Lead and High Contract Relationship

[Mark]

Mark, you brought back memories I thought were totally suppressed.

I started in this business with MONY while still in college. My prospecting book was the white pages. Training consisted of driving to Nashville (180 miles) at my own expense, paying for a nights lodging and meals, and sitting in class all day dialing a pretend phone. We had a script which had to be memorized before showing up for class. Our trainer would walk around the room, listening to what we were saying to our pretend prospects on the other end of the phone.

I can still hear the trainer chanting SOD, SOD, SOD for "spin of dial". This was before push button phones so we had real, and pretend, rotary dial phones.

After graduating from the class I returned to Knoxville where we were required to spend Monday night from 6 - 9 calling from a bull pen. We could not stop until we booked 10 appointments for the rest of the week. If we didn't have 10 appointments we had to come back the next night.

Kitchen table sales of life insurance for newlyweds, new parents and college students.

MONY owned a finance company and financed life insurance was "big" at that time. The idea was to pitch preserving your insurability to college students by talking them into buying a life insurance policy with no money down.

Face amounts sold were usually $10,000 but sometimes you would get lucky and get someone to buy a $25,000 plan complete with WP and PO rider.

You would think it was an easy sale since they paid nothing for 2 years, didn't need a co-signer, didn't need parent's signature and no credit check.

It wasn't easy and I hated it.

When I graduated I put the life business behind me and moved directly into employer health insurance.

Those were the days.

I still have the phone book James gave me as my 1st prospecting book. My wife don't understand why I don't trash it, but it means something to me.


I recommend anybody that is thinking about becoming an insurance agent to talk to at least 5 successful agents that have been in the business for a while and learn what they did to get where they are today.

The trick of this business it to find your niche and find your market. ALso you can't do everything. Find a couple of things and be really good at it.

 

[Virtualinagency]

I think newer agents should be less concerned about contract levels and more concerned about the attention they will be getting from mangement/FMO.... cant tell you how many calls I get saying they sign up and never hear from anyone again..though this has been mainly in individual health market...

 

[Frank Stastny]

I think newer agents should be less concerned about contract levels and more concerned about the attention they will be getting from mangement/FMO.... cant tell you how many calls I get saying they sign up and never hear from anyone again..though this has been mainly in individual health market...

I hear the same story from agents who sign up to sell Med Supps. I see no logical reason for both not to be present, good contracts and excellent support.

One would logically think that "management" would want to help that agent be successful as quickly as possible. Giving a new agent a low contract and no help doesn't make sense to me. They might as well also give him an application to be a greeter at Walmart.

 

[Full Throttle]

But I feel we need to look for the results as a whole. High contract and leads are essential elements to produce the results.

Bottom line: you can outsource just about anything besides prospecting and bringing in new clients for pennies on the dollar. If you know how to prospect and generate your own leads (or pay for them out of your own pocket), you can write your own ticket. You will be a victim in this business until you can bring in your own clients without the help of a GA or agency.

 

[briko3]

Frank, I think you know the answer to managers not helping. It's the same thing we've all been say...too many people want to make money without working. Many managers think that just because they have people under them they don't have to work.

 

[Frank Stastny]

Frank, I think you know the answer to managers not helping. It's the same thing we've all been say...too many people want to make money without working. Many managers think that just because they have people under them they don't have to work.

Unfortunately that is all so true. It has always been that way and if anything it is getting worse. It wasn't nearly this bad until insurance companies stopped recruiting agents themselves and turned it over to marketing organizations.

I've never had an insurance company offer me a below street level contract. I personally would never consider doing that either. Anyone who does apparently thinks they have a "license to steal".

The two most destructive forces in the universe are greed and egos. They have destroyed people, relationships, companies and countries. I try to live by the advice my grandfather gave me. When in business make a little but always leave some for the next guy to make. Don't get greedy and try to "make it all".
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Bottom line: you can outsource just about anything besides prospecting and bringing in new clients for pennies on the dollar. If you know how to prospect and generate your own leads (or pay for them out of your own pocket), you can write your own ticket. You will be a victim in this business until you can bring in your own clients without the help of a GA or agency.

Spot on! We hear from the "victims" all too frequently on this board.

The job we do shouldn't be called "selling insurance", it should be called "prospecting for insurance". That's where the money comes from.

Any successful agent spends the majority of their time prospecting to find qualified buyers. Anyone can sell a policy to a person who ready to purchase.

Those who learn to prospect will never be without people to sell insurance to. I generate my own leads for pennies on the dollar.

An agent who is only relying on purchased leads has to sell a whole lot more insurance than I do to make the same amount of money that I do. They have to pay for their leads before they start making money. I make money with every sale I make.

 

[theinsuranceman]

Unfortunately that is all so true. It has always been that way and if anything it is getting worse. It wasn't nearly this bad until insurance companies stopped recruiting agents themselves and turned it over to marketing organizations.

I've never had an insurance company offer me a below street level contract. I personally would never consider doing that either. Anyone who does apparently thinks they have a "license to steal".

The two most destructive forces in the universe are greed and egos. They have destroyed people, relationships, companies and countries. I try to live by the advice my grandfather gave me. When in business make a little but always leave some for the next guy to make. Don't get greedy and try to "make it all".
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Spot on! We hear from the "victims" all too frequently on this board.

The job we do shouldn't be called "selling insurance", it should be called "prospecting for insurance". That's where the money comes from.

Any successful agent spends the majority of their time prospecting to find qualified buyers. Anyone can sell a policy to a person who ready to purchase.

Those who learn to prospect will never be without people to sell insurance to. I generate my own leads for pennies on the dollar.

An agent who is only relying on purchased leads has to sell a whole lot more insurance than I do to make the same amount of money that I do. They have to pay for their leads before they start making money. I make money with every sale I make.

Don't forget all the NON-selling time you have...dialing all those numbers until you have an interested prospect (how many hrs./day is the NON-selling time?).

I prefer leads, at a cost, so my time is spent selling. The costs of the leads is less than the cost of my time selling.

For me personally, I can make more $$$ per hour, day, month, etc. buying leads (which is like having the call made by the lead..just not as qualified as the actual phone call would be). But to each his own.

 

[Frank Stastny]

Don't forget all the NON-selling time you have...dialing all those numbers until you have an interested prospect (how many hrs./day is the NON-selling time?).

I prefer leads, at a cost, so my time is spent selling. The costs of the leads is less than the cost of my time selling.

For me personally, I can make more $$$ per hour, day, month, etc. buying leads (which is like having the call made by the lead..just not as qualified as the actual phone call would be). But to each his own.

That's the beautiful part about selling Med Supps. Virtually every senior I talk to is an interested prospect. They all are constantly looking for a better way to investment their premium dollar. Plus, every time I write an app I leave them with more disposable income than they had before they talked to me.

If I don't sell them a policy the first time I talk to them, more often than not I will sell them a policy within the next one to three years.

I envy you being able to spend all of your day only talking truly interested prospects who only sent the card in because they are ready to make a purchase. With those kind of leads I would imaging you are writing at least three to five apps per day. Maybe one day you will be willing to share that lead source with us.

 

[theinsuranceman]

That's the beautiful part about selling Med Supps. Virtually every senior I talk to is an interested prospect. They all are constantly looking for a better way to investment their premium dollar. Plus, every time I write an app I leave them with more disposable income than they had before they talked to me.

If I don't sell them a policy the first time I talk to them, more often than not I will sell them a policy within the next one to three years.

I envy you being able to spend all of your day only talking truly interested prospects who only sent the card in because they are ready to make a purchase. With those kind of leads I would imaging you are writing at least three to five apps per day. Maybe one day you will be willing to share that lead source with us.

The source is dir. mail. Not all the leads are truly interested. (I wish). 3-5 apps/day...very possible for someone who is properly trained and SELLING OVER THE PHONE WITH A DIGITAL RECORDER. Usually about 2-3 sales per 6-8 hrs. worked on the phone.

Takes a lot of motivation and a burning desire to succeed to spend this amount of time on the phone. Although some days you can't give this stuff away and some days everyone is trying to take it from you. The lead costs kinda replaces the "gasoline" and "time" costs.

Of course there is a little skill and a little luck and a little science and a little art to one call closing. Otherwise...the agent is just an aorder taker.

 

[seethelight]

Everyone wants a high contract!

A high contract means absolutely nothing if you don't know how to sell. I am from the old school and when I started selling I worked for UnitedHealthCare back in "95" selling Medicare Complete I had a salary (obviously captive), but I was fed pre-set appts and made anywhere between $20-$100 per sale and I still made six figures consistently the eight years that I was there. I paid my dues in this industry and have worked for many other captive companies during my career until I got smart an opened up my own shop. I empower my agents by teaching them that it is not about the commission level, but more importantly it is about how many people you see. Activity drives production! and when you have the production obviosly you make money. My philosphy is that we are in this business to help people not sell people. We are advisors and we are professionals and when you conduct yourself in this manner your clients know and respect you and it leads to high retention and a high residual income. I think if more agents concentrated on developing their book of business and being in front of people they would make more money and get the higher contract levels that the deserve. Don't get me wrong I'm not saying that there are agents out there that do not deserve higher contracts, but let's face many of them don't!

I have agents that I have
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Continued.

What I was saying before I hit the button was that I have numerous agents that I have given high contracts to and they are the main ones asking me for leads and calling me from appointments asking me how to close the client. If an agent demands a 100% contract then they should know how to sell and how to close a client! What agents have to understand that if you consider yourself to be and entrepeneur and independent then you have to make the investment in yourself and your business and run it as such. To me that warrants a high contract. If I have to train you provide you with marketing, leads and mentor you and give you all of the attention that you need to be successful then I should be compensated and when your production warrants a higher contract it will be granted. I tell my agents that they work for themselves not for me. It is my responsiblity to give them what they need to be successful, i.e.,support, leads, marketing, etc. If i give them these things then in the end ultimately we both were winners.
Now, I have followed this forum for quite some time now and this is my first post, but I have a lot to contribute just not necessarily the time to participate as much as the regulars.

My advice to new agents is to focus on activity. This business is about how many people you see not about who has the highest contract! Let me pose a question to you all.

If an agent has a 100% contract and sees 5 people a week and sell 1 life contract at annual premium of $2400 and you have another agent with a 80% contract and sees 30 people a week an makes 6 sales with a combined annual premium of $8,000. Who made more money?
Everyone wants and demand a higher contract and for those of you that are in the postion to grant them how many times can you count when you have given higher contracts and experienced these type of results.