Agents have the option of placing business with either an independent or company insurance brokerage office. Here is a list of insurance brokerage listings that covers many of the tiles used in the business. Learn the differences between insurance brokerage titles and how to tell who’s who.
Over 90 insurance designations can be earned by life and health agents. There are fewer titles available for brokerage firms. A listing of all the different titles is provided, along with any differences. These are important details to share with potential producers who might be able to write your insurance cases.
It is important to clarify the terms broker and brokerage, which refer to both life and health insurance. It would surprise you to learn how little the general public knows what your firm’s title or function is. These terms are also not understood by hundreds of thousands. Stock brokers and stock brokerage firms are the primary culprits of this mix-up. This is what most people think of when they hear these terms.
Brokers of insurance brokerage firms can obtain written annuities, life or health insurance cases from any title. Brokers should be the name of all their agents and their cases should be called brokerage business. If an agent is writing a case for a company other than their primary one, they are considered a broker. Their business is brokerage. Many agents are called “agent brokers”. Agent brokers are agents who have an insurance company as their primary agent and then submit business to a brokerage as a broker. Independent life and health insurance agents can also be independent brokers. The semi-independent group is better known as semi-independent agents.
Writing brokerage business is an act of true independence on the part of the agent. This will rarely happen until an agent has been in full-time insurance dependency for three years on career-oriented companies. Agents write insurance brokerage because they are independent, meet client needs and receive higher commissions.
COMPANY INSURANCE BROKERAGE
Insurance agents are baffled by the fact that many of the companies who train new agents in insurance have their brokerage operations promoted through large advertisements. Agents are told to only do business with the company they have been licensed with. Agents are reminded that they have all they need and the company supports them 100%. The company’s insurance brokerage is trying to steal as much business from career agents at other insurance companies. The increasing number of insurance companies accepting brokerage business but not having their own agency is less confusing.
You can have many titles and variations among the people who distribute products if you start with one brokerage insurance company. The main distinction would be those who are directly employed by an insurance company as salaried or plus bonus individuals. Others are independent contractors with no fringe benefits such as health insurance. They may also receive production bonuses and commissions.
These titles are usually reserved for high-ranking home office staff. They include director of marketing, national director in recruiting, director product development and sale, director of product sales, Northwest marketing director, and divisional director on disability sales. Many of them have never sold or brokered an insurance policy. Many of them are merely numbers crunchers who have no idea what it takes to run a successful brokerage. They rarely recruit agents themselves. They often set the company’s budgeting, marketing and recruiting policies, which others must follow.
Common one-company insurance brokerage titles include General Agent and Brokerage General Agents, Regional General Agents, State Manager, ManagingGeneral Agent, Managing General Agent, State Manager, ManagingGeneral Agent, Managing General Agents, District Manager, Director, Wholesaler, Regional Manager, and Director of Brokerage. An insurance company may have three main products. For example, LTC Brokerage manager, Annuity brokerage manager, and Advanced life brokerage manager. There are many titles that can be combined. These brokerages specialize in insurance and retain the name of their company as part of their company name.
This is one conflict of interests. Insurance companies often work with national brokerage firms and independent marketing agencies to sell insurance brokerage cases. They often compete with each other, pursuing agents and brokers in order to acquire insurance brokerage. The danger factor should also be mentioned. What happens if your prime product suddenly drops, your territory is reduced, or your position is eliminated by another insurance company?
INDEPENDENT INSURANCE BROKERAGE LISTINGS
Independent insurance brokerage firms emerged on the market scene 25 years after they were non-existent. Here are some reasons. First brokers want to work with a company that offers the best product and the highest commission. Some independent insurance marketing agencies represent over 50 companies. Sometimes they can do both. Some national companies are so powerful they can direct that insurance policies develop products that only they can distribute. Insurance companies are well aware of the fact that they can continue to add new policy features and introduce a rehashed policy, now called a new policy. Insurance marketers love to promote a familiar product with new features, a different name or a new commission structure. Insurance marketers love to make money and so the most popular products are those with the highest override. Many marketers think a 35% override is better than 20% for a comparable product.
Independent insurance brokerage marketers can have titles on their contracts such as product distributor, national wholesaler and exclusive product marketer. These titles are in addition to all other independent contractor titles that were mentioned under one-company marketers. Many of them distinguish themselves by keeping their name out of the firm’s name. To distinguish them, others add the words independent or national. They often promote a variety insignia trademarks and names for their company in advertising materials.
It is important to briefly describe independent insurance marketing agencies. More than 250 independent brokerage firms are affiliated with at least one top 20 independent insurance marketing organization. It may not seem like a lot, but 250 of 15,000 to 20,000. To create a larger independent brokerage marketing organization, smaller firms combine advertising and contracting. This allows the organization to secure higher-level contracts with more insurance brokerage firms. Even though members may only be able to operate in one state at a time, they can also work across multiple states and even the country. These firms are able to sustain their profitability for a long time, even if they are not as profitable as other brokerage firms. They get more training tips, bonds, marketing tricks and overrides than they would receive by themselves.
Who’s Who among major league, large-time insurance brokerages is always changing. Some firms are family-owned and operated for three generations, while others may be able to pop up and disappear as fast. The importance of service is a key factor that was not mentioned previously. Service is the key factor. What can you do as a broker to ensure that they remain your broker? No matter what title your firm holds, it doesn’t matter if the broker moves on to another case.