Most agency owners know they need to increase their producer force to keep their businesses growing. With demand high and supply very short for experienced producers, agencies today are finding they often need to fill spots with untested individuals whom they hope can be developed into successful salespeople. So they hire a bright, personable, aggressive individual with no sales experience or experience in a different industry, expecting him or her to obtain licenses and appointments and then build a book of business.

But the ways in which agencies go about developing these hires is often problematic. Generally, there is a very limited plan, if any, to help new producers achieve their goals, and many will never develop into the employee the agency wants. Throwing someone into deep water may teach them to swim–but more likely it'll teach them to drown. There's a better way.
Success starts early
To poise your new producer for long-term success, plan carefully to meet his development needs from day one. This involves clearly laying out expectations and providing the necessary support so the new hire can meet them. That support begins with identifying a mentor, who will be critical in guiding your new producer's development. Choose the mentor carefully and get this person's full commitment to assuming responsibility for the new employee. The mentor should help develop a detailed, time-specific training plan, monitor the plan and provide education, guidance and motivation for the new producer.
In putting together the training program, consider formal technical training in addition to the initial licensing training to help the producer learn the complexities of insurance. Shadowing producers and office staff is often valuable in helping the new person understand the practical decision-making that occurs at agencies, while formal sales training can more quickly enable the producer to close sales. It's also valuable for the neophyte to experience insurance from other perspectives: being present at carrier visits, shadowing underwriters, attending loss-control review visits with insureds and even spending the day with a claims adjuster.
Naturally, you'll want to get the new producer established in the marketplace, but this must also be carefully planned–especially in agencies and brokerages that target larger accounts. Several years ago a young, aggressive producer attended one of my sales classes, excited about his new career and eager to learn. After nine months in employee benefits, he was looking to expand into commercial lines. His agency was located in a growing, competitive area and focused only on accounts generating revenues of $10,000 or more. He called me three months after the class very frustrated and distraught, saying, “I'm dying out here.” Given his youth (mid-20s), inexperience and lack of reputation, he was unable to gain access to businesses of that size. He was literally being thrown out of prospects' offices. The producer left his agency shortly after this call, so the time and money invested in him provided absolutely no return.
In hindsight, the expectations for this new producer were too high, too fast. A transition plan may have helped him attain that level, but there wasn't one in place. Certainly, this is a common situation at agencies that target larger accounts and will not write or pay commission on small business. Working with producers to help them build their reputations and gain “wins” with some targeted accounts will not only increase their confidence, but give them a base for referrals and testimonials. The alternative is a high rate of producer failure.
Measuring success
How will you measure success? Make sure your new producer has a revenue goal that is realistic and achievable. With guidance, he should develop an individual business plan outlining the activities that will support attaining these goals. The plan becomes a road map to success, and keeps the producer focused on worthwhile activities. Business plans typically include financial objectives, flow objectives (number of prospects needed, closing ratio, average account size) and targeted classes of business and accounts. The plan can also include specific sales activities, such as expected networking, proactive referral pursuit, marketing and cold calling. Don't forget to consider an ongoing development plan, including a schedule of professional designation programs and continued technical and sales training.
You'll also need to consider helping your producers determine which target market(s) would be appropriate for their concentration. Targeting specific classes of business typically keeps them focused, builds their reputations and develops their expertise in less time. New producers will be even more successful if you align them with carriers that support their efforts with marketing campaigns, targeted leads and pertinent information on the class of business chosen.
In selecting which markets to target, it's often good to start with the new producer's personal interests and knowledge. Recently, I worked with a producer who chose the medical industry because her father and brother were in that field. Starting with that background, she soon had many referrals for potential clients, giving her instant credibility.
Keeping momentum
Once the business plan is in place, you need to work with the producer to execute it. Ensure that the producer is involved in a cross-section of sales activities so he meets potential prospects or referral sources, generates leads, builds a reputation and develops the necessary technical and sales expertise. Keep him focused on and committed to filling his pipeline with prospects, and then help him convert them into long-term clients.
Some producers can easily get themselves in the door, but have difficulty converting the opportunity into a sale. Frequently, this is because they don't appreciate the immediate and long-term value they bring to a prospect. I always tell new producers that typically 98 percent of their prospects already belong to someone else. I then ask, “Why should this person do business with you?” If producers don't know the answer, their potential customers won't, either. Clearly, that doesn't mean producers should then simply “product dump” their information on the prospect and wait back at the office for a phone call. Rather, successful producers work to understand a prospect's needs, and then demonstrate their value through the solutions they provide. A consultative sales approach shifts focus to the prospect, rather than the producer or the agency.
Once your producer is fully active in the sales process, you'll need to help him develop the discipline of consistent self-evaluation. This can help ensure success as he identifies what is working well and where improvements need to be made. New producers should consider monitoring and evaluating all of their sales activities, including conversion rates from phone calls to appointments, appointments to proposals and proposals to sales. Initially, they should spend time analyzing some of their activities on a weekly basis and reviewing their overall business plan on a monthly basis. A producer's ability to recognize the need for change and make those adjustments without prompting is one trait that separates a top performer from a mediocre one.
Time management is typically the biggest challenge producers face, especially once they start building a book of business. Being able to effectively manage pipelines and protect selling time will be vital going forward. They must learn to efficiently transition new clients over to the customer service department to eliminate tasks that are better handled elsewhere. Prioritizing activities that provide them with the biggest return on their investment of time and money is also a significant factor in successful time management. Producers inevitably create and must deal with “organized chaos,” and managing it skillfully is key to success.
I've worked with several agencies that built a new-producer hiring and development program to bring a stream of fresh talent into their organizations. They work with local colleges to identify students for summer internships, then employ them for at least two summers so they can fully experience and understand the agency culture. Good interns are hired upon graduation and placed in a small-commercial department where they develop sales skills, build books and prepare to transition to larger accounts. Many agencies with this type of program develop loyal, successful employees, including some who become managers or even agency owners.
Obviously, hiring and developing a new producer is an extensive and expensive process. New producers need constant education, guidance and help with structuring their sales activities, developing their sales skills and enhancing their technical knowledge. If you don't have the resources for effective training within your agency, consider seeking outside assistance. Either way, you need to get your new producer trained and successful quickly to maximize your investment. Some people may indeed be born salesmen, but most need to be made–and given the dearth of experienced producer talent these days, there's little other choice. Jackie Johnson is senior vice president of Business Management Group Inc. (BMG) in Hartford, Conn., a full-service consulting firm for insurance agencies and brokerages and a wholly owned subsidiary of The Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. Ms. Johnson can be contacted at 800-772-0208 or at [email protected].

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