Using Birthdays to Market Life and FE

[VolAgent]

----> Alston
I didn't want to post this earlier cause it would have been buried in my response to Todd.

Consider those comments above and how you believe they might relate to a concept of "I'm in this for your benefit" vs a concept of "I'm in this for me benefit".

I am now going to confirm every bad suspicion Todd has about me. After you send me a birthday card every year for 2 or 3 years, you are going to be "My Insurance Agent". So you're going to get a call that goes something like "Alston, I just got a canary and I need to insure it."

My car repair place is part of a regional chain. The manager used to send me a Christmas card each year that included cards for two free oil changes if done between Jan and Mar. I don't get those anymore. He told me one time he had to pay for those and he was very careful about who he sent them to. The volume of my repair business has dropped significantly in the last 2-3 years so I'm sure "my card" is going to someone else that is doing a higher volume. The point of all that being, increase communication from you to the client may increase client service expectations. restricting the breadth of communication may or may not be important.

And in regard to my insurance agent responses above, keep in mind that in many of those years it would have made no difference at all how much money you could save me by selling a policy this week vs next week or how much you could save me by doing whatever the fancy manipulations are with indexes and universal life. I often had outstanding policy loans on the two small policies I had just to keep them in force. You'll just have to decide what kind of clients you can afford and what you can't. Just don't take my money or imply you are going to give me service and then not give me help when I do need it. I currently have a med supp agent whose business model I fit inside of and I'm working on the life part. Prop and casualty will have to come after that.

I agree with some of what you are saying, but also the fact that you are "butthurt" that the guy stopped sending you free oil changes after you stopped using him is a bit disappointing too. The free oil changes was him saying thank you for all the business over the year and to keep you coming back. You weren't giving him the same business anymore, so no reason to send them to you.

I was referred to a lead vendor, so I called them up and was talking to them. Even told them I was referred by another agent. I had some questions I wanted answers to. Instead, the entire time the rep is trying to close me. I tend to go with my gut feeling on most things, seems to work better than analytical. And really just wasn't feeling it. Then he tried a takeaway on me, didn't help either.

Thinking about it afterward, just a very poor phone call, it was all about him. Now, I don't know that I would want you as a client either, you are way too analytical and would probably drive me crazy. However, I am completely on board with you that the contact needs to be about the client.

I would refer anyone to WinoBlues if they want to know how to properly work a book and make contact to existing clients.

 

[KOC Agent]

I liked Joe's book as well, probably one of my favorites.

Let us know how your marketing campaign works out.

 

[VolAgent]

Didn't say I was butthurt and if I left the impression I wasn't going there at all that was bad communication. My "fleet" has shrunk from 5 vehicles to 4. Social security finances manage my "travel" to the back yard and the grocery store. Less frequent "big" trips to the library and Big Lots. Not a lot of repair left to take. What I do have goes there. 20-25 minute walk to drop off and pick up the vehicles. I have been advised he charges a bit too much. In some cases that's possibly right, but I have my reasons to trust him and my cars go there. I'd rather my card went to the lady who has to keep working because she pays for her boys' car repairs but the shop Christmas card is the only Christmas card she gets.

What I was trying to use that as an example for is that Alston may still get the same volume of business with a restricted amount of cards, if the restriction is done right. I have no idea what "done right" is for Alston's business, my repair shop's manage has figured it out for his business.

And what I was trying to say with some of the other examples above is exactly the same point you tried to make in another post somewhere, sometimes it's the agent and not the price.

Sending me birthday cards and calling me up to churn existing business by combining policies and getting something paid up does nothing for me. I don't need a free lube card from the most trustworthy car shop manager I've found since I left home. I need my cars fixed when they are broken.

But when I hit a point where I need an insurance based banking arrangement, a medicare supplement, a life insurance policy and some 401K discussion and an agent holding a current policy ignores me, he is never going to hear from me again except for the policy he has. Period. Service is king.

I apologize then, that is how it came across to me.

No agent is making contact except to retain or stir up new business. It is all in how it is done and how blatant the agent is about it. Also, sometimes it is just how people mesh. What some people think is blatant, others find it so subtle they don't respond because it never even got them to think about it.

 

[LostDollar]

Thats ok. I figured I said too much, too long, too vaguely.
I got carried away with trying to be helpful and typing before cooling.
I removed a bunch of stuff and would have been better off studying and shopping for groceries.

 

[Todd King]

Thats ok. I figured I said too much, too long, too vaguely.

When it comes to the agents that never called you back, then they don't deserve your business, so I don't blame you there!

You also may not be quite as analytical as I'm thinking you are. I just remember some of the posts to begin with where you were asking about every dotted "i" and every crossed "t". As you may realize now, Medicare isn't rocket surgery and one can make it much harder than it is. I know I did when I was learning. I admitted being very analytical myself in another thread not too long ago. I try not to do that anywhere near what I used to. It really turns people off. As a matter of fact, there are some things I should be more analytical about nowadays but I still hold back. Life seems to be a bit easier when I don't question everything little thing. At least for me.

 

[LostDollar]

Thanks for the shout back Todd.

Several comments.

Based on my own reactions to "trolling for business" from agents, when my life career pattern had gone down financially instead of up as one might have hoped forty years ago, and listening to the manager of my car repair establishment; I have concerns that Alston's business development plan may turn out to be long on cost and effort and short on return in relation to his expectations. The only way I had to express that was to try to use personal experiences. They were too long, too heated, and too unfocused to make the points and I deleted most of them. Although I had done some editing, the core of most if not all, of the posts remain in quotes.

Life Ins-I've had enough interaction with relevant people in the last 3 months to be able to leave a short handwritten set of comments for my wife about what she can expect for customer service if I have a relatively soon demise.

Med supps-interesting things there. I asked a lot of questions but those did some things for me. They took me on a trail of many supplements. But those questions along with some reading in a book DHK recommended a few days ago have helped me to see what I am doing and why I am doing it.

Contrary to my bravado to goillini52 about the stated 95 or an unstated 102-110; my age, family history and irs and ins co actuaries all gang up on me to suggest my time may be much shorter than I expect. So I am having to approach it with a staged plan. For the first stage I need to plan for a death within 10-12 years. I have two assumptions for that. One is that my death will be immediate, or relatively so, in ways that do not incur significant cost beyond what Medicare will cover. The second is, that even though they are small, that I focus all/most of cash flow and assets I have--including Medicare and Social Security-- toward the single objective of maximizing available cash flow and cash for my wife after my death. Ben Feldman talks about life insurance underwriting time. When I read that, I am going yes, yes, YES. My approach to the Med Sup is probably a bit different than most customers. Remember my objective. I am going to make a package. I am going with supplement rather than MA. I am going with an HDF plan. But I am adding a savings plan and life insurance to the extent I can afford them. I am disappearing money out of my checking account approximately (I have the same problem as the FE guys) when my social security check comes in--$100 to $125 a month. I have a $10K policy that can serve my wife as an FE policy. I am going to take most of my savings and totally prepay another $10K whole life policy (participating-remember details). That should give my wife the equivalent of 3.5 to 4.5 years (underwrite time with money I don't have) of the HDF deductible. Seems like the best choices I can make with what I have.
I'll have to figure out a modification when I get to stage II.

In regard to the policy itself, I finally decided what I really wanted was the Kansas issue age policy from Bankers Fidelity Life. When I got an agent, the carrier he had was Medico. While he was talking, because of all the asking and deferring I had already done, I decided it was time (past time according to Rick) to make a choice. I did not like my choices because my policy was in one bucket and a great agent was in the other. I finally decided to buy the agent first and the policy second. So a forum member did get the benefit of all the "trials" I inflicted upon everybody.

As science fiction character Miles Naismith Vorkosigan is fond of saying, "No plan survives first contact with the enemy intact." (or something close to that.) Hopefully I can figure out the appropriate mods from my hospital bed!

 

[goillini52]

Thanks for the shout back Todd.

Several comments.

Based on my own reactions to "trolling for business" from agents, when my life career pattern had gone down financially instead of up as one might have hoped forty years ago, and listening to the manager of my car repair establishment; I have concerns that Alston's business development plan may turn out to be long on cost and effort and short on return in relation to his expectations. The only way I had to express that was to try to use personal experiences. They were too long, too heated, and too unfocused to make the points and I deleted most of them. Although I had done some editing, the core of most if not all, of the posts remain in quotes.

Life Ins-I've had enough interaction with relevant people in the last 3 months to be able to leave a short handwritten set of comments for my wife about what she can expect for customer service if I have a relatively soon demise.

Med supps-interesting things there. I asked a lot of questions but those did some things for me. They took me on a trail of many supplements. But those questions along with some reading in a book DHK recommended a few days ago have helped me to see what I am doing and why I am doing it.

Contrary to my bravado to goillini52 about the stated 95 or an unstated 102-110; my age, family history and irs and ins co actuaries all gang up on me to suggest my time may be much shorter than I expect. So I am having to approach it with a staged plan. For the first stage I need to plan for a death within 10-12 years. I have two assumptions for that. One is that my death will be immediate, or relatively so, in ways that do not incur significant cost beyond what Medicare will cover. The second is, that even though they are small, that I focus all/most of cash flow and assets I have--including Medicare and Social Security-- toward the single objective of maximizing available cash flow and cash for my wife after my death. Ben Feldman talks about life insurance underwriting time. When I read that, I am going yes, yes, YES. My approach to the Med Sup is probably a bit different than most customers. Remember my objective. I am going to make a package. I am going with supplement rather than MA. I am going with an HDF plan. But I am adding a savings plan and life insurance to the extent I can afford them. I am disappearing money out of my checking account approximately (I have the same problem as the FE guys) when my social security check comes in--$100 to $125 a month. I have a $10K policy that can serve my wife as an FE policy. I am going to take most of my savings and totally prepay another $10K whole life policy (participating-remember details). That should give my wife the equivalent of 3.5 to 4.5 years (underwrite time with money I don't have) of the HDF deductible. Seems like the best choices I can make with what I have.
I'll have to figure out a modification when I get to stage II.

In regard to the policy itself, I finally decided what I really wanted was the Kansas issue age policy from Bankers Fidelity Life. When I got an agent, the carrier he had was Medico. While he was talking, because of all the asking and deferring I had already done, I decided it was time (past time according to Rick) to make a choice. I did not like my choices because my policy was in one bucket and a great agent was in the other. I finally decided to buy the agent first and the policy second. So a forum member did get the benefit of all the "trials" I inflicted upon everybody.

As science fiction character Miles Naismith Vorkosigan is fond of saying, "No plan survives first contact with the enemy intact." (or something close to that.) Hopefully I can figure out the appropriate mods from my hospital bed!

There you go with them there big words again LD. You lost me at several comments.

Just kidding, it actually made sense to me.

 

[LostDollar]

www.youtube.com/watch?v=pCrjLVSapII



There you go with them there big words again LD. You lost me at several comments.

Just kidding, it actually made sense to me.

I have also taken note of your rather strong comments to the effect that whether counseling or selling, that this is NOT a course of action I should recommend to others (probably including my wife)! And I was actually thinking about that a week or two ago in relation to some conversation or another.

===EDIT FOR goillini BELOW=========

You are planning a wise supplement choice which mixes an excellent ratio of aggression and prudence in your expenditure!

How's that (other than the big words-but I worked it down to only 19 of them).

 

[Alston]

As science fiction character Miles Naismith Vorkosigan is fond of saying, "No plan survives first contact with the enemy intact." (or something close to that.)

"Everyone has a plan 'till they get punched in the mouth." - Mike Tyson

 

[goillini52]

I have also taken note of your rather strong comments to the effect that whether counseling or selling, that this is NOT a course of action I should recommend to others (probably including my wife)! And I was actually thinking about that a week or two ago in relation to some conversation or another.

===EDIT FOR goillini BELOW=========

You are planning a wise supplement choice which mixes an excellent ratio of aggression and prudence in your expenditure!

How's that (other than the big words-but I worked it down to only 19 of them).

Much better LD.