How digital can deliver perpetuation planning and growth

The agency force is aging. The next ten years will see an increase in agents retiring, yet there will not be enough qualified replacement agents to compensate for the loss.

If this gap is going to be filled, then perpetuation planning is needed in order to protect the agency owner and its beneficiaries, as well as the companies they do business with.

A recent survey by the Academy of Producer Insurance Studies found that 40 percent of agency principals don’t have a written perpetuation plan. That is why insurance companies must take action to protect their market share and to grow their businesses by helping agents develop a written, well thought-out perpetuation plan.

Some companies and trade associations have recognized the need to help agents develop a perpetuation plan, but very few have actually followed through.

What can be done to overcome this gap in perpetuation planning? Insurance companies need to look digitally and use the web to develop an educational portal, where the tools and resources are readily available for an agency to use.

Granted, not all agencies will need to use these tools and resources since they are large enough that they can afford to hire a consultant. Also, some agencies are so small that it doesn’t make sense. But there is a high value-based opportunity to help agencies and, in turn, to gain loyal agencies that value the support given.

What type of services can be offered via a digital website?

Proven technology already exists that can develop a perpetuation plan on the web. Developing interactive tools that provide questions and allow the agency to answer enables the algorithms behind the scene to provide one or two options that the agency may use. Based on the answers to key questions, the program will provide a perpetuation plan, which covers:

• Goals

• Strategy and tactics

• Mission and vision