P&C Guy Needs To Sell 6K In Life

[nyc2phi]

Hello life people,

I am a P&C agent and I am currently competing in a company contest that has quotas for both P&C & Life. I have the P&C side down but need some tips on selling more life.

I sell very little life insurance and would like to know some ways you guys are generating business?

I need to hit 6K in life with this carrier and I have 8 months to do so.

Thanks!

 

[DHK]

Annual Reviews - Insurance Pro Shop

Use the P&C versions of these in your client reviews:
Priority Approaches

 

[Justin Bilyj]

Vol had a good line something to the effect of,

"Now that we insured your car/home, now let's insure the owner"...

also this thread is helpful
http://www.insurance-forums.net/forum/getting-started-selling-insurance/how-prospect-life-insurance-sales-t38192.html
this is from Adam Hawley, a multi-line guy who does P&C and cross-sells life,
First, you must establish need, and get an appointment.

I've found the the best way to start this conversation is to ask this exact question: "Who has your life insurance?" By doing it in this manner, you're implying that it's so important you assume the client already has it taken care of, just with some other carrier. The reality, though, is that most don't.

You'll almost always get of one two replies. The first being, "I have it through work." Your response? "Great! How much do you have?" Their response is almost always, "I don't know". Then, say this exact phrase, "Oh. Well, we should probably talk about that then. When is a good time for us to talk more"?

The second reply is even easier to respond to. "I don't have any." Your response, "Oh. Well, that's probably something we should talk about then. When is a good time for us to visit?"

You see, by asking them, "who has your life insurance," you politely inferred it was already taken care of. The second most important piece is in your response, with the word, "Oh." Of course, be friendly about it, but I've found it to be a magical word that creates a slight sense of urgency without being pushy. Do this, and you'll see your appointment scheduling increase, and client engagement will improve as well!

OK, you've got the appointment. Now what?

Like everything in this post, this is only my opinion. A Life Needs Analysis is for the birds. It was probably created by someone who felt obligated to prove the client's need to them by some labor intensive process. Remember, not everyone likes insurance as much as you do. Plus, it is my experience that you only have, on average, about an hour's worth of time before you lose the client's interest. That includes establishing need, presentation, and application. Use it wisely!

So instead of a life needs analysis, try saying this. "The general rule of thumb is to have between 6 and 10 times your income of life insurance benefit. Based on my experience, doing a life needs analysis usually comes out to be around 7 times. Would you like to complete an analysis, or do you think 7 times your income sounds like a good place to start?" Guess what, I never had anyone say, "let's do a needs analysis."

Phew! OK, you're 5 minutes in. They've agreed to meet with you and discuss life insurance, and you've established how much life insurance coverage the person should be carrying. You're off to a great start!

Now, the fun part. Tell them, "I'd like to show you a brief rundown of all the products we have, the differences, both in price, and features, so you have a good understanding of what each one does."

Show them all your products, starting with the most expensive monthly payment. You can even say, "don't fall out of your chair when I show you this first product. It's very expensive, but you deserve to know why." Then, simply explain this product, how the cash accumulates, etc. (side note. it's up to you to know your own products, as I can't speak to them.)

Work your way down, all the way to the cheapest term product. Show the pros and cons on each, and be clearly honest. Remember, you are NOT trying to pitch a certain product to them.

Now that you're done, it's as simple as this: Ask the client(s), "which product do you LIKE the best." Now, shut up and let them answer! My experience tells me the client will almost always say they LIKE a permanent product over a term one. Now, it's as simple as working for THEM to find a combination of permanent and term products that fit their budget.

Selling in this way doesn't even really seem like selling. It's advising, and then helping them get into the product they like most. Try it! Appointments, Premium per sale, customer retention, and referrals will all improve over time.

Additional notes:

Yes, I know there are more ways than one to skin a cat. I've you're protecting young families, this is a great way to do it.

Could you be more accurate by doing a needs analysis? Of course. But, what's more important? Protecting a lot of families with way more coverage than they had before, or getting a few people nailed down to the exact amount of coverage? I vote for protecting as many families as you can.

A quick list of "Don'ts".

DON'T ASK HOW MUCH THEY CAN AFFORD. They'll never tell you the truth. Instead, ask them which one they like, and help them into a solution.

DON'T SELL A LOWER DEATH BENEFIT to get a higher premium if they really need more coverage first. Stick with term if that's all they can afford. If you don't, you're giving the profession a bad name.

DON'T SKIP ANY OF THIS PROCESS! If you do, you're missing out on future sales. Help them understand the value of a permanent policy, even if they only buy term.

The beauty of selling life insurance is that unless you're just truly evil, chances are the client will leave your office better protected than when they came in. You're not selling cheap steak knives. You're protecting lives. Feel good about that every single day.

I like your keep-it-simple approach to prospecting and the presentation

I'm going to assume the next thing you say to the client after he agrees to 7 times income as a place to start is...

"Okay, so what's your annual income?" Followed by a question of how much insurance he currently has in place, if any.

Here's what lately I have been saying next:

"Okay, so we've agreed that half a million dollars is the optimal amount to apply for. Our next step is to fill out the application and see if we can get you qualified for that amount. Then, once we've got you qualified, I 'll bring you back some options on the payment plan. By the way. Most of my clients spend between $100 and $300 a month on their life insurance. Where would you feel comfortable within that range?" Client says a number. "Up to??" I ask. Now I have a premium range.

Next, I explain that "there is a two-step process to the application....we're going to fill out some paperwork now and then I'm going to arrange to have a nurse come and take your vitals, draw some blood, collect a urine sample," etc. whatever my requirements are for that amount of coverage. "I usually suggest you do the exam in the morning because it requires an 8-hour fast. When is a morning in the next week that would work for you?"

Then I fill out an app. At the end, I will ask, if they qualify, "Would you like to have $50,000 of temporary coverage while we're getting your qualified? If so, it will cost $xx (one month's premium for a 10-year term)." Some will do it, some won't, doesn't matter. Just document that you offered it.

Then, once get the policy back from underwriting, I set up another "good news, you've been approved" meeting with the client to go over the options. I'll put together three options, depending on what the client has said he can afford and what his income is.

About the only objection you ever get is "I'm not ready to fill out an application, I need to think about it." I use the standard "How long do you need to think about it? Would four to six weeks be enough time? Great, while you're thinking about it, let's let the insurance company think about you and see if you qualify. I mean, you look pretty healthy on the outside, we just need to double check and make sure you're just as healthy on the inside."

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Found this also:

Hi, mr. Client, this is mr. agent calling you here from my office in insuranceville, usa. The reason I'm calling today is two fold: 1) to thank you for your business; and 2) to let you know that while I enjoy taking care of your auto/home/business insurance, what I truly enjoy is presenting mortagage protection and supplemental retirement programs, because I find that 96% of all families fall short in these important areas. Which would you says is more important to you, your mortgage protection or your retirement savings?

Then have a conversation about what's important to him.

 

[Guest]

Hello life people, I am a P&C agent and I am currently competing in a company contest that has quotas for both P&C & Life. I have the P&C side down but need some tips on selling more life. I sell very little life insurance and would like to know some ways you guys are generating business? I need to hit 6K in life with this carrier and I have 8 months to do so. Thanks!

I am 90% P&C. In order to keep my liberty mutual appointment I have to sell about $2000 of Mutual of Omaha products a year. When quoting auto or car I outline how our conversation is going to go. I let them know that first I'm going to ask questions about the house/car, then I'm going to get some personal information, Lastly I will run through all the discount questions. One of my discount questions is, outside of work, what company is your life insurance with? Then I add a mortgage protection quote when I give them the home/auto quote explaining the quote is with a life insurance bundled discount. So, assuming you are an average producer selling about 20-25 home/ auto policies a month and about 1/2 are auto/home package combo deals... You should sale about 2 lifes a month.... Not including referrals that will come.

 

[MikeRobinson]

This is a good typical presentation. Similar in what we use.