Episode 176: The Unfair Advantage with James Jenkins

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James Jenkins of RiskWell is looking for unfair advantages anywhere he can find them. It’s all about finding opportunities that are not on the carrier hitlist. Join James and I as we discuss his niche and how it has made all the difference for his insurance agency. Remember, the value of the advisory increases with the complexity of the risk.

Highlights:

The client can spend 10 minutes on Google and they’re probably as well prepared as your average CSR is to talk about products. So, you have to find ways to deliver value in meaningful ways.
If you’re not investing in your craft, you’re going to get beat by a call center, or the personal lines agent who gets a chance at a big commercial account.
There’s no better way to differentiate the value offering in the marketplace than to move beyond the product because everybody can sell the product.
Growth looks like a stabilizing of the variance between high competence and low competence, between maintaining a competitive edge and being a fierce alpha-type personality, while at the same time being pleasant to be around and being a generally nice and kind person.
You already have the tools necessary to make your own unfair advantage. If you don’t know what that is right now, just put some effort into figuring out what your unfair advantage is and drive that hard.

About our Guest:

James Jenkins is the founder and CEO of RiskWell, an independent agency located in McKinney, TX. After spending 6+ years on the captive agent side of the industry, James made his Freedom Jump and opened what is now RiskWell in April 2019. From the beginning, James has been committed to building a business that thrives on efficiency, strong culture, innovation, and extremely high organizational agility. RiskWell recently achieved the $1M gross annualized revenue mark and currently has eight team members.

James attributes much of his team’s success to staying focused on niche specialization. RiskWell is a nationally recognized expert in serving real estate investors of every shape and size. They insure investment properties in 40+ states. Additionally, RiskWell serves many roofers, general contractors, and heavy trade contractors.

James launched the Agency Freedom Podcast in 2021 with the mission of empowering insurance professionals to launch and grow independent agencies. AFP began with a focus on current and former captive agency owners and has evolved into a more holistic approach to growth and improvement.

A big part of James’ success comes from his commitment to professional growth and expertise. He holds the trifecta of professional designations in the P&C insurance world: Chartered Property & Casualty Underwriter (CPCU), Certified Insurance Counselor (CIC) and Certified Risk Manager (CRM).

James’ business philosophy is centered on the key principles of integrity, consistency, advocacy, results, and expertise. He believes the best way to win people over is through clear communication, good follow through, tactical empathy and a resolute commitment to personal excellence.

James’ interests outside of work begin with his family and include cycling, photography and smoking delicious meats.

The topics James is most qualified to speak on include the following: