Texas PIA's Texas Connection - December 2012

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More “Information, Entertainment & Opinions for Independent Agents from Independent Agents” at www.PIATX.org

Texas Connection A Guide to Selling an Agency In this edition

by Al Diamond

A GUIDE TO SELLING AN AGENCY ... 1 HOW

ARE YOU (AND YOUR ORGANIZATION) KEEPING UP WITH CHANGE? ..................................... 12

FINDING YOUR STOLEN MOBILE DEVICE ........................................ 14 21 WAYS TO GET CUSTOMER REVIEWS: THE ULTIMATE LIST.......................... 18 GET A COMPLIMENTARY WEBSITE & M ARKETING ASSESSMENT ............ 18 A SIMPLE RETIREMENT PLAN FOR THE SELF-EMPLOYED ................... 19 Agents E&O Tips ...................... 22 WHAT IS A MOBILE SITE AND WHY DO YOU NEED ONE? ........................... 23 WHAT LAW? ARE YOU COMPLIANT? ................................................... 24 DIRECT AUTO ............................... 25

The time comes in every agent’s life when he considers cashing out. This can be for any number of reasons such as the desire to spend time with friends and family, for health reasons or even just the desire to do other things. He has built his career selling and servicing insurance and has made a good living doing so but every agent has (or should have) considered his business like a herd of dairy cows.

The editorial content is valuable information but as always you should do your own due diligence and evaluation. The content is meant to be for informational purposes only and does NOT warrant an endorsement by the Texas Professional Insurance Agents in any form or fashion

Texas Connection

Whether you inherit your herd, buy it from your father or from someone else or begin with a single cow and grow your herd “the hard way,” you earn your living from the products of the herd. But growing the herd enhances its inherent value as well. No farmer would consider just walking away from the herd when retirement beckons. Not only does the herd need tending every day, but there is value in the herd’s perpetuation. Similarly, every agent has built a value while he has earned his living and it would be ludicrous to simply stop servicing the clients and telling them to get insurance elsewhere. So, whether the agency has been built on sub-standard auto risks, on life and health insurance products or on personal and/or commercial lines of business, sufficient value exists to make a sale a worthwhile activity for the agent to provide for his retirement or for his heirs. There was a time when every agent expected to sell his agency for two times its revenue. When those transactions were made, half of them cheated the buyer and the other half cheated the seller. In all but rare instances, the “two times formula” was simply not justified by the earnings that the buyer could expect to generate from the agency over a reasonable period of time. Continued on page 3

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December, 2012


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