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Buying more insurance leads won't fix a broken sales process.

If your producers call a lead once, forget to follow up after a quote, take too long to make first contact, or let old opportunities sit untouched in the CRM… more leads may just mean more wasted money.

In this episode of The Modern Insurance Agent Podcast, David Denning sits down with Kenzie Scott, National Business Development Manager at Ricochet 360, to break down how modern insurance agencies are using CRMs, dialers, automation, workflows, and better processes to get more value from the leads they already have.

And one of the biggest takeaways?

Sometimes the lead isn't the problem. The system around the lead is.

Kenzie shares what she's seeing inside insurance agencies across the country and why the agencies growing fastest aren't simply telling producers to "make more calls."

They're building systems that make it easier for their teams to do the RIGHT activity at the RIGHT time.

In this episode, you'll discover:

• Why insurance agencies may be blaming their leads for a process problem
• What speed-to-contact means and why it matters
• Why calling an insurance lead once isn't enough
• How a CRM + dialer can remove dozens of tiny decisions from a producer's day
• How Ricochet 360's "Shark Tank" approach keeps leads from sitting untouched
• Why old leads, requotes, recycled leads, and win-backs shouldn't disappear into your CRM
• How automation can help producers consistently follow up after a quote
• Why dedicated sales producers can outperform hybrid sales/service roles
• How agencies can use technology without turning producers into automation experts
• Why buying the right software isn't enough if your team doesn't actually use it
• How gamification can help create team buy-in around new technology
• Why service workflows may be one of the most overlooked growth opportunities in an insurance agency
• How AI could change service, reporting, certificates, and other repetitive agency tasks
• Why technology should give insurance agents MORE time for human conversations not replace them
• What insurance agencies need to do now to stay competitive in 2026

Kenzie shares some eye-opening observations about follow-up.

According to the data she discusses in the episode, 41% of producers call a lead only once, while 48% don't follow up after providing a quote.

That's a huge problem when agencies are spending thousands of dollars generating opportunities.

Instead of constantly feeding producers new leads, Kenzie explains how the right system can continually prioritize new leads, recycled leads, requotes, and win-backs so producers always know who they should contact next.

But there's another important lesson:

Technology alone won't fix your agency.

You can buy an incredible CRM, dialer, or automation platform, but if your team doesn't learn the system and change its habits, you're essentially putting an inexperienced driver behind the wheel of a Lamborghini.

The tool AND the behavior around the tool have to work together.

And this isn't only about sales.

Kenzie believes service automation and workflows are a major untapped opportunity for growing insurance agencies. The right systems can help service teams manage follow-ups and repetitive tasks while freeing humans to spend more time doing what technology can't replace: taking care of clients.

If you're an insurance agent, agency owner, producer, or sales manager trying to close more business without simply working more hours, this episode will make you rethink how leads move through your agency.

Connect with Us:

🔗Download the resources & access the full podcast library – jumpstartgonow.com/podcast

Join the Movement of Modern Insurance Agents!

Ready to become the agent clients trust and refer to their friends? Start by building your personal brand, using social media effectively, and prioritizing relationships over transactions. Let’s change the way people see insurance one client at a time! 🚀

📢 Join the discussion! Connect with like-minded agents and get exclusive marketing tips in the Marketing for Insurance Agents Facebook Group. jumpstartgonow.com/join-group

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What does it actually take to build an insurance business from $0 to more than $2 million in premium in just four years?

For Stacie Warner, it wasn't buying leads.

It wasn't spending hours every day cold calling.

And it definitely wasn't constantly pitching insurance on social media.

In this episode of The Modern Insurance Agent Podcast, David Denning sits down with Stacie Warner, owner of Warner Twins Insurance Services, to break down how she built a thriving commercial insurance business by choosing a niche, building genuine relationships, using social media consistently, and turning happy clients into a powerful source of referrals.

Stacie specializes in helping contractors with their commercial insurance needs and she built her practice almost entirely through relationships, referrals, and social media.

You'll discover:

• How Stacie went from the restaurant industry to owning an insurance business
• Why she chose contractors as her insurance niche
• The two major insurance problems she sees contractors struggle with
• How she grew from $0 to $2M+ in premium in four years
• Why buying leads never felt right for the way she wanted to build her business
• What changed when she started intentionally using social media
• How she went from HATING being on camera to consistently showing up online
• Why she focuses on relationships instead of pitching people in the DMs
• How contractors started finding her through Facebook
• Why roughly 50% of her book of business now comes from referrals
• How Centers of Influence and strategic referral partners accelerated her growth
• Why Facebook groups became one of her biggest opportunities
• How she manages her social media in roughly 25 minutes a day
• Why personal content is an important part of her insurance marketing strategy
• How clients started tagging and recommending her even when she wasn't actively marketing
• Why AI won't eliminate the need for a knowledgeable insurance agent
• How Stacie balances building a growing agency while raising twin boys
• Her vision for eventually building a $1 million revenue insurance agency

One of the biggest turning points came when Stacie stopped wondering where her next lead would come from and started building a system around relationships and visibility.

After implementing the strategy, contractors began reaching out to her on Facebook. Then those contractors referred other contractors. Eventually, clients started tagging her whenever someone in their communities asked for commercial insurance recommendations.

Today, Stacie estimates approximately 50% of her book comes from referrals including referrals that originated from relationships she initially built through social media.

And here's what makes her social strategy especially interesting:

She's not spending all day creating content.

Stacie says she spends about 25 minutes at most on Facebook, sharing a mix of her personal life, helpful content, and occasional educational business posts. Instead of constantly saying, "Buy insurance from me," she lets people get to know her and understand what she does over time.

That consistency has created something even more valuable than another lead source:

A community of people willing to advocate for her.

Her clients and sometimes people who haven't even worked with her yet tag Stacie when contractors ask for insurance recommendations inside Facebook groups.

If you're an insurance agent who's tired of transactional lead generation and wants to build a business around relationships, referrals, social media, and becoming the go-to agent in your niche, this is an episode you don't want to miss.

Connect with Us:

🔗Download the resources & access the full podcast library – jumpstartgonow.com/podcast

Join the Movement of Modern Insurance Agents!

Ready to become the agent clients trust and refer to their friends? Start by building your personal brand, using social media effectively, and prioritizing relationships over transactions. Let’s change the way people see insurance one client at a time! 🚀

📢 Join the discussion! Connect with like-minded agents and get exclusive marketing tips in the Marketing for Insurance Agents Facebook Group. jumpstartgonow.com/join-group

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Tired of buying leads, cold calling, and competing with every other insurance agent for the exact same prospects?

Maybe it’s time to get a little weird.

In this episode of The Modern Insurance Agent Podcast, David and Elle Denning count down 10 unconventional ways insurance agents are getting clients—without relying on the same tired lead-generation strategies everyone else is using.

And these aren't gimmicks.

They're practical ways to become useful, memorable, and trusted BEFORE someone needs insurance.

We’re counting down all 10, including:

#10 — Create a resource people keep for YEARS
Think new homeowner manuals, Turning 65 cheat sheets, new parent checklists, and other genuinely useful resources.

#9 — Sponsor the pain, not the game
Forget another banner at the little league field. Sponsor the annoying things people actually want help with.

#8 — Become the helpful neighbor online
Instead of advertising to your community, become the person everyone already trusts for recommendations and answers.

#7 — Make insurance entertaining
Turn crazy real-world insurance situations into recurring content people actually WANT to watch.

#6 — Give referrals before asking for them
Become the person who knows the roofer, CPA, realtor, plumber, attorney, and other professionals your clients need.

#5 — Teach where your prospects already gather
Libraries, employers, community organizations, churches, and other trusted spaces can put you in front of an entire room of the right people.

#4 — Find referral partners at overlooked trigger moments
New babies. Retirement. Moving. Divorce. Tax season. Open enrollment. Find the professionals already present when someone's insurance needs change.

#3 — Give gifts that actually DO something
A great client gift can strengthen your relationship, keep your name around, AND help your client.

#2 — Adopt the chaos season
Instead of trying to sell when everyone is overwhelmed, become the person who helps them prepare BEFORE the chaos begins.

And finally...

#1 might sound ridiculous at first but it could be one of the most powerful organic marketing strategies an insurance agent can use.

Own a weird, hyper-specific micro niche.

Night-shift nurses. Food truck owners. Tattoo artists. CrossFit gym owners. Classic car enthusiasts. Teachers approaching retirement.

Heck... even people with backyard chickens.

Small communities talk. And when you're the ONLY insurance agent who understands their world, your name can spread quickly.

The big lesson behind all 10 strategies is simple:

Become useful or memorable before you ever have something to sell.

You don't need to try all 10, either. Pick ONE idea that fits your personality, audience, and business and start there.

Whether you sell life insurance, Medicare, health insurance, annuities, P&C, or employee benefits, you'll walk away from this episode with ideas you can actually put into action.

Connect with Us:

🔗Download the resources & access the full podcast library – jumpstartgonow.com/podcast

Join the Movement of Modern Insurance Agents!

Ready to become the agent clients trust and refer to their friends? Start by building your personal brand, using social media effectively, and prioritizing relationships over transactions. Let’s change the way people see insurance one client at a time! 🚀

📢 Join the discussion! Connect with like-minded agents and get exclusive marketing tips in the Marketing for Insurance Agents Facebook Group. jumpstartgonow.com/join-group

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What if growing your insurance business had less to do with pitching more people and more to do with becoming someone they already know, like, and trust?

🎙️ In this episode of The Modern Insurance Agent Podcast, David Denning sits down with Rick Morrissey, a mortgage protection and life insurance specialist who helps growing families protect their homes and loved ones.

Rick has built his business around relationships and he's now using that same relationship-first approach to social media, personal branding, and content.

Together, they explore how insurance agents can use authentic relationships, social media, personal content, AI, and genuine connection to generate conversations and clients without turning every interaction into a sales pitch.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• Why insurance is a relationship business, not a transactional one
• How to build trust before asking someone to buy
• Why families often have larger life insurance and mortgage protection gaps than they realize
• How Rick starts insurance conversations around the client's actual "why"
• Why sharing your family, hobbies, travels, and personality can generate business
• How to use Facebook intentionally without making every post about insurance
• What happened when Rick increased his social media visibility by 443%
• Why insurance agents can't afford to become "secret agents"
• How to overcome the fear of posting on social media
• Where AI can save agents time without replacing the human relationship
• Why AI should support your personality not replace it
• What 37 years of playing guitar taught Rick about consistency, practice, and business
• How Rick is working toward becoming an agency owner

The Power of Personal Content

One of Rick's biggest social media breakthroughs came when he started sharing more of his real life.

A family trip.

A post about the world's largest cherry pie.

Simple moments that had nothing to do with insurance.

But those posts sparked conversations with people he didn't even realize were paying attention.

That's the power of personal content.

People need to see you before they can trust you and they need to trust you before they're likely to do business with you.

Rick shares that his visibility increased by roughly 443% as he became more intentional about showing up online and connecting with people.

AI Without Losing the Human Touch

Rick also explains why AI isn't replacing insurance agents.

Instead, it can help agents with efficiency, follow-up, brainstorming, content creation, and outreach while the human relationship remains at the center.

The goal isn't to let AI become your personality.

It's to let AI give you more time to be yourself.

If you're an insurance agent trying to generate more conversations, build your personal brand, use social media more effectively, or grow without relying entirely on cold pitching, this episode is packed with practical strategies you can start using immediately.

Connect with Us:

🔗Download the resources & access the full podcast library – jumpstartgonow.com/podcast

Join the Movement of Modern Insurance Agents!

Ready to become the agent clients trust and refer to their friends? Start by building your personal brand, using social media effectively, and prioritizing relationships over transactions. Let’s change the way people see insurance one client at a time! 🚀

📢 Join the discussion! Connect with like-minded agents and get exclusive marketing tips in the Marketing for Insurance Agents Facebook Group. jumpstartgonow.com/join-group

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You're helping your aging parents.

Your adult kids may still depend on you.

And somewhere in the middle of taking care of everyone else, you're supposed to be preparing for your own retirement.

That's the reality facing the Sandwich Generation.

🎙️ In this episode of The Modern Insurance Agent Podcast, David Denning sits down with Debbie Majher, founder of Evergreen Retirement Solutions, to explore one of the most overlooked challenges in retirement planning:

What happens when everyone is relying on you at the same time?

Debbie spent 17 years as an elementary school teacher before transitioning into insurance and retirement planning. Today, she specializes in retirement income planning, annuities, life insurance, and long-term care for women and families balancing aging parents, adult children, and their own financial futures.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• Why the Sandwich Generation is uniquely vulnerable heading into retirement
• The financial gaps families often overlook while caring for everyone else
• Why long-term care planning needs to happen before a crisis
• How to start difficult financial conversations without overwhelming your family
• The critical shift from accumulating retirement assets to creating retirement income
• Why market volatility can become more dangerous once retirement begins
• Where annuities can fit into an overall retirement-income strategy
• How Debbie uses her background as a teacher to simplify complex financial concepts
• Why shorter, ongoing conversations can be more effective than marathon financial meetings
• Why women need to understand their finances even when a spouse traditionally handles them
• How insurance and financial professionals can build trust in an increasingly AI-driven world
• Why specialization, relationships, and strategic partnerships will matter more for advisors in the future

The Bigger Takeaway

Good retirement planning shouldn't become another thing on an already overwhelmed client's plate.

The goal is to identify the risks, create a strategy, and start taking some of those worries off the table.

And there's an important lesson here for insurance agents and financial professionals:

Technology may change how clients find you and how you communicate with them.

But this is still fundamentally a relationship business.

Whether you're part of the Sandwich Generation yourself or you're an insurance professional serving clients in their 50s and 60s, this conversation offers practical insights into navigating retirement when life refuses to happen one challenge at a time.

Connect with Us:

🔗Download the resources & access the full podcast library – jumpstartgonow.com/podcast

Join the Movement of Modern Insurance Agents!

Ready to become the agent clients trust and refer to their friends? Start by building your personal brand, using social media effectively, and prioritizing relationships over transactions. Let’s change the way people see insurance one client at a time! 🚀

📢 Join the discussion! Connect with like-minded agents and get exclusive marketing tips in the Marketing for Insurance Agents Facebook Group. jumpstartgonow.com/join-group

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Is the traditional 401(k)-and-work-until-retirement strategy really the best way to build wealth especially for high-income professionals and business owners?

What if there are other ways to think about retirement, real estate, alternative investments, taxes, and passive income?

🎙️ In this episode of The Modern Insurance Agent Podcast, David Denning sits down with Lane Kawaoka, founder of The Wealth Elevator, to explore how sophisticated investors approach wealth-building differently.

Lane went from working as an engineer and quietly building a portfolio of rental properties to investing in more than 10,000 real estate units representing $2.1 billion in real estate. Today, he helps high-income professionals understand the strategies and opportunities available to accredited investors.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• Why Lane believes the traditional 401(k) approach has major limitations
• How high-income professionals can think differently about building wealth
• Why small rental properties may stop making sense as your net worth grows
• The difference between primary and secondary investment markets
• How real estate syndications and alternative investments work
• Why Lane sees roughly $4–5 million in net worth as an important turning point for many investors
• How rising insurance costs are changing real estate underwriting
• What insurance agents should understand about serving sophisticated real estate investors
• Why relationships, specialization, and access become increasingly valuable as wealth grows

A Key Opportunity for Insurance Agents

There's another important takeaway for insurance professionals:

Real estate investors are becoming an increasingly valuable market to understand.

As insurance costs rise, coverage can play a much larger role in commercial real estate underwriting and investment decisions. That creates opportunities for insurance agents who understand the unique needs of property investors, developers, and commercial real estate owners.

If you can understand the risks your clients are actually trying to manage not just the policies they're buying you can become a much more valuable advisor.

Whether you're an insurance agent, agency owner, entrepreneur, investor, or high-income professional, this conversation will challenge how you think about investing, retirement planning, passive income, and long-term wealth.

Connect with Us:

🔗Download the resources & access the full podcast library – jumpstartgonow.com/podcast

Join the Movement of Modern Insurance Agents!

Ready to become the agent clients trust and refer to their friends? Start by building your personal brand, using social media effectively, and prioritizing relationships over transactions. Let’s change the way people see insurance one client at a time! 🚀

📢 Join the discussion! Connect with like-minded agents and get exclusive marketing tips in the Marketing for Insurance Agents Facebook Group. jumpstartgonow.com/join-group

Send us Fan Mail

AI can create more content than any of us could ever consume.

So how does an insurance agent stand out when everyone can generate posts, emails, articles, and marketing content in seconds?

🎙️ In this episode of The Modern Insurance Agent Podcast, David Denning sits down with Dan Curran, co-founder of Chapters, to explore why your personal brand, expertise, stories, and lived experience may become even more valuable as AI-generated content becomes increasingly common.

Because when everyone can create content...

The advantage shifts to the person behind it.

Dan and David break down why insurance agents can't afford to remain anonymous online, how authenticity builds trust, and how documenting your knowledge can create a "living library" of expertise that can continue working for your business long after you create it.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• Why AI makes human expertise and authenticity more valuable not less
• The difference between creating content and building genuine authority
• Why insurance agents need to become recognizable, trusted experts
• How your personal stories and experiences can become valuable intellectual property
• How to build a living library of your knowledge, stories, advice, and ideas
• How AI can help you repurpose your expertise instead of replacing it
• Why insurance agents who ignore AI risk falling behind those who learn to use it
• How personal branding can help you stand out in an increasingly crowded digital marketplace
• Why trust and human connection will remain critical as AI-generated content becomes more common

The Big Takeaway

The future isn't about competing with AI to create more content.

It's about becoming the human people know, recognize, and trust when an important decision needs to be made.

Your experience can't be automated.

Your stories can't be copied.

And your reputation is an asset AI can't build for you.

Connect with Us:

🔗Download the resources & access the full podcast library – jumpstartgonow.com/podcast

Join the Movement of Modern Insurance Agents!

Ready to become the agent clients trust and refer to their friends? Start by building your personal brand, using social media effectively, and prioritizing relationships over transactions. Let’s change the way people see insurance one client at a time! 🚀

📢 Join the discussion! Connect with like-minded agents and get exclusive marketing tips in the Marketing for Insurance Agents Facebook Group. jumpstartgonow.com/join-group

Send us Fan Mail

Most insurance agents are told to "pick a niche."

But almost nobody explains how to choose the right insurance niche—or why niching down can actually help you generate more leads, referrals, and opportunities.

If you're posting consistently on social media but still hearing crickets, your content might not be the problem.

The problem could be that nobody knows exactly who you're for.

🎙️ In this episode of The Modern Insurance Agent Podcast, David and Elle Denning break down how insurance agents can choose a profitable target market without turning away business.

You'll learn how to position yourself around a specific audience, create content that resonates with the right people, and build referral relationships around the market you serve best.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• The 3 ways to niche as an insurance agent: life stage, profession, or community
• Why choosing a niche does not mean turning away other clients
• How niching helps Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube understand who should see your content
• Why consistent niche content can improve your organic reach
• How your niche can reveal your best referral partners
• Insurance niche ideas for life insurance, Medicare, final expense, health insurance, P&C, commercial insurance, annuities, retirement planning, and disability insurance
• How to determine whether your target market is large enough
• A simple way to uncover your niche by analyzing your last 20 clients
• How one agent generated 544 referrals in 30 days after focusing on first-time homebuyers

The Big Takeaway

Your niche isn't too small. Your reach is too broad.

You don't need everyone to know who you are.

You need the right people to immediately recognize that you're the insurance agent for them.

Whether you're selling life insurance, Medicare, health insurance, final expense, P&C, commercial insurance, annuities, or retirement planning, this episode will help you think differently about positioning, content, and lead generation.

Connect with Us:

🔗Download the resources & access the full podcast library – jumpstartgonow.com/podcast

Join the Movement of Modern Insurance Agents!

Ready to become the agent clients trust and refer to their friends? Start by building your personal brand, using social media effectively, and prioritizing relationships over transactions. Let’s change the way people see insurance one client at a time! 🚀

📢 Join the discussion! Connect with like-minded agents and get exclusive marketing tips in the Marketing for Insurance Agents Facebook Group. jumpstartgonow.com/join-group