Big I Virginia E-News

From the Desk of the President & CEO

Summer’s almost over so keep this in mind

Hard to believe that the Summer is almost over. Kids are going back to school, the political season will heat up following Labor Day, businesses seem to take another look at their future growth and expectations, and opportunities abound. Oh yes, this is also the time of year that NOAA does an additional projection on hurricane season and generally project that it will be busier than last year.

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/via-nwl/articles/index-v3.asp?aid=575110&issueID=63647 to view the full article online.

IIAV Member Resources

Health Care Corner: Tips by Monty Dise

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/via-nwl/articles/index-v3.asp?aid=575112&issueID=63647 to view the full article online.

Tech Tip: By Steve Anderson

Send personal handwritten cards at scale with Handwrytten. There is something special about receiving a handwritten notecard. It communicates that someone took the extra time to acknowledge you. I love sending notecards because I know how special they can be.

Visit https://steveanderson.com/2019/08/01/send-personal-handwritten-cards-at-scale-with-handwrytten/ to view the full article online.

State & National News

ACORD and the Big "I" Announce Partnership to Provide Forms Access to Independent Agent Community

On January 1, 2020, ACORD will begin charging all users of ACORD forms a fee. Our national association has announced that it will fund ACORD form end user licenses for the majority of its member agencies (those with a group gross revenue of under $50 million), allowing them to claim these licenses free of charge.

Visit https://files.constantcontact.com/188ceec8501/d0327d67-c851-42c2-83de-72e1279d5dea.pdf to view the full article online.

Big "I" Virtual Risk Consultant Program Makes Changes

Rough Notes' Producer On-Line product is the platform behind the Big "I" Virtual Risk Consultant (VRC). Now, Rough Notes has revamped the Producer On-Line product and reintroduced as Rough Notes Advantage Plus.

With this change, the branded VRC product will be discontinued and replaced with Rough Notes' Advantage Plus, which is the same platform and suite of services as those offered within VRC.

Visit https://www.independentagent.com/Updates/Lists/Posts/Post.aspx?ID=1644 to view the full article online.

Big "I" Applauds Founding of Bipartisan Congressional Crop Insurance Caucus

The Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America (the Big “I”) applauds Rep. Cheri Bustos (D-IL) and Rep. Glenn Thompson (R-PA) for founding the bipartisan Congressional Crop Insurance Caucus.

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/via-nwl/articles/index-v3.asp?aid=575123&issueID=63647 to view the full article online.

Big "I" Names New Federal Government Affairs Team Counsel

Heather Eilers-Bowser has joined the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America (the Big “I”) Capitol Hill team as federal government affairs counsel. Her role will include federal legislative and regulatory policy analysis and working with members of Congress and their staff on issues impacting the independent agency system and the insurance market.

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/via-nwl/articles/index-v3.asp?aid=575127&issueID=63647 to view the full article online.

Big "I" National on CNBC

Big “I” Virtual University Executive Director Chris Boggs was featured throughout the day on CNBC, in a piece with reporter Contessa Brewer about telematics, or usage-based auto insurance. If you were not able to tune into Chris Boggs on CNBC, check out the news clip here.

Visit https://www.iqmediacorp.com/ClipPlayer/?ClipID=01a8493c-7d60-4b8a-8966-e2f6fc463a55&fbclid=IwAR0wkw5v0azNfIijf2_m7kf3LRbgWQ3NYPgRNzy2hlAQOcxP1CNdND-dUDc to view the full article online.

IIAV News

Towne Insurance Jumps Five Spots in Top 100 Largest Brokers of U.S. Business Insurance

Towne Insurance was ranked 51st among the Top 100 largest U.S. insurance brokers by Business Insurance magazine in the July, 2019 edition, jumping five spots from the previous year and maintaining its position in the top 1% of more than 45,000 independent insurance firms in the nation. This ranking was based on 2018 brokerage revenue, where Towne Insurance showed a 9.7% increase from the previous year.

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/via-nwl/pdf/PR_2019_Top_100_071919.pdf to view the full article online.

Trusted Choice Digital Review Program

This service reviews the online presence of any member company by providing a detailed report about the functionality of their website, including SEO analysis, as well as a subjective review of any social media accounts. Once completed, you will receive some clear tips on how to improve your website and social media accounts, you have the option to have custom background images created with your logos and tag lines and can choose to set up a phone consultation to go over your results in more detail.

Visit https://cobrand.iiaba.net/training/digital-review-of-your-agency-website-social-media to view the full article online.

Affinity HR Group Q&A

Q: To make sure we hire the right people, we bring in prospects to shadow an employee so that we can see whether the candidate has the right skills/abilities for the job and so that the candidate gets a realistic representation of the job. Is there anything wrong with doing this?

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/via-nwl/articles/index-v3.asp?aid=575111&issueID=63647 to view the full article online.

New Hires: Orientation vs. Onboarding

The way you integrate a new employee during their first days, weeks and months often corresponds to whether they become an engaged, long-term employee or an ineffective, short-term hire.

Orientation occurs over the first day or two and focuses on the new employee completing paperwork; touring the worksite; meeting their immediate supervisor and co-workers; getting access to their computer, email, voicemail and the building; and receiving basic training on job duties, equipment and timekeeping systems.

Onboarding, on the other hand, is an ongoing process that aims to assimilate new employees into the company's structure and culture, while also making sure they know how to do their job and what is expected of them.

Visit https://www.independentagent.com/Updates/Lists/Posts/Post.aspx?ID=1645 to view the full article online.

SCC’s Bureau of Insurance Suggests Businesses Plan Now for Disasters

Natural disasters can take a huge toll on businesses and sidetrack the best laid plans and projections. In fact, an estimated 40% of businesses do not reopen after a disaster, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Another 25% fail within one year following a disaster.

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/via-nwl/articles/index-v3.asp?aid=575131&issueID=63647 to view the full article online.

2nd Quarter Economic Update – Continued Cloudy with Intermittent Rain

Here, you'll find the most recent Virginia quarterly economic update, prepared by economist Fletcher Mangum for the Virginia Chamber Foundation. We hope you find this information useful for your business and planning purposes.

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/via-nwl/pdf/VA_Chamber_Foundation_2nd_Quarter_Economic_Update_-_Continued_Cloudy_with_Intermittent_Rain.pdf to view the full article online.

Big I Virginia E-News

Independent Insurance Agents of Virginia