Insurance agents are taught to become company clones. This is the opposite of life insurance agents who have been successful. These trainees are forbidden from selling insurance, as they will not be able to adapt to the same techniques that the pros use. Watch how insurance agents are brainwashed for their entire careers. Check out the real life adventures of an insurance maverick.
When I am talking with friends who work on assembly lines, it is a pleasure to ask them questions about their jobs. They often reply that the work is good, reliable, and they enjoy the many benefits of union membership. They evaded my real question, probably because they were genuinely interested in the benefits. I don’t think anyone wants to hear that people are driven insane by the repetitive repetition of the same thing over and over again. The difference between the top life insurance agents and the rest is their unique approach.
As a trainee for life and health insurance agents, you will be required to follow a strict routine. It is important to know the company presentation speech. This speech was likely written by a copywriter who never sold any insurance policies. Your presentation book will begin with a photo of your home, your insurance license and other “important” information about the company’s rating stats. Your voice sounds like a taped message as you point at the pages.
You will pray and hope for a positive answer to your request to buy the policy. You should get three referrals if you are successful. Your sales manager may reprimand you for not getting referrals. Repeatedly, you have been told that referrals are essential for any insurance sales representative. You are told by your sales manager to increase your prospecting telephone calls the next morning.
The telephone company script will tell you how to respond to any objections that may be made. Pick the white pages, and you start calling. You get 3 responses in three hours. If you want to speak to your spouse, you will need to wait until they respond. You have been fought with objections by over a dozen people. Another dozen people have called you back with objections. A person let you set up a meeting for 2 days, but asked that you first call.
You would make around $40.00 if you were a telephone solicitor for a company. That is enough to survive. One positive person might cancel your call. Are you a prospecting telephone solicitor or an insurance sales agent. To be able to manage this job, you need to have a positive attitude and take antidepressant medication.
You were my inspiration. But when the system doesn’t work, I rebel. At the beginning of my career in insurance sales, almost nothing about the company system worked. Despite all this, I was granted a Chicago three-day advanced sales convention. Simon, a 25 year-old insurance veteran, came in on the first day. His presentation speech was delivered. I nearly went into shock. The presentation was nearly identical to the original company speech I had to memorize. His presentation book had pages upon pages just like the one requested by the insurance company. I wanted to leap out of my chair and run up to see if he was a robot, or a company clone.
It felt like I was about to be flooded with propaganda for three whole days.
MEETING WITH AN INSURANCE MAVERICK A second man entered the meeting room the next day, wearing no tie. Big Jim, a high-ranking producer, said that he would present 3 presentations if two people wanted to join him. This might sound a bit unusual. Many people were more interested in nighttime social activities. My hand rose by its own gravity and one other man followed suit. He promised that we would be back by eight o’clock. Our adventure started at 5:00. We told him to take off our sport jackets and ties as soon as we got into his car. I would have leapt onto the Chicago freeway if he asked me to take off the pants.
Our first stop was an older house in a middle-class neighborhood. It belonged to a couple. We were told to listen and we were then introduced as associates. Big Jim arrived without a jumbo briefcase or presentation book. He instead carried a small pocket notebook. Jim was awestruck by the woman’s teacup collection and this conversation began. When asked by her husband about his exquisite shotgun collection, he proudly displayed it.
A maverick agent is one who uses nonconformist, expert selling techniques to sell insurance.
I was curious if Jim was a salesperson. Jim asked them a few questions about their reasons for needing protection. He then asked them to write down the words security, fear and happiness and let them choose which one was most important. Jim handed them a few brochures and explained that these would help with their emotional problems and be of benefit to them. We walked out with three applications after 25 minutes.
The second appointment was the same, but with an elderly widow. In just 39 minutes, the result was a Medicare Supplement and Skilled long-term care policy. The third door was not open. Jim suggested that we “let’s roll the dice once more” and quickly agreed. Jim called the doorbell in an apartment without a prospect card and without any prior appointment. He was able to write a policy for the husband’s permanent life and one for the spouse in less than half an hour.
It was already 45 minutes before the scheduled 3 hour journey was due to finish. Jim stopped at a coffee shop to treat us to something to eat. Wow! Jim received 7 applications in one visit. He also didn’t bother asking for referrals. This was far more than I had in a very good week. Jim was constantly asking me questions, and I didn’t finish my slice of pie. Jim advised that although the insurance company paid the salary, they couldn’t help you get it. He advised me to ignore the company’s success plan and focus on what I could do.
I BECOME AN INSURANCE MAVERICK
Jim was a true maverick. I followed his lead and used my own methods to become one. Only 1/3 of agents in insurance earn a middle-class income. Only a handful of agents are awarded with a high income or rich status for their sales efforts. Almost everyone is an insurance maverick, except a few.
Are you looking to be “company-simple Simon” or “independent, thinking Big Jim”? To become an insurance maverick, it takes determination. However, the results speak for themselves.
