Legality and practicality aside, these arguments are misdirected. You are demanding one third party tell another one how to run their business and how much they have to pay you. Doesn't that go against the spirit of the “free market” you keep demanding?

The commission genie is out of the bottle. The ACA gave carriers a permission slip to reduce commissions. If you truly believe in the free market, you know that same market will ultimately determine appropriate commission levels.

Oh, I get the demands at a certain level. I hear the argument, “Our clients are more demanding than ever. They need help, advice and guidance in ways they never have. We need to be paid more to provide the level of service and resources our clients need.”

Who's paying?

That's absolutely true. But the question you need to ask is, “Who should be paying for what?”

You deliver value in two ways, which means you need to be paid in two ways. You have always been paid for helping with insurance needs. But you know that isn't enough. It's why you've invested so heavily in “value-added services” (or non-insurance solutions, as we prefer to call them).

However, instead of seeing the ROI potential of your new investments and charging fees for the additional value you now deliver, you give these services away for free. Therein lies my problem with this “give us more commission” demand.

What's the money really about?

Commissions aren't about the value you deliver to clients, it's payment for the value you deliver to the carriers. It's payment for the job you do to help distribute and service their product. Yes, they have a responsibility to pay you fairly for performing that job, but that's where their responsibility ends.

It's not their responsibility to pay such rich compensation that you can go buy products from other companies and then give them away for free, effectively on the carrier's dime.

Carriers pay you for distributing insurance. Clients should pay for the additional value they receive from your non-insurance solutions.

I know some of you are in states where you aren't able to charge fees, and that needs to change. If you are going to demand help with anything, demand help getting the ability to charge fees for the various ways in which you deliver value to your clients.

But when it comes to taking control of your business, that my friend, is on you.

It's time to call “game on.”