If events seem like a waste of your time, you are probably not attending the right ones. The mark of a great event is leaving with memorable takeaways (i.e. more knowledge about profitable subjects, more connections to insurance experts, etc.). This is why it is important to know the purpose of the event you plan to attend and how it can help you grow your business.
Here are five reasons you should attend events:
- Expand your knowledge
Great events should provide you with exciting new information. For independent insurance agents, this could be new selling techniques, updates in Insuretech, and other customer service-based skills. The goal is to deepen your understanding of your industry as well as relevant topics. A great tip we have is to find events that offer collaborative learning environments! Hearing about your experiences as well as the experiences of your peers can do more to help you learn than just following a presentation. The idea is that shared input helps you retain more information, and it helps when there is feedback from people from similar regions.
- Networking
Most of us keep in contact with our peers via social media or email, but we all know there’s no substitution for meeting someone face-to-face. Great events should allow time for attendees to mingle, form new relationships, and strengthen existing ones. Networking is one of the most important parts of any event because it allows you to not only form connections with other industry powerhouses, but you can get feedback and ideas for your business outside of the workshops! It is also a great way to get referrals from other agencies! For more ideas on referrals, check out this article on how make referrals part of every conversation.
- New tools
Try to attend events with trade shows as these are often places where carriers showcase products and tools you haven’t seen yet. While these new products should also be accessible on their websites, getting an in-person demonstration helps the product information stick in your brain better! You can also use this opportunity to ask questions about selling techniques for each tool, or better yet, ask how it can be incorporated into your current offerings.
- Improved professional skills
Learning new techniques and tools is great and can keep your agency relevant, but nothing beats the classics. Revamping original office skills like Excel and Outlook are awesome ways to improve your everyday working habits and make you more efficient. A great event will offer a mix of specialized and general professional workshops, which is a great way to improve the skills of your employees! Making sure everyone on your team can do their job quickly and effectively is a smart leadership technique.
- Have fun
When was the last time you could confidently say you had fun at work? Events are an extension of your work life, but they are also a way to enjoy your industry! You won’t get the same experiences attending a webinar in your office as you would engaging in a workshop. It’s fun to learn with other people and listen to their perspectives. You also have the added bonus of being in a new location! Our 2021 event in St. Charles, Missouri allows attendees to go out and enjoy the charming, historic town named by a French-Canadian fur trader in 1769. A great event will have activities for your whole family to enjoy, so you can make personal memories as well as professional ones.
Events should be a fun break from the monotonous work life. They are a great example of real-world learning and application, and you should takeaway exciting ideas for your agency! Keep these reasons in mind when you are considering what events to attend this year, and don’t forget to check out ASNOA’s free event in October of 2021!