Insurance Agent Forum

[Mac1958]

Originally Posted by healthagent

The only way the failure rate will even be slightly improved is if obtaining a license was a 3 month course. I think the bare minimum would be a six week course costing at least $1,000...to start the bidding.

That would kill a lot of the riff raff from coming in - absolutely would prevent broke agents from coming in looking for a commission check next week.

This topic is absolutely crucial. In my humble opinion, the industry is simply too easy to enter and remain in. We're dealing with people's lives, futures, families & future generations, and there are too many under-trained and under-educated agents damaging the industry because they're hurting their clients.

The best examples are the newbies who are pushing Equity Indexed Annuities on every senior across the country, whether they are appropriate or not. That fat 9% commission is an incentive to grab every dollar possible, regardless of the client's overall financial picture and needs. Many of these agents have NO business pushing these products without appropriate training.

I won't make any friends with this one, but I'd model the insurance industry after the financial industry (only I would have the regulations actually enforced). Different levels of licensure required depending on the products sold, like finance's series 6, 7, 65, etc. That, right there, would get rid of much of the riff raff. If you don't have the right licensure, you can't go near annuities, for example.

This industry has earned its bad reputation, but it can cure its ills on its own. Higher standards, higher expectations, better self-regulation, higher quality.

That, or the professional politicians and federal bureaucracy will do it for us. Especially those who are in power currently -- these are people who are just ACHING to control as much of the economy as possible.

It's our call.

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[bill3173]

Originally Posted by JacquesWerth

Many agents think that they really are agents. Look up the legal definition of "agent." Then realize you are a “salesperson.” The only thing that you get paid to do is to sell.

I disagree with this statement, in fact the converse of this statement is indeed true.

Many agents fail, because they are too busy acting like pure salesmen rather than agents for the insured.

If you can understand that, you will have more business than you can handle.

[healthagent]

Total agreement with Bill. Many agents come from a sales background and use the same trickery or lame sales tactics that does not apply to insurance.

[Frank Stastny]

Originally Posted by healthagent

Total agreement with Bill. Many agents come from a sales background and use the same trickery or lame sales tactics that does not apply to insurance.

I also agree with Bill. The agents I have known who all they did is try to sell insurance haven't lasted very long. We are in a service oriented industry not just simply peddlers of pots and pans.
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Originally Posted by healthagent

Total agreement with Bill. Many agents come from a sales background and use the same trickery or lame sales tactics that does not apply to insurance.

I also agree with Bill. The agents I have known who all they did is try to sell insurance haven't lasted very long. We are in a service oriented industry not just simply peddlers of pots and pans.

[rbrewer]

People in this business come from alot of different backrounds. I think one of the biggest problems is agents have no where to turn for such training. Alot of the courses that are offered are marketing programs not product knowledge and alot has to do with FMO recruiters, get a licence I have leads I will train you. Then here's your book and some apps go get'em. Sure alot have a little training here and there but where can you go and learn an array of different products and their suitability? At this point it is up to the agent to seek out training and help before selling any product. It all comes down to ethics and integrity. I don't care where you came from sales or CEO.
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Originally Posted by healthagent

Total agreement with Bill. Many agents come from a sales background and use the same trickery or lame sales tactics that does not apply to insurance.

Like car sales?
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I did forget to give credit where credit is do.
Frank has been a very big help to me and as I see on the board I am not alone. He has great training and always makes him self available and asks for nothing in return. This is one of the reasons why Frank is a wealthy man far beyond money. I can't help but recommend Frank to any agent who would need help in the medicare supplement market. He also has a very good CRM for agents, you should take him up on his free trial and see for your self how valuable this tool can be to you and your business. I salute you Frank.

[BeatriceSmith]

Reason why there's fail agents because they sometime take their jobs for granted.. they should think of ideas on how to make effective selling not to relax themselves..One thing more is some cant stay not having a stable income..

[PowerPlayer]

In every sales career its all about the numbers. There will always be 90% rejection and 10% success and that's a great ratio!

In standard sales marketing letters a 2-3% response rate is superb. That means the sales person has to face a lot of rejection.

Most sales people fail because they never learn how to handle it and they take it personally every time.

The sales person is like a dog getting electrocuted by the shock of an electric fence when he wanders out side his boundary to fetch the Sirloin steak.

He may get electrocuted 9 more times to get 1 steak but eventually the 9 shocks will not be worth 1 steak and he will quit.

Learn to brush of rejection just like the people who say no brush you off and off and you will succeed in sales.

Hope this helps.
James

[DS4]

Most agents fail because they, 1) arn't willing to pay their dues. or, 2) not willing to adapt.
Pay your dues: Just obtaining your license doesn't equate to success. You start out by calling friend's and family. Keep in mind, these people all know you have had 12 jobs over the past 3 years and now you want to be their insurance expert. Would you expect to plant a seedling English Walnut tree and then expect a bumper crop the next year??
Adapt: I started out selling life insurance with two companies, First FarWest (Oregon), and, Pacific Standard Life (Ca). I would go to a life appointment only to be told no. Then, they would ask me "can you help us with health insurance?" I haven't sold a life insurance policy in 20 years. No longer have any time.

[Ken Westphal]

I think one of the problems for new agents coming into insurance sales is expecting to emulate the success of veteran agents way too early in their career.

What I mean by this is they spend some time talking to some veteran agents and learn what kind of money they may be making or see what they have in material possessions and start to think hey I can do this.

What they forget is most agents will not get to a very high level of income until say year 3 as they have some residual coming in from the last two years, and also revenue from their new business.

Lots of folks recruiting also do them a disservice by not being realistic on what they will most likely earn in the first 90 days, 6 months, and 1st year.

People start to starve for income, get desperate, which hurts their results. Desperation is the biggest factor in my opinion as it is a vicious circle. They do not make the income they need fast enough, so they get desperate which lowers their results, making their income go down even further.

They then simply walk away. Being underfunded and having too high of expectations out of the gate is most likely 90% or more of the reason people don't make it.

[Frank Stastny]

Originally Posted by Ken Westphal

I think one of the problems for new agents coming into insurance sales is expecting to emulate the success of veteran agents way too early in their career.

What I mean by this is they spend some time talking to some veteran agents and learn what kind of money they may be making or see what they have in material possessions and start to think hey I can do this.

What they forget is most agents will not get to a very high level of income until say year 3 as they have some residual coming in from the last two years, and also revenue from their new business.

Lots of folks recruiting also do them a disservice by not being realistic on what they will most likely earn in the first 90 days, 6 months, and 1st year.

People start to starve for income, get desperate, which hurts their results. Desperation is the biggest factor in my opinion as it is a vicious circle. They do not make the income they need fast enough, so they get desperate which lowers their results, making their income go down even further.

They then simply walk away. Being underfunded and having too high of expectations out of the gate is most likely 90% or more of the reason people don't make it.

Spot on!

A lot of agents want to start out as "underwear" agents today. They listen to veteran agents who are very successful selling insurance over the phone and they want to be "just like them".

I can successfully sell Med Supps over the phone. However, having "paid my dues" by spending hours sitting at kitchen tables I believe has given me the insight to know how to better sell them over the phone.

I can almost say that I would probably fail miserably if I was brand new to insurance and to Med Supp sales and wasn't willing to invest the time to learn my trade starting from the ground up.

[WinoBlues]

" as "underwear" agents" I loved that. I guess that makes me a Flip Flop agent.

Originally Posted by Frank Stastny

Spot on!

A lot of agents want to start out as "underwear" agents today. They listen to veteran agents who are very successful selling insurance over the phone and they want to be "just like them".

I can successfully sell Med Supps over the phone. However, having "paid my dues" by spending hours sitting at kitchen tables I believe has given me the insight to know how to better sell them over the phone.

I can almost say that I would probably fail miserably if I was brand new to insurance and to Med Supp sales and wasn't willing to invest the time to learn my trade starting from the ground up.

[DS4]

Originally Posted by Frank Stastny

I can successfully sell Med Supps over the phone. However, having "paid my dues" by spending hours sitting at kitchen tables I believe has given me the insight to know how to better sell them over the phone.
.

Ditto
On individual health ins, I sell 100% over the telephone, and, in my office. I only travel for group.

[bill3173]

Originally Posted by Frank Stastny

I can almost say that I would probably fail miserably if I was brand new to insurance and to Med Supp sales and wasn't willing to invest the time to learn my trade starting from the ground up.

Don't knock the agents that are just selling, with no product or company knowledge, if it weren't for them, it wouldn't be so easy for us to make a living.

I speak to prospective clients, almost weekly, that have been lied to so severely by agents that the agents are lucky that they haven't been reported. In some cases I'm not certain that they were lying, possibly just ignorant.

[somarco]

A lot of agents want to start out as "underwear" agents today. They listen to veteran agents who are very successful selling insurance over the phone and they want to be "just like them".

I can successfully sell Med Supps over the phone. However, having "paid my dues" by spending hours sitting at kitchen tables I believe has given me the insight to know how to better sell them over the phone.

When you were sitting at the kitchen table, were you in your underwear?

[Frank Stastny]

Originally Posted by bill3173

Don't knock the agents that are just selling, with no product or company knowledge, if it weren't for them, it wouldn't be so easy for us to make a living.

I speak to prospective clients, almost weekly, that have been lied to so severely by agents that the agents are lucky that they haven't been reported. In some cases I'm not certain that they were lying, possibly just ignorant.

A point well taken.

Agents tell me that their area is full of agents marketing to seniors and are worried about there being so much competition. My answer to them is that all of those agents have contributed greatly to my success. God Bless them.

I think mostly it is a total lack of knowledge and training as well as the lack of motivation to search it out. Is it ignorance, ego, just being lazy or a combination of all three?

What ever it is, you are right, it makes our job a lot easier.

[AgentStone]

Put a plan together. Work hard. Tweak plan. Work hard.

[WinoBlues]

Good point. Let's also give a big thumbs up to the sell um and leave um guys.

Originally Posted by bill3173

Don't knock the agents that are just selling, with no product or company knowledge, if it weren't for them, it wouldn't be so easy for us to make a living.

I speak to prospective clients, almost weekly, that have been lied to so severely by agents that the agents are lucky that they haven't been reported. In some cases I'm not certain that they were lying, possibly just ignorant.

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Originally Posted by WinoBlues

" as "underwear" agents" I loved that. I guess that makes me a Flip Flop agent.

I should clarify, flip flop is my footwear, not due to my choice of underwear
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[Markingriffin]

A lot of agents fail because they were lazy, got into this business for the wrong reason, or thought that someone else was going to do all the work for them.

[JacquesWerth]

Could it be that the industry stacks the deck?

Have you ever considered the fact that insurance companies and their agencies don't know how to train agents to sell? So, their commission schedules are designed to reward agency managers on the turnover of failed agents. Those agents stay just long enough to cherry-pick their "natural markets."

Some agency managers make a lot of money by assigning the orphans and the residuals, to their friends, when agents leave. Those friends are the agents who never prospect, but make a lot of money.

If you are surviving in that system, you probably taught yourself to sell, and you have to be good at what you do!

[Mac1958]

Ten-Step Plan to Guarantee Failure in the Insurance Profession:

1. Don't have at least one year of income set aside when you begin. This will motivate you to try to cram every prospect into products that make you the most money fast, regardless of whether it is in their best interest. Imagine how many lives you can damage!

2. Have no marketing plan aside from buying leads & cold calling. Expect people to immediately call you instead of a more qualified & experienced professional just because you're so wonderful. Don't waste time becoming well-known in your community as an insurance expert and resource, people don't care about that.

3. Start independent, so that you don't have to worry about the hassle of product training, marketing, broad product/industry knowledge, laws & regulations, or where your products fit in your client's overall picture.

4. If you do start with a specific insurer, be sure to ignore the ideas and guidance provided by your manager. It's not like they know anything. Take it easy, be sure to watch afternoon talk shows instead instead of doing the dirty work.

5. Do nothing to increase your expertise in the industry. Let your competition get credentials like CLU, ChFC, RHU. They're just letters, you don't actually learn anything in those classes. It's not like your competition will use that knowledge to take away business from you.

6. Commit to always finding a reason not to put out effort. Be able to tell yourself and/or your manager why something can't be done. Great way to pile up the business.

7. If you get more than one or two objections in a sales presentation, give up. It's hopeless. Similarly, if you get more than one or two "no's" during a day, quit for the day and see what's on HBO.

8. Assume that your sales presentation skills are world-class, and don't worry about trying to improve them. If a prospect doesn't buy, you certainly shouldn't blame yourself. It's their fault, you never had a chance.

9. Be sure to avoid dealing with your client's questions and service problems. Take at least three days to return calls, take at least seven days to call with bad news. It's not like good customer service is good marketing, it's a big pain. It's not as if you can build a successful book of business from referrals sent to you by satisfied and happy clients.

10. Very important -- When your insurance career starts tanking in a few weeks or months, don't blame yourself. It will definitely be someone else's fault. And don't look back in regret that you spent so many hours watching TV in the middle of the day or cruising the net. Those successful agents just got lucky, they didn't work hard to earn their success.

There. I'll guess I just described about 60% to 70% of people who think they'll jump into this industry and clean up.

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