Transcription
Welcome to Final Expense TES Sales. My name is Dana Niss, and happy Monday! I hope you guys are going to have an awesome Thanksgiving.
If you're just now finding this channel, I run a TES sales team for Tailored Legacy. We sell final expense insurance over the phone with just one carrier. My job is to help you have stronger, more sophisticated sales conversations. Today, I'm bringing you the number one agent in all of Lincoln Heritage, currently, who happens to be on our TES sales team. Welcome, Amos!
"Hi Dana, thanks so much for having me on! So exciting to be on your channel today. You know, it's so exciting to have the number one agent in all of Lincoln, so that is super, super exciting! Not very many people get there, so you should be honored. I've been there a few times in my day, so it's very, very fun."
So, you have been with us since April of this year, correct?
"Yes, that's right. I started in the middle of April of 2024 and started in our agent and training program. I didn't have any sales experience or any life insurance experience, correct?"
"No, none at all. Tell us what you were doing prior, why you decided to get your license, and why you chose this team."
"Okay, um, well, I kind of what I was doing prior is custom woodworking. That's what I've done all my life since it's been a family business. Then I ended up taking over the business and growing it substantially, and then I sold it—or my portion of it—last year in December, I think it was. Then my wife and I ended up moving to Phoenix, and I was like, 'What am I going to do now?' No idea! So I started school for software development and thought that might be fun, but it ended up being boring for me. So I was like, 'Okay, I have to find something else that I can do.' So I checked out ZipRecruiter, found a few postings for life insurance work from home, and I was like, 'That sounds good,' so I applied. I got a call from your team and didn't realize that I lucked out because I had no idea what I was looking for. Until after I started onboarding, I was like, 'Wow, I got lucky on that one!' because I had no idea who you guys were or really what you did. So lucky for me."
Okay, so it was just a luck of a ZipRecruiter ad. A lot of people have experiences with other IMOs and other agencies in the broker model and, you know, get burned or go broke before they start searching for an alternative. You didn't know what you didn't know; you just thought this is it.
"Yeah, that's right! I was like, I had no idea. Like, insurance license? I've never looked into what it takes to be an insurance agent. I'd had friends—well, more like acquaintances—who've tried it before, so I was a little leery about it, a little skeptical. But I decided to give it a shot once I heard what you guys had to say."
Now, being the number one agent in all of Lincoln, what keeps you here? Why not go be a broker and make more commission?
"I like to think I have common sense, and to me, I don't want that headache. I've been a business owner before, for one thing, and this has been really nice—not having to work on the back end of things, just being able to show up, hop on calls, and, you know, get my commission. I don't think I would enjoy that part of it, and honestly, I know the cost that goes into it from what I've heard other people speak about. So I really don't see that being a benefit at all to this."
Okay, cool! So you start in the agent and training program, and you’re just learning this really long, brand new script, figuring out our systems and our processes. What was that first month like for you? Can you go back in your brain and recall how that was?
"Yeah, a roller coaster, it's what I would describe it as. I think it was the second day I was here—I had a sale, of course a manager-assisted sale, and I was so excited! Told my wife all about it, and I was like, 'This is gonna be huge! So good at this!' But then, like, there were two days where I had no sales. I just couldn't get into a conversation, and so it was rough for the first month. But like I've told you before, I wasn't really here just for the quick buck; I wanted to stick it out for the long haul. So it didn't really get to me in the first month or two that much, even though my sales were not that great."
Yeah, and you know that's a really good point that you bring up because you've been here long enough now to see the turnover, right? And the churn that happens typically in that time frame. The first 60 days is where we see a big, not loss per se, but either people realize, 'This isn't for me, it's too hard,' or, you know, we ultimately part ways with agents. What is that like from your perspective, going through it and being okay with it, but also knowing now from the inside looking in? What does that do for you mentally, if anything, seeing that constant turnover?
"It's really sad because I kind of get attached to people, even though I don't really see them in person—like in the chat and seeing them in the team meetings. I just feel like, 'Why did they leave?' I feel like this is a great opportunity. I'm sure everyone has their reasons for it not working out, but I don't know. I wish everyone would be able to stick to it. And you know, I haven't been here that long, so I probably shouldn't be saying that, but still, I feel like it's a great opportunity. So it's just sad for me to see people go through that fast."
Well, when over 90% of people are quote-unquote failing in the first year, you're ending your seventh month. I mean, statistically, you're going to be in that top 10% that make it their first year and beyond, which is the hardest part. The whole thing is just getting through that first 60 days, 3 months, 6 months, and 12 months. So that's really cool to see from my perspective.
So your first 30-60 days was a little rough. Do you feel though that if you were doing it on your own—not necessarily like financially—but let's pretend you were even in a free ad model where you didn't have the help on your calls. Do you think your outcome may be different, or like how heavily weighted was that assisted help for you?
"Oh goodness, I don't think I would have lasted more than a week or two without the assistance. I mean, I had no idea what I was getting into! You can find all kinds of things on the internet about how to do it, what the best way is, but honestly, there's no way I would have even lasted a month or more without the assistance. I don't think because I had no prior experience at all."
So just a script alone, right? Just a script alone and some trainings a couple of times a week wasn't enough to give you that confidence to take those sales independently to the point where you could succeed?
"Maybe with the trainings and the script, I probably eventually would have, but I very much learn by watching other people do, you know, the work that I'm supposed to be doing. So by having the managers on, I guess is that kind of your question?"
Yeah, yeah, like how much did that play a role in your success? Because obviously, that's a program that I'm going to continue to grow, and I believe in it so much. But hearing it from someone who went through it, graduated, is now at the 50%, do you think you would have made it this far had it not been for that?
"No, I don't think so. Even with an amazing script that you have, the trainings—just hearing someone, you know, day in and day out on your calls, going through it exactly how it's supposed to be in different scenarios—especially, that's one thing that you can't script for. And so having the managers do that for me, go through all those different scenarios and actually sell the client what they're needing and what they're wanting, that was a huge help. So yeah, I wouldn't be here without that for sure."
Love that! I love to hear that, and I'm happy that you went through it. And now you don't have the help anymore. So what does that feel like, having to take all of your sales yourself? Do you feel like you have now?
"Yeah, I do. Most days. Some days, you know, every day I come into the office is a little bit scary for me. Very introverted, so it's still scary talking to people all day. But I feel like I have the confidence to do it, and I tried to make sure I was doing most of them on my own before I hopped to the 50%, but I know there were still there to help me. So now it feels a little scary, but I know I can do it. I have done it quite a bit in the past, so I feel confident."
I'm going to ask you about your day—like what time you start, what time you end, how many presentations do you strive for. I'm going to ask you that in a second, but I am going to put you on the spot, and you didn't know I was going to do this.
But this morning in our sales meeting, I was giving you some praise about how great I think your discovery has gotten because you're an introvert. Introverts tend to learn sort of question-based selling better than extroverts because they like to listen more than they like to talk. So I wanted to play a portion of that discovery call for our audience and let them hear how good your discovery actually is.
"Do you get that?"
"Let's do it! I haven't had to listen to it yet."
"Hello, hello, Benny? Yeah, it's just Amos calling. I noticed that you recently inquired to possibly look at some coverage for out-of-pocket funeral. I just had a chance to get back to you and see if I could help."
"Okay, so how much would it cost for a guy like me that's 64 years old?"
"You said 55 in March?"
"Okay, gotcha, definitely. I’ll get that price for you. I'm not sure if you're aware, Benny, but there's like 10 different types of life insurance policies, and kind of without knowing exactly what you might need it to take care of, I wouldn't yet know where to begin."
"Okay, what about picking accident just straight life?"
"Straight life is the cheapest!”
"Well, there’s a few different types of life insurance."
"Okay, and were you looking at this to take care of, I mean, I guess, what exactly are you looking at it to take care of? Expenses and leave family?"
"Okay, how much were you looking to leave behind?"
"I don't know, maybe 25?"
"25,000, yeah okay!"
"Alright, and funeral expenses maybe 25k? Well, what caused you to start looking at something like this in the first place, Benny?"
"I just lost a son to cancer a couple of months ago, and he wasn’t—he was just in his 30s. So Lord knows, you know, I'm pushing it in order to make it to 60. I know KCK on me, and I got to leave a little something, man. Their mama died years ago. You know that’s why I had to come to California, 'cause we from Indiana, and all them was born in Indiana, but she brought them up here, you understand? They've, you know, been up here since they was kids."
"Okay, so all them grown now, and I just want to leave my little something, you know, on the way out."
"Sure, well, how many kids do you have?"
"I got four. Four, three boys and a girl. I had five—one of them just... four boys and a girl."
"Okay, well before we look into this, Benny, I do need to let you know the call may be monitored and recorded for quality assurance."
"Okay, I just, I have a few questions I guess I'd like to, you know, kind of get a better understanding of everything. Would that be okay?"
"Yeah, go ahead."
"Alright, so you said currently there's no, you have no policy in place, is that right?"
"That's right."
"Okay, right. What about any sort of a safety net, like savings or investments or anything that might be there to kind of help ease the burden?"
"I have nothing."
"Nothing?"
"Nothing, nothing! But I checked once a month, and that ain't but $1,000—that ain't no money!"
"Are you able to survive on that?"
"Not really! Was for my daughter and my family helped. I wouldn't make it. Gosh!"
"Yeah, I know with the price of everything these days, I hear you."
"You're not in California—that's the teaser. We're going to give three and a half minutes. If you want to hear the rest of that call from Amos, post 'let's hear the call' in the chat below."
But what I really love the most about that call so far, even in the three and a half minutes that we just heard—and actually, I want you to guess what you think my favorite part of listening to that was. Do you have any idea?
"A little mini coaching call within our interview? Your favorite part about what we just heard?"
"Yeah, um, probably talking about his son, or is that? I don't know."
"My favorite part is more on the strategy side. It's that you didn't react positively or negatively to any of the information that you're getting. Like when he said he wanted 25,000 plus funeral expenses, you know he's living on it—like he's not going to get that, right? But you didn't react to it, which a lot of people, you know, probably would. What you're doing is just getting the information, you're staying neutral, you're trying to figure out what's important to him, giving him the space to kind of tell you what he needs, and then you'll be able to take that funnel and narrow it down. And you may not even realize that's what you were doing, but a lot of agents would have chosen to try to react and solve for that now because they want to react on that anxiety. And so, you didn't do that. So I feel like you have a lot of call control in your calls now, and I'm really proud of how far you've come."
"Thank you! I appreciate that! You know, it's been—in some of our coaching calls, like one-on-one calls with you and with the managers, they've kind of taught me, I guess, to not be reactive. Because naturally, like my mind is like, 'Oh crap, this guy wants $25,000!' You know, so in my mind, I'm definitely thinking that, but I have tried to just be like, 'Just let it go,' and then get back to that later."
"Good! So let's talk about, like your day, right? Because a lot of times people want to know, you know, how many days a week are you working, how many hours a day, what does that look like for you? So tell us your schedule."
"Sure! I mean, it's nothing crazy. When I started, when I was new, I tried to start at 7 every morning and would usually go until 6, with about an hour break during the day just to get some exercise, lunch, things like that. But now I'm doing about 8 to 5:30 every day, and sometimes there are things that come up where I have to be off for a little while. But I do try to get daily walks and things like that because it gets my mind working. Otherwise, I just—I can't focus very well. So I do try to take some time during the day for that—maybe a total of an hour, hour and a half, something like that."
"So you're working less hours now, have more time for yourself, and you're selling more! And you're selling on your own, you're getting better, right? Because you have to put in that time in the beginning to get the repetition in and to kind of get beat up so to speak. So you can really expedite that learning curve, so you’re not working crazy hours. I don't think you work Saturdays, do you?"
"No, I haven't worked a Saturday in quite a while."
"Okay, so no Saturdays! 8:00 to 5:30?"
"Yeah, 8:00 to 5:30 is normal."
"Totally normal hours! Love that for you. And how many presentations do you try to get a day?"
"I'm usually getting about, I would say, between four and five a day, something like that.”
"Yeah, not a super high amount, but on a normal day, I would say probably four to five."
"Well, that's, I mean, how long does a presentation take you?"
"Well, are you talking about up to the health questions, like that type of—uh, yeah, all the way to the quotes—all the way to the quotes. Um, that takes me about 25, 26 minutes, or maybe half an hour even sometimes. Yeah, it would probably take half an hour realistically."
"Okay, good, perfect. So the rest of the time you're just getting hung up on and getting some bad transfers. You know it’s not all sunshine and roses! We know it's hard work, right? It might be an easy product to sell and learn how to sell, but it's definitely not an easy job, right? It doesn't come without its stresses, and that's what sales is."
"So lastly, we'll talk kind of talk about the culture, right? The culture here and do you feel like, even though we're all virtual and we're all working from home, do you feel like you're part of a team and like you have teammates and coworkers, or what does that feel like for you?"
"Yeah, for sure! I feel like, you know, people are active in the chat, and they're very kind and always upbeat and trying to help each other out if anyone has a question. So even though, yes, we're not all together, it feels very much like part of a team. I'm always happy, and everyone's happy for each other when someone is winning or doing well. So definitely a great environment, and yeah, I love it because I like being part of a team."
"Good, I love that! And can we shout out your income this month?"
"Yeah, absolutely! Yep! So after chargebacks, right after chargebacks, you're going to be making 8,000 this month, we think, because you're already like 200 away from that, and we still have a few days left, which is your biggest month ever. And we know it's scary because, uh-oh, I got to stay there now! But once you do it once, you know it's possible to do it again. That’s exactly where so many people want to be."
"And I just, any other words of advice or anything you can give to any agents that are thinking about joining this team? What would you tell them?"
"I mean, if they, if they've been in the business already, I would say, you know, definitely research is probably a big part of it. Which, um, I lucked out, and like I said, I didn't really do any research. So I think for someone that's just getting into the field, I think try to set yourself up where you're not having to, at least financially, be in a position to have to pay your bills right away with, um, this kind of job. Because it probably won't happen where this will replace your previous income right away. So I think that would help people stay longer too, if they know going into it that it's going to take a little bit for it to actually work well."
"That's great advice! I think that you have to be prepared to make very little money in your first 60 days, at least while you're learning the craft while you're figuring it out. Because even when you sell stuff, it's being postdated, right? You're not getting that money right now. And as you're trying to get people to stay on the phone with you and have conversations, you work up to being able to have talk time. And it doesn't happen right away. So I think that is an excellent point that you just gave. And not having the desperation too, I think helps with being able to be in training instead of being so concerned about maybe I'm missing a call right now. You can still come to training in the mornings, knowing you're here for the long term and not being desperate to quickly pay bills today. I think that helps too—mindset! Good, good mindset tips! I love that, Amos! Thank you so much for agreeing to jump on here today. I really hope that people get value from it, and I will let you get back to the phones if that's your plan. Happy Thanksgiving!"
"Absolutely! Happy Thanksgiving! Thanks so much, Dana. Appreciate you for coming!"
"Bye-bye!"