Many agents and brokers are experiencing challenges in writing new business. The number one complaint we hear are that the phones aren’t ringing. It shouldn’t take the second coming of the Great Depression for insurance agents to prospect new business. It should be a habit and become a part of your daily routine.  

In the insurance brokerage business, we’re spoiled. Most of the business you write calls you. You or your employer advertises on TV, the internet, yellow pages and hundreds of other types of publications. Continue reading "Insurance Brokers need to take Proactive Approach when Prospecting"

When you buy a house, your Real Estate Agent can show you COMPS from other sales in the area to help you determine the value of your home. Businesses are a completely different animal because COMPS aren’t maintained on business sales. Most homes are purchased using a home loan where businesses are purchased using different types of funding. SBA Loans, Bank Loans, Lines of Credit, Seller Financing and cash are all common. Veteran Business Brokers often say a Business will ultimately sell for whatever someone is willing to pay for it. There are many factors that affect the pricing of a business but unfortunately there’s no set formula.

Business Owners usually prefer to err on the side of overpricing so they don’t leave money on the table. Buyers err on the side of caution and think most businesses are overpriced. It’s human nature depending on what side you’re on to think this way. When we sold our first business we were grossly overpriced and after a year of haggling with 3 different suitors we realized that overpricing a business is a bad idea.

When you sell a business you have 1 or 2 opportunities to sell it. Every business gets a buyer that’s actually willing and qualified to close a deal. Continue reading "No Two Businesses are Alike Which Makes Pricing a Difficult Proposition"

We’ve discussed numerous times that the main reason a business doesn’t sell is the sellers overestimate of their offering. Sellers often try to assess the value of their business the same way they assess their home. Homes or any real property have a constant value including the worthiness of the land. You don’t have to do anything to a home in order for it to increase in value. Continue reading "One Important Point to Remember when Selling a Business: It’s Not Real Estate"

Ontario, Calif.-based Alpha Risk Insurance Services acquired Pacific Way Insurance Services, also of Ontario. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Pacific Way was founded in 2004 by Karen Cancilla as a small commercial lines agency, and has grown to more than 500 clients and 10 percent of its business in personal lines.

Continue reading "Alpha Risk Insurance Services Acquires Pacific Way Insurance Services"

Los Angeles, Ca. LA’s Best Insurance Services acquired Mid-C Insurance Services on May 30th, 2008. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Mid-C Insurance was established 50 years ago and specializes in Personal Lines Insurance Coverage’s. Owner Christie Cummings said “We had several suitors interested in our agency but LA’s Best was the best candidate because they wanted to continue doing business the way our clients are accustomed to doing business.”LA’s Best Insurance has several locations in Southern California and specializes in Auto and Home Insurance.  Broker/Owner Daniel Corchado was elated to complete this acquisition and added “In this soft market this acquisition will help us attain our growth goals for 2008 and we look forward to serving the clients of Mid-C without interruption”.

Ganis Consulting www.ganisco.com a Los Angeles based Insurance Consulting firm that specializes in selling insurance agencies brought the parties together and assisted in closing the transaction. “We’d like all Insurance Agency Owners to know that if they want to sell or are considering selling in the next year to give us a call”.

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