The Digital Broker Podcast

110 - Farewell, Ryan Deeds: What We Learned After Two Years of The Digital Broker Jun 30, 2020

After two years and over 100 episodes of The Digital Broker, we find out that the insurance agency space has never been in more promising shape. Ryan Deeds and Indio Technologies CMO Ken Wohl look back on what the show has taught us about data, technology, and the future of insurance agencies.

109 - Fundamentals of a Digital Broker Mindset Jun 16, 2020

Being a digital broker is less about an attachment to specific tools and more about a mindset of adaptability. Learn how that mindset works and what to focus on before you decide which tools are worth using. Ryan Deeds hosts.

108 - Virtual Meetings: Here to Stay Jun 02, 2020

In-person meetings are essential to the insurance industry, but social distancing and quarantines are limiting the freedom to get together in person. Luckily, virtual meetings are coming to the rescue, providing opportunities to keep learning and meeting people. Time to take virtual meetings more seriously. Ryan Deeds hosts.

107 - Producer Compensation and the Impact on the Agency May 19, 2020

Paying producers too high a percentage on new business can discourage them from taking renewals seriously, but neither should you keep producers stuck on renewals. There is no universal formula for producer compensation, but here is what to keep in mind when designing a producer compensation structure that makes sense for your agency. Ryan Deeds hosts.

106 - The Power of a Podcast: Visibility, Authority, and Opportunity May 12, 2020

A podcast can drive a lot of listeners and opportunities your way, but it can also be tough to produce. Learn about which tools exist to take the grind out of podcast production so you can focus on just pressing Record. Ryan Deeds interviews Jason Cass.

105 - Leadership in Times of Crisis: Flexibility, Conviction, and Courage May 05, 2020

Leadership involves making decisions based on the available information, but in times of crisis, information is volatile, if it's available at all. Learn how to lead your team through crisis by becoming flexible, nimble, and agile. Ryan Deeds interviews Brian Comerford, host of the Lead.exe podcast.

104 – Great Days at Work: How They Happen, How To Keep Them Coming Apr 28, 2020

Bad days are going to happen, but if you know what you’re doing, great days are going to happen too, and they can supercharge employee morale and wipe out the impact of previous bad days. Here are a few, simple things you can do to deliver great days to your employees. Ryan Deeds interviews Azia Hurley and Melissa Wilder.

103 - The COVID Effect: Fast-Tracking Digital Transformation Apr 21, 2020

Insurance agencies have historically been slow to catch up on technology, but COVID-19 is changing everything. Learn how insurance agencies are making important technological adjustments that will benefit them long after the crisis is over. Ryan Deeds interviews Eric Wistrand, CIO of Couch Braunsdorf.

102 - Staying Productive During Lockdown: Advice from Olivia Schmitt Apr 14, 2020

When your house and the office become the same place, it is easy to feel like your career is stuck, too. But there is much you can do at your desk to grow your network. Ryan Deeds interviews Olivia Schmitt, who landed her dream job at Total CSR by posting consistently on LinkedIn.

101 - COVID-19 and Insurance: What Your Agency Can Do Apr 07, 2020

Insurance is supposed to be a lifeline against tough times, and this is the toughest time that many people have ever known. Here is what you can do to put your agency in a position to keep helping people. Ryan Deeds hosts.

100 - Remote Work Made Simple: Getting Started Right Away Mar 24, 2020

Extraordinary times are pressuring insurance agencies to switch to remote work immediately, but knowing where to start can be disorienting. We get straight to the point and tell you which collaboration tools you can start using right away, without having to sort through hundreds of options. Ryan Deeds hosts.

099 - Bad Days at the Office: Why They Happen, How to Deal with Them Mar 17, 2020

Bad days are going to happen, but when they *keep* happening, they can destroy agency morale and drive employees away. Here is what you can do to minimize the incidence of bad days and reduce the negative impact of the ones that happen anyway. Ryan Deeds is joined by Azia Hurley and Melissa Wilder.

098 - Offboarding: How to Leave an Agency Without Causing Damage Mar 10, 2020

Onboarding and offboarding are two sides of the same coin, but onboarding gets most of the attention. It's time to get serious about the offboarding process, to keep employee departures from upsetting agency workflows and operations. Ryan Deeds is joined by Azia Hurley and Melissa Wilder.

097 - How To Think Like Billy Williams Mar 03, 2020

He has invested in several insurance agencies and retooled them to be more efficient. People are curious about how Billy Williams, Founder of Inspire A Nation Business Mentoring, does this. His response? "I'm not smart, I can just figure stuff out." Learn which rules of thumb he uses to size up agencies and spot problems quickly. Ryan Deeds hosts.

096 - Can You Name The Three Types of Retention in Insurance? Feb 25, 2020

The term "retention" alone is misleading, suggesting that there is a single way of looking at retention. In reality, three different types of retention determine the growth of an insurance agency. Learn what they are, how to measure them, and how to compare them to get the most accurate read on your growth. Ryan Deeds hosts.

095 - Making Culture Real: How to Build a Culture You Can See Feb 18, 2020

Out of all the things that make an agency successful, culture is the most important—and the least understood. Learn how to build a visible and self-perpetuating culture by keeping things simple, rallying people around a goal, and attaching tangible experiences to successful outcomes. Ryan Deeds interviews Heather Smyrl, co-founder of Highpoint Insurance Group.

094 - Booked vs Estimated Revenue: Which Is More Useful as a Metric? Feb 11, 2020

Many agencies look at booked revenue alone, but without a clear idea of your estimated revenue, you can't grow. Learn how booked and estimated revenue differ as metrics, and how you can get a better read on your agency's estimated revenue. Ryan Deeds hosts.

093 - Values Help Insurance Agencies Deliver Value in Uncertain Times Feb 04, 2020

The definition of value is always changing. Your *values* shouldn't be doing the same. Learn why a consistent set of values is the closest thing you have to a compass to guide you in times of uncertainty and inconsistency. Ryan Deeds interviews Trevor Baldwin, CEO of Baldwin Risk Partners, the first commercial insurance brokerage firm to IPO in over 15 years.

092 - Focus on the Customer: There is No Scaling Without It Jan 28, 2020

Technology is indispensable to scaling—but people don't want to talk to robots when they're filing a claim. Learn how to use technology to grow your agency without losing your connection to your customers. Ryan Deeds interviews Chris Frankland, Head of InsurTech Partnerships at ReSource Pro.

091 - Customer Experience: Get the Most Out of Your Book of Business Jan 21, 2020

Insurance agencies sometimes confuse customer service with customer experience. Customer service is only one part of the customer experience. Learn how to deliver amazing customer experiences that make your customers enthusiastic about referring other people to you. Ryan Deeds interviews Jason Cass of Insurance Agency Intelligence.

090 - Surviving the "Wild West" of Insurtech: Tips from a Big Data Chief Jan 14, 2020

Carriers and large agencies have invested in technology for years, and independent insurance agencies suddenly have to catch up. Former Intel data chief David Davis offers advice on how to deal with this challenge responsibly, without giving in to fear and doubt. Ryan Deeds hosts.

089 - Data Should Help Insurance Agencies Grow: Seth Zaremba Jan 07, 2020

On this episode, Ryan Deeds talks with Seth Zaremba about tools he developed using data that drove up revenue for his insurance agency. By listening to this episode, you will learn, why so many agencies struggle to figure out how to make more money and how Zaremba and his team took apart every process and reorganized it under a new, coordinated system.

088 - Appreciation: Inspiring Employees to Do Their Best Work Dec 17, 2019

Heading into the holiday season, Ryan celebrates appreciation. People don't do their best work unless they want to, and that requires motivation and appreciation. But there are ways to show appreciation that can backfire. Learn how to design and implement a culture of appreciation that consistently inspires and motivates employees.

087 - Introduction to Video Marketing: Overcoming Initial Obstacles Dec 10, 2019

Insurance agencies could be connecting with more customers through video but are holding off for fear of lacking resources or know-how. None of those things need to scare you, says Chris Greene of The Flood Insurance Guru. Ryan Deeds hosts.

086 - Ryan Hanley: Figure Out What Your Product Means to Customers Dec 03, 2019

Following a break from the insurance industry, Ryan Hanley returns, ready to advise insurance agencies who are in the process of their own self-discovery. Ryan Deeds hosts.

085 - Premium Financing: Option for the Insured, Value for the Agency Nov 26, 2019

Customers are sometimes hesitant to pay a premium if it's too large. Premium financing allows the customer to pay the premium in installments. Bill Wood of Imperial PFS talks to Ryan Deeds about how premium financing works, what the customer can expect, and how the insurance agency receives the money.

084 - Net Promoter Score: Why Insurance Agencies Need It Nov 19, 2019

On this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds interviews Matthew Smith of Rocket Referrals, a company that helps insurance agencies discover and get value from their Net Promoter Score. By listening to this episode, you will learn why a Net Promoter Score is superior to other measurements of customer satisfaction, how to find your Net Promoter Score, and how doing so will transform your business for the better.

083 - Weather Damage: How To Help The Insured Before and After Nov 14, 2019

On this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds and Demetrius Gray talk about preparing an insurance agency to handle weather-related claims. By listening to this episode, you will learn what insurance agencies could do to handle weather-related claims more proactively, how technology can help insurance agencies assess exposure to weather damage and alert the insured before disaster strikes, and how it can help with writing better business.

082 - Optimizing Insurance Field Inspections: How Technology Can Help Nov 05, 2019

On this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds talks with Jim Gardner about using technology to optimize field inspections. By listening to this episode, you will learn how traditional field inspections cause operational frictions that waste agency resources and frustrates the customer and how technology can streamline this operation by delegating to the operation to the policyholder, guiding everyone through the process, and assembling a report on the go.

081 - "What's Next?" Forward Thinking In Insurance Agency Marketing Oct 29, 2019

On this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds interviews Justin Lair of Agency Revolution about the digitization of an insurance agency's marketing process. By listening to this episode, you will learn which outdated habits of classical agencies are their downfall, what sets forward-thinking agencies apart from classical agencies, and how forward-thinking agencies drive retention and close more business thanks to social media, email marketing campaigns, and website design.

080 - Virtual Assistance: Reinforcements of Operational Excellence Oct 22, 2019

On this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds interviews Andy Priesman, founder of Cover Desk, about virtual assistants. By listening to this episode, you will learn how an assortment of back-office work can eat into your employees’ time, decreasing your agency’s output, how virtual assistants are capable of relieving your agency of these tasks, and which of your agency’s tasks you should consider outsourcing first.

079 - Onboarding Agency Staff Made Easy: The Story of Total CSR Oct 15, 2019

On this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds interviews Justin Goodman, founder of Total CSR. By listening to this episode, you will learn which operational problems forced Justin to develop Total CSR, how the platform grew to help insurance agencies train CSR’s, producers, and employees in any position, and how a good onboarding process helps insurance agencies at large attract more employees and keep them in jobs longer.

078 - The IT Dilemma: New Challenges, Old Habits Oct 08, 2019

On this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds and Mark Alberto talk about the role of an IT department at an insurance agency. By listening to this episode, you will learn, how the expectations and responsibilities of the average IT department have grown, which challenges, old and new, continue to affect an IT department, and how to mitigate these issues with better hiring, better leadership, and better training.

077 - Leadership, Revisited: Key Responsibilities of a Leader Oct 01, 2019

On this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds reflects on leadership and the key responsibilities of a leader. By listening to this episode, you will learn which responsibilities are exclusively a leader’s, how employee engagement is a function of leadership, and how favoritism, absenteeism, and hypocrisy tarnish the credibility of a leader.

076 - Change Management: The 5 Questions You Need To Answer Sep 24, 2019

On this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds talks about change management. By listening to this episode, you will learn why change management is essential to operational excellence, why so many change initiatives fall apart, and how to fortify your change management strategy by repeatedly asking yourself these five important questions.

075 - Humility, Transparency, Simplicity: The Story of Indio Technologies Sep 17, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds talks to Michael Furlong, CEO and co-founder of Indio Technologies. By listening, you will learn why Indio bet on empowering the insurance agent and broker when everyone else was betting on technology to replace them, which key decisions allowed for Indio's growth, and what the company's plans are for the next 3-5 years.

074 - How Artificial Intelligence Creates Jobs, Protects Insureds and Saves Insurance Agencies Money Sep 10, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds talks to Ron Glozman, CEO and founder of Chisel AI, about artificial intelligence and its applications in the field of insurance. By listening to this episode, you will learn how AI is already helping people in the insurance industry and how it actually can create employment opportunities by relieving human beings of soul-sucking work.

073 - How Innovation (Really) Happens: Interview With Ron Glozman of Chisel AI Sep 03, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds interviews Ron Glozman, CEO and founder of Chisel AI, about the company’s journey from inception to present-day operations. By listening to this episode, you will hear the story of how a textbook-crunching app became an insurance policy checking tool and how the artificial intelligence behind the tool, specifically natural language processing (NLP), can help insurance agencies expedite processes such as policy checking, saving the agency time, energy, and money.

072 - InsureTech Connect Embraces Agencies: Interview With Jay Weintraub Aug 27, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds interviews Jay Weintraub, CEO and co-founder of InsureTech Connect, about the brand new Agency Connect event at this year’s InsureTech Connect conference.

071 – Duds, False Starts, and Other Disappointments: Getting Technology To Work and Keep Working Aug 20, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds examines the challenges of implementing technology at insurance agencies. You will learn which biases prohibit insurance agencies from implementing new technology effectively, how to reset your expectations of technology, how your operations team figures in the implementation of any technology, and how to define the problem and the solution in terms of a quantifiable metric.

070 - Millennial Employees: How To Hire Them, How To Keep Them, How To Motivate Them Aug 13, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds and Azia Hurley talk about Millennial employees at insurance agencies. You will learn why Millennial and non-Millennial employees sometimes don’t get along, how a mentorship program is key to integrating Millennial hires, how career pathing helps Millennial talent develop, and other ways to motivate and incentivize Millennial employees.

069 - Growth Is a Choice: How Insurance Agencies Make It Aug 06, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds and David W. Clausen talk about how growth works at insurance agencies. You will learn how insurance agencies grow in leaps which are preceded by an inflection point that forces leadership to make a decision, what to take into account when making those decisions, how partnerships and technology assist in the growth process, and how to keep your eyes open for growth opportunities.

068 - The Digital Producer: How David W. Clausen Built a Lead Engine Online Jul 30, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds interviews David W. Clausen about David’s successful history of generating leads online. David is the CEO of Coastal Home Insurance Solutions. You will learn how you can grow your own digital presence by sticking to the very basics of online marketing and why you should test your way to success, being on the lookout for what works and what doesn’t.

067 - Coverage Problems: How "Little" Things Make a Big Difference Jul 23, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds and Melissa Wilder talk about the details that complicate coverages and how to spot them. You will learn, what kind of “little” things can wreck a coverage; where to find them; and how they vary from niche to niche, how to protect yourself against oversights, and what other resources you can consult to make sure you’re up-to-date on coverage details

066 - The Renewal Process: Timing, Teamwork, And Communication Jul 16, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds and Melissa Wilder discuss the perfect renewal process of an insurance agency. By listening to this episode, you'll learn what stage(s) in the renewal process typically fall apart, how to prevent it, and what to keep in mind when deciding whether to remarket

065 - Best Insurance Conferences of 2019 (So Far) Jul 09, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds talks about what he’s learned at the many insurance conferences he’s been to in the first half of 2019. By listening to this episode, you will learn, what Ryan heard and saw at three of the biggest insurance conferences this year: Elevate, Accelerate, and Dig|In, and which technologies and products stood out to him at every show.

064 - IT Support: Common Issues Affecting Insurance Agencies Jul 02, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Brad Ruben, founder of Archway, talks to Ryan Deeds about IT issues that affect insurance agency operations. By listening to this episode, you will learn about the many IT issues that affect insurance agency operations, including why so many agencies don’t get the most out of their agency management systems, how to guard against ransomware and other cyber threats, and how it's crucial to couple technology with Security Awareness Training (SAT) for your team.

063 - Customer Touchpoints That Your Agency Might Be Overlooking Jun 18, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds and Milan Malkani talk about customer touchpoints, specifically the ones that are often overlooked by insurance agencies. By listening to this episode, you will learn how to cross-sell and upsell more successfully, how to visualize customer touchpoints with the help of a funnel, and how the payment process is a gateway to more customer touchpoints, not the conclusion of them.

062 - Work-Life Balance in the Insurance Industry Jun 11, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds and Olivia Schmitt talk about the challenge of finding and maintaining a work-life balance in the insurance industry. Learn how the perception of work-life balance is changing as a result of technology, what agencies can do to assist the work-life balance of its employees, and why it’s in the agency’s best interest to do so.

061 - Five Indicators of an Insurance Agency's Well-Being Jun 04, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds and Eric Wistrand list the five questions you should ask to assess the state of an agency’s operations. Learn how seemingly small details like compensation structures reveal a lot about an agency’s attitude toward standardization, what a change management strategy ought to look like, how you can streamline communication by choosing the right platforms, and more.

060 - Understanding Value From The Customer's Point Of View May 28, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds and Olivia Schmitt explore how insurance agencies can define and understand value from their customer’s point of view. Learn what your customers consider valuable, how you can talk about value with them, and how a stewardship report can help you retain top customers.

059 - What Has Vertafore Been Up To? Chief Marketing Officer Responds May 21, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds talks with BJ Schaknowski, Chief Sales & Marketing Officer at Vertafore about how Vertafore is retooling its products to meet the challenges affecting insurance agencies and how BJ, a former Marine, brings rigor and discipline to his customer service and sales strategies.

058 - Getting Serious About Niching: Introduction For Insurance Agencies May 14, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds and Olivia Schmitt discuss the practice and value of niching at insurance agencies. Learn how building specializations within your organization can lead to profitability and operational excellence.

057 - Performance Reviews For Insurance Agencies: Instruments Of Operational Excellence May 07, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds and Melissa Wilder examine performance reviews and how to best administer them at insurance agencies.

056 - Employee Incentives That Work For Insurance Agencies Apr 30, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds and Melissa Wilder look at employee incentives within insurance agencies.

055 - Measuring Performance For Insurance Agency Account Managers: Qualities To Look For Apr 23, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds and Melissa Wilder look at the ways account manager performance is evaluated.

#054 - Account Manager Technology: What Is Useful, What Isn’t For Your Insurance Agency Apr 16, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds and Melissa Wilder review the technological options available to account managers, including best practices, how to assess, and how to implement.

#053 - Account Manager Burnout: Is Your Insurance Agency Afflicted, And What To Do About It Apr 09, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan Deeds and Melissa Wilder confront the day-to-day challenges affecting so many account managers, how they often lead to burnout, and what to do about it.

#052 - Compensation Structures: How To Pay Insurance Agency Staff Fairly Apr 02, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, learn best practices for compensation structures and how they impact insurance agency operations.

#051 – Outsourcing Done Right: The Insurance Agent’s Guide To Upwork Mar 26, 2019

In this episode of the Digital Broker podcast, learn how agencies can leverage freelancing platforms like Upwork to outpace the competition and achieve internal goals faster.

#050 - Sales and Marketing: Successful Processes For Insurance Producers Mar 19, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Steve and Ryan talk about the challenge of holding producers accountable to a process. By listening to this episode, you will learn, why producers are inclined to resist any process, where the interests of producers clash with those of everyone else at the agency, how to get producers on the same page as everyone else, and when it’s wise to let producers do their own thing.

#049 - Operationalizing Sales And Marketing: First Steps For Insurance Agents Mar 12, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Steve and Ryan talk about sales and marketing as an operational process. By listening to this episode, you will learn how the sales and marketing processes differ, and where they intertwine, how the processes tend to fall apart in the absence of operational oversight, and how an operational makeover of sales and marketing makes the processes sustainable, repeatable, and scalable.

#048 - Making Goals Happen: Strategic Planning For Insurance Agencies Mar 05, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Steve and Ryan talk about goals and strategic planning. By listening to this episode, you will learn why setting goals and hoping for the best is not enough. Learn how strategic planning for insurance agencies works and how it helps you achieve your goals, even in the face of unexpected change.

#047 - Chatbots: The Insurance Agent's Friend And Part-Time Rival (Featuring Duke Williams) Feb 26, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Steve and Ryan talk to tech entrepreneur Duke Williams about chatbot technology and how it applies to insurance operations. By listening to this episode, you will learn how chatbots work, why they’re useful inside an agency, why some chatbots are popular and others aren’t, what areas chatbots may threaten an agent's job, and what areas they'll help.

#046 - How One Insurance Agency Implemented Electronic Payments (Featuring Eric Wistrand) Feb 19, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Steve and Ryan talk with Eric Wistrand, IT Director at the Couch Braunsdorf Insurance Group, and learn how his agency successfully implemented an electronic payment solution.

#045 – How Indio Uses Data To Help Agents Improve Customer Experience (Featuring Adam Bratt) Feb 12, 2019

In this episode, Steve and Ryan talk to Adam Bratt, co-founder and CTO of Indio Technologies, to learn how insurance agencies are keeping up with data technology, where they have made progress, where there’s still work to be done, and how Indio is helping the industry as a whole by saving agents and brokers time with collecting data while making the customer experience of doing so an exceptional one.

#044 – Electronic Payments For Insurance Agencies (Featuring Duke Williams) Feb 05, 2019

On this episode of The Digital Broker, Steve and Ryan are joined by Duke Williams, founder of Simply Easier Payments, to discuss how electronic payments remain a challenge for many agencies, and how they can overcome those challenges to provide customers the modern, digital experience they desire.

#043 - Leveraging Checklists To Streamline Insurance Agency Operations Jan 29, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Steve and Ryan examine insurance agency checklists. They explain how checklists are the basis of standardization and therefore a path to operational excellence, how to focus on the essential and keep everything else out, and how to foster adoption amongst your agency staff.

#042 - Building Your Insurance Agency's Operational Team: Who To Hire And When Jan 22, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Steve and Ryan analyze operational teams. They explain why operations are inseparable from growth, what an operational team ought to look like depending on your agency’s size, what to expect from every member of your operational team, and how to choose the most qualified or appropriate members for your agency.

#041 – How Insurance Agencies Can Profit From Small Commercial Lines Jan 15, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Steve and Ryan confront the challenge of profiting from small commercial accounts at insurance agencies. They explain why small commercial lines are so hard to profit from, why you shouldn’t leave that money on the table just because the profit margins are low, and how you can automate, reduce, eliminate, and outsource your way to profitability in this niche.

#040 - Anatomy Of The Perfect Workstation For Insurance Agents Jan 08, 2019

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Steve and Ryan discuss workplace optimization with an emphasis on the desk. By listening to this episode, you will learn how the workstation has evolved to accommodate different preferences, the ins and outs of all these variations, and how to give your employees a choice without slowing down their work.

#039 - Agents' Paradise: Designing A Work Environment For Insurance Agencies Dec 18, 2018

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Steve and Ryan discuss how physical space reflects and supports an insurance agency's culture. They explain how practically everything inside your office says something about your company and how this affects your employees and visitors.

#038 – Document Management: When To Store And When To Let The Carrier Handle It Dec 11, 2018

In this episode of The Digital Broker podcast, Steve and Ryan discuss document management and what accounts for so much of its complexities. They provide solutions for your agency, including what you should and shouldn't store, how long to store documents, and how carriers can even take off some of the load for you.

#037 - The World Through The Eyes Of An Insurance Account Manager (Featuring Melissa Wilder) Dec 04, 2018

In this episode of The Digital Broker podcast, Steve and Ryan interview Melissa Wilder, an experienced account manager. They seek her advice on operational excellence and how to keep the peace between account managers and producers within an insurance agency.

#036 - Nightmare-Free Document Management Nov 27, 2018

In this episode of The Digital Broker podcast, Steve and Ryan explain how insurance agencies can have a nightmare-free document management operation. They discuss the issues of document management systems, including how to compare a DMS software to your AMS offering and how to overcome operational challenges of implementation.

#035 - Remote Work: What To Weigh Before Going Through With It Nov 20, 2018

In this episode of The Digital Broker podcast, Steve and Ryan examine remote work within insurance agencies. They discuss why remote work is taking off, why your agency needs to consider it, how to conceive a remote work policy, how to guard against unforeseen complications, and how to ensure a smooth transition.

#034 - How To Become The Leader Your Agency Needs Nov 13, 2018

In this episode of The Digital Broker podcast, Steve and Ryan discuss the principles of leadership in an insurance agency. You will learn what it means to lead as opposed to being in charge, how to see the total picture, how to minimize workplace arguments, and how to get the best results from your team.

#033 - Insurance Agent's Blueprint For Digital Transformation Nov 06, 2018

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Steve and Ryan continue their conversation from their Executive Management Program presentations at Applied Net 2018 and provide insurance agencies a blueprint for digital transformation. You will learn how to better read the future by distinguishing between hard and soft trends and how ideas, even the bad ones can fuel your organization forward.

#032 - Data, Culture, and Innovation In Insurance Agency Practice Oct 30, 2018

In this episode of The Digital Broker, Steve and Ryan unpack the contents of the talks they gave at the Executive Management Program of the Applied Net 2018 conference. By listening to this episode, you will learn how to tell bad data from good data, how to identify soul-sucking tasks and remove them, and how to evaluate the solutions you might not know you have, such as customized API’s.

#031 - Google’s Nine-Figure Investment in Applied Systems (Interview With Reid French) Oct 23, 2018

In this episode of The Digital Broker podcast, Steve and Ryan talk directly to Reid French , CEO of Applied Systems, about CapitalG’s earth-shaking investment in Reid’s company. By listening to this episode, you will learn: What the deal represents not only for Applied but for the insurance industry as a whole.

#030 - Confronting Agency Fears To Step Outside and Try New Technologies Oct 16, 2018

This week on The DIgital Broker podcast, Steve Anderson and Ryan Deeds discuss insurance technology, also known as Insurtech, and why insurance agencies are so hesitant to look at new technologies. They explain easy ways agencies can assess technology without risking anything, for example, by going to conferences such as InsurTech Connect.

#029 - How To Utilize Email Technology To Improve Insurance Agency Operations Oct 09, 2018

In this episode of The Digital Broker podcast, Steve Anderson and Ryan Deeds discuss email technology management for insurance agencies and brokerages. Learn how DMARC and an archive can save your agency time and money, how to handle underwriters who refuse encrypted email and noninvasive ways to monitor employee use of work email on personal devices.

#028 - How Insurance Agencies Can Minimize The Productivity Lost From Email Oct 02, 2018

Steve and Ryan discuss how the unrestricted use of email can lead to lost productivity within an agency or brokerage. They go over certain tools, procedures, and training that can enhance your agency's production across the board.

#027 - The Need For Speed For Insurance Agencies Sep 25, 2018

In this episode of “The Digital Broker”, Steve and Ryan discuss the growing importance of speed in the insurance industry. They cover the pitfalls to avoid, how speed can be a competitive advantage, and areas to implement speed first.

#026 - How Should Your Agency Grow – Organically or Through Acquisition? Sep 18, 2018

In this episode of “The Digital Broker”, Steve and Ryan discuss the need for growth in an agency and compare the pros and cons of organic growth versus acquisitive growth.

#025 - How New Technology and Data Are Changing The Insurance Market (Featuring Frank Sentner) Sep 11, 2018

In this episode of “The Digital Broker”, Steve and Ryan speak to Frank Sentner, the original founder of Sagitta ™ and a legendary figure in the insurance industry. Frank explains the history of data standards in the insurance industry (ACORD), whether data standards are still needed, how APIs are impacting the insurance industry, latest technological developments in the insurance space, and how to evaluate insurtech startups.

#024 - Ensuring the Perpetuation – Growing Owners from Producers (Featuring Cooper Jones) Sep 04, 2018

In this episode of “The Digital Broker”, Steve and Ryan speak to Cooper Jones, the President of The Crichton Group, about the methods that agencies and brokerages can use to ensure their perpetuation over time.

#023 - Designing and Implementing a Winning Customer Experience Aug 28, 2018

In this episode of “The Digital Broker”, Steve and Ryan discuss how insurance agencies must evolve from providing “customer service” to “customer experience.” They explain the difference between the two, why it's important to provide more than the minimum expected service, and how a well-designed customer experience can improve your business.

#022 - How To Develop and Communicate An Agency's Value Proposition Aug 20, 2018

In this episode of “The Digital Broker," Steve Anderson and Ryan Deeds explain how an agency can define and communicate their “value proposition” to customers, prospects and the industry as a whole. How developments in technology and business are resulting in fundamental changes for the insurance industry and what that portends for the future.

#021 - An Innovative Approach To Training and Onboarding Account Managers (Featuring Justin Goodman) Aug 14, 2018

In this episode of “The Digital Broker," Steve Anderson and Ryan Deeds speak with their guest, Justin Goodman of Goodman Insurance Services about how his agency responded to the challenge of onboarding, training, and retaining new staff by developing their own training platform - Total CSR.

#20 - Attract and Retain Millennials in the Insurance Industry (Featuring Nick Lamparelli) Aug 07, 2018

In this episode of “The Digital Broker” podcast, Steve and Ryan speak with Nick Lamparelli of Insurance Nerds about attracting and retaining millennials in the insurance industry. Together, they cover how millennials perceive the insurance industry and what agencies can do to attract and retain millennials

#019 - Understanding The Role of HR Within An Insurance Agency (Featuring Michelle Trueblood) Jul 31, 2018

In this episode of “The Digital Broker” podcast, Steve and Ryan speak with Michelle Trueblood, Chief HR Officer of The Horton Group, an insurance agency with 400 employees. Together, they discuss how HR has developed at insurance agencies over the years and the impact training and onboarding has on the organization.

#018 - How To Create A Culture That Keeps Employees Engaged Jul 24, 2018

In this episode of “The Digital Broker”, Steve and Ryan discuss what happens once a new employee is brought into the organization and how to keep that employee engaged and fulfilled so they remain interested staying with the organization.

#017 - Hiring and Retaining Employees: How Effective Onboarding Keeps An Insurance Agency Afloat Jul 17, 2018

In this episode of Indio's “The Digital Broker” podcast, hosts, Steve Anderson and Ryan Deeds, discuss the lifeblood of a successful agency – the employees. Together, they explore what it takes to attract, engage, train and retain both seasoned employees and new blood to make an agency successful.

#016 - Converting From Vertafore Sagitta to TechCanary and Why (Featuring Chris Roman) Jul 10, 2018

In this episode of “The Digital Broker” podcast, Steve and Ryan speak with Chris Roman of Magnum Insurance Agency about transitioning from Vertafore's agency management software, Sagitta (which they had been using for twenty years) to TechCanary, a new, modern solution.

#015 – 5 Steps To Selecting The Best Agency Management System For Your Agency Jul 03, 2018

In this episode of “The Digital Broker” podcast, Steve and Ryan will show you a 5-step process for choosing the right Agency Management System (AMS) for your organization.

#014 - Does Your Agency Need a New Agency Management System (AMS)? Jun 26, 2018

In this episode of “The Digital Broker” podcast, Steve and Ryan breakdown reasons your agency should consider looking at upgrading your Agency Management System (AMS).

#013 - How To Measure And Improve Customer Satisfaction (Featuring Eric Wistrand) Jun 19, 2018

In this episode of “The Digital Broker” podcast, Steve and Ryan talk with Eric Wistrand of Couch Braunsdorf Insurance Group about measuring and improving customer satisfaction. Eric explains how his agency utilizes a survey known as Net Promoter Score (NPS) to drastically improve their client experience and provides a guide for how your agency can do so too.

#012 - Text Messaging For Insurance Agencies - Part 2 (How To Implement) Jun 11, 2018

In the second of a two-part series on texting, Steve and Ryan discuss the “nuts and bolts” of using text messaging for agency communications and how to implement different use cases. By thinking creatively about the many ways in which this popular form of communication can be used, agencies can improve engagement, better serve their current customers, and even secure some new ones.

#011 - Text Messaging For Insurance Agencies (Rules of Engagement) Jun 05, 2018

In this first of a two-part series on text messaging, Ryan and Steve discuss why and how agencies should be implementing policies and procedures around this common form of communication –and why it can often be one of the biggest E&O holes in an agency’s documentation.

#010 - Outsourcing Agency Operations: Why, When, and Where? (Part 2) May 29, 2018

In the second part of a two-part series on outsourcing, Steve and Ryan discuss how "process" outsourcing can both increase profitability and lead to happier, more engaged agency employees. They explain where to begin for agencies just starting out, potential drawbacks, and major outsourcing firms that provide services for insurance agencies.

#009 - Outsourcing Agency Operations: Why, When, and Where? (Part 1) May 22, 2018

The first of a two-part series on outsourcing, Steve and Ryan discuss opportunities for agencies to maximize profitability through the outsourcing of operations. They look at why agencies should consider outsourcing, when it is appropriate, and review some popular platforms where agencies can connect with talent worldwide to enhance their capabilities and value proposition—all without needing to hire any new full-time employees.

#008 - APIs And Why Your Agency Should Care May 15, 2018

In this episode of “The Digital Broker,” Ryan and Steve explain APIs (and why agents and brokers should care about them). They discuss some of the simple ways in which APIs can be used to improve the customer experience, automate and refine agency processes, and save agencies valuable time and money.

#007 - Account Managers Are The Heart And Soul Of The Agency May 08, 2018

In this episode of “The Digital Broker,” Ryan and Steve examine the changing nature of the agency account manager. They discuss what skills and traits today’s agencies should look for in a great account manager, and why it is so important to empower account managers to contribute to an agency’s success in new and evolving ways. Finally, they suggest simple tactics and tools that agencies can use to help make this happen.

#006 - Measuring Growth Apr 30, 2018

Ryan and Steve examine one of the most important components of measuring an agency’s success: measuring growth. They examine the three typical ways in which agencies typically measure growth (new, retained, and lost business), and why it is so important to define and understand these categories. The hosts also offer guidance on how agencies can use data to gain better insight into growth— and to use that data to create simple, actionable plans for improving profitability.

#005 - Culture as a Value: An Overlooked Key to Profitability Apr 25, 2018

One team, one dream! In this episode of The Digital Broker, Ryan and Steve focus on culture as a core tenet of success. The most profitable agencies ingrain accountability, teamwork, and innovation into their corporate fabric. Listen in to learn more about the best methods to build culture and the associated benefits of doing so.

#004 - Data: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly Apr 25, 2018

Data is everywhere. It can be your biggest asset or your biggest pain. In this episode, Ryan and Steve walk us through the best strategies for collecting data from clients and leveraging it improve operations, sales, and profitability.

#003 - Technology: Cutting Through the Noise Apr 25, 2018

Technology is changing more quickly today than ever before. This change is fantastic, but can be overwhelming. Ryan and Steve share their secrets and strategies to finding and implementing the best technology available to agents today.

#002 - Blocking and Tackling: Operational Frameworks Apr 25, 2018

It’s all about frameworks! Ryan and Steve have found that growth materializes quickly when agencies compartmentalize the components of their businesses and approach each with a fundamental framework to manage and measure new operations and technology. In this episode, The Digital Broker lays out a six-step framework that you can use today to begin implementing meaningful change at your agency.

#001 - The Digital Broker Apr 25, 2018

Meet the hosts of our new podcast, The Digital Broker. Steve Anderson and Ryan Deeds have teamed up with Indio to create the only podcast focused exclusively on insurance technology and operations. In episode 1, our hosts share a bit about their insurance backgrounds and operational expertise. Listen in to hear how these core tenets can be the biggest drivers of profitability at your agency.

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