The Marketing Alliance review for agents: contracting, pay, release terms and leads

TMA's grids sit behind the TMA Social login, so ask for your levels by carrier in writing before you move.

TMA is open contracting for agencies. Digital contracting ties your agency directly into the carrier network with no other agency in between, so the chain is producer, your agency, TMA and the carrier. TMA offers direct carrier contracts plus Business Center and Annuity Center routes.

TMA positions the offer for independent agencies, BGAs and producer groups and does not describe a captive transition program.

TMA defines street level as the default grid for a producer with no bargaining power. It negotiates comp based on the combined production of its whole base and passes those terms along to member agencies. TMA says current grids and bonus details are in TMA Social after login with pages for Life, Long Term Care and Annuity.

TMA says your book stays yours and agencies stay the owners of their distribution and producer relationships. TMA's public release guide tells agencies to inspect the contract for termination, chargeback and advance recovery terms. TMA does not give a release fee, turnaround, debt, interest or collection terms for exit.

Each carrier sets its own release rules.

TMA reports 36+ carrier partners covering life, annuity, long-term care or hybrid, disability and Medicare Supplement, and lists them by line. Life carriers include John Hancock, Lincoln Financial Group, Pacific Life, Protective Life, Prudential and Transamerica.

TMA says your cases do not feed any lead pool. Lead prices and required purchases are not listed. Its Insurance Fulfillment Center handles tele-interviews, application compilation and electronic submission with no direct fee for distribution partners, and case rescue carries no added cost.

Case-management pricing scales with volume. The Business Center guide says fees vary with TMA Life Model participation and there is no fee for contracting.

No recurring dollar schedule is listed. Partners also get an iPipeline discount.

Support comes through the Underwriting Office, Business Support Center, carrier advocacy and distributor conferences. Case management runs 8am to 8pm Monday through Friday. TMA's compensation guide says negotiated levels usually carry volume expectations reviewed annually.

Its Business Center guide says it waives carrier minimum production requirements when that center is used and sets no monthly minimum for app volume unless a volume agreement applies. TMA does not state a level drop rule.

Contracting is digital, with SureLC among partner resources. TMA says there is no fee for contracting, but it does not identify who pays carrier or state appointment fees. TMA's guide says carriers ask for proof of E&O before contracting.

TMA does not describe a group E&O policy or discount.

TMA is an independent public company. It has no in-house agency writing the same business as its partners.

TMA offers Medicare Supplement carriers but not Medicare Advantage, and Supplement pay comes from each carrier contract.

What commission levels does The Marketing Alliance offer?

TMA shares current grids by carrier with contracted partners on TMA Social. It defines street level as the default grid for a producer with no bargaining power.

Do I keep my book with TMA?

TMA says your book stays yours. Its release policy is not published, so get it in writing.

Does TMA sell leads?

No lead program is published, and your cases do not feed any lead pool.

Is The Marketing Alliance a recruiting company?

No. TMA contracts agencies and BGAs directly with no other agency in the middle.

What does TMA's back office cost?

Tele-interviews, application compilation and electronic submission carry no direct fee for distribution partners. Case-management pricing scales with volume.

Vendors change their pricing all the time and they don't email us when they do. So if you see a price on here that's gone up, a plan The Marketing Alliance quit selling or a contract term that reads different now, let us know and send the link to the page where The Marketing Alliance has it. Somebody here pulls up that page and checks it before we change anything on ours.