Allstate Financial Specialist - Thoughts on the Position?
- Thread starter adam1314
- Start date
- 10,330
What I think, is that any job that emails me monthly on LinkedIn asking me to work for them... well... do I even need to say it? 
- 4,132
I agree with scagent83, as long as I can remember it seems like Allstate is in a constant recruiting mode for this concept. Turnover seems like fast food server like. In other words they're looking to fill the same spot every couple months in my area.
- 151
From 2006-2008 I worked as a subproducer for an Allstate Financial Specialist who made $250k+ a year. He did very well with the variable annuities and mutual funds. He also had a good mix of of long term care and universal life with a modest amount of disability sales.
He had one $4 million dollar agency that worked hard at getting him appointments and a handful of other agencies that would round up a fairly consistent supply of appointments but nothing like you would have thought they would.
Once the agents hit their financial production goal they stopped caring about helping the Financial Specialist until Jan when their financial goal got re-set. One year the agents all hit their goal by Sept. It was a long rough Fall and Winter. The Financial Specialist got by on a couple of LARGE annuity sales that he did not share with any of the agents.
From my perspective someone who really worked the system could do well. I would start by having every agent let me know whenever they sold an umbrella policy, a new commercial policy, or any new client that moved in from out of town. Insist that each agent either take you and one of their "A" clients to lunch each month or hold a quarterly dinner seminar for their clients.
Also, I would identify the agents that actively and consistently do annual policy reviews for their book of business and work with them to integrate a financial review into the process.
At the time Allstate offered a strong package of workplace benefits that the Financial Specialist could use to get into small businesses.
He had one $4 million dollar agency that worked hard at getting him appointments and a handful of other agencies that would round up a fairly consistent supply of appointments but nothing like you would have thought they would.
Once the agents hit their financial production goal they stopped caring about helping the Financial Specialist until Jan when their financial goal got re-set. One year the agents all hit their goal by Sept. It was a long rough Fall and Winter. The Financial Specialist got by on a couple of LARGE annuity sales that he did not share with any of the agents.
From my perspective someone who really worked the system could do well. I would start by having every agent let me know whenever they sold an umbrella policy, a new commercial policy, or any new client that moved in from out of town. Insist that each agent either take you and one of their "A" clients to lunch each month or hold a quarterly dinner seminar for their clients.
Also, I would identify the agents that actively and consistently do annual policy reviews for their book of business and work with them to integrate a financial review into the process.
At the time Allstate offered a strong package of workplace benefits that the Financial Specialist could use to get into small businesses.
- 241
"open their books to you to cross sell"...statement made in earlier post.
Well, depending on the agent you are working with. Some will try to have their staff sell it so the agent gets fully comped then turn it over to you when they can't sell it. Some of the more difficult cases may be farmed out to the specialist to see "how good he really is".
This is not the case in all agencies. Some agents just want to devote all their time to the P&C end and just want the life guy to make certain they get their top bonus and have enough equity products written to keep their series 6 (if they have one).
All in all, it's a tough job. I respect these guys but only a handful really make it.
The majority start out like gangbusters, making you believe they will be out there selling all the people you give them and then after awhile they slow down. Become complacent and then the majority just fall.
In all fairness though, some agents are ball busters and demand almost the impossible.
So, don't think you are getting a job that is prospecting free. The recruiters sell you the line that these old, fat agents that have been around for years are lazy living off of renewals and don't want to sel llife and that you are going to turn things around for them. While it's a fact, some are fat and lazy, you are still going to have to work their books that many life specialists before you have tried to do and probably without success, otherwise they would still be on the job.
Think twice.
Well, depending on the agent you are working with. Some will try to have their staff sell it so the agent gets fully comped then turn it over to you when they can't sell it. Some of the more difficult cases may be farmed out to the specialist to see "how good he really is".
This is not the case in all agencies. Some agents just want to devote all their time to the P&C end and just want the life guy to make certain they get their top bonus and have enough equity products written to keep their series 6 (if they have one).
All in all, it's a tough job. I respect these guys but only a handful really make it.
The majority start out like gangbusters, making you believe they will be out there selling all the people you give them and then after awhile they slow down. Become complacent and then the majority just fall.
In all fairness though, some agents are ball busters and demand almost the impossible.
So, don't think you are getting a job that is prospecting free. The recruiters sell you the line that these old, fat agents that have been around for years are lazy living off of renewals and don't want to sel llife and that you are going to turn things around for them. While it's a fact, some are fat and lazy, you are still going to have to work their books that many life specialists before you have tried to do and probably without success, otherwise they would still be on the job.
Think twice.
- 9,744
LMAO! Sounds like the old R830 contract agents that were told they could work hard for 10 years...then cruise forever. Many got purged in 2000 when all employee agents got "fired", and moved to independent contractor status.
We used to call them "escalator agents", because most got started under the escalator in Sears stores.
- 241
In my day Sears agents were known as "booth" agents with 15 to 18 agents working with 5 or 6 agents on duty at any given day (including Saturday).
The "mass exodus" as the 2000 firing was also called lost many agents selling their books for 1x or receiving a pitiful stipend from the company while some had the foresight to keep going. So ended the R830 contract and the new model which was the dream of agent hating Jerry Choate and then the fiasco continued with Ed "liar" Liddy.
It has never been the same.
Getting back to the Allstate Specialist program....when it first started the new hires were trained by corporate trainers (just as agents were) but now they are hired, give a few days of hands on and sent to the field to get introduced to any agents that is in need of getting their numbers crunched.
A good friend of mine in NY is a Life Specialist and is already in the Hall of Fame. After 15 years he has it down to a science of how he works and communicates with his agents. So yes, you can make money but you will work any hours that potential clients will see you to make a sale, whether it be days, nights or weekends. Remember, these clients are NOT yours and the agent will know if you have blown off an appointment because it was on an evening you had to take your kid to a school function or that your wife had something to do on Saturday morning.
You are not even captive...you are "captivated" by 4 or 5 agents that will be looking for you to write their business and service it as well with each agent demanding individual attention and for you to answer your phone personally whenever they or their staff call you with a lead or with a question as why the client was not written.
Bottom line.....if you don't write the business for your agents to get them their bonus, they will complain about you and you will be pushed from one agent to another until you are terminated for lack of production. It is a thankless job in most cases.
Hope this helps. Just some stuff from a guy that's seen it all.
The "mass exodus" as the 2000 firing was also called lost many agents selling their books for 1x or receiving a pitiful stipend from the company while some had the foresight to keep going. So ended the R830 contract and the new model which was the dream of agent hating Jerry Choate and then the fiasco continued with Ed "liar" Liddy.
It has never been the same.
Getting back to the Allstate Specialist program....when it first started the new hires were trained by corporate trainers (just as agents were) but now they are hired, give a few days of hands on and sent to the field to get introduced to any agents that is in need of getting their numbers crunched.
A good friend of mine in NY is a Life Specialist and is already in the Hall of Fame. After 15 years he has it down to a science of how he works and communicates with his agents. So yes, you can make money but you will work any hours that potential clients will see you to make a sale, whether it be days, nights or weekends. Remember, these clients are NOT yours and the agent will know if you have blown off an appointment because it was on an evening you had to take your kid to a school function or that your wife had something to do on Saturday morning.
You are not even captive...you are "captivated" by 4 or 5 agents that will be looking for you to write their business and service it as well with each agent demanding individual attention and for you to answer your phone personally whenever they or their staff call you with a lead or with a question as why the client was not written.
Bottom line.....if you don't write the business for your agents to get them their bonus, they will complain about you and you will be pushed from one agent to another until you are terminated for lack of production. It is a thankless job in most cases.
Hope this helps. Just some stuff from a guy that's seen it all.
This position sounds like any other. It will work if the Specialist will make it work but IT AIN'T NO FREE LUNCH .Those kind of position seem to all be taken.
I think before you sign on I would meet with all the agents you would be working with and see how interested they are in working with you. I know during my time at Allstate all the LS I was able to work with lived at least an hour away so it was difficult. Also another key is for you to prospect on your own always. I know the recruiter tells you that you just sit back and the agents just keep sending your referrals. It seems there is a very high turnover rate at the position. Also with the sale of LBL what will you have to sell? LBL wasn't exactly competitive from what I remember and I doubt that Allstate offers a lower priced alternative.
I too used an AFS, in my Allstate agency. The question to ask the Agents is."Do you have Active life sales processes in your agency ? What are they ? Do they work?
You also want to know the demographics of the agents book of business, meaning, The zips, ages, how many policies in force how long these policies are on the books,, particularly, other lines, ie home with auto. A big question to ask is Are you the original agent , who wrote these policies, or did you purchase this agency from someone else? . It's a sum of all the parts. I was always switching the pitch, to life, The customer did not want to listen if they were angry about
The auto rates or the non renewal of their homeowners policy. In addition, Ask yourself . Do I possess the skills of a seasoned life agent ?
Don NJ
You also want to know the demographics of the agents book of business, meaning, The zips, ages, how many policies in force how long these policies are on the books,, particularly, other lines, ie home with auto. A big question to ask is Are you the original agent , who wrote these policies, or did you purchase this agency from someone else? . It's a sum of all the parts. I was always switching the pitch, to life, The customer did not want to listen if they were angry about
The auto rates or the non renewal of their homeowners policy. In addition, Ask yourself . Do I possess the skills of a seasoned life agent ?
Don NJ
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