So now I get asked all the time, "Can I sell Medicare Supplements by phone?"
The answer is now a very easy one. Not only can it be done, but the clients are happier, the cases are issued faster (when using the Electronic Applications) and the clients refer more people. Their message to their friends and family is that the entire process was painless, they did not have to have an agent come visit them, and the whole thing was completed in less than 20 to 30 minutes over the telephone.
When we are using the electronic application from Mutual of Omaha and their related companies (United of Omaha, United World), the seniors watch along with a screen sharing utility. They absolutely love this as they can be heard settling into the process and watching the enrollment take place. They are relieved to see, right on their computer, that their information is being entered into an official form on a secure website and what the reasons are behind the specific questions. They can even pipe up and let us know when we've misspelled a word or made a date error. This means less rejected applications due to errors.
We also have a unique method of obtaining signatures on paper applications that makes the process almost immediate and must less cumbersome than putting together a packet for the mail and then waiting a week to see if it's returned (with the added cost of Business Reply Mail).
As we're bringing on more and more carriers to satisfy the varying needs of clients in newly added states, we are also bringing on more agents that have never before sold Medicare Supplement policies. The attraction to the new agents seems to be the simplicity of the process and the consistency of the renewals.
We're using the site: http://www.medicarebyphone.com, along with http://www.nationalmedicareservicecenter.com for client acquisition, along with others.
Agents interested in learning more about our unique selling process should visit:
http://www.finalexpensebyphone.com
Contracts for the carriers can be found at:
http://finalexpensebyphone.com/CONTRACTING.html
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Friday, October 16, 2009
So Thankful
All our discontents about what we want appeared to spring from the want of thankfulness for what we have. -Daniel Defoe
I am so thankful for today. Having finally moved into a bigger, nicer office with a great view from the fifth floor, I am now excited to get here every day to see what new adventures await. The feeling from being able to help seniors that are really scared, confused and worried - being able to help allay their fears and help - it's priceless.
Just now, I finished a phone call with an 82 year old woman who had just received a letter yesterday from Advantra PFFS (Medicare Advantage plan) telling her that she was being dropped and is on her own for finding replacement coverage. She went online looking for help and found me. She said she could not sleep last night because she was so worried about what is going to happen with her healthcare plan.
I was able to explain to her the benefits of being on a medicare supplement policy. She was VERY happy to learn that she can now to go ANY doctor and ANY hospital without worrying about networks or co-payments out maximum out of pocket costs like before. She chose to take care of the electronic enrollment right then. That's right, she's 100% computer savvy. She signed the electronic application without one problem.
When we were done talking about products and insurance, I asked her how she felt now, about putting this issue to rest with more freedom than she had before. She paused, and then let out a deep breath. She was so relieved that she didn't have to say anything more. I then encouraged her to seek out her friends that may have received the same letter of cancellation. I assured her that I would take the same time and effort for them as I had with her. She then told me she was taking her piece of paper with my phone number on it IN PER PURSE for when she ran into her friends.
I'm thankful for the opportunity to actually help people. That's why I became a police officer at 19 - I always really wanted to help people. Now, in my new career, I'm able to do the same thing, but with much, much better rewards.
Chris
www.myunlimitedleads.com
Monday, September 7, 2009
Perfect Timing for a New Medicare Player
Gerber Life Medicare Supplements
It's not very often that a new carrier decides to ENTER the Medicare Supplement market.
As many carriers are not renewing their Medicare Advantage and PFFS contracts throughout the country because the federal government has made it abundantly clear that they (Med Adv) will not be around long anyway - it is a GREAT time to be in Medicare Supplements.
Here's some information about this new player in our Medicare Supplement market:
Gerber Products, the baby food people, founded Gerber Life Insurance Company in 1967. Gerber Life is an affiliate of Gerber Products and has shared in their tradition of helping parents to raise happy, healthy children.
Gerber Life, which does business in the U.S., Puerto Rico, and Canada, has more than $33 billion of life insurance in force and insures more than 2.9 million policies. Source: Gerber Life 2007 Annual Statement, December 2007. Gerber Life is rated "A" (Excellent) by A.M. Best. The home office of Gerber Life Insurance Company is located in White Plains, New York. The Operations Division, responsible for issuing all policies and processing benefit payments is in Fremont, Michigan…home of the Gerber Products Company.
Our agents now have the opportunity to represent a new player in the medicare supplement marketplace with a proven reputation in our industry. Gerber Life has the lowest rates in most locations where they operate and great commissions. Click here to find out more about contracting with Gerber Life and more information about our proven cross-selling system.
It's not very often that a new carrier decides to ENTER the Medicare Supplement market.
As many carriers are not renewing their Medicare Advantage and PFFS contracts throughout the country because the federal government has made it abundantly clear that they (Med Adv) will not be around long anyway - it is a GREAT time to be in Medicare Supplements.
Here's some information about this new player in our Medicare Supplement market:
Gerber Products, the baby food people, founded Gerber Life Insurance Company in 1967. Gerber Life is an affiliate of Gerber Products and has shared in their tradition of helping parents to raise happy, healthy children.
Gerber Life, which does business in the U.S., Puerto Rico, and Canada, has more than $33 billion of life insurance in force and insures more than 2.9 million policies. Source: Gerber Life 2007 Annual Statement, December 2007. Gerber Life is rated "A" (Excellent) by A.M. Best. The home office of Gerber Life Insurance Company is located in White Plains, New York. The Operations Division, responsible for issuing all policies and processing benefit payments is in Fremont, Michigan…home of the Gerber Products Company.
Our agents now have the opportunity to represent a new player in the medicare supplement marketplace with a proven reputation in our industry. Gerber Life has the lowest rates in most locations where they operate and great commissions. Click here to find out more about contracting with Gerber Life and more information about our proven cross-selling system.
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Getting Paid to Prospect & Free Leads for Final Expense
Some big hitters in the final expense niche have been telling me for about six months that I'm "missing the boat" by not cross selling in our market. They point the the myriad of benefits an agent immediately experiences when they begin with a health product and THEN moves into a life sale. First and foremost, the health "lead" is virtually free.
I probably get 5 to 10 calls each and every day from agents wanting to come with me to sell final expense insurance. From internet searches, they found that my agency has the highest contracts available for street agents to sell for our companies. What happens in 90% of the cases, though, is that they'll get the top contracts available and then sit there looking at that BIG percentage, as if it's going to equate to money in their bank account.
These same agents come back weeks or months later, saying "I would go on a 70% contract for final expense if you'd just give me free leads." Why? Because they either cannot manage purchasing and running their own leads or their closing skills are not adequate with the leads they've had returned to justify their return on lead investment.
Still other agents will call and ask for free leads.. "Do you have free leads?" or "Do you give discounted leads?" These are agents that have bounced from one IMO to another and yet another, seeking releases, new contracts, releases and new contracts again. They think the secret sauce is in the different IMO when it's really in the mirror. Anyway, I digress.
Having made relationships across our great country with those in the top of our field, I have taken the advice of my mentors who have repeatedly told me that you sell more final expense going after the health market FIRST. The leads are then free for final expense - but actually, you get paid for prospecting.
The benefits for starting a conversation about Medicare Supplements with seniors BEFORE mentioning anything about final expense include the following:
1) Seniors love to talk about their health issues going on. They hate to talk about death and dying (final expense).
2) Seniors love to get the best bang for their buck. By representing JUST the most inexpensive Medicare Supplement providers, we can usually save them between $300 to $1,200 per year.
3) We provide found money for life insurance. Why? We save then between $300 to $1,200 per year. That's per person. For a couple, you could easily save them $600 per year and then, very casually bring up what kind of benefit $600 per year would provide to their spouse or children for their burial costs or for a legacy gift to their grandchildren or favorite church or charity.
4) Saving someone money results in referrals!! There is no better way to get news to spread like a virus (viral marketing) like saving someone a lot of money. In the tight-knit senior community, when you have saved a couple $1,000, it is very easy to understand why they start telling everyone they know about the savings you offered. (Especially when using our referral marketing system - more on that later).
5) By leading with Medicare Supplement sales, you're not working the projects. This is a big difference for most final expense agents who work leads in the $0 to $20,000 annual income category and spend many days working in the housing projects or trailer parks. That's not to say that you won't find some seniors in trailer parks, but when you do an initial sort for who you'll be talking with, you can put the bottom floor at $20,000 - not the top. This makes for happier agents, at the end of the day.
6) Medicare Supplements are all the same. Medicare supplements are a commodity. All of the benefits have to be the same from carrier to carrier, based on the plan letter (C, D, F, etc.).
The only question for the senior to decide on, then, is what do you want to pay for it? This makes it a simple decision based on cost. We're only going to represent the lowest cost carriers in any given market. Why would you want to represent the highest cost companies selling the exact same product?
7) Unlike selling Medicare Advantage, we can sell Medicare Supplements 365 days a year. We can call seniors, we can go see them. We can replace whatever they currently have and we are not limited by CMS marketing guidelines. Those guidelines only apply to Medicare Advantage - which the President has made clear will be going away within a few years.
Many final expense agents know absolutely nothing about Medicare or selling Medicare Supplements. That's OK. Training from the best in the industry is provided to our contracted agents. Training, scripts, worksheets, contracts - they're all on our secure website.
The best thing an agent can do is to get contracted with our Medicare Supplement companies. The process takes much longer (usually) than the final expense life companies, so begin the process as soon as possible.
For our agents we have:
1) List source for qualified seniors as low as 3 cents each. The cost goes higher depending on how specific you want to get for your targeted list of seniors. The lists are already scrubbed against the Do Not Call list, so that's not a problem at all.
2) A proven script that has been honed and perfected for over 15 years to immediately let you know if you're getting somewhere with a potential client or wasting your time. It, very quickly, also allows you to gather a valuable database of who your potential clients are already with. This means that if they are not wanting to move right now, you'll have in your database their company information so that you can call them when you learn their carrier has a 20+% rate increase! This very technique has earned agents $30,000+ in one month from simply capturing this data with every phone conversation.
3) A 100% web hosted predictive dialer service that costs just $68 per month. This is not an "automated" dialer that calls people with a recording. This is a dialer that calls YOUR LIST of people and just puts you on the phone with the people as they're answering their phone. You do not have to hear busy signals, the dial tone, the ringing phones, the answering machines, etc. This makes your calling time four times more productive. It also saves on your fingers! You can easily call 100 people within a 2 hour calling block, have conversations, etc. appointments, etc. and skip the 1,000 keystrokes into your phone that this would have cost you! Your fingers will LOVE you for this technology!
4) We have unique selling opportunities in specific geographic regions right now where our carrier is 20% - 30% lower than the nearest competition. It does not matter where you live. You can sell 100% over the phone with these companies. Some of them have 100% electronic enrollment while others want you to mail the applications to the client. In either case, though, remember that you are saving folks between $20 - $100 per month - they will send it back to you!
5) A referral based marketing system that is fully automated and works like magic. You simply plug your new clients into the referral marketing system and it does the rest - fully automated. It sends out birthday cards, Christmas cards, and specially designed referral generating cards with YOUR picture on them and proven, effective script that works like a charm. This system writes in your own handwriting, never forgets a birthday, anniversary, or referral card schedule, and is designed specifically for insurance agents. (See a preview here.)
Many 6 and 7 figure earners in insurance are using this exact system and we have access to the cards they've designed for referrals- just for our team.
My phone has been ringing off the hook as I have mentioned this new, cross-selling system to a few of our top producing agents. While they've been doing great in buying leads and leading with final expense, they recognize the impact of first-year commissions for 6 full years that they earn with Medicare Supplements. For most guys doing this full-time, they add between $60,000 to $70,000 in commissions to the books each year. These numbers compound as you get the exact same commissions in years 1-6.
We have decided to offer just the lowest priced companies in each market. In some cases, this also means that they're the biggest named companies (AARP, Mutual of Omaha). This gives real credibility to your client. But, at the end of the day, it really comes down to price, with Medicare Supplements.
We have the lists, the scripts, the dialer, the training - there is nothing else missing except to plug in those agents that are tired of working the projects, tired of paying $26 per lead, and tired of getting zero referrals in the final expense-only marketplace.
Visit: www.myunlimitedleads.com or www.finalexpensebyphone.com.
CW
I probably get 5 to 10 calls each and every day from agents wanting to come with me to sell final expense insurance. From internet searches, they found that my agency has the highest contracts available for street agents to sell for our companies. What happens in 90% of the cases, though, is that they'll get the top contracts available and then sit there looking at that BIG percentage, as if it's going to equate to money in their bank account.
These same agents come back weeks or months later, saying "I would go on a 70% contract for final expense if you'd just give me free leads." Why? Because they either cannot manage purchasing and running their own leads or their closing skills are not adequate with the leads they've had returned to justify their return on lead investment.
Still other agents will call and ask for free leads.. "Do you have free leads?" or "Do you give discounted leads?" These are agents that have bounced from one IMO to another and yet another, seeking releases, new contracts, releases and new contracts again. They think the secret sauce is in the different IMO when it's really in the mirror. Anyway, I digress.
Having made relationships across our great country with those in the top of our field, I have taken the advice of my mentors who have repeatedly told me that you sell more final expense going after the health market FIRST. The leads are then free for final expense - but actually, you get paid for prospecting.
The benefits for starting a conversation about Medicare Supplements with seniors BEFORE mentioning anything about final expense include the following:
1) Seniors love to talk about their health issues going on. They hate to talk about death and dying (final expense).
2) Seniors love to get the best bang for their buck. By representing JUST the most inexpensive Medicare Supplement providers, we can usually save them between $300 to $1,200 per year.
3) We provide found money for life insurance. Why? We save then between $300 to $1,200 per year. That's per person. For a couple, you could easily save them $600 per year and then, very casually bring up what kind of benefit $600 per year would provide to their spouse or children for their burial costs or for a legacy gift to their grandchildren or favorite church or charity.
4) Saving someone money results in referrals!! There is no better way to get news to spread like a virus (viral marketing) like saving someone a lot of money. In the tight-knit senior community, when you have saved a couple $1,000, it is very easy to understand why they start telling everyone they know about the savings you offered. (Especially when using our referral marketing system - more on that later).
5) By leading with Medicare Supplement sales, you're not working the projects. This is a big difference for most final expense agents who work leads in the $0 to $20,000 annual income category and spend many days working in the housing projects or trailer parks. That's not to say that you won't find some seniors in trailer parks, but when you do an initial sort for who you'll be talking with, you can put the bottom floor at $20,000 - not the top. This makes for happier agents, at the end of the day.
6) Medicare Supplements are all the same. Medicare supplements are a commodity. All of the benefits have to be the same from carrier to carrier, based on the plan letter (C, D, F, etc.).
The only question for the senior to decide on, then, is what do you want to pay for it? This makes it a simple decision based on cost. We're only going to represent the lowest cost carriers in any given market. Why would you want to represent the highest cost companies selling the exact same product?
7) Unlike selling Medicare Advantage, we can sell Medicare Supplements 365 days a year. We can call seniors, we can go see them. We can replace whatever they currently have and we are not limited by CMS marketing guidelines. Those guidelines only apply to Medicare Advantage - which the President has made clear will be going away within a few years.
Many final expense agents know absolutely nothing about Medicare or selling Medicare Supplements. That's OK. Training from the best in the industry is provided to our contracted agents. Training, scripts, worksheets, contracts - they're all on our secure website.
The best thing an agent can do is to get contracted with our Medicare Supplement companies. The process takes much longer (usually) than the final expense life companies, so begin the process as soon as possible.
For our agents we have:
1) List source for qualified seniors as low as 3 cents each. The cost goes higher depending on how specific you want to get for your targeted list of seniors. The lists are already scrubbed against the Do Not Call list, so that's not a problem at all.
2) A proven script that has been honed and perfected for over 15 years to immediately let you know if you're getting somewhere with a potential client or wasting your time. It, very quickly, also allows you to gather a valuable database of who your potential clients are already with. This means that if they are not wanting to move right now, you'll have in your database their company information so that you can call them when you learn their carrier has a 20+% rate increase! This very technique has earned agents $30,000+ in one month from simply capturing this data with every phone conversation.
3) A 100% web hosted predictive dialer service that costs just $68 per month. This is not an "automated" dialer that calls people with a recording. This is a dialer that calls YOUR LIST of people and just puts you on the phone with the people as they're answering their phone. You do not have to hear busy signals, the dial tone, the ringing phones, the answering machines, etc. This makes your calling time four times more productive. It also saves on your fingers! You can easily call 100 people within a 2 hour calling block, have conversations, etc. appointments, etc. and skip the 1,000 keystrokes into your phone that this would have cost you! Your fingers will LOVE you for this technology!
4) We have unique selling opportunities in specific geographic regions right now where our carrier is 20% - 30% lower than the nearest competition. It does not matter where you live. You can sell 100% over the phone with these companies. Some of them have 100% electronic enrollment while others want you to mail the applications to the client. In either case, though, remember that you are saving folks between $20 - $100 per month - they will send it back to you!
5) A referral based marketing system that is fully automated and works like magic. You simply plug your new clients into the referral marketing system and it does the rest - fully automated. It sends out birthday cards, Christmas cards, and specially designed referral generating cards with YOUR picture on them and proven, effective script that works like a charm. This system writes in your own handwriting, never forgets a birthday, anniversary, or referral card schedule, and is designed specifically for insurance agents. (See a preview here.)
Many 6 and 7 figure earners in insurance are using this exact system and we have access to the cards they've designed for referrals- just for our team.
My phone has been ringing off the hook as I have mentioned this new, cross-selling system to a few of our top producing agents. While they've been doing great in buying leads and leading with final expense, they recognize the impact of first-year commissions for 6 full years that they earn with Medicare Supplements. For most guys doing this full-time, they add between $60,000 to $70,000 in commissions to the books each year. These numbers compound as you get the exact same commissions in years 1-6.
We have decided to offer just the lowest priced companies in each market. In some cases, this also means that they're the biggest named companies (AARP, Mutual of Omaha). This gives real credibility to your client. But, at the end of the day, it really comes down to price, with Medicare Supplements.
We have the lists, the scripts, the dialer, the training - there is nothing else missing except to plug in those agents that are tired of working the projects, tired of paying $26 per lead, and tired of getting zero referrals in the final expense-only marketplace.
Visit: www.myunlimitedleads.com or www.finalexpensebyphone.com.
CW
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Tips from a $30,000 per month final expense producer..
I am very honored to have a new addition to our company, Jody H.
Jody was a consistent, $30,000 a month producer at his last company and has agreed to share his presentation and business style with our agents.
Jody attributes a lot of his success to a consistent lead flow and a great appointment setter he uses. She sets the appointments for him the night before. All Jody has to do is wake up, pull up the appointment schedule online, and go see the people. When he comes home, he pulls up the same document and inputs whether or not it was a sale, etc.
Using this method, Jody sold 220 policies in just 6 months, earning approximately $140,000 in commissions. Now, with us, he has a 30+% higher contract and that is big money. Jody says there is nothing that he's doing that someone else cannot duplicate. It's a matter of learning the system, getting the leads, and going to work.
Just do half of what Jody was doing and produce $15,000 per month! At a 115% contract, that's $17,250 in income generated and $12,937 advanced immediately!
Learn Jody's system and get training and resources 24 hours a day by contracting with us at:
www.finalexpenseagents.biz or www.finalexpensebyphone.com
Jody was a consistent, $30,000 a month producer at his last company and has agreed to share his presentation and business style with our agents.
Jody attributes a lot of his success to a consistent lead flow and a great appointment setter he uses. She sets the appointments for him the night before. All Jody has to do is wake up, pull up the appointment schedule online, and go see the people. When he comes home, he pulls up the same document and inputs whether or not it was a sale, etc.
Using this method, Jody sold 220 policies in just 6 months, earning approximately $140,000 in commissions. Now, with us, he has a 30+% higher contract and that is big money. Jody says there is nothing that he's doing that someone else cannot duplicate. It's a matter of learning the system, getting the leads, and going to work.
Just do half of what Jody was doing and produce $15,000 per month! At a 115% contract, that's $17,250 in income generated and $12,937 advanced immediately!
Learn Jody's system and get training and resources 24 hours a day by contracting with us at:
www.finalexpenseagents.biz or www.finalexpensebyphone.com
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Happy Birthday America!
We are so thankful to live in a country where we are free
to help other people and get paid handsomely for it!
to help other people and get paid handsomely for it!
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Getting Started in Final Expense
Want to get started the right way in Final Expense?
First, get contracted. We have great contracts with United Home Life and Foresters for Final Expense. Then after contracting, you have to prime the pump.
This means ordering an initial batch of leads (preferably 2,000 or 3,000 mailers) and once that pump is primed (with an initial order) continuing the pump with consistent lead orders every week of 1,500 to 3,000 mailers. It all depends on how much you want to make.
If you order a mere 1,000 mailers to start, then wait two weeks until they arrive.. then sell those 2 or 3 cases, get paid, then order just another 1,000 to repeat that small cycle, you'll only be working final expense on a very small, part-time basis. You have to check your faith level and jump in with both feet. It is very hard to lose money in final expense!
You have to step out in faith.
First, get contracted. We have great contracts with United Home Life and Foresters for Final Expense. Then after contracting, you have to prime the pump.
This means ordering an initial batch of leads (preferably 2,000 or 3,000 mailers) and once that pump is primed (with an initial order) continuing the pump with consistent lead orders every week of 1,500 to 3,000 mailers. It all depends on how much you want to make.
If you order a mere 1,000 mailers to start, then wait two weeks until they arrive.. then sell those 2 or 3 cases, get paid, then order just another 1,000 to repeat that small cycle, you'll only be working final expense on a very small, part-time basis. You have to check your faith level and jump in with both feet. It is very hard to lose money in final expense!
You have to step out in faith.
Friday, June 26, 2009
Final Expense Sales - A Day in the Life
Today is Friday and, like most final expense agents, we're vacationing Friday through Sunday. Yes, I should be out in the pool with the family. I really felt, though, like writing down the events that have brought me to an overwhelming feeling of thankfulness for my life and the events that have brought me here.
Recently, I watched a video that I just HAD to share. It's about breaking out of the box we are used to and getting out there and doing that 10% of activity that brings us success.
In Final Expense, it's all just about getting in front of people that need our help. As Zig Ziglar states so eloquently, "Nothing happens in this world without a salesperson." That salesperson, though, needs someone to talk to on a regular basis. Doing just that means the difference between mediocrity/failure or overwhelming success in this industry.
Here's the video I'm talking about..
This weekend we find ourselves in Fort Pierce, FL. The water is beautiful, as we're staying in a suite right on the river at the Dockside Inn. I had often heard that most final expense agents liked to work three - maybe four days a week and then take Friday's off. Well, now we're doing just that. Although working with other agents around the country sometimes causes a little frustration when I'm semi-out of touch (love the Blackberry), it's still enough time in the week to get most everything done.
Well, I wanted to document a snapshot of what yesterday was like - in the field in Deltona, FL. I had made seven appointments the night before for the next day. I made calls between 5:30pm - 6:30pm making those appointments from 10am through 4pm. I always like to schedule them on the hour, by telling the clients "approximately 3:30pm - 4pm". This way, if I get stood up or a quick realization that I'm there for the wrong reason (in their mind), I can move on to the next one before the exact appointed hour. I can also squeeze in a few folks that hadn't answered the phone but happen to be in that same city.
Well, seven appointments were set and at 10am Thursday I set out. Arrived a little late for my 10am, but seniors are usually very flexible, as mentioned above. A very nice couple, they faced their own mortality recently when the husband was diagnosed with a rare lung disease. He is now uninsurable and on oxygen. Guaranteed issue final expense plans would be too expensive for what they would pay for after the waiting period, which he may or may not ever reach. The wife, though, wanted coverage NOW. Wrote that one up and did the personal health interview with United Home Life on the phone. Very quick and easy, the pre-approval was obtained from the person on the other end of the phone.
After that, went to another appointment where the 79 year old guy apparently just wanted someone to talk to. He had absolutely no idea why he sent in the card. This would be quick and easy - "Here's my card. Call me if you ever need life insurance or someone you know needs protection." The next appointment was another couple where the husband had a chronic disease and already had coverage from a plan requiring a two year wait; he was almost through that company's waiting period for full coverage. He was all set. The wife, though, had no protection on her and now wanted to take action.
She was a smoker, and said she smokes one carton of cigarettes every month. I asked her how much this was costing for that one carton. She said, "$35, but I'm going to quit!". Her husband had already lost half of his lung because of having smoked for 20 years; she definitely had the motivation. I showed them a plan where, for $30 a month with Foresters, she could get enough coverage to provide for her burial. There was no way they could say "No" to paying LESS than a carton of cig's per month to have her total burial paid for. Wrote that one up and did the personal health interview with Foresters. Very easy and pre-approved immediately.
The next call was on a lady across town and I was now one hour late because of the last one taking longer than expected. I arrived to find no car in the driveway and no one answering the front door. Missed them, I guess. Onward and upward!
The next appointment was a lady who had just retired from the school system, driving buses for 30 years. She was under the impression that I was there to school her on a government benefit plan - she had not read the card she got. She quickly informed me that she had all the money she needed to leave behind and had no need for insurance. So on to the next one I went.
At the next appointment was a couple in their 70's. After I got out of my car and walked up to the door, the gentleman asked me to move my car as I had parked on the sidewalk in his driveway. I said, "Sure!" and went to move the car. When I came back, he motioned for me to come in. I went inside and then he asked me to go back and close the big front door - the smaller glass door was already shut. I said, "Sure!" and went to close the door. He then told me that he had worked as a unit manager for a major life insurance company for 20 years, so he knew everything there is to know about insurance. He said he's been needing it for a long time and has priced all of the companies out there. He wanted to know what the "catch" was with the company I would show him.
Pulling out my Foresters application, I told him that before I could give him any kind of idea, I would have to go through the health questions to see what kind of benefit -if any- he would qualify for. He qualified for the level plan - excellent. His wife, though, only qualified for the Graded plan (30% 1st, 70% 2nd, 100% 3rd year) because of a chronic condition clearly spelled out on the application. I wrote up both of them and did the PHI on both. I got instant approvals for both of them and spent more time with them discussing his old days in the insurance business and how crooked some of his agents were before he fired them! His wife, a very sweet lady, then went to their freezer and pulled out two loaves of Banana Bread for me to take home. How did she know that was my favorite!?!
I left there and had to go pick up a prescription for my wife, who was in severe back pain at the time from doing too much around the house in preparation for our Friday trip. I was done for the day.. four applications from seven appointments and right at $2,000 in premiums. I also added about $300 to my renewals for next year, just from this one day's worth of work. I'm hoping for two referrals to ultimately come out of those contacts and one of the uninsurable husbands wants a funeral trust to shelter money for just that purpose. He indicated he wants about a $5,000 funeral trust set up. That will be the equivalent of another decent final expense transaction.
There are plenty of leads left out of this 2,000 count lead mailer (sent for $800 through Mainstreet Powermail) and will likely result in a 3, almost 4 time return on my investment there.
When I got home, I shared with my wife just how thankful I am to be in an industry where I have really and truly helped people all day and, through that activity, have been able to provide for my family.
This morning we took off for our weekend in Ft. Pierce. It's beautiful here and we're taking lots of pictures. The kids took right to the pool, which is right in front of the docks out on the beautiful river. It's amazing how much clearer and brighter the water is here than up in Daytona Beach!
Recently, I watched a video that I just HAD to share. It's about breaking out of the box we are used to and getting out there and doing that 10% of activity that brings us success.
In Final Expense, it's all just about getting in front of people that need our help. As Zig Ziglar states so eloquently, "Nothing happens in this world without a salesperson." That salesperson, though, needs someone to talk to on a regular basis. Doing just that means the difference between mediocrity/failure or overwhelming success in this industry.
Here's the video I'm talking about..
This weekend we find ourselves in Fort Pierce, FL. The water is beautiful, as we're staying in a suite right on the river at the Dockside Inn. I had often heard that most final expense agents liked to work three - maybe four days a week and then take Friday's off. Well, now we're doing just that. Although working with other agents around the country sometimes causes a little frustration when I'm semi-out of touch (love the Blackberry), it's still enough time in the week to get most everything done.
Well, I wanted to document a snapshot of what yesterday was like - in the field in Deltona, FL. I had made seven appointments the night before for the next day. I made calls between 5:30pm - 6:30pm making those appointments from 10am through 4pm. I always like to schedule them on the hour, by telling the clients "approximately 3:30pm - 4pm". This way, if I get stood up or a quick realization that I'm there for the wrong reason (in their mind), I can move on to the next one before the exact appointed hour. I can also squeeze in a few folks that hadn't answered the phone but happen to be in that same city.
Well, seven appointments were set and at 10am Thursday I set out. Arrived a little late for my 10am, but seniors are usually very flexible, as mentioned above. A very nice couple, they faced their own mortality recently when the husband was diagnosed with a rare lung disease. He is now uninsurable and on oxygen. Guaranteed issue final expense plans would be too expensive for what they would pay for after the waiting period, which he may or may not ever reach. The wife, though, wanted coverage NOW. Wrote that one up and did the personal health interview with United Home Life on the phone. Very quick and easy, the pre-approval was obtained from the person on the other end of the phone.
After that, went to another appointment where the 79 year old guy apparently just wanted someone to talk to. He had absolutely no idea why he sent in the card. This would be quick and easy - "Here's my card. Call me if you ever need life insurance or someone you know needs protection." The next appointment was another couple where the husband had a chronic disease and already had coverage from a plan requiring a two year wait; he was almost through that company's waiting period for full coverage. He was all set. The wife, though, had no protection on her and now wanted to take action.
She was a smoker, and said she smokes one carton of cigarettes every month. I asked her how much this was costing for that one carton. She said, "$35, but I'm going to quit!". Her husband had already lost half of his lung because of having smoked for 20 years; she definitely had the motivation. I showed them a plan where, for $30 a month with Foresters, she could get enough coverage to provide for her burial. There was no way they could say "No" to paying LESS than a carton of cig's per month to have her total burial paid for. Wrote that one up and did the personal health interview with Foresters. Very easy and pre-approved immediately.
The next call was on a lady across town and I was now one hour late because of the last one taking longer than expected. I arrived to find no car in the driveway and no one answering the front door. Missed them, I guess. Onward and upward!
The next appointment was a lady who had just retired from the school system, driving buses for 30 years. She was under the impression that I was there to school her on a government benefit plan - she had not read the card she got. She quickly informed me that she had all the money she needed to leave behind and had no need for insurance. So on to the next one I went.
At the next appointment was a couple in their 70's. After I got out of my car and walked up to the door, the gentleman asked me to move my car as I had parked on the sidewalk in his driveway. I said, "Sure!" and went to move the car. When I came back, he motioned for me to come in. I went inside and then he asked me to go back and close the big front door - the smaller glass door was already shut. I said, "Sure!" and went to close the door. He then told me that he had worked as a unit manager for a major life insurance company for 20 years, so he knew everything there is to know about insurance. He said he's been needing it for a long time and has priced all of the companies out there. He wanted to know what the "catch" was with the company I would show him.
Pulling out my Foresters application, I told him that before I could give him any kind of idea, I would have to go through the health questions to see what kind of benefit -if any- he would qualify for. He qualified for the level plan - excellent. His wife, though, only qualified for the Graded plan (30% 1st, 70% 2nd, 100% 3rd year) because of a chronic condition clearly spelled out on the application. I wrote up both of them and did the PHI on both. I got instant approvals for both of them and spent more time with them discussing his old days in the insurance business and how crooked some of his agents were before he fired them! His wife, a very sweet lady, then went to their freezer and pulled out two loaves of Banana Bread for me to take home. How did she know that was my favorite!?!
I left there and had to go pick up a prescription for my wife, who was in severe back pain at the time from doing too much around the house in preparation for our Friday trip. I was done for the day.. four applications from seven appointments and right at $2,000 in premiums. I also added about $300 to my renewals for next year, just from this one day's worth of work. I'm hoping for two referrals to ultimately come out of those contacts and one of the uninsurable husbands wants a funeral trust to shelter money for just that purpose. He indicated he wants about a $5,000 funeral trust set up. That will be the equivalent of another decent final expense transaction.
There are plenty of leads left out of this 2,000 count lead mailer (sent for $800 through Mainstreet Powermail) and will likely result in a 3, almost 4 time return on my investment there.
When I got home, I shared with my wife just how thankful I am to be in an industry where I have really and truly helped people all day and, through that activity, have been able to provide for my family.
This morning we took off for our weekend in Ft. Pierce. It's beautiful here and we're taking lots of pictures. The kids took right to the pool, which is right in front of the docks out on the beautiful river. It's amazing how much clearer and brighter the water is here than up in Daytona Beach!
Monday, May 25, 2009
Final Expense continues to take off..
With the ever changing economy and now record unemployment, more agents are wondering what they can do to continue to make a consistent living. We certainly have the answer.
The senior population, due to aging "Baby Boomers", is the fastest growing segment of the population right now. This is expected to continue for the next 30 years or so.
These are people who, for the large part:
* Have a consistent, recession-proof monthly income (social security)
* Have done ZERO planning for burial/life insurance
* Are watching their friends and famiy pass away at a faster pace each year.
They are from the generation that still cares about burdening their families with their unpaid bills, such as the funeral costs they will leave behind. They are very conscious about paying their fair share and doing the right thing by their family.
Agents entering the final expense market are always surprised to find out just how simple the final expense policies are. The paperwork is very simple, the policies themselves simply pay a death benefit of a specified amount, and the rates are very affordable to seniors.
The entire appointment that results in a sale may last 30 to 45 minutes. The benefits to the client include peace of mind and financial security in that they no longer have to set aside a large amount of money for burial costs.
Agents working this market are able to design their income plan based on how many people they talk to. If you want to talk to 15-20 people per week, you can earn $60,000 - $70,000 per year. If you want to talk to 40-60 people each week, you can simply double that. It is a very simple transaction of presenting options to people, over and over again, and helping them with the paperwork.
Agents that have come from the Medicare Advantage world are keenly aware, now, that President Obama has clearly indicated his priority of shutting down the MA world. (See article here.) These agents are now looking for a home where they can continue to help seniors with their needs and make a decent income.
More and more, these agents are finding that the solution is in selling final expense. In recent months, we have experimented with selling final expense by phone. The carriers that were in this niche market have been pulling back and, in some cases, closing down. They report that, by completing the entire transaction over the telephone which includes providing their social security number, bank account number, etc., they are less likely to keep that policy long-term. The incidents of "Not Taken" policies and lapsed policies within the first three months is VERY much higher than those cases where the applications are taken in person.
Be that as it may, more agents are interested in working from home and not venturing out at all to meet with clients in person. This allows them to work any area of the country (with non-resident licenses), and reach out to more people by dialing than they would be able to do by knocking on doors during the day. Often, the lower closing ratio and persistency is made up by the amount of people the agent is able to talk to by telephone.
A website dedicated to this niche market (selling final expense over the telephone) is www.finalexpensebyphone.com. Whether the agent is interested in selling in person or by telephone, finalexpensebyphone.com has the highest contracts for final expense companies available.
Agents that prefer to sell "belly to belly", the traditional way, are welcome there, too, as the same companies still apply. The current offering includes a great annual contract for United Home Life, a great company for final expense. United Home Life has recently lowered their rates and increased commissions for final expense. This is in sharp contrast to many in the market right now that are running from new business because of bad investments and their inability to back their policy commitments with reserves. United Home Life continues to write good business and is poised for incredible growth, based on the way they are treating their agents.
Final expense by phone may be a niche marketing method, but some people like it and others feel like picking up the telephone is the hardest thing to do in the world. For those who would like to sell by telephone more, but just don't think they can do it, you should check out some of these best-selling industry titles addressing that very thing. Click here to see some recommended titles that can help you.
As more and more agents are transitioning into final expense, agents should make sure to get the best contracts available. The highest final expense contracts available ensures that you make the most amount of compensation based on the same level of production. This can be significant.
Whether you want to sell final expense by phone or in person, your best bet is to visit: www.finalexpensebyphone.com
The senior population, due to aging "Baby Boomers", is the fastest growing segment of the population right now. This is expected to continue for the next 30 years or so.
These are people who, for the large part:
* Have a consistent, recession-proof monthly income (social security)
* Have done ZERO planning for burial/life insurance
* Are watching their friends and famiy pass away at a faster pace each year.
They are from the generation that still cares about burdening their families with their unpaid bills, such as the funeral costs they will leave behind. They are very conscious about paying their fair share and doing the right thing by their family.
Agents entering the final expense market are always surprised to find out just how simple the final expense policies are. The paperwork is very simple, the policies themselves simply pay a death benefit of a specified amount, and the rates are very affordable to seniors.
The entire appointment that results in a sale may last 30 to 45 minutes. The benefits to the client include peace of mind and financial security in that they no longer have to set aside a large amount of money for burial costs.
Agents working this market are able to design their income plan based on how many people they talk to. If you want to talk to 15-20 people per week, you can earn $60,000 - $70,000 per year. If you want to talk to 40-60 people each week, you can simply double that. It is a very simple transaction of presenting options to people, over and over again, and helping them with the paperwork.
Agents that have come from the Medicare Advantage world are keenly aware, now, that President Obama has clearly indicated his priority of shutting down the MA world. (See article here.) These agents are now looking for a home where they can continue to help seniors with their needs and make a decent income.
More and more, these agents are finding that the solution is in selling final expense. In recent months, we have experimented with selling final expense by phone. The carriers that were in this niche market have been pulling back and, in some cases, closing down. They report that, by completing the entire transaction over the telephone which includes providing their social security number, bank account number, etc., they are less likely to keep that policy long-term. The incidents of "Not Taken" policies and lapsed policies within the first three months is VERY much higher than those cases where the applications are taken in person.
Be that as it may, more agents are interested in working from home and not venturing out at all to meet with clients in person. This allows them to work any area of the country (with non-resident licenses), and reach out to more people by dialing than they would be able to do by knocking on doors during the day. Often, the lower closing ratio and persistency is made up by the amount of people the agent is able to talk to by telephone.
A website dedicated to this niche market (selling final expense over the telephone) is www.finalexpensebyphone.com. Whether the agent is interested in selling in person or by telephone, finalexpensebyphone.com has the highest contracts for final expense companies available.
Agents that prefer to sell "belly to belly", the traditional way, are welcome there, too, as the same companies still apply. The current offering includes a great annual contract for United Home Life, a great company for final expense. United Home Life has recently lowered their rates and increased commissions for final expense. This is in sharp contrast to many in the market right now that are running from new business because of bad investments and their inability to back their policy commitments with reserves. United Home Life continues to write good business and is poised for incredible growth, based on the way they are treating their agents.
Final expense by phone may be a niche marketing method, but some people like it and others feel like picking up the telephone is the hardest thing to do in the world. For those who would like to sell by telephone more, but just don't think they can do it, you should check out some of these best-selling industry titles addressing that very thing. Click here to see some recommended titles that can help you.
As more and more agents are transitioning into final expense, agents should make sure to get the best contracts available. The highest final expense contracts available ensures that you make the most amount of compensation based on the same level of production. This can be significant.
Whether you want to sell final expense by phone or in person, your best bet is to visit: www.finalexpensebyphone.com
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