White board

[sbg_ben]

This is a bit of a ridiculous question but does anyone use a big white board when explaining Medicare to their clients? I feel like I think better and can explain it better while writing it down. I was thinking of getting one of those big white boards on wheels that is 2 sided and you can flip it over.

Even if everyone says no I might just do it anyway, but I'm curious to hear peoples thoughts on it. Especially if you have tried it.

 

[somarco]

Is this for F2F meetings or virtual?

 

[sbg_ben]

Is this for F2F meetings or virtual?

F2F

 

[somarco]

This guy uses a white board for almost everything. His 2 minute videos are gold.



WB's are nice but most folks want to take home/keep something they can study in their own time.

 

[LostDollar]

This guy uses a white board for almost everything. His 2 minute videos are gold.



WB's are nice but most folks want to take home/keep something they can study in their own time.

I think OP may have been referring to a previous generation of "whiteboard" technology.

 

[sbg_ben]

This guy uses a white board for almost everything. His 2 minute videos are gold.



WB's are nice but most folks want to take home/keep something they can study in their own time.

That is true. I have watched his videos now that you say that. I'm always keeping an eye out to get better at explaining things so I like to watch those type of videos.

I guess to have a best of both worlds situation, I can create a print out version of what I usually write on the white board so people can review it later. Or take a picture and print it or email it to them.

When things are slow I like to think of how to improve the process

 

[LostDollar]

F2F

I am not an agent.

I have not had any face to face medicare presentations from agents so I can't base the following comment on actual experience.

For a one on one sales presentation, it seems to me like an agent talking to a "whiteboard" with his/her back to the client is going to depersonalize the meeting and significantly reduce the ability of the agent to develop personal rapport with the prospect.

A possible better approach for information on a screen might be a projection (the modern computer generated kind of thing) where agent and prospect are sitting side by side at a desk or conference table. Although there again my perspective is a bit skewed because the personal experience I had there was with a financial planner who had a conference room about half the size of my last house, a projection screen bigger than my current "picture window", and after our meeting, was talking to his staff at the reception desk about the upcoming "after tax season" Caribbean trip for the entire office force. Although he was apparently trying to develop some smaller clients in his client base, it was obvious to me overall his clients had much more financial resource than I do and this was probably not going to be a good match for me. I was just going to be a number in the bragging rights about how many clients he had.

So... I hear you about the comfort, but I suspect you may be better served in the long run with a presentation method that keeps you and the prospect focused on each other.

Again, note, I do not make a living selling things to people, so I may be quite wrong about that, it is just my consumer knee jerk reaction to your post.

Edit
I think the person Somarco referred to above is teaching a large group of people, not attempting to sell on a one to one basis.

I don't know how that affects what you want to do.
end edit.

 

[somarco]

At one time I considered doing small group meetings with a white board and abandoned it to keep doing videos.

All of my business is virtual including phone Q&A where I give them 10 minutes to ask any questions about Medicare. When the time is up if they want more, I stay on the phone.

If they are not interested in continuing we part as friends . . . it's not personal, just business.

Sometimes I use the take away close which works over half the time.

Everyone I talk to gets an email summarizing the conversation along with my monthly newsletter.

Never any pressure to buy. If I never hear from them again, or if they buy from someone else their newsletter "subscription" is cancelled.

 

[rmhaire]

That is true. I have watched his videos now that you say that. I'm always keeping an eye out to get better at explaining things so I like to watch those type of videos.

I guess to have a best of both worlds situation, I can create a print out version of what I usually write on the white board so people can review it later. Or take a picture and print it or email it to them.

When things are slow I like to think of how to improve the process

I use a Medicare 101 in pdf format. I have it posted under my resource links on my website and I refer to it during phone appts and screen shares. I also email it as a conversation starter.

Your FMO probably has one that's fillable with your information.

 

[annon123]

I used to teach college. We used white boards, power points, chalk blackboards... The value of a white board is that is slows down how fast you talk if clients want to take notes (you can talk way faster than most can even type notes).

Unlike what another poster said, normally one does not talk to the board, you face the clients while you talk except when you put main points on the board (and stop talking while you do that). If you are using a power point, then give them a printed copy of the slides (but don't put so many slides on a page that they can't read them).

Handouts with main points on them are also useful. Then they can add what they want to whatever is already on there. Besides helping clients remember stuff, it helps the physically impaired who can't take notes as fast or at all, and the mildly cognitively impaired can leave with something that either prompts them or whomever their caretaker/spouse, etc. is.