• Is there special education/training I should undertake to maximize the chances of becoming a successful rep?
• What are practical steps to follow when opening an agency?
• What do I do if a principal unfairly terminates me while still owing me commission?
• What’s the most effective way to find new lines?
• Do I really need an attorney, accountant, banker, etc.?

All of these are excellent questions, and this isn’t the first time they’ve been asked. More important than knowing the answers to each of the questions, however, is knowing where to get the answers. That’s a slight turn on the old saying, “It’s not what you know, but who you know.” MANA members are lucky — they know the right people.

My point in beginning this thought process focused on MANA’s products and services is to emphasize the wealth of answers to questions and solutions to problems that MANA members and associates can realize through their association membership.

The fact that MANA provides value-add to its members has best been shown by the consensus that has developed among the members who are the most active and the most demanding of the association staff. They are the reps and manufacturer associates who make regular use of the association’s counseling services, attend seminars, read Agency Sales magazine, etc.

It’s from those individuals that we’ve often heard this appraisal: “At the end of the year when I consider what I received in return for my membership dues, I figure the dues have paid for themselves in benefits.”

We wish all of our members would echo that sentiment. We also wish all of our members were just as demanding of MANA.