How to Grow an Independent Insurance Agency

As consumers shop around for the right combination of coverage, price and service excellence, building a name for your insurance agency is important. But they may want access to multiple insurance products/carriers, so it pays to go independent.

With the opportunity for increased product and carrier options and higher earnings potential, operating independently could be just what you’ve been looking for. We’ll help you learn how to grow an independent insurance agency with 6 tips to guide your journey.

1. Lay a Strong Foundation

Your dream is waiting, but you’ll have to do the hard work to achieve it. Create a foundation for agency growth by taking a few simple steps.

Write a business plan.

Who do you want to be, and what kind of resources do you have to work with? Determine your way forward by defining your:

• Financial goals
• Marketing strategies
• Projected budget

Complete licensing and compliance requirements.

Follow the lay of the land for operating an insurance agency. Contact your state's insurance regulatory authority for specific requirements, which may include prelicensing courses and passing an insurance exam.

2. Build Carrier Relationships

Have an idea of what you want your agency to be? Find carriers that match your market, goals and financial stability and build a rapport with them. Building carrier relationships will help when it comes time to apply for appointments.

Apply for appointments.

Appointments determine the products you can offer, pricing competitiveness and the types of clients you can serve. In addition to their reputation and the relationship you’ve built, think through the opportunity each carrier could provide:

• Product quality
• Commission rates
• Financial stability

To be attractive to carriers, be sure that your agency has the basics in place:

• Licensing
• Errors and omissions insurance
• Business plan

3. Define Your Book of Business

Understand what your agency does best and lean into it. Focusing on the right kind of business can help you attract the right clients and give your agency a safety net.

Find your niche.

Cyber, drone and aviation, agribusiness and farming, equine? The type(s) of coverage you specialize in, as well as providing unique offerings no other agency has in your area, could be just the ticket to expand the business.

Imagine this: You live in a rural area with a booming agricultural community but little protection for farmers against loss. Why not offer insurance for animal enclosures or crop loss?

Diversify income streams.

The more your agency can do, the more valuable it will be. Consider selling multiple product types – such as both personal and commercial insurance – to strengthen your resilience.

Diversification reduces your reliance on a single product line, so your agency can collaborate with other carriers and help customers in new ways. Branching out in this way not only reduces your risk in the face of economic downturns and market changes but also makes it easier for clients to get all the coverage they need in one place.

4. Invest in Technology

Grow your business with a modern agency management system (AMS) that has the chops to handle the entire customer lifecycle, from quoting to servicing to renewal. As the insurance industry changes, using an AMS that does it all could be your competitive advantage.

Follow these tips to choose an AMS:

Choose a solution that enables marketing automation to promote your products, qualify leads and streamline communication.

Select an AMS that automates routine and repetitive tasks, such as reminders and follow-ups, to free up staff.

Prioritize a cloud-based system to enable access from anywhere and serve your clients across locations.

To deliver fast, seamless customer service, choose an insurance agency management system with an embedded comparative personal lines rater and commercial submissions tool so you can quote, bind and remarket without leaving the AMS.

5. Strengthen Your Digital Brand Presence

Yellow Pages and business cards don’t cut it anymore. Knowing how to grow an independent insurance agency means being digitally savvy. Build your brand and acquire new clients through online marketing.

Optimize social media profiles.

A common misconception brands have about social media is that they have to be present everywhere. In reality, it depends on your audience. Focus on the platforms where clients and prospects are most active. Build up your profile(s) on just one or two platforms and get in the habit of regularly interacting and posting.

Example: LinkedIn builds professional credibility, while Instagram lets you show a more personal side with photos, stories and reels. Which suits your audience?

Claim your Google Business Profile.

Formerly known as Google My Business, Google Business Profile is a free offering from the search giant that you can use to share business details and grow your independent insurance agency. Use yours to collect and showcase client reviews and testimonials, share operating hours and key lines of business, and even promote special offers.

Generate leads through email marketing.

Not everything is about search and social – just think of how packed your inbox still is. Knowing how to grow an independent insurance agency also means making room for email in your marketing strategy.

Launch email marketing campaigns to share valuable content and help your sales team attract prospects. Remember, you can lean on AMS marketing automation to nurture these leads, leveraging templates and sending messages to move them through the sales funnel.

6. Prioritize Client Retention

Don’t just pop up with renewal notices each year. Become a trusted resource that encourages retention, from preventing sticker shock by sharing policy changes to providing always-on service.

Proactively manage renewals.

Knowing how to grow an independent insurance agency means realizing that every renewal counts – especially when you're just starting. Maintain year-round relationships that motivate clients to stick around by:

• Staying in touch via email and text
• Acknowledging special occasions, such as birthdays
• Sharing special promotions

Remember that your AMS can also help you proactively manage renewals. Put it to work flagging at-risk policies and automating renewal reminders.

Improve retention with these tips.

Insurance agencies that repeatedly earn clients’ trust are partners, not just providers. Here are a few tips to help your agency go above and beyond:

• Use client data to offer multiple coverage options to keep their coverage in one place and increase your revenue.
• Provide 24/7 customer service and self-service options to improve client satisfaction and reduce agent workload.
• Monitor retention via analytics to evaluate and adjust agency strategies.

Grow Your Independent Insurance Agency with EZLynx

Learning how to grow an independent insurance agency is a process. Write out your business plan to understand what you wish to accomplish to guide you as you pursue carrier appointments and define your book of business.

And don’t forget the power of technology! Select not only a powerful AMS, but also boost your digital posture through marketing. As you make progress, your agency will be able to shift from signing net-new clients to elevating and growing the ones you already have.

Put your agency on the right path with these tested tips and EZLynx by your side. Our cloud-based EZLynx Management System™ provides tools that do it all, with automation to enhance daily workflows, customer service and marketing communications.

Explore the possibilities, and take an even deeper dive into ways to grow as an independent agency with the EZGuide, "How to Become an Independent Agent."