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Ok I am going to go into a little bit of a so called rant. I talk to agents all the time and I see so many flawed systems and ideas out there. I am going to give a few of my tips and ideas to maybe help someone, and I know the other experts will chime in with others. This is how I do things so it all is not one size fits all.
First, I have seen so many agents that do not set the draft dates up right. If they get a check ONCE a month, and let's just say it is on the 3rd. Why would you put it on the 10th of the month? They are going to get more money in...NO! It's more of a smokescreen to see if they have enough money left over after paying bills for your policy. There will always be some exceptions (the clients that have been smarter with money and you can tell they have some), but for the most part, your asking for disaster. As a new agent, be stern and put the draft on the day they get their money. Next thing is to check the calendar on your phone and add reminders to call them on each month that the 3rd is on a weekend. In those cases, the draft will be on the following Monday, so call them Thursday night and remind them when they get their money on Friday, to leave it in there for their insurance.
Second, ask your upline or other agents and figure out what the FE market is. I have had several people I helped get started that would always call me for a quote or help with a case and it would be a 32 year old single male with no job. Or a 26 year old single mom with 4 kids. I am not saying these people do not need insurance, but its not the main focus and its a lot lower persistency. Stay focused on the older generation and you will last a lot longer. Most grandparents may want to take out a policy on their grandchild and great grandkids, that is different than selling a direct express sale to a 26 year old that gets a check each month and don't work. I tried to save an agent recently from doing this, but everyone of them he kept telling me, oh these people really need this insurance and they will keep it. He is singing the blues now with tons in chargebacks and can't seem to figure out why.
Note: On chargebacks, I get tired of hearing people say, I can't control how they pay, or my appointment setter set me bad appointments, so I had chargebacks...keep in mind...They can't buy insurance FROM YOU without YOU!
Third, If you are in a house and they have their T.V. on a milk crate, the sofa is metal lawn chairs, and there is a horrible smell in the house, and he is a 59 yr old male that lives by himself...I am not saying don't write him, but in my opinion if you want to write him (or anyone else your kinda skiddish on) write them a very small amount and make a note on that somewhere. If in 3-4 months they are still on the books, go revisit and offer to add coverage to them. Better to loose a $25 sale than a $75. Some people see this as leaving money in the house. If they would have bought $75, they will still buy it...just test them out a few months before you take the chance.
Fourth, I don't care if you use send out cards or handwrite them....send cards when you write someone. Also send birthday cards and Christmas cards. One tip....if I go to a house and I really feel like it could be a sale but for some reason it couldn't happen right then....I fill out a card that day and mail it to them just to thank them for meeting with me and being so nice. Kinda helps them on calling you back to their house.
Fifth, there are so many agents that are on the fence about appointment setters. This is different for every agent. No one will care about your business more than you do, but I will tell you this....There has been days I just kinda felt like taking it easy the next day, but I couldn't because my appointment setter had already set me 6-8 appts the next day. If getting out in the field sometimes is a problem for you...find an appointment setter because its kinda like someone kicking you in the butt and making you go. (If you have SET appointments and can't seem to leave the house....WalMart is hiring everyday)
Sixth, LEADS!!! I will say in my opinion Direct Mail is the best, but I have made a living for 7 years now mostly on TeleLeads. No matter what kind you buy, BUY THEM! I know of agents that buy 10 tele leads and complain when they didn't write 2k that week. I've bought one lottery ticket before and I didn't win...it's not my fault though
Seventh, I get a lot of calls from people that have barely been in final expense that want to know how to supplement their (15 sales total) with med sups or med adv or this or that. You have to master one thing before you can master another. In martial arts I teach students to get a black belt in one style before you go get one in another. Every student I have ever seen that was in 2-3 different styles at once, NEVER receive a black belt in any...they drop out. Once you have learned and mastered final expense, then you can try out other supplemental sales if you choose.
Eighth, If you are new, find people that are also in the business to talk to. I have a great group of guys that I talk to each day. We call and smack talk each other or try to out write each other. Also we bounce our hard appointments off each other, and it helps out a lot. This job is kind of like the preacher that skipped church one Sunday to go golf, and hit a hole in one on the hardest hole. He can't tell anyone about it. If you write 3800 one day, it feels good to be able to tell someone about it.
There are so many more ideas I have to help out but this thread is getting long. I just hope one new agent gets something good out of this. I know most of the vets won't take the time to read all of this, but HOPEFULLY you don't need any of this information anyways If I can ever be of help, let me know!
First, I have seen so many agents that do not set the draft dates up right. If they get a check ONCE a month, and let's just say it is on the 3rd. Why would you put it on the 10th of the month? They are going to get more money in...NO! It's more of a smokescreen to see if they have enough money left over after paying bills for your policy. There will always be some exceptions (the clients that have been smarter with money and you can tell they have some), but for the most part, your asking for disaster. As a new agent, be stern and put the draft on the day they get their money. Next thing is to check the calendar on your phone and add reminders to call them on each month that the 3rd is on a weekend. In those cases, the draft will be on the following Monday, so call them Thursday night and remind them when they get their money on Friday, to leave it in there for their insurance.
Second, ask your upline or other agents and figure out what the FE market is. I have had several people I helped get started that would always call me for a quote or help with a case and it would be a 32 year old single male with no job. Or a 26 year old single mom with 4 kids. I am not saying these people do not need insurance, but its not the main focus and its a lot lower persistency. Stay focused on the older generation and you will last a lot longer. Most grandparents may want to take out a policy on their grandchild and great grandkids, that is different than selling a direct express sale to a 26 year old that gets a check each month and don't work. I tried to save an agent recently from doing this, but everyone of them he kept telling me, oh these people really need this insurance and they will keep it. He is singing the blues now with tons in chargebacks and can't seem to figure out why.
Note: On chargebacks, I get tired of hearing people say, I can't control how they pay, or my appointment setter set me bad appointments, so I had chargebacks...keep in mind...They can't buy insurance FROM YOU without YOU!
Third, If you are in a house and they have their T.V. on a milk crate, the sofa is metal lawn chairs, and there is a horrible smell in the house, and he is a 59 yr old male that lives by himself...I am not saying don't write him, but in my opinion if you want to write him (or anyone else your kinda skiddish on) write them a very small amount and make a note on that somewhere. If in 3-4 months they are still on the books, go revisit and offer to add coverage to them. Better to loose a $25 sale than a $75. Some people see this as leaving money in the house. If they would have bought $75, they will still buy it...just test them out a few months before you take the chance.
Fourth, I don't care if you use send out cards or handwrite them....send cards when you write someone. Also send birthday cards and Christmas cards. One tip....if I go to a house and I really feel like it could be a sale but for some reason it couldn't happen right then....I fill out a card that day and mail it to them just to thank them for meeting with me and being so nice. Kinda helps them on calling you back to their house.
Fifth, there are so many agents that are on the fence about appointment setters. This is different for every agent. No one will care about your business more than you do, but I will tell you this....There has been days I just kinda felt like taking it easy the next day, but I couldn't because my appointment setter had already set me 6-8 appts the next day. If getting out in the field sometimes is a problem for you...find an appointment setter because its kinda like someone kicking you in the butt and making you go. (If you have SET appointments and can't seem to leave the house....WalMart is hiring everyday)
Sixth, LEADS!!! I will say in my opinion Direct Mail is the best, but I have made a living for 7 years now mostly on TeleLeads. No matter what kind you buy, BUY THEM! I know of agents that buy 10 tele leads and complain when they didn't write 2k that week. I've bought one lottery ticket before and I didn't win...it's not my fault though
Seventh, I get a lot of calls from people that have barely been in final expense that want to know how to supplement their (15 sales total) with med sups or med adv or this or that. You have to master one thing before you can master another. In martial arts I teach students to get a black belt in one style before you go get one in another. Every student I have ever seen that was in 2-3 different styles at once, NEVER receive a black belt in any...they drop out. Once you have learned and mastered final expense, then you can try out other supplemental sales if you choose.
Eighth, If you are new, find people that are also in the business to talk to. I have a great group of guys that I talk to each day. We call and smack talk each other or try to out write each other. Also we bounce our hard appointments off each other, and it helps out a lot. This job is kind of like the preacher that skipped church one Sunday to go golf, and hit a hole in one on the hardest hole. He can't tell anyone about it. If you write 3800 one day, it feels good to be able to tell someone about it.
There are so many more ideas I have to help out but this thread is getting long. I just hope one new agent gets something good out of this. I know most of the vets won't take the time to read all of this, but HOPEFULLY you don't need any of this information anyways
If I can ever be of help, let me know!
