Cold Call Script For Annuities - Feedback Requested

charlesj

Expert
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I have gained a lot of great information from this forum and I thank you all for that. I hope that this thread adds some value especially since there are not many annuity-specific scripts here. Your feedback on the script and any other advice or assistance is most appreciated. ~ charlesj


INTRO:

Hi Mr. / Mrs. _______. My name is (Full Name) and I am calling from (Firm Name) here in (Local Area Name). Can you hear me OK?


Wonderful. The purpose for my call is I specialize in helping people like you obtain guaranteed lifetime income. This way you can enjoy your retirement years without worrying about the ups and downs of the market. Does this sound like something you'd be interested in?
[I include the "like you" so they feel like part of a special group which they are.]

Thoughts on intro?



REBUTTALS:

"Thank you but we're not interested." OK. Well I also help people save money on their insurance. Is that something you may be interested in? [An alternative delivered with humor would be, "You're not interested in receiving guaranteed lifetime income? Really? Did you just hit the lottery?"]

"Thank you but we already have a financial advisor." OK. Well most people do and I'm not suggesting that I replace them. Would you at least be open to receiving some information in the mail that you could review at your leisure? [Undecided on this approach. Some say "mailers are failers" and this may be "pit polishing". As an alternative, I could just use the above rebuttal and see if they may be interested in saving money on insurance.]

"Thank you but we have no money." OK. Well I also help people save money on insurance. Is that something you may be interested in?

"Thank you but now's not a good time." OK. Would it be alright if I mailed you some information and followed up with you in the future?

"Send me some information and if I'm interested, I'll call ya." OK. I can send you some information but we both know, it'll probably end up on a pile somewhere and you'll never get a chance to look at it. Or... I could just swing by your house or you could come into office. I can explain how this works so you fully understand everything. The whole meeting will take less than an hour and I promise I won't try to sell you anything. Do you prefer mornings or afternoons?

I think the above rebuttals make sense however, Bill Good recommends that if someone is "not interested enough" to just move on with a "Thank you very much. Have a good day." Thoughts on rebuttals?



YES I MAY BE INTERESTED
...

Now for the people that may actually be interested, honestly, I am undecided as to what the best approach is. Annuities can be fairly complex investment vehicles and once you add a benefit rider, a person's head can start spinning. Thus I have a concern about just sending information to a truly interested prospect. They really do need to sit down with a professional and go over the product and all the benefits & costs. Also there needs to be a discussion to determine if the annuity would even be suitable for them based on their assets, objectives, cash flow, tax status, etc. For this reason, I am leaning towards going right for the appointment and explain that in order to properly serve them and ensure they fully understand this product, we really need to have a sit-down meeting.

Thoughts on proceeding with the people that may be interested?
 
First off, awesome job having the cajones to consider cold calling for annuities. I don't think I ever recall seeing a cold calling script for annuities.
When I think of cold calling for annuities right away I think of the DNC, then you think, what kind of person isn't on the dnc, right away I think of new numbers that are lumped in with the cable internet packages. I have a phone number, never use it. I also think of old people but poor old people. If you can get some targeted phone numbers in rich areas then I think you are going to need a multi-touch strategy that includes personalized direct mail. The problem with annuities is the rates suck, so I don't think I would target people that are too old, they probably have better rates than what you could off them.
What I would do is target seniors that aren't happy with their cd's interest rate, I would also target seniors who are needing to take rmd's at 71 and pursue a rollover strategy or perhaps a single premium life idea depending on if a db-legacy is a priority to them.
 
First off, awesome job having the cajones to consider cold calling for annuities. I don't think I ever recall seeing a cold calling script for annuities.
When I think of cold calling for annuities right away I think of the DNC, then you think, what kind of person isn't on the dnc, right away I think of new numbers that are lumped in with the cable internet packages. I have a phone number, never use it. I also think of old people but poor old people. If you can get some targeted phone numbers in rich areas then I think you are going to need a multi-touch strategy that includes personalized direct mail. The problem with annuities is the rates suck, so I don't think I would target people that are too old, they probably have better rates than what you could off them.
What I would do is target seniors that aren't happy with their cd's interest rate, I would also target seniors who are needing to take rmd's at 71 and pursue a rollover strategy or perhaps a single premium life idea depending on if a db-legacy is a priority to them.

Thanks for the quick response man. I have reviewed many of your posts here and I appreciate your contributions and insight. Yes, cold calling for annuities but notice I never say "annuity" in my script. I am selling people the benefit of guaranteed lifetime income and peace of mind of not having to worry about crazy market swings through their retirement years. The number one concern for most retirees is outliving their assets or having to seriously downgrade their current lifestyle. An annuity makes sense for these people.

PS: I'm not trying to make this sound easy. Just trying to pump myself up I guess.
 
Get a list of companies 1 to 4 employees.
No worry about DNC and unlimited pool of prospects.

Small business owners might be interested in lifetime income.

Josh has good lists, check them out.
 
Get a list of companies 1 to 4 employees.
No worry about DNC and unlimited pool of prospects.

Small business owners might be interested in lifetime income.

Josh has good lists, check them out.

Thanks for the suggestion. I did a short stint last year on small business owners and was disappointed with the gatekeepers I encountered. And the people I did get through to didn't have any money to invest, hence they couldn't afford gatekeepers and obviously, I should have been selling them something other than investments. It is a good idea though and I should revisit it.
 
Your script follows one rule that I believe every script should follow: The first question is a REALLY easy one. You could also include "better rate of return on bank cd's" in there somewhere if you wanted too.
 
Your script follows one rule that I believe every script should follow: The first question is a REALLY easy one. You could also include "better rate of return on bank cd's" in there somewhere if you wanted too.

Thanks man. That is good input. I appreciate it. I am wondering if there are any folks out there cold calling for annuities? I realize it is not the easiest product for a cold call and therefore, my gameplan will be to crank heavy numbers into it...

250 dials per day, 6 days per week = 1,500 dials per week. Most calls done in mornings 9-12 or during day Saturday. I realize that 6-8 PM during the week is also a good time so maybe I will have one or two days allocated to that timeframe as well.

I will be shooting for between .03 - 05 percent interested in meeting. As long as I am pushing the numbers, this should conservatively result in 5 appts per week.

If I can close between 1 - 2 out of 5, with an average variable annuity size of $100k, that would result in approx $4 - 6k per week.

Does this sound reasonable to everyone?
 
While your goal is admirable, I would bet a LOT of money that you won't meet it with cold calling.

Thank you for your honest feedback. I appreciate it. I cannot admit or will not believe you are right. Here's my "worst-case": if I dial 6,000 numbers in a month, that should at the very least result in 1-2 sales per month which would still be decent income. Would you agree that this is reasonable? Even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while. The key is to keep searching and not give up. I also like to think I have more talent than a blind squirrel. Maybe.
:1confused:

Once the ball gets rolling and the book starts to build, referrals will follow. In conjunction with this strategy, I was also hoping to begin building a medicare book alongside this for residual income.
 
Thank you for your honest feedback. I appreciate it. I cannot admit or will not believe you are right. Here's my "worst-case": if I dial 6,000 numbers in a month, that should at the very least result in 1-2 sales per month which would still be decent income. Would you agree that this is reasonable? Even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while. The key is to keep searching and not give up. I also like to think I have more talent than a blind squirrel. Maybe.
:1confused:

Once the ball gets rolling and the book starts to build, referrals will follow. In conjunction with this strategy, I was also hoping to begin building a medicare book alongside this for residual income.

You would be better off cold calling for Medicare supplements and then cross selling annuities. Much easier that way and probably more money.
 
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