Almost a half a century ago, every major corporation was driven by goals. No suprise there, right? Back then, it was known as “management by objectives.” For many reasons, many managers have drifted away from this practice. If you ever feel more like a ...

Almost invariably, when I didn’t get the ink on the paper, I didn’t have all of the right decision makers present.

Involuntary terminations of service sales personnel are far too common and far too expensive. A failing salesperson usually (and unfortunately) hangs around for close to a year before the relationship is severed. The employer not only loses the salary paid, but also employment taxes, car allowances, administrative costs, training costs, and other incidentals.

Insurance sales is a difficult job, because it's difficult to sell an intangible benefit. Selling something that can't be seen or touched requires special selling skills and visuals. In past articles, I've written about the all-important selling tools that myself and other sales professionals swear by. As our industry changes, due to increased competition, and in an economy demanding the lowest price for everything, we must also change.

The truth is, if a full coverage agreement is estimated properly, applied to the right types of systems, and managed diligently, it provides the highest gross margins in our industry.

Every step of the selling cycle is critical in producing the desired end result, however none are quite as critical as the first call presentation. By definition, the first call is when the salesperson sits face-to-face with at least one decision maker. Anything short of this is simply a fact-finding mission.