Michigan agency focuses on education
through videos and consultative approach
By Christopher W. Cook
Photography by Tim Meyers
My now 5-year-old son watched too much YouTube before we had it removed from all of our devices. Whether it was computerized video creations of cars rolling down ramps and crashing into objects in the roadway, collectors cataloging their Halloween animatronic collections, or parodies of songs from K-Pop Demon Hunters, he watched it all. Most of the videos were pretty nonsensical—entertaining, sure, but by no means offering any educational value, especially for a young child.
However, using the streaming platform to inform clients and potential clients about the business world he was involved with—and one often confusing to the common consumer—was top of mind for Mark Flockhart, owner of Valor Insurance Group in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Prior to starting his agency in 2022, Mark did stints at both a captive and an independent agency. “After I was a sales agent for Farmers, about three years into my career, I started making videos as a giveback to others, and I enjoyed making them,” he says. “I created them out of passion for sharing my knowledge with others.”
Think Insurance
A separate entity from Valor, Think Insurance was launched early in Mark’s career. “It’s primarily a YouTube focused channel with over 470 long-form videos, most of which drive organic traffic into Valor,” Mark says. “The channel generates hundreds of organic leads monthly. These are high-intent leads because the viewer has already spent time learning from us before reaching out.
“Think Insurance is built around education, trending insurance topics, and research-based content. We focus on answering real consumer questions and breaking down complex insurance concepts in a way that is easy to understand. We also create content around trending topics in the insurance industry and use data to guide what we produce.
“Our brand is built around knowledge, clarity, and service,” Mark continues. “People come to us because they want to understand their coverage and make informed decisions. Our YouTube presence and online content position us as an agency that explains insurance clearly and honestly.”
As for the videos, which cover topics like why insurance is expensive and guides explaining policies, “The feedback we get is very positive,” Mark says. “[Viewers we’ve talked to] have watched several videos and expressed how they love the way that I explain coverage.
“Our brand is built around knowledge, clarity, and service. … Our YouTube presence and online content position us as an agency that explains insurance clearly and honestly.”
—Mark Flockhart
Owner
“The majority of people we talk to are looking for a solution, and I’m happy that I’m able to direct them; but they are also interested in working with an agent that can help them directly. That’s the design of Think Insurance. I’ll frequently mention that it’s more important to find an agent that you can trust than it is to get a ‘better deal.’”
The Think Insurance YouTube channel has more than 38,000 subscribers and over 6.5 million video views. This has resulted in a scalable organic marketing campaign that consistently drives new business, including more than 1,700 high-intent leads in 2024.
The agency and team
While the informative videos were a huge part of his early success, Mark easily decided to carry the concept of education with him when he launched Valor Insurance Group in 2022.
“From the beginning, the vision was to build a modern independent agency that combines strong relationships with technology, education, and marketing,” Mark says.
Licensed in 12 states, the agency has “grown organically without acquisitions, apart from a small acquisition of a $75,000 book we did to test the waters,” he adds. “Our growth has been intentional. We focused first on building lead generation systems and infrastructure before expanding headcount. That foundation is what has allowed us to scale efficiently while staying lean.”
Associate Producer Josh Richard, Owner Mark Flockhart, and Executive Producer John Morehouse have a meeting at the office.
Mark, as owner, is responsible for all the marketing, content creation, automation, and internal operational systems. The team is rounded out with Executive Producer John Morehouse and Associate Producer Josh Richard.
“We’re growing the hard way, where I am not in a sales role; I work on the business and marketing while John and Josh do sales,” Mark says. “My focus is for us to build the agency based on the structure more than me selling and being busy with clients. It’s tough!”
While the agency is hoping to hire a service rep later this year, as well as a third salesperson, both John and Josh are currently servicing their own books of business.
“John is my main guy for out-of-state leads and trucking clients,” Mark says. “He’s been with me from the beginning; we worked together at a previous company and he’s a guy who’s consistent and easy to work with.”
Josh joined the agency in August 2025. “He’s been great working with the more local outreach and sales,” Mark says. “He is learning the ropes a little, but he’s been able to hop right in and perform. We’re starting to set up training for him to do new buyer classes with local mortgage and real estate agents soon.”
The agency’s overall book of business is 60% personal lines and 40% commercial, with growth being experienced in a number of areas, including fleet and trucking, contractors, service-based businesses and local property investors.
“We are intentional about the type of client we pursue. We focus on families and business owners who value advice, transparency, and long-term relationships over simply chasing the lowest premium,” Mark says.
Tech and clients
With the use of video to keep clients informed, Mark understood from the beginning the importance of technology with agency operations. “Our agency is built with modern systems that allow us to scale efficiently,” he says. “Our systems allow us to track performance closely and continuously improve how we operate.”
All of Valor’s marketing and automation systems are built and managed internally. They use EZLynx for quoting and policy management alongside carrier portals.
It also uses Hublly, which is a customized GoHighLevel platform, for its CRM. “Hublly handles lead tracking, automated follow up, texting, email communication, and pipeline management,” Mark says. “Through our custom-built CRM paired with AI-driven text automation, more than 40% of our inbound leads are converted into appointments without manual chasing. This lets our agents focus on meaningful conversations, where the emphasis shifts away from price and toward true coverage needs.”
The agency also uses microsites for each team member on its website. “Each producer has a personalized landing page tied to their contact information and tracking links,” Mark says. “By pairing educational video content with personalized agent pages, we’re delivering trust at scale while still keeping the experience local and personal.
“This combination has allowed us to grow inside our own community while creating stronger, more authentic relationships.”
“We do not rely on virtual consultations or heavy automation during
the advisory process. Technology supports us, but the goal is
always to talk with people directly. We believe insurance decisions
deserve human conversations.”
—Mark Flockhart
This community growth has been noticeable. “Our expertise in digital outreach has allowed us to help local businesses, from marketing agencies to realtors to small companies, improve their social media presence. In doing so, we not only generate referrals but also create a stronger local ecosystem of trusted professionals,” Mark adds.
The agency also has an after-hours voice bot named IAN. While fully built and tested, it’s currently not being used. And there is a reason for this.
“We focus on real conversations to understand goals, risk exposure, and long-term plans,” Mark adds. “We do not rely on virtual consultations or heavy automation during the advisory process. Technology supports us, but the goal is always to talk with people directly. We believe insurance decisions deserve human conversations.
“We are more focused on insuring the best coverage based on an individual’s needs than simply offering the cheapest price. By educating our clients, we are able to give them real choices and help them understand tradeoffs. We also just get it. We focus on being relatable to the client and actively listening to their needs before we dive into coverage.”
Culture and recognition
As a team of three, “our culture is simple; we focus on what matters—the client and being knowledgeable,” Mark says. “We operate as a small, tight team with high standards. Everyone understands that our job is to protect families and businesses properly, not just sell a policy.
“We review performance metrics regularly and are strong at tracking data. We continue to improve by taking time to evaluate what the numbers are telling us and making adjustments.
“When you generate enough leads [like we do through our YouTube platform and referrals], you can afford to focus on higher quality opportunities. That allows us to stay consultative and intentional in how we serve clients.
“We know who our ideal client is and we direct our marketing efforts specifically toward that person and their family,” Mark continues. “We lean heavily on technology to make our jobs easier, but the end goal is always meaningful conversations.”
Executive Producer John Morehouse started with Valor when it first opened in 2022. While he does produce personal lines accounts, his specialty is in trucking insurance. Like the agency’s videos, John also stresses the importance of educating clients about the coverages being recommended.
Associate Producer Josh Robert joined Valor in 2025. He focuses on local connections, such as referral partners like mortgage lenders, real estate agents and financial planners. Being actively present in the Grand Rapids community, Josh is often the local face of the agency at networking events.
The Valor Insurance group team stands in front of Alexander Calder’s scupture “La Grande Vitesse” in Grand Rapids’ Calder Plaza.
Below: Mark holds the agency’s Liberty Mutual and Safeco Agent for the Future Award.
Looking to the future, “we see continued commercial growth, additional team members, and ongoing refinement of our systems,” Mark says. “The goal is not to become the biggest agency. The goal is to become one of the most respected and well-run agencies in our market.”
And while Valor is still in its infancy, it’s already been recognized as a forward-thinking agency when it received the 2025 Liberty Mutual and Safeco Agent for the FutureTM Outstanding Agency Overall award.
“Our team may be small, but they are incredible. [Winning the Agent for the Future award] was a proud moment because it recognized not just production, but vision and innovation. It felt a little surreal.”
—Mark Flockhart
And while Valor is still in its infancy, it’s already been recognized as a forward-thinking agency when it received the 2025 Liberty Mutual and Safeco Agent for the FutureTM Outstanding Agency Overall award.
“Winning this award validated that even a small agency with a tight team can compete at a high level,” Mark says. “Our team may be small, but they are incredible. [Winning] was a proud moment because it recognized not just production, but vision and innovation. It felt a little surreal,” he concludes.
And the recognition continues, as Rough Notes is pleased to acknowledge Valor Insurance Group as our Agency of the Month. Its consultative approach and combination of education, technology, and personal conversation, shows that even the smallest agency can make a big difference for its clients.
