Recession… ‘Decide NOT to Participate’ Part III

My last two articles have been about why I was able to lead my office in life insurance sales during one of the worst recessions in U.S. history, when everyone else in my office was struggling just to survive. To recap, the main reasons I was able to succeed were:

1. I sought out all of the training I could find through the company. I attended and actively participated in the weekly sales meetings. And, I sought out the best producers from other offices in our company. I wasn’t afraid to ask for help!

2. I joined NALU (National Association of Life Underwriters) now NAIFA, and I attended all of their monthly meetings. They always had a guest speaker and I got to meet and pick the brains of some of the best producers in the local area.

3. I paid for and attended the basic ‘Personal Insurance’ LUTC courses (Life Underwriting Training Council) offered through NALU.

4. And, I had three mentors in my first three years in the business.

I also told you about my first mentor, Mike Wood, who taught me the secret to setting sales appointments is to have a meaningful conversation with potential prospects, instead of trying to push a product, price, investment returns or trying to sell them over the phone. It is by asking questions to help prospects see they have a problem that will get you an appointment… “If the prospect doesn’t see they have a problem, then why should they take their valuable time to meet with you?”

However, what I didn’t mention is that while I was a sales leader in my office, I wasn’t making the money I was used to making prior to getting into insurance sales. And, I was spending a lot of money for training courses and membership in industry associations. My family and I were struggling financially!

In the beginning of 1984, my wife was very frustrated with the money I was bringing home and she wanted me to quit the insurance business. Fortunately, at that same time my second mentor appeared.

Phil Urbano had been with Metropolitan Life for almost 30 years. Unlike most of the other ‘Old Timers’ in our office, Phil had been what they called an ‘Ordinary Agent’, instead of a ‘Debit Agent’, which meant he didn’t have a regular income each week from collecting premiums for Debit Policies like many of the other agents. He didn’t belong to the union. His income, for his entire career, was totally dependent on the commissions from the sale of life insurance policies and renewal commissions… Just like most of the agents of today.

Phil had been a top producer for many years with Metropolitan Life. He was one of the few ‘Old Timers’ in our office who would take the time to talk to me. He had encouraged me a few times when I needed it. And, he always helped me when I had questions.

Unfortunately, for the last few years, Phil’s production had been slipping due to some health issues. And, he was going blind from diabetes. One day he asked me if I would consider driving him to and from his appointments and help him to fill out applications. He explained that he had only a few months to go for his pension, and he wanted to make sure he met his production requirements for the quarter, so he would get his full pension and renewals. He told me he would split his commissions 50-50 with me and teach me how to close more and larger cases. How could I refuse?

It turned out to be one of the best decisions I ever made. In those few months, I learned more about the benefits of the life insurance products, helping people and making sales, than I had learned in the previous 20 months in this business. And, it’s more than I have learned in the 23 years since then. Oh, I’ve learned a lot about the advanced sales concepts, income taxes, technical information, etc. And, I’ve learned a lot about marketing, which I’ll go into in my next article. But, very few insurance companies, trainers and recruiters (if any) are teaching what Phil taught me about real selling! He taught me how to ask thought provoking questions about the prospect’s situation and then to really listen to them, to help them to get what they want! I learned you must help people to get to know you and trust you, if you want them to do business with you. He taught me the secret of… How to sell 9 out of 10 people you meet with!

Let me give you a simple example…

You’re meeting with a prospect for the first time and you ask the prospect how much life insurance they have. They tell you they have $220,000. And, at that point most agents would begin to tell them why they need more life insurance.

What Phil taught me was how to lead prospects to discover for themselves, that they are underinsured.

Agent - “Mr. and Mrs. Prospect if you don’t mind me asking, how much life insurance do you currently have?”

Prospect - “Oh, I have $120,000 at work and another $100,000 that we bought.”

Agent - “Great, so you have a total of $220,000. If you don’t mind me asking, is there any particular reason you selected that amount?”

Prospect - “It’s all I could afford at the time.” Or “It’s what the last agent recommended.” Or “I didn’t want to make my wife’s next husband rich.” Etc.

Agent - “I understand. But, if I may ask how much did you say you are currently making each year?”

Prospect - “I make about $60,000 per year.”

Agent - “Well let me ask you, if your family lost you and your income tomorrow, how long would that $220,000 last them?”

Prospect - “I guess a little over three years.”

Agent - “And, then what would they do?

Prospect – “I never thought about it. But, I guess my wife would have to go back to work.” Or “My wife will just get remarried.” Or “I guess they’ll have to sell the house and get something smaller.” Or “They’ll have to move in with her family.” Or “She’ll use the money I have in my retirement account.”

Agent - “Is that really what you want to happen? How do you feel about that?”

Prospect - “I don’t like it, but things are really tight right now, and I can’t afford any more life insurance.”

Agent - “I understand. None of us has any extra money. However, if I could show you how to get all the insurance you need to protect your family, without taking any additional money out of your pocket or changing your life style, would you like to get the insurance you need?”

Prospect - “Of course. But, how are you going to do that?”

Now, aren’t you in a conversation about our Found Money Management strategies? And, can’t you use many of the concepts in Missed Fortune, Circle of Wealth, LEAP and Infinite Banking to help them find the money to protect their family?

You’ll notice that this is an actual conversation, and NOT a sales pitch! Am I telling them anything? Am I pushing anything on them? Or, am I talking about what’s important to them and helping them to realize the situation they are in.

If you learn … How to sell 9 out of 10 people you meet with, how many prospects will you need to see each week to make the money you want to make? How many hours will it take per week to see those people?

When you are helping people to get what they want, instead of trying to sell them what you want to sell, how much easier will it be to get referrals?

It all starts with learning how to conduct a thorough ‘fact find’ during the initial meeting. If you want to close 9 out of 10 of your sales calls and increase the size of each case, then gathering the 'Facts' alone is not enough. You also need to ask the emotionally based questions to uncover the prospect's attitudes, opinions and unspoken feelings. You need to uncover their emotions and motivations to get your prospects to take action today!

Both Phil and Mike taught me many things for which I shall be eternally grateful… like persistence, goal setting, keeping it simple, self-belief and total honesty! But the one most important lesson I learned from them was that to be successful in sales, you must take the time to build relationships. People have got to get to know and trust you, before they’ll do business with you.

Yours in success,
Lew Nason
‘The Nine Out Of Ten Guy’