Annual Renewable Term

[DHK]

Why would someone NOT want a permanent policy to last until they die?

I truly don't understand the logic behind your question.

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Oh... that's the problem. You're selling life insurance under a "needs" basis, instead of a "wants" basis.

 

[Robert Barney]

A very nice dodge.

I should point out I no longer sell life insurance, I just offer advice to consumers who ask me about it.

When I did sell life insurance, for about 18 years, I never sold permanent life insurance with a focus on cash surrender values, except to point out that they were like the parachute in an airplane. If you could the parachute and it didn't cost too much extra, that's one thing. But if the parachute was a lot more money, chances are you wouldn't need it if you intended to fly to your destination.

I was always amazed by life agents who sold a ticket to a destination beyond what the buyer actually needed, and then pointed to the fact that when they got to the point where they really needed to go, they could just jump out and use the parachute.

Needless to say, the buyer is better to just buy a flight to that destination they really need and forget about the parachute. The ticket costs less and they won't suffer the anxiety of having to get off the airplane while it is still in flight.

As to selling wants versus needs, you'll be successful with that strategy until an agent comes along and explains the real story to your client. Perhaps you haven't been around long enough to suffer that problem. Or perhaps you have, and you just get madder than heck at the guy who set your client on the correct path.

 

[DHK]

I guess you're going to say that Ed Slott, CPA doesn't know what he's talking about?

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=866105983408854

I'm no longer anonymous on this forum, so I have to temper what I'd really want to tell you.

Here's the deal: I don't have any clients who feel the need to talk to anyone else about my strategies. Why? 1) I know what I'm doing, and 2) If they had to, they probably didn't buy in the first place because trust wasn't established.

If all you're selling is death benefits, great! Keep going with that!

But I sell the comprehensive lifetime benefits and strategies for buying a life insurance policy. Those that like it, buy it. Those that don't... don't.

You don't know what I do... and I can tell your serious lack of knowledge simply based on the questions you're asking and how you're asking them.

Therefore, you cannot sufficiently attack, defend, or even be an expert witness for something you do not understand.

 

[Robert Barney]

You sell sizzle, I only buy steak.

 

[DHK]

You are not my prospect. Prospects like sizzle AND steak. If I do it right, they'll also have mashed potatoes and gravy with the porterhouse I'm selling.

 

[Robert Barney]

My experience in the past, with agents who like to sell ART, is they like to sell it because it's an easier policy to convert to permanent life insurance than say a 20 or 30 year term. I suspect that might explain why you think its a viable product for your clients.

You said you like Anico's ART product because your client can convert it to 20 or 30 year term. I'm curious, how many ART's have you converted to 20 or 30 year term?

Before you suggest that you don't want to do my homework, I'm simply asking how many YOU have converted to 20 or 30 year term. I don't even need an exact amount, would it be less than 5, or more than 5?

 

[DHK]

In all actuality, I've forgotten about ART. I haven't sold any... but I can see its usefulness for my clients.

 

[Larry Tew]

Bob, your argumentative confrontational style may serve you well in the sewers over in the politics and religion section, but not so much here. But I'm always willing to learn. I don't EVER want to be the guy who says "don't confuse me with the facts because I've already made up my mind".

So, I'm posting again my report I mentioned earlier. I have a couple of year-end updates to make, but nothing major. If you can and will read it with an open mind, I'd be very interested in knowing about any inaccuracies or misrepresentations you see.

Pay close attention to the "buy term and invest the difference" section. Not because of the math or returns, but because of the uninformed silliness of that debate in the first place.

 

[Robert Barney]

I began reading your "report". Before getting past the first couple of pages I have to confess that you and I disagree on a couple of significant points.

You say:

"Insurance agents have been portrayed in Hollywood as the thoughtful insurance agent and family man Jim Anderson in the 50’s and 60’s TV show “Father Knows Best” as well as the annoying stereotypical Ned Ryerson in “Groundhog Day”.​

It has been a very long time since life insurance agents have been portrayed by Hollywood as "thoughtful". My guess is that that is why you had to reach back to the 50's and 60's for an example.

I would venture to guess that most life agents are viewed like this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1Vtzn3MZyA

An old friend and I were making a presentation to a politician on life insurance regulations and he said to the politician (this was over 30 years ago) that opinion studies of life insurance agents ranked the profession at the bottom of the public opinion ladder, just below lawyers, and just above politicians. The politician agreed heartily.

As an industry, in general, agents are perceived of as greedy hustlers out to make a fast buck.

Now I would also acknowledge that most people think that most politicians are crooks, with the exception that they think the politician they vote for is a pretty good guy. But if you govern yourself by what your friends say, and don't take into account what your critics have to say, you're likely to embrace a warped view.

So I would challenge you and everyone else to be honest and ask where does our industry get its negative reputation? And if you say the industry does not have a negative reputation, then you are out of touch with reality. I would suggest your head is somewhere the sun doesn't shine.

I believe the negative reputation comes from people who sell the wrong products to people who don't need the products that they have been sold. Once a consumer discovers that, they form a very negative opinion of the industry, and happily share that view with others.

In my view the industry preys upon the ignorance of the consumer. My career in this industry has been devoted to enlightening the consumer. I was hired into the business by a guy who said that if I took care of my client, I could make a good living selling life insurance. I found that to be true. I had a lot of happy clients and ticked off a lot of life insurance agents. I remember some of the calls I got from insurance agents and their managers. I also remember the call I got from a regulator, after an agent called to complain about me. The regulator summed it up as the other guy crying over spilled milk. After a while, the calls stopped, as the competition realized I wasn't going to be intimidated.

In 1987, 8 years after I began selling life insurance, I began to write life insurance articles for a Canadian financial publication and I have done so since 1987. Over 80 articles later, and with my only critics (and those are rare) being life insurance agents, my publisher appears to be very satisfied with what I have to say on the subject. I think that there are many life agents who cringe when they read my opinions, but in the context of a consumer driven financial magazine, very few are willing to express those views in writing. From time to time the publisher sends me the opinions of a life agent who vigorously disagrees with an article, and I take my time to write back mapping out where I disagree. I have never had the publisher dissatisfied with a response I have written. Further, I have used some of those exchanges as jump off points for new articles.

Which brings me to this next statement which I disagreed with:

Many people look at life insurance is a NEED product. I see life insurance as a WANT product.​

NOTE: I think you mean to say "as a NEED product", not "is".

Before going further, I have a couple of questions:

Is fire insurance a want product or a need product?

Is car insurance a want product or a need product?

 

[DHK]

Robert... You're so right! I can't believe how wrong I was! I bow down to your greatness! [/sarcasm]

Robert, the problem here is that you are so convinced on your own position that you might be willing to entertain a little debate... but here's your problem with me though: I don't care what you think.

I know how to use a life insurance policy, and I also understand the nature of the relationship it takes for the agent and client to work together to maximize its usefulness in the client's life.

If you think that most life agents are crooks... you can think that.

I, however, am bowing out to your greatness... because I have better things to do with my time.

Welcome to my ignore list.