The reason agents don’t learn to sell final expenses is pretty simple. The unfortunate reality of sales, regardless of industry, is that 90% of all salespeople fail or quit within the first 12 months of starting their sales career. Why is that the case?
The main reason agents don’t sell final expenses is because they give up. They enter the business with aspirations that do not match reality. Looking from the outside in, many new final expense agents have the perspective that success in final expense is just a matter of getting out there and talking to people. If only it were that simple!
It takes time to learn the skills necessary to sell the final expense successfully. Final expense sales training is something that takes months, if not years, to develop. Many new agents don’t understand that sales is totally different from a typical salaried employee position. You have emotional ups and downs almost daily. Being on direct commission, you literally wake up every morning unemployed; you must “eat what you kill!”
If you don’t have experience, there’s nothing that really prepares you for it until you understand what it’s like and you’re living it. It’s something that many people just can’t handle.
So the other reason people fail is because they don’t get involved with the right agency to help train them, to prepare them for the realities. They get involved in a business that sells “Blue Sky,” which means all the benefits of a final expense lifestyle and none of the hard work it takes to be successful in the long run.
Also, new agents fail because they get involved with an agency that is designed to reprice them and squeeze their money out of them at a ridiculous rate. It ends up being a kind of revolving door sales agency.
It is important for agents to investigate early on. Talk to different agencies. Get an idea of the personality type of your managers. Find out who has been successful. How long have the agents been working with them? Ask for proof. Are they transparent about what to expect in terms of commissions and percentage advancements based on merit and production history?
What do you get for your investment? Because the manager makes money from your production. You just have to make sure the value is there. Take the time to ask these questions. Again, it’s very important that you read this because most agents don’t go into this business not even knowing what to ask, let alone what to expect.
Many agents don’t understand that you have to go into this business with a business mindset. Most agents must purchase direct mail and will not have the benefit of an existing referral network or book of business. Instead, they have to buy leads to get going.
My recommendation is to have about $4000 to $5000 to invest in a final expense direct mail lead system, or if you have less than that hold a full time job and then also know if you have a minimum of $2000 or $3,000 in a final telemarketing expense. lead system.
You MUST start off on the right foot. You MUST be prepared for the ups and downs. You MUST be willing to get through it with the understanding that the long haul is what makes it worth having. Which makes it all worthwhile.
That’s why most agents don’t learn to sell final expense. The important thing is to go into this with the right group that transparently shows you what to do. When you know you have that on your side, it’s really up to you.
Do you have the X factor to work hard and follow the system that has been imposed on you?
That is really the final determination of your success or failure.