Here's A Little Bit About Me

Independent Agent Magazine called me ‘the insurance marketing maven.’

Professional Agent Magazine called me ‘the insurance marketing guru.’

The founder of The Insurance Agent’s Summit called me ‘the father of modern insurance marketing.’

But, it’s more important what my clients have to say. Like Richard Hauswirth, who said, ‘Michael, you’ve made me and a lot of other agents millionaires.’

If you’re here and you’ve been in the industry for a while, it’s very likely you know my name. It’s not unlikely that we’ve worked together. 

Or, perhaps, I’ve had some influence on your thinking. 

But, there are a few things about me, as a person that you may want to know about. Especially, the ‘hidden’ side of Michael Jans.

I’ve had hard times

  • In business and in life. I often tell the story about the dark days after I took over the agents' association on the west coast. It was going broke. And, as a father of five, I was in a panic. Fortunately, for me, for my family, and the association, I found the marketing mentor to help me turn that around.
  • After that, everything grew.
  • Until about 15 years later. I started an insurtech - Agency Revolution. It was designed to do something I believed deeply in: strengthen the relationship between agents and their customer base
  • Then, boom. The recession hit. Just as we launched.
  • I almost lost it all. Dipping into my 401(k) seven times. Getting loans from friends and 'unusual places.' Selling little chunks of my business.
  • But, again, I found a mentor. Someone who had already scaled and sold two software companies. He helped guide me through a few very difficult years.
  • I learned more in three years than I did in the previous thirty. And, we scaled. And, then I sold to a private equity firm.
  • Then, my wife and I moved to the remote foothills of the Sonoran Desert. I was ready for some peace and quiet. (And, by the way, I found it!)

I care enough to be critical

  • You'll find advocates of the agency system who will readily say, 'This is the best system in the world. I've heard predictions about it's demise for decades, but that will never happen!'
  • I think that's naive. The past is not the future.
  • The industry has undergone consolidation and contraction before. Agents have suffered a 'thinning of the herd' before.
  • Conditions are ripe for that to happen again.
  • Especially, for agents who don't perform. Agents who don't meet the demands and expectations of the Modern Insurance Consumer.
  • I have no qualms about saying this, if an agency doesn't meet the needs of the consumer, they don't deserve to make it.
  • Serving the consumer. In a way that delivers meaning and delight. That's the litmus test.
  • So, you won't find me blathering empty platitudes and rah-rah-rah about how great the agency system is. It's only as great as the consumer says it is.
  • And, today, consumers have a lot of choices.
  • I, for one, believe the agency force needs to step up it's game. And, do it fast.

I’m not just ‘Mr. Insurance Marketing.’

I have a rich and wonderful life outside of insurance. (That’s one reason I only accept a very small number of private clients.)
  • I live in the remote foothills of the Continental Mountains in the Sonoran Desert. The view will take your breath away.
  • I'm much more likely to see rabbits, quail, coyotes and mountain lions than people. I could sit in my courtyard for a month without seeing a person. except for my wife. Friends and family. And, of course, the Amazon driver.
  • I work out of my 'happy little Casita' - commuting about 40 feet from the house. This is where my clients come to work with me - when we don't have a pandemic. (And, where I host the Connected Insurance Podcast.)
  • When clients come here, their stress melts away. (That's part of why we get so much done.)
  • My dad founded Meals on Wheels. He was a social worker in Philadelphia and hosted graduate students from Great Britain. He was moved by their stories of how citizens volunteered to deliver meals to people during the German bombing of London.
  • I stuttered as a child and dreaded speaking in public. I never forget that when I keynote a conference 0 and am grateful for the opportunity to share.
  • We built four schools in Vietnam. That's where my son met my terrific daughter-in-law.
  • At his request, I buried the dog tags of a client under the foundation of one of those schools. It was a moment that brought me to my knees. He later died from the effects of Agent Orange, which affected his entire adult life.
  • I do love people, but I'm pretty much an introvert. I'm perfectly happy spending a day by myself.
  • I write every day. (Unless I don't!)
  • My wife and I suffered COVID. (Even in this remote 'bubble.' Please, be safe.) I shared some of my story with my community here.
  • I have five kids. A curator at SF Museum of Modern Art. A startup founder in the education field. A VP of Product who lives in Vietnam. An internet marketer in Toronto. And, a marketer in San Diego. And, six amazing grandchildren.
  • I used to run the anti-poverty agency in Portland, OR. I also ran the refugee resettlement agency in the Portland Metro area. (Yes, I had a career before insurance.)
  • Teresa and I have been married for over 40 years. That was the single best decision of my life. (She seems to feel pretty good about it, too!)

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