I can recall the first big sale I made as an agency producer. This occurred just after my first anniversary as an agent. This sale produced my first five figure commission - an exciting result for a young agent in the depressed Upstate NY market.
Today I wanted to share how this deal came to fruition, and why I think a more efficient sales and marketing process is needed for most agency producers.
I called to prospect this husband and wife. They had large existing life insurance policies with my agency that had been dormant for years. I vaguely knew who they were, so I reached out to them. They were open to a meeting to review their coverage. I visited them for an initial meeting (on-site meeting #1 - one hour plus round trip in my car). We discussed their current policies and how the life market has changed. I shared several stories of how I had recently improved coverage or cut costs for similar families. They decided to think it over. I made several follow up calls and emails, and they eventually agreed to a second meeting where I could provide a comparison of their current coverages to what was likely achievable given quality ratings (on-site meeting #2 - another hour plus round trip via car). We met and spoke for about an hour regarding how changes in mortality and changes in policy design had made opportunities like this possible. I explained that as long as their health was excellent (it was) we should have no obstacles to a very positive result. They were interested, but again wanted to think it over. I made a couple follow up calls and was able to reach the wife, who explained they would like to apply for the new policies. I scheduled a meeting and requested that my staff prepare applications and the infinite forms required (on-site meeting # 3 - another hour plus round trip via car). We met to complete the applications, review the process of their medical exam, and several other details. I then went back to the office that night to review the applications and make sure everything was complete and correct, and left them for my staff to submit. My team submitted the applications and I moved on to other things as we waited for the medical exams to be completed and the long underwriting process to mature. Several weeks later, I received approval. I met with the client a last time to deliver the policies and collect the initial premium. I was very excited that I was able to provide them with a great service, while earning significant compensation (on-site meeting #4 - another hour plus in the car). I passed along the final delivery forms and check to my team and went back to work, checking weekly for the arrival of the commission check. My agency received the commission and I was finally paid.This 10 step process took approximately 120 days start to finish. A dozen calls, four on-site meetings, infinite forms, and a great deal of patience. I was obviously busy chasing other prospects throughout this time, so the time passed quickly. However, in retrospect, this seems like a long sales cycle, massive time investment. and a lot of road time.
As you work to build your book of business, make sure that you clearly define your goals and the typical commission you will earn in your target market. If your typical sale is reflected above, then you must be earning five figure commissions to make each sale worth your time investment. And with today's technology and tools, many of these calls and on-site meetings could be done with Skype or GoToMeeting. These are effective, personal and efficient. If you can reduce your time in the field and increase your time with prospects, you can sell more insurance.
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