December 2018 Professional Agent

PROFESSIONAL AGENT December 2018

What's Inside?

Agency Producers & E&O Commitment..............11 17 Ways to Get More Work Done............................12 A Reason Many Salespeople Fail..................14 4 Steps to Great Relationships........................16 Connecting with Customers.............................18 Winter Get-Away................20 Education Section..............21 How Medical Care Costs Compare....................26

2018-2019 PIAW Board of Directors

Three Values of Great Salespeople..........................29 Email Marketing..................32 Understanding Personalities.........................36

Digital Editions of PIAW Magazine Available at www.piaw.org

FEATURED MEMBER BENEFIT:

UPS Discount See details on page...... 30

Acuity Loves You! PR OUD TO PA RT N E R W I T H T HE B E ST INDEPENDENT AGE N TS I N T HE B U SI N E SS!

From the

President Matt Cranney, CIC, CRM — President, PIA of Wisconsin

We have accomplished a lot together and we are excited for all that is to come as we carry our momentum into 2019.

“Can you believe it’s December already?” I know I can’t, and I’m pretty sure I’m not in the minority as I have heard this phrase a lot over the last couple of weeks from so many people. I think the pace of life at this time of year means that we don’t take enough time to pause and reflect on the story of our year and the story we want to write for the Christmas and holiday season. I think this especially applies to all of us in insurance as the natural rhythm and structure of our business tends to lead to more work to do as we try to balance the need to make sure all of our customers are taken care of, while being fully present with our friends and families during a season that calls for concerts, recitals, plays, travel and preparation for time together. I want to offer just a few thoughts for us all on what we can do to ensure we can look back, and write the story we all want to: Create Christmas and Holiday Season Goals I love the expression that there is a difference between problems to solve and tensions to manage. The busyness I described above is not a problem to solve but a tension we can manage. So how do we manage it? My challenge to all of us is to step back, take some intentional time and make some really short term goals that will help you look back in just a few weeks and be happy with what you accomplished and where you spent your time. Take the time to think through what is truly important to you; define all of the renewals you have to work on; the new business opportunities you are excited about; schedule on the calendar the recitals and events you will not miss. Once you’ve done that you can be purposeful about allocating your most precious resource: time.

Celebrate Your Progress As you can see above, I am a really goals oriented person and I love the energy that comes from a New Year and a chance to wipe the slate clean and think through what success would look like in that year. I am really not good though at taking the time to pause at the end of the year and

look back and celebrate and recognize the progress made. If you are like me, if you take some time to do this, you will likely have some goals that you crushed, some you met and some where you didn’t get as far as you would have liked.

My challenge to you all is to celebrate your progress! I love the analogy of a football crowd that cheers for big plays, first downs and exciting plays not just when a team scores a touchdown. Let’s take some time to cheer for the progress we did make in 2018!

Create a Gratitude Practice My last challenge is to create a gratitude practice for this crazy season. Simply taking the time each morning to write down three things you are grateful for. I have been trying to be consistent with this practice in 2018 and while I haven’t always hit the mark (cheer the progress remember!) It is amazing how doing this can really reframe our days and help us approach our challenges with a clear mindset.

I’m going to commit to you all that I’m going to try and take my own medicine and take on the challenges above and I’ll start by sharing three things I am grateful for in my PIA story as the year comes to a close. I am grateful for you, our members, who routinely and consistently rise to the challenge of protecting your communities each and every day by being the very best agents and carrier staff you can be. I am thankful for the PIA staff and the way they come to work every day to serve you, our members. If you think of it, and have some time, I know an encouraging email or phone call to the PIA office would be a big source of encouragement to a staff who work tirelessly on your behalf. Lastly, I’m thankful for the opportunity to serve you as your PIA President this year. We have accomplished a lot together and we are excited for all that is to come as we carry our momentum into 2019.

I wish you and your families Gods richest blessings, and a very Merry Christmas!

DECEMBER 18 3

Memos from

Madison Ron Von Haden, CIC — Executive Vice President, PIA of Wisconsin

Immortality is not an option.

WHERE ARE YOU with your perpetuation plan? You have worked hard to build your agency but at some point you will leave this great business and this valuable asset will transfer to someone else or simply dissolve. Retirement, death, disability or a career change will eventually necessitate disposition by you or your heirs. Thoughtful and reasonable planning now will avoid chaos and possibly a “fire sale” loss of revenue later.

One of the worst phone calls I have received in my tenure at PIAW was from a widow whose husband passed away unexpectedly as a result of a heart attack. She was not involved in her husbands’ business and had no knowledge of the operations, procedures or valuation of the agency. He was so busy building his business that he had not taken time to plan for a disaster or eventual retirement. His carriers also had not asked him about a perpetuation or disaster plan.

There was no one with an insurance license to preserve the business. Many years of work was lost in a heartbeat because of a lack of planning.

As you close out 2018, make time to plan and put your plan in writing. Seek the advice of your attorney, your CPA and your carriers. Don’t lock the plan in a file drawer or computer; share it with the appropriate people in your family and your agency.

DURING THE CLINTON administration, the PIA of Wisconsin contingency was making their annual excursion to Washington D.C. to discuss insurance issues with our legislators. It was chilly that day so we were wearing top coats over out freshly pressed suits and white shirts. PIA President Tom Harrison and I were standing at a corner of Constitution Avenue near the Hart Senate Office building when the President of the United States decided to make a visit to one of the senators. Of course, the streets were blocked, motorcycle cops were speeding along the curbsides and blacked out SUV’s were everywhere. The rooftops suddenly had officers with high powered binoculars and weapons. As the President’s motorcade approached, Tom put his hand in the inside breast pocket of his top coat to get our appointment schedule and casually looked up at the snipers on the roof. With sweat pouring down his face, he whispered: “Ron, what should I do? They are staring directly at me.” I said: “Slowly take your hand out of your coat and show both your open hands and for Gods’ sake do not do that again.” Both of us breathed a sigh of relief as the binoculars focused on another part of the crowd and we have laughed about that experience several times since. That is a PIA memory I will not forget.

AND REMEMBER…..There is a reason for this season, Relax, reflect and enjoy! Merry Christmas!

Immortality is not an option.

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Your agency depends on your computer system, confidential client information and website operation every day. PIA’s cyber policy gives you options to protect your agency and your livelihood. Get special “PIA only” coverage enhancements from an “A” rated company.

As an insurance agency, you are trusted with storing private client data such as driver’s license numbers, birthdates, addresses, credit history, health information and more. The bottom line is….you are responsible for protecting your client’s data and you can be liable if it is compromised.

Protect yourself. Call or email Heidi at PIA. (800) 261-7429 or hhodel@piaw.org .

4 DECEMBER 18

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DECEMBER 18 5

From the

Boardroom Sean Paterson, CIC, Vice President, PIA of Wisconsin

The Process...

I’ve mentioned in previous articles of mine that when I decided to get involved with the PIA of Wisconsin, I did so because I wanted to make a difference. Recently I was afforded the opportunity to make a difference in a way that very few board members before me have had. I was fortunate enough to be part of the search committee to find the next Executive Director of the PIAW. (In case you haven’t heard, at our convention this past August, the Executive Director of the PIAW for the past 20+ years, Ron Von Haden announced his retirement.)

In my article this month, I want to share with you, our members, some of the process we went through to find the next Executive Director of the PIAW. Wow, what a challenge ahead of us? How do you replace “Mr. PIA”? Honestly, you can’t replace Ron. He truly is “one of a kind.” However, what we can do is to find the next PIAW Executive Director that will bring their own unique set of skills and assets to help the PIAW write its next chapter.

To get started, the first thing we had to do was to decide how we were going to go about the process. One obvious step was to put together a “search committee.” This search committee would consist of current PIAW Board Members and Past Presidents.

As a committee, we had a choice to take on this process ourselves or to partner with a search firm that has experience in this process. I feel we made a very wise decision to not to take on the challenge by ourselves and instead engage with an executive search firm that has experience in hiring executives for non-profits. The name of the company is The QTI Group.

(You can check them out at www.qtigroup.com) QTI brought a lot of skills, knowledge and expertise to the table that was very beneficial guiding us through this process.

Before QTI could start searching for candidates, we needed to know what we were looking for. We started by creating a list of necessary qualifications, relevant experience and ideal attributes we felt were necessary for an Executive Director of PIAW. Once we had our list, the search committee ranked each of those characteristics in order of importance to give us a better picture of the ideal candidate. We also sent out a survey to past board members asking them to do the same. There was an extensive list of qualifications and a few of the most important qualifications to us were: 1. Having an affinity for the mission.

2. Membership & carrier development 3. Marketing, Public Relations and Brand Management.

Now that we had an idea of what qualities we were looking for, it was time for QTI to shine. QTI launched their search the day after Ron’s retirement announcement at our convention. They posted the job opening on various industry specific sites, used good old fashion networking not only locally but regionally and nationally and of course, referrals.

There were dozens of qualified applicants that applied. QTI did in depth interviews with many of those candidates and presented a solid group of candidates to the search committee for consideration. This truly was a nationwide search as the initial slate of candidates were from various parts of the country including the Upper Midwest, the Northeast, Alaska and even right in our very own backyard, the Madison area.

With the highly qualified slate of candidates QTI brought us we scheduled a full day of interviews via teleconference. During those interviews we discussed various topics ranging from simple introductions & backgrounds, related experience, why they were interested in the opportunity to what their vision was for the future direction of the PIA of Wisconsin. After each interview the search committee discussed each candidate, ranked their strengths and weaknesses and considered whether we should invite them back for a second round interview.

I should take a quick minute to thank the PIAW Search Committee. I feel we worked very effectively as a group. We all came from various backgrounds, agencies of different sizes and each one of us brought our unique opinions to the table. I feel the committee we put together worked together extremely well and efficient and I am sure you, our members, will be happy with the results of our decisions.

After the first round interviews, we decided to bring back a small handful of those initial candidates for second round interviews. For this next round, we asked each candidate to create a business plan. We wanted to know what they envisioned for the first 6 months on the job, 1-3 year plan, 3+ year plan. We also asked them how they would define success in this new position. Once again, after the second round interviews we debriefed the interviews and discussed the pros and cons of each candidate.

Each of the candidates did a fantastic job in their presentation and after that second round of interviews most of us felt we had the new Executive Director of the PIAW in that group.

Our next step was to narrow the candidates down to the top one or two. If they were relocating to Wisconsin, we will invite the [Continued on page 30]

6 DECEMBER 18

OCI Administrative

Actions Ted Nickel — Commissioner of the Office of Insurance

Madison, WI—OCI has taken the following administrative actions. In many of these cases the respondent denied the allegations but consented to the action taken. Any forfeitures paid in these administrative actions are deposited in the Common School Fund which is administered by the Board of Commissioners of Public Lands. The earnings from this fund are distributed to all public K-12 schools in Wisconsin and are used by school libraries to purchase books. Copies of the administrative action orders may be viewed online at https://ociaccess.oci.wi.gov/OrderInfo/OrdInfo.oci.

OCI is responsible for overseeing the operations and marketing of insurance companies and agents in Wisconsin. OCI encourages anyone with a question or a complaint regarding an insurance company or agent to contact the office at this tollfree telephone number: 1-800-236-8517.

AllEgATIoNs AND AcTIoNs AgAINsT AgENTs Jorge Bonilla Salazar, 30 Braches Park, San Antonio, TX 78240, had his insurance license revoked and had all future administrative proceedings cancelled. These actions were taken based on allegations of failing to respond to OCI information requests; failing to timely disclose administrative actions taken by the states of Kansas, North Dakota, Indiana, Washington, Maine, Louisiana, South Dakota, Minnesota, Virginia, Wyoming, and Ohio; having an employment termination for cause; and engaging in dishonest business practices.

Donald E. Brock, 1025 E. Harding Dr., Appleton, WI 54915, had his insurance license revoked. This action was taken based on allegations of owing delinquent Wisconsin taxes.

Brandon R. Hughes, 251 E. Main St., Unit 101, Omro, WI 54963, had his insurance license summarily suspended and was ordered to cease and desist from engaging in the business of insurance. He subsequently agreed to the permanent surrender of his insurance license. These actions were taken based on allegations of consumer misrepresentation, committing acts of forgery and document falsification, having an employment termination for cause, and failing to respond to OCI information requests.

Christopher D. Martin, 3133 E. Hampshire St., Milwaukee, WI 53211, agreed to the issuance of a two-year probationary insurance license with certain reporting requirements. This action was taken based on allegations of owing delinquent child support, failing to report an administrative action taken by the state of Wisconsin on a licensing application, and failing to complete a licensing application.

Gregory E. Peters, 586 Hamilton Ct., River Falls, WI 54022, had his insurance license revoked. This action was taken based on allegations of owing delinquent Wisconsin taxes.

Kristy S. Poe, 10751 Retreat Ln., Apt. 202, Woodbury, MN 55129, had her insurance license revoked. This action was taken 8 DECEMBER 18

based on allegations of owing delinquent Wisconsin taxes.

Carrie Pupp, 7650 County Rd. II, Fremont, WI 54940, had her application for an insurance license denied. This action was taken based on allegations of failing to disclose a criminal conviction on a licensing application, having criminal convictions that may be substantially related to insurance marketing type conduct, having unpaid civil money judgments, and providing materially untrue information on a licensing application.

Marishia Y. Qualls-May, 1020 E. Pleasant St., Apt. 210, Milwaukee, WI 53202, had her insurance license revoked. This action was taken based on allegations of owing delinquent Wisconsin taxes.

Timothy C. Raasch, 2941 Popplewood Ct., Suamico, WI 54173, had his insurance license revoked. This action was taken based on allegations of owing delinquent Wisconsin taxes and failing to appear at an administrative hearing.

Todd M. Schoenwalder, 2950 Idaho Ave. N., Crystal, MN 55427, had his application for an insurance license denied.

This action was taken based on allegations of having an administrative action taken by FINRA. Steven P. Silverstein, 1873 Hidden Trail Ln., Weston, FL 33327, had his application for an insurance license denied.

This action was taken based on allegations of repeatedly failing to disclose an insurance employment termination for cause on licensing applications, providing untrue information on licensing applications, having administrative actions taken by the states of Virginia and Wisconsin, and engaging in fraudulent activity in the insurance business.

Steven S. Simonovic, 12322 87th Ave., Pleasant Prairie, WI 53158, had his insurance license revoked. This action was taken based on allegations of owing delinquent Wisconsin taxes.

Kirk Spano, W205 S8313 Pasadena Dr., Muskego, WI 53150, had his insurance license revoked. This action was taken based on allegations of owing delinquent Wisconsin taxes.

Jerry A. Villagrana, 4955 Montebello Dr., Colorado Springs, CO 80918, had his application for an insurance license denied.

This action was taken based on allegations of having a criminal conviction that may be substantially related to insurance marketing type conduct, failing to respond to OCI requests for information, failing to provide a federal crime waiver, and failing to comply with the terms of a plea agreement.

Yolanda Vogl, 5930 N. 75th St., Milwaukee, WI 53218, had her application for an insurance license denied for 31 days. This action was taken based on allegations of having a criminal conviction that may be substantially related to insurance marketing type conduct and providing misleading and incomplete information on a licensing application.

James O. Young, 7316 Bay View Rd., Lake Tomahawk, WI 54539, had his insurance license revoked. This action was taken based on allegations of owing delinquent Wisconsin taxes.

Michael A. Zangari, 5 Paddock Ct., Etters, PA 17319, had his application for an insurance license denied. This action was taken based on allegations of having an administrative action taken by the state of Pennsylvania related to misrepresentation in the sale of insurance products.

Lauren K. Zwick, 1241 E. Gift Ave., Peoria, IL 61603, had her application for an insurance license denied. This action was taken based on allegations of failing to disclose pending felony charges on a licensing application, failing to maintain Wisconsin residency status, being ineligible to apply for a federal crime waiver, and failing to provide administrative hearing documentation.

Allegations and Actions Against Companies

Sequoia Reinsurance Services, LLC, 700 County Rd. 6, Wayzata, MN 55391, had its application for an insurance license denied.

This action was taken based on allegations of having involvement in a lawsuit regarding fraud, misrepresentation, misappropriation, or breach of fiduciary duty.

All Good Things Must Come to an End Theodore K. Nickel, Commissioner

As we head into a busy holiday season and close out the year, I’d like to thank you for your support, friendship and kindness. My team and I have truly been blessed with an incredible insurance marketplace in Wisconsin. We’ve been honored and humbled to serve as the chief regulators of such a fine industry – an industry working locally, regionally, nationally and internationally to provide insurance solutions, security and peace of mind to millions of individuals and businesses. You are the engine that allows risk-taking and is there for when the worst occurs.

I’ve had the honor of representing you and Wisconsin’s Insurance story nationally and internationally. Your financial strength, insights and innovative solutions are second to none! Together, we’ve worked hard to update laws, regulations and bulletins to continue a competitive marketplace and serve consumers by providing them with a myriad of choices.

I’d be remiss if I didn’t thank Governor Walker for his confidence in me. With his trust, we were able to run and reform the department, enabling you to provide insurance solutions that best serve your customers. I’m proud to know our outstanding department staff is well qualified to continue this open and transparent interaction on any given issue moving forward.

Thank you for the incredible ride. It’s been the best job of my life and I will treasure the experiences and friendships made along the way.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Years to you and yours!

Cheers

DECEMBER 18 9

Agency Producers: We Need Your Total E&O Commitment

by Curt Pearsall, CPCU, AIAF, CPIA

President – Pearsall Associates, Inc. and Consultant to the Utica National E&O Program Without a doubt, the agency sales producers are “the key” for an agency to have a solid commitment towards preventing possible errors and omissions (E&O) claims. This means a 100% buy-in from every producer, every day.

For over the last 50 years, insurance producers have been at the heart of most E&O claims. Essentially, one out of every two E&O claims alleges an “error or omission” from the ranks of the insurance producer.

Here are some key issues for producers to be aware of:

› The need to listen. In many, if not all, states an insurance producer (agent/broker) has a common-law duty to obtain the

coverage the client specifically requests within a reasonable time period. Thus, listening to the words of your client/prospect is extremely important. Since there may be situations where the producer can’t secure the coverage requested, they also have a further duty to inform the client the reason why the coverage cannot be secured.

› The need to document. While producers may possess a very good skill set, including strong technical knowledge and solid

sales skills, there is one thing, that very honestly, they seem to struggle with: documentation. The lack of quality documentation is a key issue in E&O claims. Documentation truly is the one critical piece that may determine the success of the agency in prevailing in an E&O matter.

› Note taking. As producers interact with customers, it should be a practice to be taking notes of the discussions. When clients

make decisions on the coverages they want and don’t want, the producers are typically requested to get the clients’ signature.

While putting this information in the file or agency management system is a positive step, it is just as important that these conversations and the decisions made be “memorialized” back to the customer. For example, if the client calls to advise they are not interested in a coverage proposed, the best approach is for the producer to send the client a note recapping the discussion. The goal of this extra step is to ensure there is no misunderstanding between the parties. The extra time spent on documentation may very well be the key in the direction of the next E&O claim.

› Don’t rely on your memory. Let your documentation tell the story. It is not uncommon for the courts to take the position that, “if it’s not in the file, it didn’t happen.”

› Sell what you know and know what you sell. It is imperative for producers to possess strong technical knowledge for interactions with prospects and customers. In addition, due to the evolution of our industry, keeping up with that level of knowledge is critical.

Current issues such as drones, cyber, and others require the producer to keep with their commitment to learning.

› Be honest with the carriers you use. In the completion of applications, it is critical that the markets be provided with a full and accurate disclosure of the risk. The relationship between your carriers and your agency is built on trust. Being totally honest is a key part of that relationship. The downside of being “less than honest” is extremely significant and is not a place you want yourself in.

› Watch your words. Due to the tremendous pressure to sell, producers may be inclined to position themselves and their agency

in the best favorable light. While various marketing “puff” may enhance the ability to be successful, producers must be careful and deliberate in the words and phrases used for promotion. Avoid stating you are an “expert.” Also avoid phrases such as, “we make sure you are properly covered,” or, “this coverage is definitely better than what you have.”

As a producer, you play a key role in determining whether your agency will face an E&O claim. The decision to be careful is yours to make!

The material contained in this article is for informational purposes only and is not for purposes of providing legal advice.You should contact your attorney to obtain advice with respect to any particular issue or problem.

5-R-1269 Ed. 9-18

17 Ways To Get More Work Done (And Be Happy Doing It)

By: John Graham Most everyone has figured out that performance expectations keep going up. To put it bluntly, we face the challenge of doing more in less time. And it’s not about to change anytime soon.

In the past, those with lots of experience fared well. But not today. Experience can hold us back, like running against a strong wind. Experience is about what we’ve done in the past and it has value in a never-changing environment. On the other hand, expertise prepares us for what we must do next so we can face the future with confidence.

The question, then, is how to transition from experience to expertise, from looking backward for answers to looking forward with solutions. Here are 17 ways to do it: 1. Have the right mindset. Experience short-circuits the thinking process. We go from zero to 60 in a split second. We tear into tasks because we’ve been there before and know what to do. It takes an analytical mindset when entering uncharted territory.

2. Figure out what you need to know. More often than not, problems, misunderstandings, and confusion occur because we didn’t ask enough questions—or, more likely any questions. We get off on the wrong foot by not knowing what we need to know.

3. Give yourself time. Some say they do their best work in a crisis or at the last minute. It’s also easy to deceive ourselves.

Where does that leave us when we run out of time? The answer: in trouble and making excuses. And feeling overwhelmed.

4. Work on it and let it sit. The best solutions rarely, if ever, occur on the first attempt, whether it’s writing a report or working on a project. The human mind needs “noodling” time to work in the background without pressure. Remember, everything can be improved.

12 DECEMBER 18

5. Avoid confrontations. It isn’t easy, particularly since we seem to possess an “urge to be right,” a gyroscope of the mind. When coming into contact with an opposing view, the mind pushes back to regain its balance. It helps to view it as a signal to take a closer look before having a confrontation.

6. Never assume things will go smoothly. Why do we never get over being surprised when things go wrong? It’s as if someone is playing cruel jokes on us or deliberately throwing us curve balls to cause us grief. It’s best to be prepared by anticipating what might go wrong.

7. Second-guess yourself. To avoid getting blindsided, ask yourself “what if” questions to foresee possible outcomes. Then, when asked about alternatives, you can say you considered various options and why you chose this one.

8. Learn something new. If you can do your job without thinking about it, you’re probably bored and underproductive. The human mind gets moving and stays active by coming up with new ideas, making improvements, and solving problems.

9. Go beyond what’s expected of you. It’s easy to put up a “I’ve reached my limit” or a “I’m not paid to do that” sign. Everyone feels that way at times. If we do, we can count on dismal days ahead.

10. Be present. It’s easy to be at work and not be present. The average employee spends just under eight hours a week on personal stuff, most of it on email and social media. For those 18 to 34, add two hours a week, according to a staffing firm Office Team survey. That’s a day a week of not being present.

11. Ask questions. Have you started on a task and get into it only to discover you’re on the wrong track? Most of us have—too many times. It occurs when we’re too sure of ourselves or reluctant (embarrassed) to ask questions. Asking the right questions is a sign that your thinking about what you’re doing.

12. Look for possibilities. Instead of just doing your work each day, take it to another level and interact with it so you get feedback from what you’re doing. Ask yourself: Is it clear? Is it complete?

Will the recipient understand it? Is it necessary? Will it make the right impression? What have I missed? Should I start over? Is it time for another set of eyes?

13. Take a chance. It’s invigorating to try something new. You may have been thinking about it for a long time and it doesn’t really make any difference what it is. By taking your mind off all the annoying daily irritations, it can help invigorate your outlook and improve your productivity

16. Raise your standards. Others respond to us based on how they view us. How do they see you? Someone who get things done, who takes quality seriously and who demands a lot from yourself.

Make a conscious decision as to how you want to be perceived.

17. Take on a challenge. Nose around to see what you can find, drop a few hints, and even raise your hand. But be sure it’s something you want to sink your teeth into. If it is, you’ll have a great time doing it.

Not only will you get your work done, but it will be more than you thought possible, and you’ll be happier at the same time. Better yet, your employer and your customers will be happier, too.

14. Have clear goals. Tedium sets in on any job. One day you realize that what was interesting and challenging is now tiring and unpleasant. Perhaps even intolerable. If so, it’s “goal think” time. Start by asking what you want to accomplish today, then add another for the coming month, and so on. When you know where you’re going, the tedium fades away.

15. Eliminate confusion. We may not be in a position to control the confusion around us, but we can avoid adding to it. We can make sure our messages are accurate and complete so there’s no

misunderstanding, our address book and other files are current so we don’t need to bother others, meet deadlines so we don’t leave others waiting, and so on.

As it turns out, happiness doesn’t depend on what others do for us, but what we do for ourselves.

John Graham of GrahamComm is a marketing and sales strategy consultant and business writer. He is the creator of “Magnet Marketing,” and publishes a free monthly eBulletin, “No Nonsense Marketing & Sales Ideas.” Contact him at jgraham@ grahamcomm.com or johnrgraham.com.

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A Reason Many Salespeople Fail and How to Avoid It In a recent article by friend and colleague John Brubaker (CoachBru.com), he stated that, “According to a U.S. Department of Commerce research study, in the first five years of a business the survival rate for independent small businesses is less than 20% but the survival rate for franchises is 95%.”

He continues: “…it isn't so much the name recognition… it's the fact that with a franchise you get to utilize a turn-key set of business operations [a successful system that works] as opposed to having to invent the wheel in your own business. …Starbucks [has] an excellent system which is why they have a thriving business. From the point of purchase displays, merchandising, upsells, menu options and language to the tiered pricing, customer service, and order production/fulfillment methods they have a calculated, streamlined process for every single touchpoint. (Note: The system does NOT vary from store to store within the franchise. The system IS the system.)”

During a discussion with me, he iterated that his own research found that salespeople and entrepreneurs that follow a sales system are 10 times as likely to be successful as those that don’t. The reason why this is true may not be what you expect. It’s also not the same exact reason for franchise success, though it’s similar.

The primary reason why salespeople following a system are 10 times as successful as those that don’t, is that they care enough to have a system to begin with. Let me explain. The first step to success in sales is an iron-clad commitment that you’re going to be successful. Anyone committed to a goal lays out a plan and follows a system to achieve that end. Whether it’s weight loss, learning how to play the harmonica… or sales goals. The person who just “kind of” wants to lose weight, thinks it “might be nice” to play the harmonica, or are in sales because it “pays the bills and gets them to the weekend”, aren’t putting in extra time to plan out how they’re going to actually make it happen. Similar to the person who spends more time planning a vacation than their retirement. They simply aren’t serious about the latter.

The good news is: a sales system doesn’t have to be a painstakingly detailed, step-by-step system that’s required to run a franchise such as Subway or Starbucks. All that’s required is that it leads to enough of the right activities resulting in enough contacts with enough qualified prospects, to make enough sales to hit weekly, monthly, and annual sales goals.

14 DECEMBER 18

By: John Chapin

The Necessary Ingredients for a Successful Sales System Ingredient #1: A Plan Your plan is the easy part of this process. It simply consists of your goals, your activity, and your plan to get the activity done.

The first thing you need to determine is your annual sales goal.

Once you have your annual goal, break that down to monthly and weekly goals. Next, calculate your daily activity. In order to do that, begin by dividing your annual goal by the size of your average sale. That will give you the number of sales you have to make for the year. Now, based upon your closing ratio, figure out how many proposals you need to present. Calculate the number of prospects you need to get that number of proposals. And finally how many calls does it take to get that number of prospects? Once you have the total number of sales, proposals, prospects, and calls, break those down to monthly, weekly, and daily numbers for each.

Your last step is to plan your days and weeks based upon the number of calls you need to make while getting your other activities done. Whatever your numbers are, with 168 hours in a week, you should have more than enough time. An example of the business portion of a day in your week might look like the following: 7 – 8 a.m.: paperwork and prep for the day, 8 – 10 a.m.: prospecting phone calls, 10 to noon: in-person prospecting, noon to 1: lunch, 1 to 3: appointments, 3 to 5 prospecting phone calls, 5 o’clock: paperwork.

Ingredient #2: The Tools Your tools will consist of: a playbook, a binder with all scripts, a Concept Book, and a way to track and follow up with clients and prospects. Your playbook will include everything, but not limited to: company policies and procedures, how you start your day, how you find, contact, and follow-up with prospects, how to build long-term relationships, and how you end your day. It’s basically something that you can hand to a brand new person and they can be up and running once they have a general understanding of it. A binder with all scripts contains: all prospecting calls, presentations, answers to objections, and all other items you need to convey to prospects and clients. Your Concept Book will contain all your “evidence”: testimonials, user lists, reference letters, endorsements, articles, guarantees, examples of where your product or service was applied with successful results, and all documentation that supports any claims you make during your calls. Finally you [Continued on page 31]

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Are you telling your full story?

T. Rowe Price, the investment house, is running an ad campaign to do just that: tell their full story. In a highly competitive environment, it isn’t enough to dazzle customers with numbers or brag about being in business since 1937. Sound familiar?

The campaign claims to tell the company’s full story and that includes building investor confidence. The focus is on the 350 or more investment professionals around the world who do firsthand field research on markets and companies and how even a 1% better return can benefit investors over time. While the figures are essential, it’s easier for people to feel more confident if they know the “full story.”

Takeaway: if you want to grab someone’s attention or motivate prospects, get your message across by telling the full story—not just what you do but why you do it.

[Source: GrahamComm]

DECEMBER 18 15

Success Circles: 4 Steps to Great Relationships

By: Randall Bell, Ph.D.

Humility and authentic connection are at the core of all great relationships. And strong relationships are at the core of all lasting success.

One of the most fascinating insights into relationship dynamics came out of the Stanford Prison Experiment conducted in 1971. In this experiment, two groups of students were placed in a mock prison in the basement of a Stanford University building and were randomly assigned to the roles of prisoners and guards. The students were observed for several days. What then occurred has become one of the most striking and disturbing observations of human relationships. The students began to manifest either aggressive or rebellious behaviors depending on their role.

Though everyone knew that this was just a test, the “guards” began to act rigidly and display hostility towards their supposed “prisoners.” The guards seemed to enjoy the authority and control to a level that went beyond acceptable boundaries. The guards increasingly pushed and even abused their authority— even though their authority was not real. On the other hand, the prisoners banded together and rebelled against the guards.

They planned escapes. They insulted and harassed their captors.

When the study ended, the guards were reluctant in yielding their authority and resisted their prisoners. The test had to be shut down prematurely and only after outside intervention.

Losing Perspective The illusion of power can be wildly intoxicating. The Stanford Prison Experiment is an extreme example of a common phenomenon that can occur at any level of a small business or large corporation. Often, when we gain authority in life and in business, we can lose sight of how we gained that authority in the first place. With all the outward signs of authority—a nicer office, a new car, a different job title—we forget those who helped us along the way and we forget that there are others around us who could help us grow even further. We stop listening. We become distant, disconnected, and our confidence turns into arrogance. Eventually, we start making poor decisions and, with nobody around to advise us, we lack the perspective to notice our deteriorating decision. At any level of an organization, 16 DECEMBER 18

this kind of isolation and narrow-mindedness is a set up for failure and even widespread disaster.

Success Circles The antidote to these toxic effects of authority on social relationships is to always maintain humility and authentic connection. Developing and maintaining a “success circle” in your professional life is key to keeping you grounded as you move into leadership positions with more and more authority.

Building a success circle isn’t just about making friends and it isn’t just about networking—it’s about actively maintaining and developing a core group that will push you, advise you, and help you succeed in good times and in bad. These people make up your own personal presidential cabinet. You might be in their cabinet, too. There are four essential steps to developing a success circle: 1. Observe & Identify Identify people in your sphere of influence who have a gift in some specific area. Your sphere of influence includes friends, acquaintances, relatives, neighbors, and colleagues. Here we observe and to pay attention to the who these people really are.

Perhaps they are not aware that they have a gift. We really get to know those around us and what sets them apart.

2. Connect The art of connection is one of the most powerful secrets in life.

This doesn’t have to be a formal effort. Just having lunch, playing a game of tennis, or going to a ball game can form the basis for real connection. Over time, you will gradually build up a success circle of informal mentors on whom you can count for the best advice.

3. Ask for Insights This is where the humility comes in. When you are at a crossroads or are faced with indecision in business, reach out to those in your success circle who have demonstrated expertise and knowledge in the area you are struggling with. Recognize that you aren’t an expert in all areas. Ask the person exactly how he or she did it.

It is important to ask for detailed insights. Vague statements and general advice are everywhere, and they will only take you so far.

4. Listen When people in your success circle speak on their area of expertise, listen carefully. You may even want to take notes.

These notes may be some of the most valuable notes you ever take. Because each person in your success circle serves as a living

example of the expertise you have already seen in them, you can trust what they say.

Real Growth Will Rogers famously said, “Everybody is ignorant, only on different subjects.” Maintaining humility and asking for help are the only skills you need to develop a success circle. Developing a success circle is a simple task, but it’s immeasurably valuable.

There is a wealth of knowledge and information out in the world that is free and can be learned while playing a game of tennis or drinking a cup of coffee. Sometimes the answer you need is only a phone call away. Success circles keep you growing while keeping you grounded.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Dr. Randall Bell is a socio-economist, speaker and author of Rich Habits Rich Life. He has consulted on such cases as the World Trade Center, Flight 93 Crash Site and OJ Simpson. His work has generated billions of dollars to build lives and communities.

He documents the poor habits that lead to disaster—and the rich habits that lead to transformation and growth. For more information on Dr. Randall Bell, please visit www.drbell.com.

Do you return calls and emails fast enough?

Joan Kroc gave away the McDonald’s fortune she inherited from her husband, Ray Kroc, after being diagnosed with brain cancer and only a few months to live. The Salvation Army received more than $1 billion and her donation to National Public Radio amounted to $225 million, both transformative gifts.

She also wanted to donate to PBS, a separate entity from NPR, but here’s what happened. Joan reached out to them. Unfortunately, PBS didn’t return her call and “time was short,” according to Lisa Napoli in her new book, "Ray & Joan: The Man Who Made the McDonald's Fortune and the Woman Who Gave It All Away."

[Source: GrahamComm]

Solving Problems Makes Us Attorneys; Anticipating Them, Makes Us a Partner.

Our attorneys have extensive experience in the unique legal needs of insurance agencies. We have represented hundreds of agencies, agents and brokers in all aspects of their business.

Agency Ownership & Operations • CSR & Producer Employment • Appearances Before OCI • Drafting Contracts • Mergers & Acquisitions • Perpetuation & Succession • E&O Consultations

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DECEMBER 18 17

C ONNECTING WITH C USTOMERS T HROUGH THE K EYBOARD : G ETTING Y OUR C HAT S ERVICE R IGHT Customer: Hi, I’m having a problem with my bill. I’m being charged $50 more than what I expected. Could someone please help? I’m finding this very frustrating. Thank you.

Chat Agent: Hello! Glad you are chatting with me this morning! This is Matt. What can I do for you today?

Customer to Himself: Huh? Well for starters, Matt, you could read what I typed before asking what you can do! Furthermore, you can take that smile off your face.

Providing exceptional service via chat involves more than simply choosing a technology platform. Chat is a distinct communication channel with its own set of rules, and organizations that choose to implement a chat system need to prepare their service representatives to use it effectively.

Step One After you’ve chosen a chat platform or while that activity is in process, you should determine who on your team is well suited to serve customers online. Chat service providers should be able to type, and they should have a basic command of English spelling and grammar.

Step Two Once you have a team in mind, you must identify some rules to guide their chats. The following questions are examples of basic considerations you should know the answers to before your representatives start typing.

• How many chats should an agent handle at once? (In the beginning, nobody should attempt more than one, and even experienced agents shouldn’t divide their attention among more than three.)

• What topics can and can’t be addressed via chat? Depending on your industry, regulations may limit what your representatives can and can’t say.

• When will you move customers to a different mode of communication if chat is not appropriate?

Step Three Sometimes organizations implement chat, and the tone of what’s typed takes on a stilted or off-brand look and feel. For that reason, it’s important to think about what on-brand messaging looks like before rolling out the chat platform.

18 DECEMBER 18

By: Kate Zabriskie

How should a chat start if a customer has already shared information? What words and phrases align with your brand? What words and phrases should providers avoid?

How should representatives address angry or frustrated customers?

In what way should greetings differ?

A good way to start thinking about your organization’s look and sound is to start chatting. Visits sites that use chat. Think about each experience: what you liked, what you didn’t, the brand you felt, and so forth.

Step Four Be prepared for the obvious. Anyone who has worked in service usually starts to notice patterns. For example, if the provider is an online retailer, close to the holidays the organization may receive more inquiries about delivery times. If the provider is a utility, representatives may realize they receive more inquiries about billing on certain days of the week.

The point is to plan for the expected. Just as telephone service agents in most industries should know how to handle the top 20 or 30 customer requests without having to reference a lot of documentation, the same is true for chat. Consistency is essential.

This is especially true when it comes to the basics.

Before being set loose with a keyboard, providers should go through both systems training and roleplays that address common inquiries.

Step Five Determine the extent to which you wish to use canned responses.

Pre-written text has its plusses and minuses. On the plus side, it’s quick, it’s not written in the moment, and it’s had the opportunity to

be proofread by one or more people. On the other hand, canned text can sound canned. Furthermore, representatives sometimes choose pre-written responses that don’t get to the heart of what a customer is asking.

So what’s an organization to do? The answer to that question varies. No matter the option chosen, canned text should sound conversational. If you wouldn’t say what’s written in the course of natural speech, it probably isn’t right.

Chat is supposed to be a dialogue. It’s not a brochure, the text from a website, or worse still, verbiage from a policy or legal document.

As with any service interaction, chat can go well, or it can go poorly.

The key is monitoring, course correcting, and standardizing success.

Providers and their supervisors should regularly review chats. What can we leverage? Where are the opportunities? What was on-brand?

What was off-brand? The questions are essentially endless.

The trick is to systematically ask and answer them. The more methodically you evaluate your chats, the quicker you will capitalize on what works and eliminate what doesn’t.

One way to help maintain a conversational tone is to keep your text short. Long sentences usually equate to a longwinded or unnatural feel.

Step Seven Chat training is not a one-and-done activity. Needs change, technology evolves, and staff turns over. Ideally, organizations should focus on one or two best practices a week, they evaluate the pre-written text twice a year, and they spot check transcripts daily.

A good place to source potential pre-written responses is from your representatives’ actual chats. If your organization is like most places, some people will show a natural gift for chat. Why not leverage their strengths and skills?

Chat is no longer a novelty, and more customers expect their service providers to offer it. No matter where your business is in the chatimplementation process, there is always room to improve the way you connect through a keyboard.

Step Six Learn from your failures and your successes. When service goes wrong, most first-rate organizations address the shortcomings.

Beyond fixing what’s broken, the best organizations also invest time in figuring out what went right and why. They then replicate the good.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Kate Zabriskie is the president of Business Training Works, Inc., a Maryland-based talent development firm. She and her team help businesses establish customer service strategies and train their people to live up to what’s promised. For more information, visit www.businesstrainingworks.com.

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AAA Gift Membership program and availability are subject to change without notice at any time. Visit AAA.com/Gift for full terms and conditions. 17-MS-2518K

DECEMBER 18 19

10th Annual PIAW Winter Get-Away

n

Registration Fee Only $119.00

Jan. 30 – Feb. 1, 2019 The Waters of Minocqua $59.99 Two Queens Includes Deluxe Continental Breakfast 715-358-4000

Wednesday & Thursday Education Todd Davis, CIC

Friday Education Patti Gardner, CIC, CRM, CPCU

Fee Includes

Two Dinners, Lunch 10 WI CE Credits, Prizes & More!

Wednesday, January 30 2:00 – 5:00

“For a Few Dollars More-Endorsements”

(3 WI CE)

5:30 – 11:30 Get-Away Fun at Island City Lanes Buffet and Free Beer, Wine & Soda to 7:30 Fun, Games, Live Music 10:00 Pizza Shuttle to and from Hotel

Thursday, January 31 8:00 – noon

“E&O – It’s Not My Fault”

(4 WI CE, Utica Approved)

12:00

Buffet Lunch at The Waters

1:00

Minocqua Pub Adventure Bus to downtown / Walking Pub Fun / Prizes / Beverages on Your Own 4:30 bus options to return to hotel or directly to Whitetail Inn

6:45 – 7:45

Buffet Dinner at beautiful Whitetail Inn 6:30 bus from hotel to Whitetail. 1st return at 8:00. Cash bar.

Friday, February 1 9:00 – noon 20 DECEMBER 18

“Insurance Decisions & Ethics

(3 WI Ethics CE, Utica Approved)

Register at www.piaw.org

Visit the Education tab at piaw.org for a complete list of topics, descriptions, webinar demo and registration.

Several approved for Utica credit. Ethics is offered each month.

Fee per Webinar: $55 PIAW Member, $70 Non Member – Includes WI CE fees.

December 2018 Webinar Schedule TITLE & WI CE

DATE

TIME (CST)

INSTRUCTOR

Health and Disability Insurance: Just the Facts 3 CE # 6000022214

12/4

8-11a

Karin Klaassen, CLU, LUTCF

Flood Insurance – FEMA Approved 3 CE # 1011252

12/4

12-3p

Jerry Hargrove, J.D., CIC, CPIA, SCLA, FCLA, PICS, LICS

Home Business vs Home Insurance 3 WI CE # 6000004680

12/5

12-3p

Nicole Broch, CC, CISR, PLCS

The Things Kids Get Us Into 3 WI CE # 1012440

12/11

8-11a

Kym Martell, CRM, CIC, CRIS, AAI

A Walk Around the Farm-Farm Liability Considerations 3 WI CE # 6000022370

12/11

12-3p

Sam Bennett, CIC, AFIS, CRIS, CPIA

Innovations in Long-Term Care Funding with Life Insurance 3 WI CE # 1012433

12/12

8-11a

Jerry Rhinehart, CIC, CLU, ChFC, RHU

Catastrophe: The Coverage Expertise You’ll Need When it Matters Most 3 WI CE # 6000027158

12/12

12-3p

Catherine Trischan, CPCU, CRM, CIC, ARM, AU, AAI, CRIS, MLIS

Street Level Ethics 3 WI Ethics CE # 1012437 Utica Approved

12/13

1-4p

Chris Amrhein, CIC

Tricks to Fix: Closing Coverage Gaps in Home, Work and Auto 3 WI CE # 1012435

12/18

1-4p

Kevin Amrhein, CIC

Register online at piaw.org or call 1-800-261-7429. Contact Brenda for in-house webinar opportunities. bsteinbach@piaw.org

DECEMBER 18 21

EDUcATIoN

New Topics! Each Approved for 3 WI CE Credits. Live. No Test. No Proctor.

H oT T opIc s EMINAR

EDUcATIoN

ANYONE CAN ATTEND! NO DESIGNATION REQUIRED. 7 WI CE, 3 of 7 Ethics This William T. Hold Seminar is an approved CISR update option.

FEBRUARY 20 TH ToDD DAVIs, cIc

Holiday Inn - Waukesha 8:00 – 4:00 p.m.

• • •

Cyber Liability Basics of Life & Disability Insurance for the P&C Agent Ethics for Today

$170 - Includes Lunch Register at www.piaw.org or call 800-261-7429

22 DECEMBER 18

EDUcATIoN

cERTIFIED INsURANcE sERVIcE REpREsENTATIVE

Open to Anyone!

AGENCY OPERATIONS 7 WI CE Credits, 1 of 7 is Ethics. Course # 69356 / Utica Approved • • • • • • •

Legal & Ethical Requirements The Insurance Agency The Insurance Industry and Marketplace Communication Agency Workflow Account Management Errors & Omissions

February 21 – Madison

ToDD DAVIs, cIc

COMMERCIAL CASUALTY I 7 WI CE Credits. Course # 69334 • • • • •

Essentials of Legal Liability CGL Introduction Commercial General Liability Coverage Parts CGL Other Provisions Additional Insureds

March 13 – Green Bay ToDD DAVIs, cIc

COMMERCIAL PROPERTY 7 WI CE Credits. Course # 69332 • • • • •

Fundamentals of Commercial Property Insurance Building and Personal Property Coverage Form Causes of Loss Forms Basics of Time Element Insurance Basics of Commercial Inland Marine Insurance

April 10 – Rothschild pATTI gARDNER, cIc, cRM, cpcU

CLASS SCHEDULE

Instruction 8:00 a.m. – 3:45 p.m.

Group Lunch 12:00 p.m. – 12:45 p.m.

Optional Exam 4:15 p.m. – 5:15 p.m.

$170 Per Course Includes Lunch

Register at www.piaw.org or call 800-261-7429 DECEMBER 18 23

EDUcATIoN

NEW! Certified Insurance Counselor Institutes Each Approved for 20 Wisconsin CE Credits AGENCY MANAGEMENT

PERSONAL LINES

April 9 – 11, 2019 Conducted at West Bend Mutual Insurance Company West Bend, WI Sleeping rooms at Hampton Inn 262-438-1500 or online at piaw.org $102 PIA rate through 3/10/19

February 27 – March 1, 2019 Red Lion Paper Valley Hotel – Appleton, WI 920-733-8000 or online at piaw.org $102 PIA rate through 1/29/19 Approved for 16 WI CE

Approved for 16 WI CE (3 of 16 are Ethics) and Utica Approved •

PERSONAL RESIDENTIAL COVERAGES Jerry Kennedy, CIC

•

PERSONAL AUTOMOBILE COVERAGES

•

PERSONAL UMBRELLA/EXCESS COVERAGES Russell Deaton, CIC

•

STRATEGIC PLANNING

•

TALENT ACQUISITION AND DEVELOPMENT Becky Lathrop, CIC, CPIA

•

CLIENT ACQUISITION AND RETENTION

•

TECHNOLOGY UTILIZATION Brian Bartosh, CIC, LUTCF

•

ETHICAL RESPONSIBILITY John Dismukes, CIC, CPCU, AII, AIS

WI CE COURSE # COMING

WI CE COURSE # COMING

Day One 8:00 – 5:15 / Day Two 8:00 – 5:00 / Day Three Optional Exam 8:00 – 10:00

$415.00 per Institute Register at PIAW.org or call 800-261-7429

UTICA

Gives You the Credit You Deserve!

The following PIAW education classes are approved for the Utica premium credit.

• Any CIC Update • CIC Agency Management • CISR Agency Operations • Dynamics of Service • Select PIAW Webinars • PIAW Conducted Ethics and E&O Seminars (classroom or in house) To register online and view upcoming CE courses visit www.piaw.org dinator

24 DECEMBER 18

Please contact Heidi Hodel, CIC, CRIS, Member Benefits Coorhhodel@piaw.org or 1-800-261-7429 to find out how you can benefit from Utica’s E&O Loss Control Program.

The PIAW Education Committee consists of talented, dedicated professionals from all walks of the insurance industry. This spotlight is introducing the committee by name, and a new monthly feature. Starting in January you will have the opportunity to get to know each member individually and read their “story.” We hope you will enjoy it. l/r: Steve Edwards, CIC, CPIA - West Bend Mutual Jim Dunker, CIC –Robertson Ryan & Associates, Inc. Chair Lacey Endres, CIC – M3 Insurance, Inc. Jack Novak, CIC – Novak Agency, Inc. Lindsey Hamielec, CIC, CISR – M3 Insurance, Inc. Brenda Steinbach – PIAW Mary Race-Gooderham, CIC, AAM – Risk Placement Services Julie Liebelt, CIC, CPCU, ARC – R&R Insurance Services, Inc. Board Liaison Sandy Hardrath, CIC, CPIA, AAI Ansay & Associates LLC Tracie Templin, CIC, CISR, CPIA – The Diedrich Agency, Inc. Not pictured: Amanda Cullen, CISR, AINS – Integrity Insurance Kevin Malovrh, CIC, CPIA ADVANTAGE Insurance Services, LLC Michele McGinnis, CIC – Robertson Ryan & Associates, Inc. Mike Ottman, CIC – Partners Mutual Doug Slater, CIC, CPCU – Rockford Mutual Brittany Swinton – Robertson Ryan & Associates, Inc.

PROFESSIONAL INSURANCE AGENTS OF WISCONSIN, INC. AGENCY PERPETUATION & ACQUISITION WORKSHOP Presented by Jon Persky, CPA, CIC, PHR and Live Oak Bank West Bend, Wisconsin (6 WI CE)

Save the Date - March 21, 2019

Save the Date - March 21, 2019

CIC RUBLE SEMINARS

Exciting update options for CICs, CRMs & now CISRs! 16 WI CE (Includes 4 optional Ethics) February 13 & 14 / Graduate Ruble / Crowne Plaza – Milwaukee, WI May 8 & 9 / Graduate Ruble / Crowne Plaza - Madison, WI Visit www.piaw.org or call PIA at 1-800-261-7429 DECEMBER 18 25

EDUcATIoN

Education Committee Spotlight

WCRI: How Injured Workers’ Medical Professional Care Costs Compare in 35 States Prices paid for medical professional services vary significantly across states, ranging from 26 percent below the median in Florida to 158 percent above median in Wisconsin, according to a 35-state study.

Seven of the 35 sates studied had no medical fee schedule in 2017: Indiana, Iowa, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Virginia and Wisconsin. The overall prices paid in these seven states were from 39 to 168 percent higher that the median of state with fee schedules.

States with no fee schedules for professional services had higher prices paid compared with states with fee schedules—39 to 168 percent higher than the median of the study states with fee schedules in 2017.

The authors of this study are Dr. Rebecca Yang and Dr. Olesya Fomenko.

Those are two findings from a new 179-page report from the Workers’ Compensation Research Institute (WCRI) that looks at changes in prices paid for medical professional services as well as the impact of fee schedule and network changes on price trends.

The study, WCRI Medical Price Index for Workers’ Compensation, 10th Edition (MPI-WC), compares medical prices paid in 35 states and tracks price changes in most states over a 10-year span from 2008 to 2017 for professional services billed by physicians, physical therapists and chiropractors.

The medical services fall into eight groups: evaluation and management, physical medicine, surgery, major radiology, minor radiology, neurological testing, pain management injections and emergency care.

According to WCRI, medical professional services costs typically account for 43 percent of total workers’ compensation medical expenditures. They do not include costs billed by hospitals or ambulatory surgery centers for medical equipment or pharmaceuticals.

Ramona Tanabe, WCRI’s executive vice president and inhouse counsel, said the study should be useful for policyholders and stakeholders wanting to see how their states’ workers’ compensation medical prices have changed over time and for those wanting to understand the impact of medical fee schedules.

26 DECEMBER 18

Other findings from the study include: •

•

Changes in prices paid for professional services exhibited variation across states, spanning between a 17 percent decrease in Illinois and a 39 percent increase in Wisconsin over the time period from 2008 to 2017.

Most states with no fee schedules experienced faster growth in prices paid for professional services compared with states with fee schedules—the median growth rate among the non-fee schedule states was 30 percent from 2008 to 2017, compared with the median growth rate of 6 percent among the fee schedule states.

This study also discusses the price trends in a number of states with major fee schedule changes, namely Arizona, California, Colorado, Illinois, Kentucky, Massachusetts, North Carolina and Texas.

The study looks at 35 states representing 87 percent of the workers’ compensation benefits paid in the United States: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and Wisconsin.

WCRI is an independent, not-for-profit research organization based in Cambridge, Mass.

Article provided by: Insurance Journal

Six Things to do When Something Goes Wrong We all know, things do go wrong. Most of the time when something bad happens, we’re caught off guard, almost paralyzed — and unprepared. This puts us at a disadvantage. So, here is a process for what to do when the next “bad day” comes your way. In other words, don’t sit on it. Act on it.

1. Inform your supervisor. This should be a brief summary. Then, suggest you would like to get all the facts together and prepare a report. Ask when it should be due. Now, you know how much time you have to do the work.

2. Gather the facts quickly. Then, before doing anything else, get together the bits and pieces of what happened, i.e., emails, memos, conversations, agendas, notes of meetings, etc. At this point, don’t try to put them in any order. Be sure to check for accuracy. Just get them together in one place.

3. Organize the accumulated information. Do this by developing a chronological outline of what went on. Most likely, you’ll find some missing pieces. Now’s the time to fill in the blanks. The outline should include a conclusion. In other words, what the facts should say to someone reading your report.

4. Draft your report. With your outline as a guide, prepare a draft. Be objective, not defensive. Check it over and share it with your supervisor for review and comment. Your report may raise questions, which you can answer and then include in the report. By having the supervisor involved, you are making sure there won’t be any surprises.

5. Revise the draft. When finished, let it sit a day or so, if possible. Review it again and make additions, deletions and edits.

6. Present the report to the supervisor. You’ve risen to the occasion and acted professionally. You’ve done your job.

Takeaway: While it's important to act thoughtfully and thoroughly, don't hesitate. Do it now.

[Source: GrahamComm]

DECEMBER 18 27

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By: John Waid

Th e Thre e V a l u e s o f Gre a t S ale s p eople P u t on Yo u r C. A. P . an d E v o lv e a s a L e a d e r in S a l e s

Don’t you wish you felt like someone wasn’t trying to merely sell you something and instead was really on your side and wanted you to be happy with what your purchase? Wouldn’t a world with less pushy salespeople be nice? The best salespeople don’t simply adhere to acronyms like ABC—Always Be Closing—or the X-step processes that remove the humanity from sales interactions. The majority of selling is not technique, but plain old people skills.

When people are asked what makes for a great salesperson they’ll often cite characteristics like listening, asking great questions, caring more about the buyer than themselves, building rapport and being liked as people, handling objections well and shutting up. These are all behaviors that can be found in the three values every great salesperson must possess.

Let’s dispel the myth of what selling is. Most salespeople will tell you that they sold something and yet, if you think about it, they did not sell anything without someone buying. Selling is not the action, so really, salespeople could be called facilitators of buying. “To sell” sounds aggressive and can put the customer in a defensive position, and the inherent “tricks of the sales trade” often leave buyers with a sour taste in their mouths.

There is a better methodology that goes to the core of why we sell in the first place—and it’s one that is not financially-driven.

Believing in and selling a product or service that can improve an aspect of a buyer’s life should be the primary motivator for salespeople. It’s much better than selling just to hit a sales target or benchmark.

Once you establish a purpose aside from financial gain, there are three distinct values and some adjoining behaviors that drive the best salespeople. The acronym CAP is easy to remember

and you will see that after we talk about all three, you or great salespeople you see will have on this CAP every day.

What is the first value? Are you curious? The first value is Curiosity.

Curiosity is the value that drives the best to want to know what is behind the reason why people are buying something. Why do some salespeople create rabid fans around buying their products and services when others do not? It’s because these salespeople add value.

Let’s pretend you have a paperclip company that sells plastic paperclips in 10 colors and 3 sizes. Let’s also say that these paperclips are three-times more expensive. The first salesperson, Jim, goes to call on clients and pushes the paperclips. He has yet to meet his numbers. The second salesperson, Jenny, goes in asking questions to the business owners like, “How important is organization to you?” “How and why could organization help your business be even better?” “Why is being innovative in business important?” Jenny has resolved to selling an organization system and innovation in what most would see as simple clips that really do not warrant spending three-times more money on. Jenny is excellent at asking great open-ended questions and listening for the last drop to uncover value for the client in her products, whereas Jim is simply pushing paperclips.

Developing an attitude of curiosity to help build value for the customer along with the two key behaviors of great open questions and listening can lead you to enjoy selling like Jenny much more than Jim. The second value is the one that makes you do all the right [Continued on page 31] DECEMBER 18 29

[The Process... - Continued from page 6] candidate and their families to come to Madison to check the city out. Bringing them to Madison also would give the entire PIAW Board of Directors an opportunity to meet our finalists before making a final decision.

I am hoping by the time you read this article, we will have made a decision and have made an offer to our next Executive Director of the Professional Insurance Agents of Wisconsin.

Stay tuned for a big announcement!

We look for the best independent agents and build relationships that last the duration. We are committed to the independent agency system as the only means to deliver our products. Because of that, we work hand-inhand to help our agencies grow profitably.

Our agents set us apart.

For information about becoming a Partners Mutual Insurance Agent please contact Brian Martin at 262.432.3439 or Mike Ottman at 262.432.3418.

30 DECEMBER 18

[A Reason Many... - Continued from page 14] need CRM (client relationship management) and PRM (prospect relationship management) systems in place. These don’t have to be super-complicated or even computerized, they just have to be effective. I have one sales rep who uses a Yearly Planner, 3x5 index cards, and an excel spreadsheet. Again, the keys here are that you have a system and that it’s effective.

Ingredient #3: Follow the Plan and Make Adjustments Once you have your plan, get into action as soon as possible.

Notice what is and isn’t working and make adjustments.

Remember, imperfect action is better than no action. The biggest problem I see with putting a system together is that some people become perfectionists and as a result, are never ready to take action. Take action every day, even while you are putting your system together. Do not stop everything you’re doing and decide you’re going to wait until you have the perfect plan in place. Do sales activities every day whether a plan is in place or not.

If you’re looking for an additional resource to help you put together a system, one of John’s tools is: Business Growth Vault at CoachBru.com.

John Chapin is a motivational sales speaker and trainer. For his free newsletter, or to have him speak at your next event, go to: www.completeselling.com John has over 31 years of sales experience as a number one sales rep and is the author of the 2010 sales book of the year: Sales Encyclopedia. You can reprint provided you keep contact information in place. E-mail: johnchapin@completeselling.com.

[The Three Values... - Continued from page 29] things and not cut corners: Accountability.

Accountability is an attitude that exudes success. Think about how much better you could have done in school if you had prepared before each quiz or exam, finished reading and taking notes on every textbook and gone to every class and asked for help when you did not know something. You might have gone to a better school and possibly had an easier life. Have you ever tried to build a piece of furniture without first reading the instructions? How long did it take you to build the furniture and how painful was it?

The best salespeople prepare in writing and are meticulous about preparing their territory plans, target accounts, their positive mental attitude, materials, open questions, objection handling, etc. There is a great story about a sales manager that went out on a field ride with one of his sales reps. As they were on the road the manager asked the rep if he had a catalog of the products.

The rep said it was in the back seat. The manager then started on the first page and asked if he had a sample of that product with him. The answer was no, so the manager ripped out the page and threw it out the window saying, “I guess we won’t be selling that product today”. He threw the whole catalog out the window after going through this exercise several times. The lesson learned here is that preparation is 90% of success and if you fail to prepare, prepare to fail.

The third value is a love for people through great People skills.

Is it more important that you like the customer or that the customer likes you? Before you rush to answer the question, think about it a bit. How is the customer going to like you if you do not like them? Having a positive mental attitude and deciding to like everyone for something is something that is not only great in sales, but also in life. We spend much of our time interacting with people and if we do not do this well it can cause a lot of heartache. Many of the most successful salespeople create rapport and learn to mirror the behaviors of others for better understanding of them and themselves. The ability to create likeability is the first step in creating “trustability”. Helping people to buy is not easy when they do not like you.

So there you have it. These three values and the adjoining behaviors are key to sales and even make for a better life. Put on your sales C.A.P. daily and you’ll begin to see a boost in relationships, a boost in your numbers, and a boost in your satisfaction as a salesperson.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: John Waid is the founder of C-3 Corporate Culture Consulting, a keynote speaker and author of the book, Reinventing Ralph.

With a specialty and passion for corporate culture, sales and global business, John believes culture is the engine that drives companies to better results, higher morale, and increased profitability. An active speaker, trainer and subject matter expert, John Waid holds an enduring belief that corporate culture is the key to success for companies. For more information on John Waid, please visit: www.CorporateCultureConsulting.com.

PIAW Testimonial “My involvement with the PIA, particularly in my early years, has been the cornerstone of my professional growth and development.

PIA connected me with education, a competitive E&O program and a place to turn to for answers to questions. Most of my strongest industry relationships and mentors came through my involvement in PIA. Thank you PIA!" Dave Fritz, CIC, CPCU Past President of PIA of Wisconsin TRICOR Insurance DECEMBER 18 31

Earn That Click Part 1, Email Marketing Email sales marketing is not easy. You send out a hundred messages to prospects and clients and receive little response.

What a disappointment.

Well, you’re not the only one who’s disappointed, according to the statistics. Across all industries, the average email open rate is only about one in four, and the email marketing campaign facilitator MailChimp says that the open rate for insurance industry campaigns is about 21% — or only one in five. Plus, at slightly more than 2%, the insurance industry click rate (a reader opening and clicking through to the sales campaign) is disappointing, too. Are you wasting your time?

Unfortunately, email marketing is here to stay. You need to get smart about it, because you can’t rely only on cold calls and direct mail to drive sales. Indeed, direct mail is becoming increasingly passé as more people turn to email. The technology market research firm Radicati Group Inc. says that in 2018, 3.8 billion email users worldwide will send or receive more than 281 billion emails every day. By the close of 2022, that group of email users will grow to 4.2 billion.

How to Increase Your Open Rate The first big hurdle toward getting your email read is convincing your recipient to even open it. Who wastes time reading every single email he or she receives in a day?

Consider how email is delivered — on any device, readers usually see the preview pane first, which lists the sender, subject line and a few words of the message. If that preview doesn’t immediately pique your recipient’s interest, your message will land in the trash 32 DECEMBER 18

bin faster than it appeared in the inbox.

Grab ‘em with the subject line. A vague or generic subject line won’t grab your reader, so one tip is to direct the subject line to the individual or their company or to reference an event they are sponsoring. Say, for example, you want to reach prospects at XYA Trucking. The subject line, “XYA Trucking: Reduce Your Accident Claims,” will be more compelling than, “Reduce Accident Claims.”

And while you shouldn’t use every one of the following tips from HubSpot in just one subject line, they’ll help you make it catchy: • • • • • • • •

Be concise.

Convey Urgency.

Use action verbs.

Cite a number or statistic.

Ask a gripping question.

Be funny. Be pun-ny.

Don't yell. In other words, don't use all caps or multiple exclamation points.

Incite action.

Finally, it’s always a good idea to write two subject lines and conduct an A/B test of your audience. Send subject line A to half of your contact list, and B to the other half. By comparing the two, over time you’ll develop a feel for what your particular audience responds to best.

Don’t forget the message preview. Preview panes can get awkward when the first few words of your email message don’t make sense or include odd bits of behind-the-scenes text, such

as a photo description. Be sure that first line of your message focuses on why you are writing to the recipient or includes a teaser. Usually, the email program automatically sets the message preview text, so you might have to experiment. If you’re fortunate, you have an email program that allows you to set the preview text yourself.

Remember, your email is useless unless you can convince your recipient to open it. The time you spend crafting a clever subject line and compelling preview text — from a friendly sender — will pay off in open clicks

Make sure the sender is familiar, friendly and trustworthy.

Avoid, at all cost, using a “no reply” sender name. If your recipients know you well, use your own name as the sender, rather than the company, but in a friendly way: Bob from YourInsuranceCompany.com rather than Robert B. Rockefeller of YourInsuranceCompany.com.

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Proudly providing all of Wisconsin with prompt, personal service.

PO Box 356 • Hortonville, WI 54944 920-779-4515 • 800-953-4515

www.ellingtonmutual.com

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BWO agents enjoy… 100% ownership · Contingency participation · Generous commissions Agency perpetuation · No joining or membership fees · No non-compete

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BWOInsurance.com 8/8/18 10:31 DECEMBER 18 PM33

Expect big things in workers’ compensation. Most classes approved, nationwide. It pays to get a quote from Applied.® For information call (877) 234-4450 or visit auw.com/us. Follow us at bigdoghq.com.

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Insurance plans protected U.S. Patent No. 7,908,157.

GERMANTOWN MUTUAL INSURANCE COMPANY W209 N11845 Insurance Place PO Box 1020 Germantown, WI 53022-8220 Phone (262) 251-6680 Fax (262) 623-3130 www.gmic.com

SERVING POLICYHOLDERS AND INDEPENDENT AGENTS IN WISCONSIN SINCE 1854

DECEMBER 18 35

Well Suited: A Practical Approach to Understanding Personalities

By: Kostya Kimlat We’ve been dividing people into four personality types, styles, or patterns since the time of Plato. These days, online personality tests are everywhere. After a number of fun questions you can discover which animal, shape, color or celebrity you’re aligned with. Or take a serious personality test to help identify your management, leadership, or communication style.

If you really want to get to know yourself, you can take a more scientific assessment that not only tells you who you are, but what drives you, motivates you and how people can best work with you. You’ll get 35 pages of autobiographical information, which can help you understand yourself.

And that’s great, but when you’re meeting someone for the first time — as you’re exchanging greetings, smiles or handshakes, paying attention and being present — it’s rather difficult to identify them and put them into one of sixteen categories off the top of your head.

And no one ever brings you their 35-page assessment and hands it to you like a manual and says, “Here’s who I am and how to deal with me.”

If you’re in sales or customer service, reading your audience is critical to your professional success. This ability has long been a secret of the magician’s success. Magicians are astutely skilled in the fine art of perception and recognizing the individual personalities that comprise their audience.

Next time you watch a close-up magician, pay attention to the audience members and see how they react. There are generally four types of reactions:

36 DECEMBER 18

♦ There’s the excited participant, ready to be blown away by anything. ♥ There’s the passive viewer, who is enjoying the show, hoping that they don’t get picked. ♠ There’s the take charge A-type that wants to take control of the situation. ♣ There’s the skeptical know-it-all who has to figure out the secret.

Now think of the four suits in a deck of playing cards and what images they bring to mind: ♦ The Diamonds are shiny and exciting; they yearn to be seen and recognized. ♥ The Hearts are compassionate and loving; they wish for everyone to get along. ♠ The Spades are quick and strong; they want power and control. ♣ The Clubs are very specific; they require attention to detail to be right.

The four suits perfectly align with the Myers-Briggs, DiSC, Merrill-Wilson and the Helen Fisher systems: ♦ Diamonds are: Expressive, Explorer, Influence ♥ Hearts are: Amiable, Negotiator, Steadiness ♠ Spades are: Driver, Director, Dominance

♣ Clubs are: Analytical, Builder, Conscientiousness Once you know which four personality styles align with which suits, you’ll want an easy system to identify which person is exhibiting the behaviors of which suit. To do that, you just need to pay attention to a person’s speed and temperature.

The Speed and Temperature of Suits What’s amazing about the four suits of a deck of playing cards is that their color and shape connect to a person’s speed or temperature.

First, think of the color of the suits—red or black. When you meet people for the first time, if upon introducing yourself they are open and engaged, they are most likely a red suit—a warm Heart or a Diamond. If they are reserved or withdrawn—acting colder towards you —they are a Spade or Club.

Next, think of the shape of the suits. The Diamonds and Spades have sharp and pointy ends—they move fast and talk fast, just like their edges are fast to draw. They go for the straight line of the situation, they get to the sharp end of the point! So if someone you meet is moving and talking fast, they are a Diamond or a Spade.

Hearts and Clubs are round suits. These people can’t be rushed or pushed to making a decision. They need time. The best way to remember the Clubs is that this suit is very difficult to draw; it requires attention to detail to do it right. So people who are critical, detailed and disciplined -- people who require being right -- are Clubs.

See how easy it becomes? Just pay attention to how fast/slow and warm/cold someone is. With two questions you’ll have a strong sense of which suit best describes the personality.

Warm and Fast? ♦ Diamond Warm and Slow? ♥ Heart Cold and Fast? ♠ Spade Cold and Slow? ♣ Club If you’ve studied other personality evaluation systems you can overlay the four suits over the terms you already know. The four suits make memory recall easier, helping you speed up the entire identifying process. They are a shortcut for your mind.

Depending on your own personality, you may think that this is amazing ♦, or this is all obvious to you ♣. Maybe you’re curious how this will affect others ♥, or maybe you’re ready to put thoughts into actions ♠.

What Hand Were You Dealt? Reacting to the Unique Traits of Suits

personalities. It provides the groundwork to approach and understand someone. No matter your type, here’s how you can give the people you encounter what they need: If you meet a ♦, provide recognition and attention.

If you meet a ♥, provide support and approval.

If you meet a ♠, provide opportunities to take charge and make decisions.

If you meet a ♣, provide opportunities to be “right.”

A great magician provides each of the personalities exactly what they need. For example, he allows the ♣ to analyze whether it’s a regular deck of cards. He then lets the ♠ decide which card to select by authoritatively shouting “stop!” And he invites the ♦ on-stage to receive the attention and credit for seemingly making the magic happen. All the while, he leaves the ♥ alone to take pleasure in watching others enjoy themselves.

Once you’re aware of what each suit needs, you, too, can provide each person the right opportunities to thrive, just like a magician.

Shuffling It All Together Many people have taken personality tests to tell them who they are. But very few people can instantly assess the personality style of someone they meet. Thanks to this magical system, you’re now equipped to do just that.

You don’t have to rack your brain to search for the right word to describe someone. The magician’s method of four suits is simple to learn and easy to use in the real world. When you’re in the trenches of a presentation or negotiation, meeting people and trying to understand them on the fly, utilize the four suits to identify personality types quickly and easily. And then, give them what their suit needs.

The goal is for you to eventually be able to identify the personality styles without even thinking about doing it.

Mastering this skill will enable you to be more adaptive to your audience—just like a magician. That will go a long way to help you build that relationship or close that deal. =============== Kostya Kimlat is a keynote speaker and corporate magician who fooled Penn & Teller on their hit TV show, “Fool Us”. Kostya speaks to businesses about how to Think Like A Magician™ to improve sales and customer service. For more information about Kostya Kimlat, please visit www.TheBusinessMagician.com.

If part of your life involves meeting new people, and you want to connect and communicate with them for business or social reasons, there’s nothing better than paying attention to people’s DECEMBER 18 37

PROFESSIONAL INSURANCE AGENTS OF WISCONSIN, INC. OFFICERS

Mr. Matt Cranney, CIC, CRM President M3 Insurance, Inc. 3133 W Beltline Hwy Madison, WI 53713 Phone 608-273-0655 Fax 608-273-7783 matt.cranney@m3ins.com Mr. Sean M. Paterson, CIC Vice President Robertson Ryan & Associates 12750 W. North Ave., Building A Brookfield, WI 53005 Phone 262-782-5373 Fax 262-782-6327 spaterson@robertsonryan.com Ms. Julie Ulset, CPIA Treasurer Grams Insurance Agency LLC 103 W Fulton St. Edgerton, WI 53534 Phone 608-884-3304 Fax 608-884-9616 julset@gramsinsurance.com Mr. Dan Wolfgram AINS, CPIA Secretary R & R Insurance Services, Inc. 1581 E. Racine Ave. Waukesha, WI 53186 Phone 262-574-7000 Fax 262-574-7080 dan.wolfgram@rrins.com

DIRECTORS

STAFF

Mr. Thomas Budzisz, CPIA BWO Insurance Group, LLC 2111 E Rawson Ave. Oak Creek, WI 53154 Phone 414-768-8100 Fax 414-768-8110 tom@bwoinsurance.com

Ms. Sandy L. Hardrath, CIC, CPIA Ansay & Associates 4712 Expo Dr. Manitowoc, WI 54220 Phone 920-370-4283 Fax 920-682-7799 Sandy.Hardrath@Ansay.com

Mr. Ryan Butzke, CIC, CISR Northbrook Insurance Associates, Inc. P.O. Box 780.

Menomonee Falls, WI 53052 Phone 262-783-5533 ryanb@northbrook-ins.com

Mr. Michael Keener, CIC Keener Insurance Solutions, LLC W 175 N11081 Stonewood Dr Ste 105 Germantown, WI Phone 262-293-9144 Fax 262-293-9254 michael@keenersolutions.com

Ms. Jodi Cordes, CIC, CRM, CPIA Past President A.F. Glass Insurance Center P.O. Box 1149 Lake Geneva, WI 53147 Phone 262-248-5555 Fax 262-248-5544 jcordes@glassinsurancecenter.com Mr. Jeremy Cordova, CIC Cordova Agency, Inc. 716 E 2nd St. Merrill, WI Phone 715-536-9576 Fax 715-539-3349 jeremy.cordova@cordovaagency.com

Mr. Dennis Kuhnke, CIC, CPIA PIAW National Director Robertson Ryan & Associates Inc. 330 E Kilbourn Ave. Suite 650 Milwaukee, WI 53202 Phone 414-271-1561 Fax 414-271-3012 dkuhnke@robertsonryan.com Mr. Mitchell Tarras Nett Insurance Agency LLC 607C Eastern Ave Plymouth, WI 53073 Phone 920-893-3252 Fax 920-893-3250 mitchtarras@charter.net

PIA of Wisconsin, Inc. 6401 Odana Road Madison WI 53719 Phone: 608-274-8188 Toll Free: 800-261-7429 Fax: 608-274-8195 Toll Free Fax: 866-203-7461 www.piaw.org Ronald Von Haden, CIC Executive Vice President rvonhaden@piaw.org Heather Falk, CISR Bookkeeping hfalk@piaw.org Claire Gribble Administrative Assistant cgribble@piaw.org Heidi Hodel, CIC Member Benefits Coordinator hhodel@piaw.org Becca Prestbroten Administrative Assistant bprestbroten@piaw.org Brenda Steinbach Education & Convention Director bsteinbach@piaw.org

Coming Events DECEMBER 2018 5

CISR Commercial Casualty 2 Waukesha, WI (7 WI CE)

6

CISR Agency Operations Rothschild, WI (7 WI CE)

JANUARY 2019 Jan 30-Feb 1

Winter Get-Away Minocqua, WI (10 WI CE)

FEBRUARY 2019 13-14

CIC Ruble Graduate Seminar Milwaukee, WI (16 WI CE credits - 4 of 16 are optional Ethics)

20

Hot Topic / William T. Hold Seminar - Cyber Liability, Basics of Life & Disability for the P/C Agent, Ethics Waukesha, WI (7 WI CE - 3 of 7 are Ethics)

21

CISR Agency Operations Madison, WI ( 7 WI CE - 1 of 7 is Ethics)

27-Mar 1

CIC Personal Lines Institute Appleton, WI (16 WI CE)

38 DECEMBER 18

MARCH 2019 13

CISR Commercial Casualty 1 Green Bay, WI (7 WI CE)

21

Insurance Agency Perpetuation Planning West Bend, WI (6 WI CE)

SIA of the Great Lakes, LLC Member of SIAA

• $6.6 Billion in Premium • Full & highest commissions • Big is Better – size, clout, stability • No minimum volume requirement for profit sharing and excess compensation • 6,100 signed member agents can’t be wrong • Your clients and companies are always yours To learn how we can help you increase your agency income and value, contact us today. jharrison@siagl.com | 920.494.5000 | www.siagl.com

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Professional Insurance Agents of Wisconsin, Inc. 6401 Odana Road • Madison, WI 53719 (608) 274-8188 • (800) 261-PIAW • FAX (608) 274-8195 • TOLL FREE FAX: (866) 203-7461 www.piaw.org

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