Agent Link - October 2020

Agent Link - October 2020

OCTOBER 2020

We’re welcoming all life insurance carriers, annuity carriers, IMOs, BGAs, FMOs, lead-generation firms, and anyone else who wants to enhance their brand to learn more about becoming a sponsor at our event. Whether you’re fulfilling your 2020 strategy or already looking ahead at 2021, the time is right to see how you can align yourself with our Top Producer Summit and strategically place your brand and company to reach this key audience. Call us at +800 535 4545 or download our Sponsorship Kit to learn more about what it entails by visiting TopProducerSummit.net/ sponsorship.This is an incredible opportunity that you don’t want to miss. We’ll “see” you at the event! INSIDE 1. Join Us for Another Top Producer Summit on Oct. 13–15 2. Zoom vs. Google Meets 2. What My Son Taught Me About Entrepreneurship 2. Your Old Phone Could Protect Your Home in 2 Steps 3. October Top Producer Summit 6. Join a Professional Association and See Your Business Grow

advisors build their businesses and better serve their clients. Our goal with this event is to pack as much value into every session as possible.The feedback we’ve received from producers regarding our mission to empower agents and advisors has been tremendous. We are also offering lifetime on-demand access to recordings from the event’s sessions for those producers who aren’t able to block out three days to catch the event live. If you want to reap the benefits of this event by making its amazing masterclasses and sessions a part of your permanent library, we’re making that possible. As valuable as this event is for producers, it can be just as valuable for those who want to do business with top producers.The benefits of becoming a sponsor for our Top Producer Summit are incredible, and it’s not too late to sponsor this upcoming event. As a sponsor, you’ll become a part of a captivating, idea-sharing forum amid top-quality talent that allows you the opportunity to deliver your own message. There’s proven value in associating your brand with our Top Producer Summit — you can increase your presence in the minds of top producers and advisors, build relationships that demonstrate how you can help them, and garner new distribution to sell your products.

The soft launch of our virtual Top Producer Summit on Aug. 11 had over 20,000 pairs of eyes visit the event site and explore its pages — all after only a few short weeks of promoting the event! It was such an incredible few days of educational opportunities, valuable connections, and useful exposure that we’ve decided it only makes sense to do it all over again.That’s why, from Oct. 13–15, we’re hosting another virtual Top Producer Summit! Anyone and everyone who wishes to come is welcome to sign up and learn some closely held secrets that top producers are using in today’s troubling climate. You’ll hear real-life experience and insights from these producers on how they’re still managing to have tremendous success with their practices, even during what has been a tough year for most. August’s virtual attendance has clearly shown us that this event successfully attracts the type of agents and advisors who are actively working at growing their business — the exact agents and advisors who are great to work with and learn from. At Agent Link, our mission is to empower insurance agents and financial advisors so they can change lives for the better. We believe that a great way to accomplish that mission is to provide a vibrant event for the flow of ideas — in particular, ideas that can help agents and

-Senia Gramajo

1 +800 535 4545

What My 7-Year-O

Home automation and security are more important than ever before, but between high startup fees, monthly costs, and the constant speed at which technology outpaces itself, these systems can be costly. Instead of throwing money into something you’ll have to upgrade in a year or two, look to your old phone that’s been collecting dust in the junk drawer. Recent developments enable that old device to do so much more! Here’s how you can automate and protect your home with just your old cell phone, an app, and some ingenuity. Protect Your Home (and Other Cool Things) for Cheap Don’t Throw Your Old Phone Away! Choose which features are most important to your home’s safety and find an app that’s going to best suit your needs.Then, download the app onto your current phone and your old one. Walk through the setup on your new phone, then log into the app on your old one. Just be sure to select “camera” rather than “viewer,” if that’s an option. Step 2: Mount your phone. Position your old phone’s camera toward whatever you want to watch and protect. It will have to be connected to a power source since the phone will always be on, and you may want to purchase a cheap wide-angle lens to see a broader view.Then, you’ll simply check the app on your new phone to periodically check in on your home! Home security isn’t the only thing your old phone can do. Here are three home automation ideas. Create a baby monitor. Much like a security system, you can turn your old phone into an affordable baby monitor. Set it up in your baby’s nursery and use your new phone to Skype into their room. You can find apps that can make this much easier, too. Add more storage. Cloud platforms are not your only photo storage option. You can delete all the apps on your old phone and use it for photo storage, freeing up space on your new phone! This is a great option for those looking to limit their online presence. Set up a universal remote. Your old phone can serve as the “universal” remote for all your home’s smart devices, like a central hub that controls everything. Specialty apps like iRule can link all your platforms together. All you need is the app, Wi-Fi, and an old phone that can connect to the Wi-Fi. 2 www.topproducersummit.net Home Security Setup Step 1: Choose an app.

Which One Is Right for Your In order to continue thriving in this now isolated market, utilizing videoconferencing has become key. Zoom and Google Meet (formerly Google Hangouts Meet) are the two videoconferencing systems that reign supreme, but which one is really better for successfully working from home? Features Both Zoom and Google Meet offer videoconferencing with multiple people. Google is limited to 250 participants, while Zoom allows up to 1,000.They’re both supported on a variety of computer and smartphone platforms, and each allows call recording, screen sharing, and group messaging. But when it comes to additional features that make for better collaborative calls, Zoom has spent more of its focus on this effort. It allows you to conduct polls and share a “whiteboard” for collaboration, and the video gallery can show up to 49 people at a time with high-quality video. Integrations Although Zoom might have a broader range of useful features built directly into it, Google has it beat when it comes to integrating the platform with other programs. Google has an entire suite of tools already, making it easy to link Google Meet with these tools in tandem with videoconferencing. For example, users can integrate meetings with Zoom vs. Google

Old Son Taught Me About Entrepreneurship

and he didn’t need to worry about it yet. Instead, he identified and focused on those things he wasn’t entirely certain about and attacked them with tenacity until he had a perfect plan. Eventually, he created hiring applications, invited some friends over, and delivered a presentation to them. He briefed them and actually got signatures and “buy-ins” from a couple kids who wanted to be a part of the park. I was amazed, but what inspired me most of all was his desire to improve himself and his business knowledge. My 7-year-old son taught me the value of recognizing those things in business that I feel uncertain about, then investing time in making sure I elevate my knowledge in those areas. He’s shown me that when you make a thorough and concrete plan, it opens up a whole new world of exciting possibilities. Julian’s Jurassic Park may have never become a reality, but the value he took away from the experience will aid him in making other dreams come true. I know it’s already done so for me.

I’m the lucky father of three boys, each of whom is wonderfully unique. Julian, my second son, has always been a firecracker with an entrepreneurial spirit. When he was 7, he watched “Jurassic Park,” and instead of the movie scaring him, it sparked an idea to start a company. He wanted to create his own Jurassic Park. He started out by asking me what the proper procedures for hiring people are. He told me that because he knows I have a human resources background, I could offer valuable insight (yes, a 7-year-old said this). He even started asking me about payroll and what employment taxes were. I did my best to explain in a way he could follow, and made sure I never discouraged his incredible ambition. It seemed to do the trick, because he suddenly realized he needed to up his game. He spent weeks creating a complete plan for his park and kept asking more questions about taxes, contracts, and team building. But here’s the thing that was the most incredible to me: He never worried about working out how to create real dinosaurs. In his mind, that was the easy part of the business, At-Home Setup? other teams using Skype, and it makes using features like Google Calendar, Docs, and Sheets seamless. Zoom does allow for the same integrations, but Google Meet makes the entire process much more streamlined. Pricing and Plans Both have free versions available, and each of those comes with limitations. For example, Zoom’s free version only allows up to 100 people and 40 minutes in one sitting. Google’s free version allows up to 100 people and 60 minutes. Google also has a much wider range of prices available depending on what type of package you need (anywhere from $6–$25 per user). Zoom has a smaller price range and higher starting rates ($15–$20 per host). Both Zoom and Google Meet feature incredible technology that makes working from home easier than ever. Deciding on the right one comes down to figuring out what you need most. If you need something with a higher capacity for group calls and collaborative built-in features, Zoom is for you. If you need something a little less expensive that integrates extremely well with all of your other programs, Google Meet is it. Whatever the case, making the choice to go virtual is most crucial during these unusual times. Meet

HAVE A LAUGH!

5 +800 535 4545

www.topproducersummit.net 800 535 4545

1130 Cleveland Street, Ste. 120 Clearwater, FL 33755

You’re Not Alone

Learn and Grow With a Professional Association

Business is competitive by nature. If competitors didn’t push our favorite brands to be better, they may not even exist. Our technology options would be limited without Apple’s ingenuity. Shipping options would be limited without UPS or FedEx. And access to our favorite athletic gear would be more limited if no one was pushing the top brands like Nike to innovate. Competition fuels our greatest inventions, but behind every great leader or business is a core network of like-minded people and innovators supporting them. Professional associations connect business leaders to fellow innovators in their industry without competition from local rivals.These organizations offer many benefits and little risk to business leaders looking to grow. If you haven’t yet joined a professional association, these three benefits just might get you to change your mind. Education and Resources Google is great for a quick answer, but when you need to learn something more nuanced, a simple internet search won’t cut it. Professional associations offer tailored, more in-depth help and resources like industry-specific training and webinars, how-to guides, and coaching. From peer advice and education to scholarly studies and reviews, associations act as a library of information for your industry. Networking and Mentorship Why reinvent the wheel when you can adapt it with a mentor? Associations connect you to leaders who have stood where you are standing and succeeded. You can learn a lot from their failures, wisdom, and guidance. You can also connect with peers in your position and bounce ideas off of them. You won’t have to worry about competitors “stealing” your processes, and you have an honest, go-to support team to help you refine them before presenting them to your team. Personal Development and Growth A business is only as good as the leader managing it, and all business leaders have room for improvement. An association can give you the tools to get there. And as you continue to learn, you’ll discover personal and professional areas that can be further refined.This personal development only makes you and your business stronger. 6 www.topproducersummit.net

Look Who’s Talking!

Our Top Producer Summit on Oct. 13–15 will be packed with a powerful lineup to attract growth-focused agents and advisors from around the U.S. We conducted surveys with hundreds of producers to learn how they’re actively working on growing their practices, compiled a list of topics that other producers want to learn more about, and utilized that information to curate our speakers. Here are just a few to get excited about:

Rick Stanzione Financial services producer and principal of a $30 million organization

Matthew Claassen Top agent with several major carriers focused on senior market

Larry McLean Has generated over $20 million in annual revenues and wrote $1.4 million in target fife premium the first year he implemented his proprietary methods

VictoriaWoods RIA CEO, wealth advisor, top producer, author, and radio show co-host featured on NBC’s “Today Show”

Neal St Romain Lifetime MDRT producer

Bob Ryan Top producer and agency leader in commercial lines and small group solutions

DavidTapia Top P&C and FINRA registered producer with an agency of over 7,000 clients

JimGaskins Annuity and IUL producer focused on retirement solutions

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Marketing Gurus are joining our October Summit too!

Joy Gendusa Our keynote speaker and the CEO for a $62 million company and a marketing extraordinaire featured in Inc 500 Laura Betterly Digital marketing guru who has worked with some of the biggest names and companies in marketing The best producers in the country will be coming together for our Top Producer Summit Oct. 13–15. Go to TopProducerSummit.net to claim your ticket and reserve your spot. Do YouWant to Sponsor Our October Top Producer Summit? You have an opportunity to reaffirm your standing within this industry by positioning yourself as a high-profile brand and getting yourself in front of thousands of the best eyes in the business. Shaun Buck Serial entrepreneur and Inc 500 CEO who built the largest custom newsletter company in the U.S.

We have several sponsorship levels available, but as a Platinum sponsor of our event, you’ll receive:

• A national email blast to 100,000 best-class advisors • Your firm’s logo displayed among our other sponsors on key pages of our event website • Prime virtual booth positioning during the event in our virtual exposition hall • A 15-second introduction before one of our most popular Masterclass sessions to draw attention,

as well as branding built around the selected Masterclass session • A daily mention in the event’s morning announcements • The option to create and record an educational session with Agent Link’s Stu Gramajo to include in the event’s Lifetime Access Pass for attendees

If you’re eager to align your brand with the incredible names and companies making an appearance at our next Top Producer Summit, call us at +800 535 4545 or download the Sponsorship Kit at TopProducerSummit.net/ sponsorship to find out more about our sponsorship opportunities. Don’t wait — spaces are limited! .

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