EF Fall 07.indd - National Association of Professional Allstate ...

need guidance and advice. This group ofagents is particularly vulnerable to shiftingcorporate strategies and changingmarkets. NAPAA can help provide thetools, knowledge and inspiration it willtake to make it over the rough spots.Contrary to what you may have heard,NAPAA is not a clique of radicals. Ourboard of directors is elected by the membership.Our leaders are simply currentand former Allstate agents who are deeplypassionate about making NAPAA betterand providing more services, guidanceand tools to help our members be moresuccessful. Naturally, when a group puts somuch time and effort into a mutual causelike NAPAA, individual group membersare bound to become friends. This is agood thing and makes for harmony on theboard. Our volunteers believe so stronglyin NAPAA that they are willing to giveup considerable time and money to servethe organization. A large part of what wedo is seek and explore solutions to problemsfaced by the agency force. Standingtogether in solidarity accomplishes muchmore than one person can alone.Clearly, NAPAA cannot solve all theproblems that member agencies face.What we can do is impart valuable informationto you and help you though toughtimes by empathizing with you and makingall of our resources available to you.NAPAA, a non-profit organization,depends on membership dues and ActionFund donations for most of its expenses.For 17 years, it has been built brick bybrick as a labor of love by scores of agentswho have sacrificed time and money tofulfill the noble vision they all shared.A portion of our revenues come from advertisers,carefully chosen for their relevanceto your business. Our advertisers make thismagazine and our other publications possible.We urge you support the advertiserswho support your agent association.Just so you know, your association’sexpenses include the same types of expensesas your agency, such as telephone,staffing, equipment and high speed connectivity.Additional expenses includethe following costs:• Graphic production, printing andpublishing of Exclusivefocus magazine• Research, publishing and deliveryof NAPAA newsletters• Lobbyist expenses• Legal Fees• Insurance• Conferences, agent meetings,board meetings• Travel expense• Etc.So, as you can see, we have a lot ofbricks to maintain while we try to buildon our foundation. Member dues are lessthan a dollar a day. The dues have remainedstatic for several years and thereare no plans to increase them.I ask you, isn’t it worth a dollar a dayto become part of the only organizationthat fully supports Allstate agencies?Isn’t it worth a dollar a day to get valuableadvice when you need help? Isn’t itworth a dollar a day to know that yourassociation will challenge your contractprovider if and when necessary?I hope you agree. A membership applicationis included in this magazine. Pleasehelp us put another brick in the wall.Fall 2007 Exclusivefocus — 49