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June 13, 2013 at 11:15 AM
In the world of disability insurance, some income protection proposals crash and burn while others effortlessly convert to sales. Are you taking every step needed to position your proposals for success? While there are countless sales tactics to learn, these 12 points represent the foundation of DI sales professionalism. Agents with high closing ratios typically do each of these things with each and every client.
Read on to find out why these steps are so important — and how you can start incorporating them into your presentations.
1. Create need by showcasing the DI window of opportunity.
People don’t purchase income protection unless they really understand the need. One way to establish need is by sharing stories and statistics about the risk of disability. Another way is to compare income with other assets. For example, ask clients what would happen if their homes burned down and they weren’t insured. Obviously, they would lose a big asset.
Now, ask them if it’s possible to purchase insurance for a home after it has already burned. Clients will laugh because everyone knows you can’t buy insurance for a home that already burned. And that’s the “gotcha” that sets up the DI window of opportunity.
Next, ask them what happens if they become disabled without income protection insurance. Obviously, they lose their ability to earn a living. But what happens if they apply for an income protection policy after they have a disabling illness or injury? They can be just as difficult to insure as a burned house.
With this in mind, clients have a bigger need. They lack income protection and their chance to secure the protection could disappear at any time. The only way to solve this big problem for sure is to buy an income protection policy today — before illness or injury strikes.
Of course, this conversation should take place before you present your policy recommendation.
2. Pave the way to fewer price objections.
One of the biggest reasons DI policies fail is price. Advisors forget to establish price expectations up front, and clients are shocked when they learn how much policies cost. It doesn’t have to be this way. Most DI policies cost 3 to 4 percent of gross income. It’s important to let prospects know that early — with a caveat.
Also, let them know how much is being protected. Calculate the client’s lifetime income potential using this calculator. Usually, earning potential is more than $1 million. When you compare the cost of a DI policy to the amount it is protecting, the price is very reasonable. Never tell clients that DI is expensive. Tell them that for as little as 3 percent, they can cover up to 80 percent of their incomes. When you state it that way, DI is remarkably affordable.
3. Be present.
Although we are living in a virtual world, in-person meetings still convert sales much more effectively than email. Never let clients review proposals on their own.
4. Present low cost, high value.
To further illustrate the value of DI, always present the lowest premium cost (cost per day) beside the highest benefit value (lifetime earning potential). Asking someone to spend $16 a day to protect more than $1 million of income sounds much better than asking him to spend $6,000 a year to protect $200,000 of income.
5. Recommend one option.
A confused mind never buys. Therefore, it’s your job to keep things as simple as possible. If you have a pricing analysis for several carriers, avoid giving all that information to the client up front. It’s overwhelming. Carry it with you, show the client you did your homework by shopping at least three carriers and then make your best recommendation. They’re counting on you to be the expert.
6. Always summarize your recommendation in writing.
This practice demonstrates your professionalism and documents your file. If the client doesn’t proceed immediately, you also have an easy reference point to pick up the conversation when you follow up.
7. Pre-fill the application for the preferred carrier.
You should never waste part of your meeting time completing basic details you already know. Pre-filling known fields of the application demonstrates preparedness. It also allows you to focus your client time on more qualitative topics.
