44-22, 23-43, 23-41, 28-21,
24-37, 49-21, 7-26, 7-28, 7-45, 15-53, 15-24, 21-34, 13-20,
13-26, 22-13, 22-28, 31-34 (3).
This week's
leads focus...
- Stuart Schindler
- Dave Spiess
- Greg Stewart
Carole Weishaar
B&B
Florist & Design Center
I have reinvented myself many
times over. I had a retail office, staff, overhead...
headaches. About 7 years ago the airlines deciding they
could make more money if they stopped paying us. So they did.
But we still had to use the expensive equipment to book the
flights, etc. At first we scaled back. I thought
about getting out and even sold off most of my client list.
But my clients kept after me to continue serving them. I
stayed in the business and became an independent branch of
Carefree Travel. They deal with all the headaches and
I just wait for my check.
I work on referral only and
still do all my own marketing. I love doing corporate incentive
travel and meeting planning.
If you have any future travel
plans, start looking ahead. Prices are going up and
flights are at 80 % capacity. Always do web check-in if
you can. They will give your seat away if you are not
checked in 30 minutes prior to take off.
[directory/old/weishaar.htm]
Roman
Okonowski
Anderson/Witt Insurance Agency
Testimonial
- In Mike Tanner's line of business he sees a lot of insurance
claim work. He sees firsthand the value of having an agent
vs. internet insurance.
Roman is a founding member of
MABE but he actually came in
under a different category. He held the property
management category but later switched to insurance. He
took a moment to first thank members that have used his
services. He then thanked members that have allowed him to
use them as a sounding board. Being a small business owner
can sometimes feel like you are on an island alone. It is
nice to have help.
Roman was born
and raised in Detroit. He has been married 37 years to his
childhood sweetheart, Kathy. They have three kids.
Their oldest son is a policeman. Their other son works in
the family business. His baby, his daughter, is 28 and
works in student lending.
Roman spent 14 years in
commercial banking. That was another lifetime. He grew
tired of the corporate world. Timing is everything.
Shortly after he left his bank was sold and he would have had to
fight for his job. In 1981 a neighbor hired him to help with his
property management company. This neighbor was
creative but bad with management. In a strange turn of
events, Roman ended up having to fire this neighbor that hired
him. It was through this business that Roman came to
Arizona. He came here to look at some investment property.
He ended up staying and becoming a property manager.
In 1988 he bought an insurance
agency. He didn't know anything about insurance but he did
have a friend back east that was in insurance that became his
partner. He didn't purchase the company through typical
means. He went through the yellow pages to find locations,
sat in their parking lots....well...basically he stalked them!
He found a man that was willing to sell, kept his name
(Anderson) for continuity, added Witt (his partners name) and
that is how Anderson/Witt Insurance came to be.
Roman is an independent
insurance agent. This means he has several companies that
he works with so he has more options to help find the best
product to meet client needs. Competitors like State Farm
agents are captive meaning they only use State Farm products.
Others like Geiko use 3rd-party writers...they are basically
order takers.
Roman is both an agent and
broker. As an agent he has contractual agreements with the
larger companies and acts as a representative for them. As
a broker he represents the customer and helps them find the best
insurance to fit their needs.
Like
Carole, Roman has had to evolve in his business. It is
getting difficult. The larger companies are using the
internet and other avenues to sell their products. There
are times when Roman finds himself competing with the same
company he represents.
Image branding makes things
difficult. He represents solid companies but the name
recognition is not there.
Technology also makes things
difficult. What use to be a 5-10 minute process now takes
several days because the information has to go through the
system. Roman has to constantly upgrade his computers to
match platforms used by the companies they work with. And
they are all at different levels. It is a constant battle.
The final challenge
they face is the consumer's lack of knowledge. Roman will
ask more questions than others would. He wants to understand
your needs. Not many
people read their policies. It doesn't take 40 pages to
tell you what coverage you have. It only takes 1.
The other 39 pages list the exclusions. As your agent,
Roman will read the policy and makes sure you have the coverage
you need. He asks more questions than others would because
he is concerned that you have the best coverage. What he
won't do is quote you the minimum allowed and then try to up
sell you.
He is not
here to tell you that insurance companies are bad. They do good.
But they are part of corporate America. They want to be
profitable.
The bottom line is that the name
on the door doesn't matter. It is who you are dealing with and
what you feel comfortable with.
[membersonly/archives/former_members/okonowski.htm]