Appointment Setter's Realities

[DarrenW]

Hello All,
I just wanted to share my experience with others on the forum.

I have been a lurker here for many years(very entertaining!)
When I finally recently decided to jump into this FE business- I decided(mostly because I was advised) to get an appointment setter.

Just order your leads (and get appointment Setter Lady ) to Set your appointments.(She'll set 10-12 of those 20 leads!!)

Great - sounds good -just show up and sell.

Listen to Lee Corso (Not So Fast, My Friend!)

So I get Appointment Setter Lady to set my appointments..........
I keep letting it go
But finally I realize it's NOT a fluke
140 leads - only 42 appointees(30 %) OUCH!!
Never got a great # of appts set.
Although Tuesday appts not too bad( avg ~4)
Rest of week appts= terrible
6 appts out 0f 20 leads is terrible. (No to mention ~40% of those set were porched{ but that's another story}){NEVER EVER pay for just appts set and not held -LESSON LEARNED!!!}

I asked Appointment Setter lady _"why low # appts?"
She blew me off and said "give me more leads for more appointments" No other explanations

I believe I have figured out what the WEAK LINK in appointment setting is!!
I have read 100+ posts on Appointment Setting and have not read any of this before:
You hire an appointment setter to call your leads.
They will call for you..........
However, you are the bottom of the list.
They will call their # 1 thru # 10 agent & THEN call for you MR # 11
So this is why on Mondays they can set you an ok amount of leads( because they have fresh leads for everyone and can fill in all those other appointments - for agents #1-10 and have time for you!
The rest of the week they spend so much time on # 1-10 that they don't have time to call for you MR 11

There are only so many hours to call and they will call for those who came before you first( as the should!!)

So Just a heads up !!
I don't think that they are all this way, but be careful!!
Just Remember:
if You are not on the top...
You are on the bottom!!

 

[pcbinsurance]

Just find an appointment setter that will call for you and maybe one other agent. Don't hire someone who will make you 3rd, 4th, or 5th fiddle.

Make/Hold them accountable. Be firm and be prepared to cut ties quickly if it's not working out. You might have to go through quite a few to find one that fits.

Good luck.

 

[Agentguy5]

6 appts out 0f 20 leads is terrible. (No to mention ~40% of those set were porched{ but that's another story}

That all depends on where you are working, what the setter is saying, what lead you are using, and how good the setter is. In some areas, this is normal.

My first question to you is, why in the world would you hire an appointment setter if you're only working with 20 leads a week? That's not enough leads to keep me busy part time!

Also, did the person that advised you to use a setter, do so, knowing you were only working with 20 leads a week?

All that nonsense about when the setter calls for you doesn't get you anywhere and isn't getting to any solution. In all honesty, you have no business using a setter until you are experienced at selling FE, and are in a position to get more like 40-50 leads a week.

I wish you the best and welcome to the Forums!

 

[Glen Shelton]

That all depends on where you are working, what the setter is saying, what lead you are using, and how good the setter is. In some areas, this is normal. My first question to you is, why in the world would you hire an appointment setter if you're only working with 20 leads a week? That's not enough leads to keep me busy part time! Also, did the person that advised you to use a setter, do so, knowing you were only working with 20 leads a week? All that nonsense about when the setter calls for you doesn't get you anywhere and isn't getting to any solution. In all honesty, you have no business using a setter until you are experienced at selling FE, and are in a position to get more like 40-50 leads a week. I wish you the best and welcome to the Forums!

^^^
Take this guys advice! You need double the leads if you are using an appointment setter!

Also - hiring a good appointment setter is just like hiring a good telemarketer (something I know a thing or two about ), you will have to probably hire/fire 3 before you find 1 that's worth keeping around.

 

[jdeasy]

Hello All,
I just wanted to share my experience with others on the forum.

I have been a lurker here for many years(very entertaining!)
When I finally recently decided to jump into this FE business- I decided(mostly because I was advised) to get an appointment setter.

Just order your leads (and get appointment Setter Lady ) to Set your appointments.(She'll set 10-12 of those 20 leads!!)

Great - sounds good -just show up and sell.

Listen to Lee Corso (Not So Fast, My Friend!)

So I get Appointment Setter Lady to set my appointments..........
I keep letting it go
But finally I realize it's NOT a fluke
140 leads - only 42 appointees(30 %) OUCH!!
Never got a great # of appts set.
Although Tuesday appts not too bad( avg ~4)
Rest of week appts= terrible
6 appts out 0f 20 leads is terrible. (No to mention ~40% of those set were porched{ but that's another story}){NEVER EVER pay for just appts set and not held -LESSON LEARNED!!!}

I asked Appointment Setter lady _"why low # appts?"
She blew me off and said "give me more leads for more appointments" No other explanations

I believe I have figured out what the WEAK LINK in appointment setting is!!
I have read 100+ posts on Appointment Setting and have not read any of this before:
You hire an appointment setter to call your leads.
They will call for you..........
However, you are the bottom of the list.
They will call their # 1 thru # 10 agent & THEN call for you MR # 11
So this is why on Mondays they can set you an ok amount of leads( because they have fresh leads for everyone and can fill in all those other appointments - for agents #1-10 and have time for you!
The rest of the week they spend so much time on # 1-10 that they don't have time to call for you MR 11

There are only so many hours to call and they will call for those who came before you first( as the should!!)

So Just a heads up !!
I don't think that they are all this way, but be careful!!
Just Remember:
if You are not on the top...
You are on the bottom!!

You have been given bad advice and then taken that bad advice without proper training.

I would recommend starting over with a real FE IMO and learn the business the right way.

 

[Rearden]

Good appointment setters set 40% or more of your appointments.

Setters will never do as good as job as an agent will setting his own appointments.

The other reality is that you are responsible for knocking all the doors that she cannot set appointments with.

 

[DarrenW]

The reason I hired an experienced appointment setter was I thought that she would be able to set more appointments than I could . I figured using an experienced (and recommended) setter would net me more sits then my inexperienced self.
I realize now even if some one is not as good at "giving phone" as an experienced setter- one can still set more appointments oneself.
If an appointment setter has 10 agents and is dialing 8 hours- that is only 48 minutes per agent and that's only if agent #1 and #10 are treated the same..
So the inexperienced agent can outset the setter by calling the leads more times than the setter. Also having a local phone number has to be better than the out of state appointment setter's number. Even though the setter is (presumably) better on the phone- you will talk to more of your leads.

 

[Newby]

Hello All, I just wanted to share my experience with others on the forum. I have been a lurker here for many years(very entertaining!) When I finally recently decided to jump into this FE business- I decided(mostly because I was advised) to get an appointment setter. Just order your leads (and get appointment Setter Lady ) to Set your appointments.(She'll set 10-12 of those 20 leads!!) Great - sounds good -just show up and sell. Listen to Lee Corso (Not So Fast, My Friend!) So I get Appointment Setter Lady to set my appointments.......... I keep letting it go But finally I realize it's NOT a fluke 140 leads - only 42 appointees(30 %) OUCH!! Never got a great # of appts set. Although Tuesday appts not too bad( avg ~4) Rest of week appts= terrible 6 appts out 0f 20 leads is terrible. (No to mention ~40% of those set were porched{ but that's another story}){NEVER EVER pay for just appts set and not held -LESSON LEARNED!!!} I asked Appointment Setter lady _"why low # appts?" She blew me off and said "give me more leads for more appointments" No other explanations I believe I have figured out what the WEAK LINK in appointment setting is!! I have read 100+ posts on Appointment Setting and have not read any of this before: You hire an appointment setter to call your leads. They will call for you.......... However, you are the bottom of the list. They will call their # 1 thru # 10 agent & THEN call for you MR # 11 So this is why on Mondays they can set you an ok amount of leads( because they have fresh leads for everyone and can fill in all those other appointments - for agents #1-10 and have time for you! The rest of the week they spend so much time on # 1-10 that they don't have time to call for you MR 11 There are only so many hours to call and they will call for those who came before you first( as the should!!) So Just a heads up !! I don't think that they are all this way, but be careful!! Just Remember: if You are not on the top... You are on the bottom!!

I'm an admittedly bad appointment setter. And I can do better on my own leads without spending much time than what you were paying for.

I would recommend setting your own appointments until you get decent at it. Then hire and train your own setter. Don't take the 10th position of someone else's. Most agents find one them self and train her for what they want. Then they guard her like the KFC secret recipe.

And yes when you start using one you increase your leads. More time in the field is the reason to use a setter in the first place.

 

[bboman23]

If this is who I think it is, then there is more to the story.

I had an agent (pretty sure this is him) that wanted to get into FE so he started DM drops. But every month he had other stuff coming up so he couldn't jump in. This went on for a while and the leads just built up.

He called me wanting to stop his orders until he could start making a profit (think he had bought around 100 leads at that point without going in the field to work them yet). So we stopped the orders for him. He asked what I would recommend to go through those leads fast to get some deposits and be able to turn the weekly order back on.

Of course seeing every single lead he had one by one is the way to get the most AP, but for his situation just turning a profit on the investment he spent months ago seemed more important. I told him to send them to a setter and just get the cream from them. Then if he enjoyed doing it and wanted to continue in FE then he could turn the leads back on and work door knocks in from the leads out of the 100 the setter was not able to reach.

Her results with his leads were not nearly ideal BUT some of you are jumping to conclusions without knowing two very important facts. AGED LEADS and STATE!

Anyone that says you can get a certain percentage of appointments no matter what state you are in is completely CLUELESS about this business. I actually have to work to NOT get an appointment in Mississippi. It is so easy to set them up. But some states it is tough......when you think you are good on the phone, call L.A. sometime and see what type of results you get!

As far as you being number 11 on her list, she is actually slow right now and only calling for a few agents. Her performance is not from being booked or you being at the bottom of the list.

She calls through 100 leads in a week and gets the cream out of them. Then next week she is calling the leftovers from that 100, then the next week again, again etc.

You have options to fix your situation....
1. Try a different setter
2. Call them yourself
3. Go door knock all your leads

As far as her saying she needs more leads, that part was understandable. A GOOD setter is not going to keep calling the same 100 leads week in and week out. They want new leads each week.

And if you recall from our phone call when you were not happy with her initial results I told you it could be the area, but it could also be the setter. I even told you that one way to find out was to use a different setter of ours to see if the results were close to the same or way different. If the new one got you 65% set, then you know it was not just a tough area.

Also before anyone jumps to conclusions, I do not, have not, will not make money from appointment setters. I have a few setters that I refer my agents to if they need one. So please don't think I am sending agents to setters so I can make money off of them. The agents pay the setters directly! And most of my high end producers are using these same setters.

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I'm an admittedly bad appointment setter. And I can do better on my own leads without spending much time than what you were paying for.

I would recommend setting your own appointments until you get decent at it. Then hire and train your own setter. Don't take the 10th position of someone else's. Most agents find one them self and train her for what they want. Then they guard her like the KFC secret recipe.

And yes when you start using one you increase your leads. More time in the field is the reason to use a setter in the first place.

Let's say an agent gets 30 leads and hires his own setter. That setter sets 50% so 15 appointments. At $10-$12 per appointment which is what most setters charge....that is $150 to $180.

The problem you have with this method is they might be golden, but they will want to make more than that. So it is usually good for her to use 3-4 agents so they make a decent income and can continue to do this job.

 

[nfl72]

"You need to learn how to walk before you an run"

The original post was a little long winded for me and I may have not read it 100% accurately. What stood out to me was the guy was new in the business and believed all he had to do was run some appointments and makes some money. Most of the guys who enter this business with that mindset will be back to selling cars or Kirby's within a month or 2..

Guys with that mentality are called "stub runners". "Combined Insurance days", They will always seem to be just getting by and never getting ahead. They blame their lack of production on bad leads or bad appointment setters etc, or just plain bad luck.

I am not trying to be critical or mean but too many people think this is an easy business and all you have to do is buy leads and show up.

That mentality of just trying to recoup your original investment is for losers. It is not the mind set of a winner. It starts you off with the wrong frame of mind. If I spend $500 on leads, I damn well better make $7,000 or more.