2. Do the research

You can't meet the needs of current and prospective specialty insurance policyholders without fully understanding the risks and challenges they face in growing their business. That's why I recommend agents and brokers make themselves experts in whatever niche they choose to pursue. Two smart ways to accomplish this:

Attend trade shows. Both in-person and online shows offer agents and brokers the opportunity to learn what's happening inside a niche market from the specialty insurers, marketers and insureds who live in that space every day. I recommend taking meetings with business development representatives and asking them questions about the nature of unique risks that exist within each portion of their specialty.

For example, in our area of focus at Pennsylvania Lumbermens Mutual Insurance Company (PLM), we know that the exposures sawmills face are different than those faced by building materials dealers. Attending trade shows allows you to ask experts questions about these risks and understand these details so you can help deliver a higher level of service and protection to your insureds.

Read up on industry publications and trade journals. Let's say you want to break into aviation insurance. A good first step is to review ratings information for insurers who write aviation risks. It's AM Best's responsibility to get educated on those companies before they rate them, so their analysis will give you a solid understanding of what the frequency and severity of risks looks like in a particular specialty market.

3. Rely on specialty insurers within your niche

By working with specialty insurers who know a particular market segment intimately, agents and brokers will tap into a level of expertise on which they can rely. One of the most important aspects agents and brokers should discuss with specialty insurers is loss control.

Special Reports /

Specialty insurance: Do you know everything you need to know?

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