Insurance agents often specialize in specific areas of expertise, which can be intentional or due to the needs of their existing clients. However, if you're a new or growing agent or agency, it can take time to determine your niche. Here are some strategies to help you identify and develop a niche within your current clientele.
Trends in Business Growth
Are you noticing any patterns in your current book that could potentially lead to new business opportunities? Do these patterns exist in specific industries or verticals? Also, have you already factored in the general risk associated with these businesses, or is there a higher degree of complexity involved? For instance, while the restaurant industry may be highly competitive, breweries that also have restaurant exposure could be a lucrative area for you to explore.
Developing Industries
New risks often emerge as new technologies and businesses develop and our culture changes. For example, over the last decade, the growth of the insurance market for cannabis production, cyber liability, and shared services (e.g., Airbnb, VRBO, etc.) has seen a rapid expansion. What will be the next trends for growth? We often see these develop within specific industries before they expand to the general population. Some examples that are on the rise include non-emergency medical transit (NEMT) and 3D printing services.
Market Access
You can develop a specialty with unique market access. If you have an appointed carrier with an appetite for specific and harder-to-place risks, that may be something you can use to your advantage. If they can work with you to develop program business, even better. Talk to your closest carrier partners and see the risks that might provide you with space for growth. It doesn't necessarily have to be local, either. Regional or even nationwide programs are not out of reach if you have the markets and the knowledge.
If your current carriers are not your best access point, what about your wholesale partners, aggregators, or other groups? You may need to reach out to a new carrier with a plan about why they should partner with you on this new book specialty. Put together your numbers and strategy and "pitch" what you can do.
Whatever you decide, allocate the time and resources you'll need to grow it. You must develop relationships and build expertise to be seen as a true "expert" in insuring this field.
As you grow this specialty book, ReFocus AI can help provide a solution for your agency to improve retention. Let us help you understand how growth and retention can go hand in hand!
