Agency, based in Richmond, Va., has offered coverage for the automotive and transportation industries—tow trucks, in particular—since 1977.

Steve Ruchman spent decades in the insurance business as a producer, specializing in sales to the garment manufacturing industry in New York City. These days, he is retired and living on Long Island, N.Y. He still serves on the board of PIA Management Services Inc.