Way back when (pick your date), agents had relatively straightforward goals for themselves and their agencies. Stability and predictable growth. There were a lot of market opportunities, agency leaders could deliver on their expectations through annual work plans with modest modifications to their strategic plan. Commissions stayed relatively level, premiums increased, people stayed in their jobs; life was good. Then things changed. The great recession hit Michigan hard, businesses closed, customers were lost and we recovered slowly. Then the Affordable Care Act turned the health insurance world on its side.
Since 2010, there have been many changes in the availability of products, new factors that underwriters must adhere to when developing pricing models, new taxes, new reporting requirements, the move to member level rating, new commission schedules, many chambers and associations abandoning their previous business models, and many, many more changes that can all be traced back to the Affordable Care Act. Everything got much harder and it is not easy to stay up to speed. We all know this. Events happen, life happens.
While we many times cannot control the event, we absolutely do control our reaction to the event and how we react to events, good and bad, will greatly influence the outcome. Attitude is everything – what outcome are you after for yourself personally and for your agency?
Given all the changes, where is your agency headed? Are you in or out of the health insurance business, will you maintain and grow your book of business or will you sell or consolidate? If you stay in the business, where do you go for help? Who are your “friends” in the business? How do you work smarter and not harder? These are just some of the questions that most likely keep you up at night.
SBAM understands these challenges. We have faced them ourselves, our Board is made up of all small business owners, they get it, we get it. We can help. Our entire existence is built around helping. All that we do starts with listening to our 25,000 members. Every day SBAM:
- Fights for small business in Lansing and Washington D.C.
- Saves our members time and money on products and services
- Help our members grow their business through networking and education.
We’re influential and our goal is to be convicted, scrappy and brave in all that we do. We are committed to Michigan’s small business community in everything we do. We have built our health insurance products and services with the small business owner and agent in mind. We can help you stay up to speed with all the changes and offer your customers a great selection of products that they need to grow their business and attract and retain talented employees.
Questions? Contact your SBAM team today at (800) 362-5461.
Scott Lyon, Senior Vice President
Jeff Thomas, Director of Agent Relations
Kellie Neirynck, Director of Agent Services