Monthly Archives: April 2011

Using CLTV to Increase Your Insurance Marketing Results

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I’m continuing to read “Data-Driven Marketing” and it’s really has me thinking about how independent insurance agencies market (IIAs). The author takes some time to define CTLV (customer lifetime value). Read about CLTV here. Jeferry's book about marketing, so the he is attempting to illustrate what the most successful companies are doing. His main point is that data is critical to getting the most out of your marketing efforts. So where does CLTV fit in? Well we all know that “all customers are not created equal”. Some customers are extremely profitable while others may even be negatively profitable. Typically, insurance agencies will market using a “one size fits all” approach. Read more [...]
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Belief and the Decision Making Process

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Today is Easter and I’m thinking about the concept of belief. A belief is defined as “Something one accepts as true or real; a firmly held opinion or conviction.” If you believe something is true, your behavior should reflect that belief. If you believed you were going to die next week, you would do things differently. Belief is connected to behavior. Most businesses would say that their customers are really important. I think if you asked most small business owners they would say that customer satisfaction is a strongly held conviction. Yet when you begin looking under the hood, you find that is not the case. In other words, their expressed beliefs (customers are really important) Read more [...]
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SaaS and the Independent Insurance Agency Business Model

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Astonish Results is a SaaS business. SaaS stands for "software as a service". A SaaS business "rents" software to customers on a monthly basis and in return receives revenue monthly. As the number of customers goes up so does the revenue. In theory, the cost associated with servicing customers should tail off as economies of scale kick in. For a SaaS business, it's extremely important to understand the CAC or "cost to acquire a customer" and the CLTV or "customer lifetime value". If your CAC is greater than the CLTV, your business model is in trouble and will not last (or scale for that matter). How is the SaaS model similar to the independent insurance agency (IIA) business model?  IIAs Read more [...]
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I Can’t Help You, Figure it Out!

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I’m almost done reading Wisemans’s book “Multipliers”. In the seventh chapter, the author talks about how certain leaders invest in their people. I know I should be investing in my people, but how? According to Wiseman, it’s very similar to how venture capitalists invest in various businesses. A trap that I find myself falling into is that of problem solver. When an issue arises and mangers ask me for a solution, I solve the problem. This in itself is a problem. When I solve the problem, it robs my managers the opportunity to solve it. I can think back to a time when I was working as an analytical chemist. I worked for an environmental testing laboratory. We analyzed contaminated Read more [...]
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Logic of Addition vs. Multiplication

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I’m about halfway through Wiseman’s book; “Multipliers” and the book is really challenging some of my thinking (which is always a good thing). Basically the book describes how leaders can become “multipliers” instead of “diminishers”. Multipliers bring the best out of the people they lead and according to research these leaders get more than 100% out of their people. This is really interesting to me at the owner of a start-up. I am trying to provide our service for less cost. Do more with less and increase our profitability. According to Wiseman, this can be done and she sites many real word examples. Her point is made clear when she contrasts the logic of addition with the logic Read more [...]
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Personal Goals for April 2011

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I've thinking about goals lately. At Astonish Results, I require all our managers to submit quarterly goals. I use what's called a "business alignment template" to help facilitate the process. This template makes sure that all the goals are SMART (specific, measurable, actionable, realistic and timely). You download the template by going here. I recently got away with my wife for a weekend. I love going to bookstores. I love to learn and what better place to find some new ideas. I sort of had a mini epiphany. There is so much for me to learn. So much I can learn. All I need to do is be purposeful about learning. So, what I thought I would do is post some of my personal goals for everyone to Read more [...]
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What an Amazing Week at Astonish Results!

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This has been an amazing week at Astonish. I continue to learn more and more about what it takes to run a successful company. I love to learn. It's part of my DNA. I love to read about business and when I read something that confirms that we're going in the right direction, it motivates me. We have a great team here. I really cannot say enough about them. Each have their own strengths and it really makes my job easier and more fun. I can't wait to get up everyday and head into work. I've got two incredible partners, Adam and Tim. Both are uniquely gifted to do what they do. I feel that as a partner, my responsibility is to lift up and help my partners be even more effective than they already Read more [...]
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