SAP 077 3 Reasons You Need Tech for Sales

The reasons an insurance agent should begin to embrace technology are growing by the year. if you are still using paper to track leads, ticker files for callbacks, and paper applications for carriers, you are falling further behind.

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com. Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 076 This will KILL YOUR BUSINESS (Avoid at all costs)

Far too many agents are starting each and every day being blown left and blown right by what someone else, society, the government has done TO them. They feel like they have no control of their lives so they stay in a constant state of frustration, envy, anger, lack. This is a choice. It is a daily choice to make whether or not you are negatively influenced by the world or you are secure enough that you go out INTO the world and influence it. Constantly staying in a state of negativity will destroy relationships, your health, and your business.

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com. Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 075 Medicare Sales Meeting {behind the scenes} Sell Medicare by Phone

Behind the scenes at our recent Monday morning sales team meeting. This video has been redacted for proprietary content. The whole video is available to members on our website. We sell Medicare and other insurance products to seniors in 46 states by phone. Many call into our office based on our online marketing. We use Facebook, LinkedIn, Youtube, Google Pay-Per-Click ads, and organic social media marketing. Our organization helps 3,400 members of MedicareAgentTraining.com with updates in the industry, online tools, and LIVE events held annually.

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com. Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 074 Helping Agents and Helping Seniors

These are small clips of an agent consultation on June 11, 2019. As these are questions I get quite frequently, I wanted to pull them out and post them here, publicly. The opinions in this video are my own and just opinions based on experience. The statements made are not intended for any audience other than those in the consultation and may or may not apply to you. My agency exists to help seniors through their challenges of finding their best Medicare insurance plan and to help like-minded agents to do the same when there is a fit of working together.

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com. Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 073: I Don’t Feel Like it | Part 2 from Omaha Trip

In Omaha, Nebraska meeting with top agents, marketers, and carriers like Aetna, Cigna, Mutual of Omaha, Foresters, Athene, Nationwide, Ameritas, and more. We are here to help – a community of like-minded insurance professionals seeking to make a living while helping the greatest generation with their Medicare insurance needs.

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com. Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 072: 2 THINGS WILL DETERMINE SUCCESS

I have two critical factors in whether or not a new agent will succeed in this, or any other niche within insurance. 1] Will they take action? Will they do the FIRST step to actually talking to a prospect on the phone? If not, they are proving themselves to be great at getting ready to get ready to help people, but lack the courage to actually have a conversation with someone that they could, potentially help. and 2] The agent quits before seeing success. In the Medicare niche, it is important to realize that: A) You start slow in any new endeavor; B) It gets easier as YOU get better; and C) Your new clients will start referring other folks. Quitting, when you are just starting to have success, is ALWAYS premature. You have to realize that the ease of the business comes over time. The difficulty, when starting, is expected, and is part of the process. We are here to help – a community of like-minded insurance professionals seeking to make a living while helping the greatest generation with their Medicare insurance needs.

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com. Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 071: Medicare For All [ WHAT ABOUT AGENTS??? ]

What will happen to agents if “Medicare For All” is passed into law? This video covers that topic and reminds us that agents need to be students of marketing, in every form that works, so that they can pivot, if and when necessary, regardless of which product line they develop an expertise in. We are here to help – a community of like-minded insurance professionals seeking to make a living while helping the greatest generation with their Medicare insurance needs.

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com. Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 070: Being a Professional is about Taking Ownership

Chris Westfall here…this morning I was looking at a post on Facebook, from a friend – Nick Ayres.

Nick pointed out that he has met several, unique individual agents in this industry that all have very different approaches to lead generation. Nick pointed out that it is interesting that other agents are often frustrated when they try the same basic marketing methods used by these huge producers, yet see nothing like the same results. What is the difference?

Here is the original text from Nick’s post:
“There is a problem we face as insurance business owners. This problem is debilitating, crippling, and lethal in some cases. The problem is easily described as being able to have “sight” but no “vision” Allow me to explain…

BUT first, make sure to join Adam and I live tonight for the 13th episode of COLLABCAST. We’ll sit down with Travis Gensler and talk automation, technology, SEO, etc. We’ll answer your questions LIVE on air…It all starts at 6pm PST live online at www.iaoa.com/media

Here is an observation that I see unknowingly happening in our world. We seem to spend more time looking at every rabbit trail, trying to hack our way through a jungle in order to find success. We see guys like Brandon Smith and say “I need to be a Dave Ramsey ELP!” Then get frustrated when we can’t replicate his success

We see guys like Troy Thompson and say “I’ll get back to door knocking!” Then wonder why we aren’t executing at the same level. We wonder if we should do paid ads like some others, then complain about lead quality and close rates. We observe guys like Cory Schnabel who writes over $1.5mill in personal lines with no paid ads and think “That’s the ticket, let’s do that!” Only to bang our head against the wall. We see guys like Travis, and Gary Paulson and make strong strides to go all in on automation…then get lost in the gadgets and sequences and give up

We chase the winds hoping to catch lightning in a bottle, only to end up frustrated, confused, jaded and cynical at best with the results. Why do the others see success but not me? It’s complicated…but it’s also simple!

These and others had a real vision for their strategies. They honed a craft, worked through their own mistakes, and stayed the course.

I’m sure if they were honest, they’d all tell you “we still miss the mark more than we hit it…but we learn and keep going”

Should you do the same things they do?…Sure. Should you attempt to do them all at once?…Probably not. My encouragement to you, is find the style and mechanisms that work best for you and execute on them 100%

If you like direct mail and have success with it, don’t let me or any guru tell you it’s dumb and you’re wasting your money. If you hate paying for ads, then embrace organic reach and be a content making machine! If you’re impatient and hate organic results, then put the whole can of gas on the machine and go full throttle with ads. Find you!…Do you 100% and only relent when you need to make left and right turns. Other than that, pedal to the metal

Should you add new stuff from time to time?…Sure. But do it when you have the last thing somewhat handled. There is no “right way” or “wrong way” in this game…only preferences. Find yours, seek out real vision, and stay the course.

When you try to replicate someone else and what they are doing, it will never be as good. You can copy methods, but you cannot copy results. Instead of spinning around aimlessly, you can put your full attention onto what will work for you, your community, your clients, and your family

Vision Sight” – Nick Ayres

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com. Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 069: How Much to Put Up With?

How much do you put up with, in a new potential client phone call? If they are nasty, super skeptical and not receptive to help at all, why waste your time?

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com. Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 068: When You Have a Bad Day What Do YOU Choose To Do?

Driving to work this morning and I’m reminded of the scripture that says that it rains on both the righteous and the unrighteous.

This tells me that each of us has the same struggles, especially in business, and what it is that you CHOOSE to do in those struggles is the decision that makes or breaks your business.

You are NOT the first person to have those problems.
You are NOT alone.
Your breakthrough is just on the other side of fear, desperation and failure.

THIS is the struggle that separates those who succeed from those who quit just prior to their success.

Be encouraged! We all go through rain and sunshine. In the middle of the rain storm is where many forget that tomorrow will bring the sun. The horrible weather is there for all of us to be able to appreciate the good times, and yes, there will be good times in your business when you know that it works, you just might not have been at it long enough. Keep going! The prize is worth it!

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com. Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 067: Residual Income Situation | Medicare Sales Training

Discussing residual income and insurance vs one-shot sales that must be repeated at all costs, in order to keep the income coming in.

On a weekend retreat with our office staff in a cabin in Almond, North Carolina.

Our site for agents: https://MedicareAgentTraining.com

Proverbs 13:11
Wealth gained hastily will dwindle, but whoever gathers little by little will increase it.

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 066: Keep getting the SAME objection?

There’s a reason for that.
From Grand Cayman today..answered two support tickets that might help someone else.
? 1) What is THE script?

First, scripts can be found on this page to start the conversation, and there is also a flow chart at the top of the page for the call flow:
https://medicareagenttraining.com/tra…

You can hear Joe’s awesome interview and his effective cold call presentation here:
https://medicareagenttraining.com/cold-call-demonstration-with-joe-from-florida/

? 2) Keep getting the same objection and are losing the sale because of it.

You need to raise this continually-arising issue before they do. It should be addressed IN your presentation of whichever plan you are describing. If you leave it out, or describe it in weak or unresolved terms, it will continue to plague the sale. If you SOLIDLY incorporate the solution, in proper context, DURING the explanation of the an, it will not be a problem.

This is a good example video of this concept:
https://youtu.be/mUNT4dO9nxM

So, as we leave the Cayman Islands and head to Mexico to explore the Mayan ruins tomorrow, I hope you are having a great week!

-Christopher Westfall
https://MedicareAgentTraining.com
???⛱

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 065: Get Rich Quick? Nope!!!

Definitely not:

? Get Rich Quick ?

The niche we are in is build residual income slowly, over time. It is consistent, predictable, but it is ➡️ NOT FOR EVERYONE ⬅️

Not everyone is supposed to be in one specific position. Not everyone was created with the disposition to throw caution to the wind, forsaking comfort and safety, for as long as it takes to turn profitable.

Selling possessions, working side jobs, delivering pizza, etc… whatever it takes.

 ? THAT ? is the 1% of folks that have nothing else to lose and know that, with faith and hard work, it becomes worth it when that light at the end of the tunnel becomes closet and closer and louder and louder..then one day you wake up and ??BAM??, “you got lucky” they’ll say! ???

https://MedicareAgentTraining.com

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 064: Deciding to Press Forward and Grow

? NOW is the time for some folks to step out in faith and grow your business.
? YOU cannot do it all on your own.
? YOU were not meant to do it by yourself.
? When YOU are convinced it works:
? GO BIG or GO HOME! ?

? I want to personally encourage you that this business is just like any other, where you will soon reach the upper limit on how many clients YOU can acquire in a given day.
? You will reach saturation with how many cases YOU can service and support.
? When you reach frustration with doing it all, HIRE HELP! You will be glad you did.
?Hire Slow & Fire Fast (When you have to, and you will.)

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 063: Sample Agent Video Consultation

http://MedicareAgentTraining.com

These are small clips of an agent consultation February 6, 2019. As these are questions I get quite frequently, I wanted to pull them out and post them here, publicly. The opinions in this video are my own and just opinions based on experience. The statements made are not intended for any audience other than those in the consultation and may or may not apply to you.

My agency exists to help seniors through their challenges of finding their best Medicare insurance plan and to help like-minded agents to do the same when there is a fit of working together. I do not choose to help ALL seniors and do not choose to help ALL agents.

This is a lifestyle business where I am reinvigorated by the ability to help people every single day! See what we’re doing at https://MedicareAgentTraining.com for agents and https://SeniorSavingsNetwork.org for seniors

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 062: Key to Success in Insurance

https://MedicareAgentTraining.com
In Daytona Beach for a quick visit, reflecting on my time here in a completely different life!

It has become abundantly apparent to me that the most successful people in this business and many others involves immersing oneself in the culture of those on the same path.

To this end, we aim to have more LIVE events where agents can share, exchange, and learn together. Stay tuned!

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 061: Problem Getting Personal Information Over the Phone

Having a difficult time with the objection that the prospect does NOT want to give out personal information like their Social Security Number or Date of Birth for an insurance application sold over the phone?

This video is for you…things we have discovered that have stopped these objections when it comes time to doing the application, when selling insurance by phone.

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 060: UPDATE: Medicare Insurance Sales for 2019 What is Most Important

What are the most important factors, going forward? The ONLY factor relevant in your business is the cost-per-acquisition of new clients and your growth plan, including growing to scale by hiring folks to help you.

The only thing that has held back those agents who are capable of GREAT things in this business is their lack of an execution plan to grow into the next phase of their business – by hiring people.

Too many agents are spending their profits, rather than reinvesting in the critical infrastructure necessary for significant growth.

“Put your head down, work your ass off for 5 years and you couldn’t spend the money you’re making, if you wanted to.” – Chris Westfall

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

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SAP 059: Lessons learned during AEP 2018

What lessons we are taking away from this year’s AEP and how some ideas might help you and your business

Originally streamed LIVE on:
http://facebook.com/medicareagenttraining

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 058: How to Deal With Success in the Insurance Business

It is important to plan your route to avoid burnout. Share the pain and rewards. Take time for yourself, on purpose.
Come see what we’re doing at https://MedicareAgentTraining.com

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

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SAP 057: Monday is the BEST day of the week!

Very exciting news this Monday! Driving to the office and discussing what has made THIS particular Monday so special.
(Rebroadcast from Facebook LIVE at http://www.Facebook.com/medicareagenttraining

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 056: Struggling With Your Insurance Business?

Struggling with your insurance business?
There might be a VERY simple solution that breaks down all of the complication in your world to the ONE activity that matters most.

“Great business owners focus on revenue generating activities while poor business owners focus on administrative tasks.” -Shawn Thomas https://www.instagram.com/askamillionaire

Discussing Maslow’s Hierarchy.. see the article on Maslow’s Hierarchy for Entrepreneurs at http://medicareagenttraining.com/maslow

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 055: Telemarketing for Medicare Advantage Sales

Have you been told by someone telling you telemarketing leads or services that it is perfectly fine to do a “bait and switch” form of marketing whereby your cold call is merely asking them for a Medicare Supplement appointment?


You are then told that it is perfectly OK to get a piece of paper signed and, magically, it washes away the illegal source of the lead and it is fine to build your Medicare Advantage marketing empire on this premise.

It is not. Stay compliant, keep your license.

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 054: How I Start My Day, Habits Matter

This is how I start every day, out of habit now. It makes a great difference.

Start every day with an attitude of gratitude!

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

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SAP 053: Trust the Process – About Your Buy-In

Analysis by Tai Lopez as to how much BUY IN makes all the difference in your business focus.
Many people “test the waters”. They only try something part-time without a 100% commitment to the process.

Key takeaway: “Trust the Process”. If the process works, and you are creating a “golden goose” by helping more people, how fast, how hard WILL you go?

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 052: Should You React or Respond? Timeless Wisdom from Zig

Originally streamed LIVE on our Facebook page, this wisdom survives the ages. When adversity comes, and it will, do you react and throw your day into a reactionary tailspin?

Or, do you CHOOSE to respond WHEN it is appropriate to do so, in a measured way that is calculated, not flying off the handle, and is very thought-out?

I encourage you to do the latter…make sure to not have YOUR day’s agenda ruined by someone else’s agenda for you.

Be encouraged! You’re not alone.

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 051: Motivated enough? That is YOUR call.

What motivates you?

For some folks, material things spur them on to the next milestone in their business for the internal drive that achieving that goal brings.

For others, once they have reached the point where all bills are paid by residual income, they’re good to go.

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

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SAP 050: What are you willing to risk? Consider This:

What are you willing to risk for the lifestyle that you want?

I see so many people held back by a need for security that they continue to bypass opportunities, left and right.

Different people have different risk tolerance for life, and that’s totally fine. But some with amazing potential have chosen to be timid, and they should consider stepping out in faith.

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

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SAP 049: DNA Determines Success? NO!

There is a story in the news this morning that says that our DNA is a significant, determining factor of whether or not we will be successful in life.

BULL.

The study goes on to say, at the very end, that 4% is influenced by our DNA.
I say that 96% is determined by our CHOICES.

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

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SAP 048: Interview with Jacob about Selling Medicare by Phone

This is an interview with Jacob, whom I met in person in Banff, Alberta Canada on the 2018 Cigna Top Producer’s trip in June 2018.

Jacob started in the insurance field doing traditional, in-person meetings with clients. He then grew into an agency. Several years ago, he was exposed to the fact that you can do all of it via the phone and contact more clients in less time.

Now, Jacob’s agency is throughout the country and operates 100% by telephone.

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 047: Where We All Came From | Encouragement Toward Success

From Portugal:

We are in Lisbon, Portugal on the Manhattan Life Chairman’s Club trip. Last week, we were with Cigna in Banff, Alberta Canada. Both of these trips were the result of our entire agency’s production, and they have provided great opportunities to network with other top producers from around the USA.

In this episode, I talk about what is usually not talked about. The subject of where we all came from that has given us the drive to do what we do, long after the typical folks have gone home. Each one of us has something that we’re doing it for. Going away from the past, and moving toward a better future for our family, our kids, our employees, and the clients we can serve in a better way.

I hope you are encouraged.

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 046: It’s about Community | Help with Insurance Sales

It’s about community – we need interaction with people at various stages of their business to be reminded that we are in business FOR ourselves but not BY ourselves. You are not alone!

This business can make one feel alone and isolated. We have to break through that, reach out and make relationships, and encourage each other. Don’t suffer in silence. You are going through what we have all gone through but there is a light at the end of the tunnel and it’s called RESIDUAL INCOME. Yes, it’s worth it.

Happy Independence Day! I hope you all have an AMAZING July 4th with your loved ones!

As always, for helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

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SAP 045: Medicare Advantage Agent Adding Medicare Supplements

Often lately, agents who had spent their entire Medicare career solely focused on Medicare Advantage are starting to add Medicare Supplements to their product offerings.

Sometimes coming from a captive organization where MAPD was the only thing they could sell, they often have difficulty making the transition into offering Medicare Supplements.

This video covers the integration of Medicare Supplements into an MAPD-only focused agent’s practice and the fact that asking for the sale is a slightly different animal when a monthly premium is involved.

For helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

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SAP 044: Why Sell Medicare Supplements – How to Sell Medicare Supplements by Phone

Should you sell Medicare Supplements?
Why should you sell Medicare Supplements
and How do you sell Medicare Supplements by phone?

These are questions answered in this 2014 webinar by Chris Westfall of http://MedicareAgentTraining.com, a membership site for Medicare Supplement professionals with tools, latest industry updates, and training on how to effectively market Medicare Supplements across the country by phone

For helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

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SAP 043: Companies Don’t Care About You? Who Do You Listen To?

Who you choose to do business with, matters. It matters a great deal.
With MANY new Johnny-Come-Lately’s to the internet-agent-education space, it’s more important than ever to be careful about who you spend your most important investment (time) with.

For helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

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SAP 042: Facts Tell, Stories Sell – Building Trust in the Medicare Space is Everything

How you approach each conversation makes all the difference in the world. Facts tell, stories sell. You have to learn to connect emotionally to the needs, desires, fears, and frustrations of the prospects before you can FACTUALLY communicate their options in an effective way.

If you try to communicate like Mr. Spock on Star Trek, or Joe Friday, the detective “Just the facts, Maam.” you will never be able to scale your business effectively or generate happy referrals from your smaller-than-necessary client base.

The most effective thing you can do is work on your ability to EMPATHIZE and communicate based on THEIR world view, not yours. You can only do that with a huge emphasis on listening vs. telling every fact that you know.

For helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

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SAP 041: What Makes Agents Fail in the Medicare Business?

The number one reason that agents fail in the Medicare niche market is that they have a misplaced expectation that every call will be a one-call close. Those “boiler rooms” that are PUSHING folks into the one-call close have a HORRIBLE persistency record with the carriers.

That is, when you shove a product down someone’s throat, assuming the sale, assuming the application, building just enough trust where they will tell you ANYTHING to get you off the phone, you will not be in business for long. That is 100% SALES and 0% concern for the client.

If you want to build a GOOD, solid business for residual income, build relationships, not check-marks on a scoresheet of how many one-call closes you pulled off today.

Another big factor is that new agents believe that their first few conversations will yield that sale. It might take 30 people being put in your pipeline for weeks before you have one sale. If you quit just before the pipeline starts coming out the other side, you will NEVER see the residual income grow.

You get better, the pipeline gets more full, and people start coming back to you based on the way you made them feel. THAT is what this business is about – your obligation to build trust.

For helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

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SAP 040: Burn the Plow – What I learned from TD Jakes

“Burn the Plow” and other great business lessons from TD Jakes.

For helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

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SAP 039: We are in a very small niche – Please Be Nice!

We all experience frustrations with carriers from time to time, BUT, you don’t want to be the one having your contract terminated because you cannot control your mouth on the phone with the carrier, trying to fix a problem by creating new ones!

Please be nice to the folks that support us, even the commission folks when things get screwed up. Even the Underwriting department when they’ve screwed something up. We must remember that we are in the people business and people make mistakes. We all do.

The best advice is to make sure your reputation is one of someone they enjoy doing business with and that you don’t cause someone working at one of these companies to have a crappy day because you have one issue. Your reputation, in this very small niche of Medicare insurance, will definitely get around – good or bad, over time!

For helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

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SAP 038: Are you an insurance agent? If so, go all in.

What do you tell people that you do for a living?
Do you keep your financial practice top secret?
By telling others what you do, including friends and family, you COULD be turning on the faucet to opportunities to help those you care about and those they know, too.

For helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

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SAP 037: Starting An insurance Business with Credit Issues and No Money

Very common question, “Can I start as an independent agent with no money and very bad credit?” The short answer is: NO

This video seeks to answer one of the most common questions a new, potential agent has about starting as an insurance agent, either with Medicare Supplement sales or Final Expense life insurance.

With bad credit, companies are not likely to advance commissions. With really bad credit (recent bankruptcies, pending/recent foreclosures, etc.) they are not likely to contract with you at all.

Why? Because they see it as a fiduciary risk where your intentions might be to stay afloat, financially, at any cost, including costing them money by writing bad or fraudulent business.

For helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

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SAP 036: Medicare Supplement Leads – Review

Is it too much trouble to actually control the incoming prospects into your MARKETING business? No, it is a huge facet of any business, to control its marketing. In this, or any other MARKETING business, this is something best to NOT to pursue blindly with a credit card in your hand.

It is WORTH learning about marketing. It is WORTH testing different approaches until you find the one that fits you the best. It is worth attending conferences, networking with other agents, researching ongoing trends in lead generation so that YOU can cut out the “middle man” and do it yourself. Imagine, if your leads are marked up 100%, which is really around 500%, but if they were just marked up 100% and you continued to rely on that lead generation method for a 20 year career.

Much much have you lost in 20 years where you could have merely decided to invest once in the knowledge to do it yourself and reap the rewards month after month, year after year. Cut out the “middle man”. Do it yourself.

For helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

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SAP 034: Duplication and then Scale

If you are comfortable where you are, great! Keep doing what you’re doing.

Whatever you’re comfortable doing is your current state of limitation. Just outside of your comfort zone is where your BREAKTHROUGH is.

Choosing what state to sell in, how to sell (face to face vs. phone), etc. can mean the difference between $30,000 a year in income vs. $80,000 PER MONTH in income.

It’s up to you. It works.
You do what you’re comfortable doing.

Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 035: Focusing on your Strengths

Success and Failure in the Medicare niche of the insurance industry. This was a frank conversation on a recent Saturday morning.

Key: Focus on your strengths, fill your weaknesses with others who are best in that area. You cannot be all things to all people. Knowing where I’m weak allows me to hire to compensate for that.

For LIVE updates, make sure to “Like”: http://Facebook.com/medicareagenttraining

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SAP 033: When to Hire Extra Help in Your Medicare Business

This is the question submitted by one of our members, and it is asking when to hire additional help as the business is starting to grow. (Read by speech-to-text with the computer voice!)

“So, I re-watched your video from a couple weeks ago about delegating authority. I know that I am very new, but I am trying to streamline the learning curve as quickly as possible and grow the business as fast as I can. I wanted to ask your advice…

If I were to hire one person now to help me, could you give me an idea of what duties would be most important?

1) Should I hire a licensed agent or an administrative person? Or hire somebody to perform admin duties who is also licensed so he/she can also write business?
2) How do you recommend I pay them? (hourly, flat fee per deals, etc.??)
3) Do you pay your staff as independent contractors, or do you W2 them and pay payroll taxes, etc?

I am currently working all day from about 7:30am until well into the night sometimes 10-11pm trying to do all my administrative chores while making cold calls in the am, and during the peak hours in the pm, and also following up on all the calls my telemarketers set up for me throughout the day (I bought trained telemarketers through http://TrainedTelemarketers.com )

I started doing this full time in the middle of October. So the first couple months were a bit slow, and now things are starting to come together, but I want to automate and delegate more. 2 weeks ago I had 5 new applications and last week I had 6. This week I have 0 so far. My goal each week is 7 new apps. I have not hit it yet. I’ll be happy if I hit 20 for the month. I’m having good conversations but I hoping you can give me suggestions to improve. I’d like to know how your business is set up. Perhaps your operation is too big, but maybe something like the way Eugene has set his up is something I can model. It’s my understanding he has himself, one or 2 agents and an admin person.

So if I could only afford to bring on one person now, where would my money be best spent, or am I putting the cart before the horse?”

See: http://MedicareAgentTraining.com

Listen below or watch here!

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SAP 032: Shiny Object Syndrome

Many of us are guilty of constantly seeking the next “shiny object”, thinking that it will be, finally, the solution to easy profits with MUCH less effort.

While there is a lot to be learned from attending seminars, buying courses, and studying non-stop, there is a point where a successful person stops searching for the next-great-thing, and actually goes to work.

When you find yourself circling around to the things you’ve already seen before, and YOU have not implemented anything, it’s time to look in the mirror and make a decision. Which way are you going to go?

Come see us… http://MedicareAgentTraining.com

Listen below or watch here.

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SAP 031: Checklists Can Save Your Business

Every professional uses a checklist in their business so that important items are not missed on a regular basis. In this latest edition of Medicare sales training, Chris Westfall talks about how NOT having a checklist can bring liability, bad reviews, and angry clients.

For helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

Listen below or watch here.

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SAP 027: Never Choose Failure

Please excuse this long-overdue rant, that comes along about every six months, when a new agent presents to me a list of excuses as to why this industry, helping seniors, is not working for them.

MedicareAgentTraining.com is a site dedicated to best practices in the delivery of Medicare benefits to our greatest generation. It is run by Christopher Westfall, who has been a licensed agent for over 19 years. Christopher helps to facilitate the on-going discussion between insurance professionals who are constantly seeking the best for their practice and for their clients.

For helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

Listen below or watch here.

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SAP 030: Best Marketing Practices for Insurance Success

Even the Pony Express only lasted 19 months before a better method of communication was found!
“During its 19 months of operation, it reduced the time for messages to travel between the Atlantic and Pacific coasts to about 10 days. From April 3, 1860 to October 1861, it became the West’s most direct means of east–west communication before the telegraph was established and was vital for tying the new state of California with the rest of the United States.”

What method have you settled on for the marketing and communication of your insurance proposal to clients? Are you still using the insurance version of the old Pony Express? Perhaps, if your horse is tired, it’s time to change horses – or better yet, change methods altogether?

For helpful agent information, visit MedicareAgentTraining.com

Listen below or watch here.

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SAP 029: What NOT to Say When Selling By Phone

The words you use can have an impact on whether or not conversations are productive or they are not. Sometimes, subtle things you say can influence the conversation in a negative way.

Here is one example in this video by Chris Westfall, talking about triggers that lead to an interruption in the flow of the telephone sale when it comes to insurance or anything else.

See: http://MedicareAgentTraining.com for more help on how to sell Medicare insurance by phone

Listen below or watch here.

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