My question for you today is do you produce or you just practice? That’s the topic of today’s post.
I hear it all the time from agency owners and sales leaders across the country, how do I get my people to produce? Well, the fact of the matter is you’ve got to teach them how to sell value and sell a relationship. Right now, we’ve got agents running rampant, doing their best to compete on price, and I hate to tell you, that’s like building your house on a foundation full of sinking sand. People want value. They may not realize it at the beginning of a meeting, but that’s your job to show them precisely what you can do that they’re currently not getting. People who sell on price will also lose on price, and people who sell on value will take that business every time.
We have equations that we’ve used over the years. Call 100 people, get 50 people to answer the phone, get 20 people to meet with you, ten will let you quote, and two will end up being your client. That’s insane. Work so much smarter than that. You have to know who your audience is. You have to know the motivating factors behind what drives them to give you the order, and then you have the leverage that every time you meet with them. We don’t need people to be in our organizations that only quote, “trying to earn business.” There’s no value in that at all.
Figure out a way to differentiate yourself. Create a unique process and approach and brand that, with its brand separate from your agency’s. Then go out and define your ideal prospects, put those people in your pipeline, and call on those people and nobody else. Those couple of steps will be one of the things that help you keep from practicing more than producing. If you fill your pipeline with the right people, if you remain relevant by staying in front of them, if you have a value proposition instead of a quoting machine, that is exactly what’s going to allow you to kill it in commercial insurance.
We can talk all day about marketing funnels, quoting platforms, and prospecting strategies—but if you don’t have people who can sell, none of it matters. Every agency owner I talk to says the same thing: “We just can’t find producers who can sell.”
The Protege Season 3 cast met with special guest mentor Charles Specht to talk about what it really takes to build a million dollar book of business in the commercial insurance world. The result was one of the most valuable mentoring sessions the group has ever had.
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You could feel it—every producer, coach, and guest mentor knew this was the official start of something special. The conversation wasn’t just about competition. It was about purpose, legacy, and growth.
Hosted by David Carothers, creator of The Protege and founder of Killing Commercial, this kickoff call set the tone for what Season 3 will represent: a proving ground for producers who are ready to work harder, think deeper, and build something that lasts.
Influence is one of the most powerful tools we have in business, leadership, and personal life. Used well, it inspires people, builds trust, and creates ethical results. Used poorly, it can slide into manipulation and self-interest.
Reinvention is one of the most powerful themes in the insurance industry. Some of the best commercial producers in the country did not grow up wanting to sell insurance. They did not study risk management in college. They did not come from an agency family. They found this industry after they tried something else. They found it after life pushed them toward a career where performance, autonomy, and mindset determine the outcome.
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