Successful annuity agents are those who position themselves as the “expert” in their field. An expert is held in higher regard than a salesperson. An expert substitutes the sales presentation for a polished dialog of probing, educated questions that expose symptoms of financial disorder. After proper diagnosis, an expert does not attempt a close. An expert simply prescribes a cure, finishes up the paperwork and moves on to the next patient or client, the unspoken question being, “Do you want to stay sick or do you want to get well?”

Experts are experts because their reputation precedes them. It’s all in the setup. There is no reality, only perception. If the prospect first hears about you by reading your newspaper article, you are already the expert. People want to be clients of experts for many reasons, including bragging rights. Sales transactions are pretty much understood even before appointments are set. Your starting point in the sales process is leaps and bounds ahead of the competition. Your annuity lead program is uniquely personal. And one of the most powerful ways of becoming the expert while generating referral-quality leads is through systematically submitting topical, high-content news articles for publication in hometown Senior newspapers.

Newspapers hunger for news and will gladly print informative content, especially from a local expert whose specialty is of interest to their readers. Articles of 400 and 600 words in length should be submitted periodically, should be informational (not a sales pitch) and filled with take-home value. The author’s name, photo and contact information is included in case readers wish to pursue additional information or contact the expert about specific concerns. There is no cleaner annuity lead program, no higher quality lead than a news article inquiry.

Unfortunately, most successful annuity advisors don’t have the time to write compelling news copy. I’ve known successful agents barely capable of constructing one-word sentences. But now, a limited number of agents have the opportunity to participate in our News Article Expert Annuity Lead Program.

In the time-honored tradition of ghostwriting, I provide qualifying agents with a new article each month, packed with vital information on Senior financial issues. Territories are exclusive to avoid overlapping geography, and I include my author’s release of copyright allowing you to list your name as author, your photo and contact information.

If you are a licensed life insurance agent not currently contracted through Life Sales and wish to begin or advance your career selling fixed annuities, our News Article Expert Annuity Lead Program is for you. Come onboard with two or more of our carriers-Allianz, ING, Sun Life Financial, or American Equity- and receive 200 leads as a signing bonus. Then with your first 2000 QPCs (roughly $40,000 in paid business depending on carrier and product) in any one month, within two months of coming onboard, you’ll receive your free six-month subscription to our News Article Expert Annuity Lead Program. Remember, territories are exclusive and you will receive my ghostwriter release of copyright.



Thanks to Gary Le Mon for contributing this article to our Leads blog:

Leads Tips

America’s annuity agents have spoken. LeadZILLA, a direct mail annuity lead program offered by Life Sales, wins the Readers’ Choice Award in a survey of independent annuity producers polled by Senior Market Advisor Magazine. The votes are in, but after mailing out 44,800 pieces in 224 separate drops, do I see LeadZILLA as king of the jungle or a big bag of gas?

No doubt I was thrilled to read about LeadZILLA taking top honors for best direct mail annuity lead program in the Senior Market Advisor Readers’ Choice Awards. After all, I am a principal AFMO in the marketing organization, Life Sales, the lead program’s proprietor. And knowing the votes were cast by independent annuity agents nationwide made the victory even sweeter. But having invested thousands of my own dollars into LeadZILLA to generate leads for my own general agents to use, I’ve learned a few lessons along the way.

The numbers speak for themselves. My first mail drop was on September 23, 2005 and, as of this writing, I have used LeadZILLA continuously for the past fourteen months. I have mailed out 44,800 pieces in 224 drops and received 1,295 direct response cards back in the mail. This is a response rate of 2.89% and an average of 5.77 lead cards for each 200 piece drop.

Life Sales boasts an average of 6 lead cards returned for every 200-piece drop. My average of 5.77 cards is close enough that I’m not going to whine over the .23% difference. As we in the insurance industry know, pools of statistics paint with a broad brush. I’ve seen return rates ranging from zero cards back to 20 back, each from 200 pieces mailed out. Individual return rates are one of those mysteries of life, but I always advise my agents to select zip codes on the outskirts of town and away from affluent neighborhoods.

The good news is that LeadZILLA is part of Life Sales’ Marketing Allowance Program (MAP), which makes it free with production. For every (roughly) $40,000 in annuity premium issued by one of its four carriers—Allianz, American Equity, Sun Life Financial, and ING—Life Sales gives the agent a 200-piece mail drop. On average, each piece of business leads to six additional hot prospects, which in turn leads to more business and more prospects in a self-perpetuating cycle.

But this cycle is quickly broken when the agent tries to take the lazy way out. Do not (I repeat, DO NOT!) destroy a perfectly good direct response lead by picking up the telephone and becoming a cold-call telemarketer. You’ll be lucky to set an appointment with one in six prospects, and you’ll quickly join the ranks of the 90% of insurance agents who fail. Instead, route out your cards, get in your car and spend an afternoon using the Drop-By System.

Here are the steps to remember with the Drop-By System. Park your car directly in front of your prospect’s home or in their driveway. Leave the engine running and the door open. Get out of your car, turn and wave at the front window as if someone saw you drive up. (In case someone did see you drive up, they’re busted!) Knock on the door and stand sideways a few feet away. When your prospect comes to the door, glance at your watch and say, “Hello, may I speak with Mr./Mrs. (Name on card)? I’m (Your name) and I only have a minute, but I was passing by your street and thought I might stop by to set up an appointment to go over this information you requested (show them the lead card they filled out and signed). Is Thursday morning at 10 good, or is Friday morning at 9 better?” Let the conversation go where it will. Some of my biggest annuity sales started out discussing Mr. and Mrs. Prospect’s cat.

They can’t very well hang up on you. They can, however, see that you are a living human being with “evidence” in your hand, a smile on your face, and a simple duty to fulfill their request for information. You’ll set appointments with four out of six prospects. What’s more, when you return for the appointment you won’t be a stranger. Odds are you’ll leave with deal in hand.

Call me for more information. LeadZILLA is, after all, one of the best direct mail annuity lead programs I have used in my decades of direct sales. Popular vote says it’s the best. Who would argue with the king of the jungle?



Thanks to Gary Le Mon for contributing this article to our Leads blog:

Import Export Trade Leads

Although annuity lead scams are out there, agents agree that leads are the lifeblood of their business. No matter how good the products or presentation, without a qualified prospect there can be no sale. Annuity agents also agree there is a vast difference between a lead and a qualified prospect. If you are among the majority of agents who depend on lead generating companies to supply both prospects and suspects, you need to know the standards and definitions of a legitimate lead, a qualified prospect, and an outright scam.

Leads fall into two categories, raw and qualified. Raw leads are generated according to demographics. Qualified leads are further refined by the subject’s level of interest in you and your products. All leads should be filtered by specific criteria which often includes age, income, geography and possibly home ownership and marital status. When you pay extra to have your leads qualified, you refine your list of suspects down to prospects.

Annuity lead costs can range from 10¢ to 75¢ for each name on a raw list, up to $10 to $35 each for individuals who have qualified themselves by (a) knowing who you are, (b) knowing what you sell, and (c) agreeing to talk to you further. Internet leads and direct mail/direct response leads are often well qualified and worth the investment. Insist on exclusivity (you are the only agent getting the lead) and freshness (the fresher the better). Anything less can be a waste of time.

Telemarketing is still a viable means of lead generation, but there are two red flags to watch out for. Beware of companies using immature, inexperienced telemarketers who have an hourly quota to fill or who get paid per lead generated. Ask specifically who makes the calls and how they are paid. Another bad omen is the telemarketing company that charges per lead instead of by the hour. In my 30 years in the lead business I have never found a telemarketing company that consistently generates a predetermined number of leads at a fixed cost without compromising the quality. Unfortunately, most annuity agents opt for the false sense of security of knowing how many leads they get for their money instead of how good the leads will be. Quality is always the bottom line.

The gold standard of qualified leads is the preset appointment. This prospect fits the demographic and is further qualified by (a) knowing who you are, (b) knowing what you sell, and (c) agreeing to meet with you at a time and place to hear your presentation. Salespeople of all persuasions yearn for the days when they can leave prospecting behind and just do what they do best: sell and close, sell and close. But this yearning often overpowers better judgment, and many promising careers have been cut short by preset appointment programs that sound great but just don’t deliver.

Ironically, the preset appointment program I hear cursed most often is the one promoted by the highest grossing field marketing organization in the country. Every agent I talk to (that’s 100%) describes them as a complete waste of money. One agent told me he was quoted a fee of $5,614 for 40 appointments, of which only 25 would be replaced in case of a no-show. As expected, their standard operating procedure is to use immature, inexperienced telemarketers who have an hourly quota to fill or who get paid per lead generated. They also charge per appointment instead of by the hour.

In all fairness to legitimate annuity lead producers, however, there are three things an agent must do with every lead or appointment that often get neglected. First, assuming the leads can be emailed or posted to a web calendar as soon as they are generated, the agent must call the prospects and confirm the appointment time, place and date. Do not talk product. Just confirm and show up.

Second, if you purchase direct mail/direct response leads, do not take the lazy approach of calling for an appointment. It is imperative you use the Drop-By System. If you try to skip the work by calling for an appointment, you are just another junk phone caller even though they signed the postage-paid card and mailed it back asking you to call them. Your appointment setting rate will struggle to reach 20%. But if you follow the Drop-By System to the letter, your appointment setting rate will soar to between 60% and 80%.

Third, before you spend any money on annuity leads or preset appointments (or before you use up the free leads your marketing organization gave you as a recruiting bonus), make sure your presentation and close are well rehearsed and brightly polished. I often hear agents say, “Just give me someone to talk to, I can sell anybody.” The next thing I hear from them is, “These leads stink!”

Annuity lead scams are out there. But fortunately, there are enough good companies to keep faith (and production) alive. If you want to report on an exceptionally good, or bad, annuity lead generating company you’ve had experience with, please drop me a line by clicking on one of the links in my bio below.



Thanks to Gary Le Mon for contributing this article to our Leads blog:

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