My experience so far...

[Ksutton]

Good luck to you. Seems you have found your path.

"Give your heart to the trade you have learnt and draw refreshment from it"
Marcus Aurelius

Thank you! That’s a great quote!

 

[Newby]

Building a downline of agents can be the way to wealth . . . but it is not the panacea that many paint.

Lazy agents will bail within 3 months . . . good ones after 6 - 12 months. You are constantly replenishing your inventory of producing agents. Their mistakes roll up to you . . . as do the chargebacks.

Been there, done that, got the t-shirt.

Hope it works for you.

Telesales isn't for everyone. You have to learn to listen, rather than using visual cues. It can be difficult to learn but saves a lot of wear and tear on the body.

I don't chase prospects . . . they come to me.

When there is a need to contact them I use email with tracking. If it is urgent, I call . . . no answer . . . leave a message and send an email. If they don't call me back I move on. Late premiums, cancellations? Their problem, not mine. I don't chase them either.

Door knocking? Nope! Haven't done that in years and will never go back.

Some agents treat this business like a debit route. Many years ago one of my downline agents had a good business, mostly with doctors. When he wanted to set up a retirement plan he called me in . . . I knew that market, he didn't.

He was based in Montgomery but traveled his "route" throughout LA. When he wanted me to go with him it was a 3 - 4 day trip, small towns, cheap motels and diners. I hated it.

He didn't handle rejection well and would try to shame them into buying. He also chased after late payments and cancellations.

He was a very knowledgeable and good agent. His clients valued the information he brought to the table, but I didn't see many that looked forward to his visits.

Doesn’t have to be like that. FEX has mostly long term agents not guys dropping in and out. I do have some come and go quickly of course. Not everyone can do FE. But I would say the majority of our agents have been with us at least 5-years.

 

[Fire]

In the past I’ve gotten some fixed cost fe from Brad Aden . I got an email from a vendor he used for fixed cost he no longer does fixed cost leads for agents . He must not be doing Rgi anymore either . Also on the Medicare side him and Mungia no longer provide fixed cost . They just provide the credits and you get your own . I guess he doesn’t want to mess with it .

 

[noah]

Everyone has their triggers that caused them to fail. They are all part of the negatives in this business which is no different from any business.

After the break in period,they begin to realize in order to make it they need to did another way of leave the business.

Easy fix:
Work,smart
Work hard
Have very few distractions

Doesn’t have to be like that. FEX has mostly long term agents not guys dropping in and out. I do have some come and go quickly of course. Not everyone can do FE. But I would say the majority of our agents have been with us at least 5-years.

Face to face.

The right agency director builds his agency with agents he feels will make him money.

His agent retention is much higher than the agency that figures they can get anyone who can fog a mirror a license and contracts that start the agent at 80%.

Your success will be determined by your skill set.

 

[Life Hawk]

I had some bad experiences with some other people in the industry.

Sad, but we have a tendency to eat our own.

The tenacity that this job requires is often a full 180 from the finesse that most people assume it takes. Often that bullheaded, dogged stubbornness can turn people into sourpusses, or worse yet, greedy little imps that could care less about others.

Then there are the "know-it-alls" that have the magic formula or bullet. If you but humble yourself to bow before their throne, they may share and lead you to the promise land.

So glad @Ksutton that you seem to have found your path. Nice that you shared here as well. This sort of thread can be great encouragement for other agents struggling to navigate their way.

Enjoy your labor... and leave your footprints deep.

 

[Newby]

In the past I’ve gotten some fixed cost fe from Brad Aden . I got an email from a vendor he used for fixed cost he no longer does fixed cost leads for agents . He must not be doing Rgi anymore either . Also on the Medicare side him and Mungia no longer provide fixed cost . They just provide the credits and you get your own . I guess he doesn’t want to mess with it .

RGI has had a lot of rate increases. Especially in certain areas. We’ve all had to use additional lead houses.

 

[Tahoe Ray]

Yep! Will I see you there?

Yes. I go every year.

 

[WinoBlues]

Same way I wrote em. On the phone.

Same. Although few at that.

I used to chase NSFs. Drove all over the state chasing the same people or rewriting them just to chase them again.

I finally learned to scrub my book of the time suck clients.

If they want the insurance they will restart. I don't chase dis interested people.

 

[noah]

I wanted to share my experience so far, specifically, working with agents and building this FE business thus far.

I've been licensed for 7 years now. When I started I really had visions of having a big team and leading a ton of agents to glory! That was just the vision put into my head. I quickly found out that selling insurance is not for everyone. Not due to any immediate "Failure" on my part, but just the sheer waves of how many people started and stopped within the first few months of me starting out.

Within 6 months I left being a captive agent, after doing a tad big of research on here, and then started planning to go Independent. I took a few months to do research, I worked a landscaping job (it was summer) while I was planning the Indy route.....Anyhow....

When I started as an Indy Final Expense agent I started Face to Face. I knocked doors for 6 or even 7 days a week when I started. I worked 12 hour days (at least - Which includes scrubbing paper apps which I haven't done in years!) Overall It was hard but I really enjoyed learning the business. I was on FIRE. I got sent to a trip with Transamerica and won a top producer award and made a really good amount of money....I was able to even help my friend who was at a captive organization come indy. He is still writing today and doing great! (He has been in the business longer than me!)

After about my 2nd year I was getting burnt out from the business. I had some bad experiences with some other people in the industry. In fact, key influencers and leaders in this business (for me at the time) . It really threw my through a loop. I took a break from writing business and even thought about quitting altogether. This was not due to being unsuccessful, which is ironic as I find many agents fail because of not making it their first year. Anyhow, I decided I would try telesales from some more inspiration, all glory to God.

I started with PPG, James is a great guy and they have an awesome platform(I would recommend anyone talk with him if they are interested in telesales). I did well and learned a lot the time I spent working with them. Eventually I made my way over to DigitalBGA... I was always intrigued with them

Since I've been with Digital I really decided to crank up my game and I began to have to desire to lead and train agents. With their support, systems and my prior training I've really been able to grow a ton in this business. Thank you all, Thank God. Currently, I have a handful of agents I'm leading, I'm now working with a virtual assistant, working on some of my own marketing strategies along with leads through Digital and ready to continue to grow. I've been really surprised by the amount of agents I have reaching out to me from some of the content I have been putting out. I really think it's great and I truly appreciate hearing I'm bringing value to others who aren't on my team. Thank you all for checking me out .

I know there are other agencies that are massive compared to me. I know I'm still in the beginning of building but I'm encouraged and having a good time. Obviously we have all had our rough waters in this business...To sum this up...I think back to when I first started and had to amend the Transamerica app because I had no idea what I was doing and trying my best to make it work. Now I'm in the direction, slowly, but surly growing a business and agency.

Thanks for all the support and everyones participation on the forums. I think it's a good reflection of the business. It's got its roses but it's got its thorns. I guess we all do

Here's to a good rest of the year and many to come!

At what point did you realize you were nothing more than a pack mule for your upline ?

You saw a lot of guys wash out. Did you stop and think,geez if I back it down to a 3 or 4 day work week,I could make it as a field agent face to face ?

Or was someone pushing you ? Pushing you to buy more leads,work more days in the field ?

What are some of the things you would tell new guys breaking in not to do as instructed by their hiring manager,upline ?

Glad you found your thing,your way in FE.

 

[Ksutton]

At what point did you realize you were nothing more than a pack mule for your upline ?

You saw a lot of guys wash out. Did you stop and think,geez if I back it down to a 3 or 4 day work week,I could make it as a field agent face to face ?

Or was someone pushing you ? Pushing you to buy more leads,work more days in the field ?

What are some of the things you would tell new guys breaking in not to do as instructed by their hiring manager,upline ?

Glad you found your thing,your way in FE.

Good questions.

1. The initial captive structure wasn't for me. I don't think I was a 'pack mule' but I did not want to recruit fast and train agents after only 4-5 months in. I remember one of the "Managers" who I was supposed to do a ride along with(this was about 3 months in) no showed me and had me take out the agent he was also training. I managed to write 2k with this new(newer) agent with me. I'll never forget it. It was satisfying and yet had me asking myself "Why did my manager no show me and have me go out in the field and train his agent?". That was when I quickly decided that I was not going to be continuing where I started.

2. I saw a lot of guys wash out when I was captive and when I started Indy. I just didn't accept that it would happen to me. I think this is where my MMA/Jiu Jitsu training really helped me (mentally). I remember when I was around 16 and I was training to compete in MMA, I was thinking to myself, "I'm going to reach my goals in this sport. Unless I die, trying is not an option. I am doing.". I brought that mentality in with me to this business.

Also, my family. I was a brand new father of my first child when I got licensed. I remember ( and still do) looking at him and my wife and thinking "I need to provide for them, God willing".

3.I never thought I would have to only work 3 or 4 days a week. I really just wanted to produce and focus on one thing, get good at it, make more money and help people. The amount of work it took where I was didn't scare me. I just didn't want to do that type of work and I couldn't see myself living the lifestyle of the leaders in that part of the industry. **I have nothing bad to say about Simon Arias. He runs an AIL agency and he invested a lot of his time, training and support while I was starting out in this industry. I wouldn't be here without that.

Something was certainly pushing me to work. When I started I thought it was easy compared to landscaping (although I love landscaping). The hours or amount of work was never the problem. I'm not afraid to put the work in. I think my biggest hardship was balancing family life, my relationship with God. In saying that, I believe God has been leading me here the whole time and will continue to lead me. Nothing is impossible with Him, His plans are greater than ours and His will never fails.

4. Some things I would tell a new guy/gal:

-Have a heart to help, grit to not quit, Faith as small as a mustard seed and don't overthink it.

-Read "The Greatest Salesman In The World" Og Mandino.

-Find a good mentor (do some research here)

-Understand rejection is most of the business (Don't get emotionally attached the the no's or yes's)

-Keep Moving Forward

-Must come prepared to put in extra effort

-On To The NEXT

-Love the one you are with



I'm glad I found my way too! Thanks to God.