ceo insights
Perspectives is published for the
National Association of Independent
Life Brokerage Agencies
The Virtual BGA
11325 Random Hills Road, Suite 110
Fairfax, VA 22030
(703) 884-1525
www.nailba.org
NAILBA BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Jeffrey D. Mooers
Chairman
Myra Palmer
Chair-Elect
Seixas Milner III
Secretary/Treasurer
James Sorebo
Immediate Past Chairman
Brittany Cross
John Gilbert
Jason E. Lea, CFP
Ben Nevejans
Victoria Van Dusen-Roos
NAILBA Editorial Advisory Panel
Scott Blumberg
Christi M. Daughenbaugh
Sheri Leaders
Jeffrey D. Mooers
Lori Payne
Laurie B. Prevette
Thomas Riekse, Jr., ChFC, CEBS
Michael Tessler
NAILBA Staff
Daniel LaBert
Chief Executive Officer
Kathy Allison
Director, Membership and the Foundation
Ana M. Carreras
Manager, Finance and Administration
Joangel Concepcion
Executive Assistant to the CEO/
Media Specialist
Telly Lovelace
Director, Marketing and
Strategic Communications
Ellen Toups
Director, Advertising,
Exhibits and Sponsorships
Shara Wells
Manager, Annual Meeting
and Member Engagement
Editor: Telly Lovelace
[email protected]
Advertising: Ellen Toups
[email protected]
Layout and Printing:
Professional Printing Center
4 perspectives SUMMER 2018
DAN LABERT
NAILBA CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
I
n a world of low bond rates, low
interest rates and rising opera-
tion costs, many agencies own-
ers are looking for ways to reduce
overhead expenses. With the conve-
nience of many modern technology
applications, enter the Virtual BGA.
Small brokerage general agencies
(BGAs) would like the market clout
and economies of scale of larger
agencies, however, those set-ups
usually come with higher costs.
Historically, one of the few ways to
accomplish this has been through
mergers or partnership agreements.
Given the fiercely independent
mindset of many agency owners,
merger discussions tend to be a
waste of time.
Let’s first define what is a virtual
office. A virtual office set-up would
not have a bricks-and-mortar office.
The agency would operate from a
home office or shared work space,
usually delivering services to clients
at a distance using technological
means of communication.
We’ve all heard the saying, “you
only have one chance to make a
great first impression.” If you are
virtual, how will phone calls to your
agency be processed? Well everyone
has a cell phone. Thanks to your
NAILBA membership, you can con-
sider Ruby Receptionists.
Ruby’s friendly, live receptionists
and proprietary technology makes
them one possible solution to de-
livering an impressionable initial
customer experiences. Customized
for your business, and integrated
with your day, Ruby Reception-
ists are there to help you focus on
your business while Ruby handles
your callers, transfers your calls,
and helps win you business! As a
member of the National Associa-
tion of Independent Life Brokerage
Agencies, you’ll receive 5% off your
monthly plan.
Yes, a virtual set-up will burn up
your monthly cell phone plan (un-
less your plan offers unlimited us-
age) at a pretty fast rate (depending
upon volume of calls). However, do
you know that through your NAIL-
BA membership and our partnership
with National Purchasing Partners
(NPP), you can save 22% off month-
ly access fees and more? NPP offers
NAILBA members exclusive savings
on a variety of Verizon Wireless ser-
vices for business. Plus, you can also
share Verizon discounts with your
virtual employees.
Through NPP, NAILBA members
receive discounted rates on es-
sential products and services from
prominent industry companies.
What about home office furni-
ture or office supplies for your vir-
tual office? NPP also offers NAILBA
Members discounts at Staples. The
Staples Business Advantage is de-
signed to help NAILBA members
consolidate business purchasing
with one convenient vendor. NAILBA
members can save on office supplies
and solutions for all of your agen-
cy’s needs, including technology,
furniture, printing, and promotional
items.
No matter the space, a virtual BGA
will need a cloud-based illustration
system to share among virtual em-
ployees and keep track of potential
leads from your field producers.
NAILBA partner InsMark, generates
easy-to-understand solutions to
complex financial issues covering
myriad advanced sales areas from
comparisons between cash value life
insurance and other financial prod-
ucts to comprehensive retirement,
estate, and charitable planning. The
InsMark Illustration System and In-
sMark Wealthy and Wise System are
offered to NAILBA member agencies
at a significant discount.
What would it look like for you to
move from your office to an entirely
virtual operation? If you can’t do it
all at once, what about going virtual
just one day a week to see how it
works?
In addition to low overhead, a
virtual office offers you greater flex-
ibility to transition between stages
in your business, the ability to serve
a wider client base because you ar-
en’t tied down to a single office lo-
cation, and flexibility with the hours
you work and more control over your
work/life balance.
The above options (re: NAILBA
Member Benefits) provide you with
the opportunity to skip the ex-
pensive overhead of leasing an of-
fice space. Instead, you have more
freedom to work the way you want.
While this flexibility is very effec-
tive for some professionals, your ac-
tual success depends on your work
style.
The disadvantages of a virtual of-
fice may be the lack of “true office
feel.” This is important for many
professionals. You’ll also need to
take extra security measures when
working out of shared spaces and/
or securing your data. Finally, there
will be blurred lines between work
and personal life.
Whether a virtual brokerage gen-
eral agency is right for you depends
on many factors. I fully admit, there
are other challenges within the bro-
kerage profession that may hinder
a virtual set-up. If you choose the
path of a virtual BGA, it’s important
to have the practice management
tools and resources to adequately
run your virtual office. NAILBA is,
and will remain, your practice part-
ner.