- 10,275
"But I can tell you that NYL with its tenure in the industry, sets it apart from competition"
NYL is a solid company but I definitely would not go that far.
NYL is a solid company but I definitely would not go that far.
Anybody out there work for New York Life?
- Thread starter LisaC
- Start date
- 297
Questions for second interview -
For sure ask the question regarding savings and how long will it take to get up and running on average?
Compare to answers you get here.
How long has the manager been in that position?
How many of the current agents has he hired?
Average tenure of those agents?
Again if training and support is main objective then make sure where you stand in that area. As mentioned great training means nothing if the agent is lazy. However, poor training and no support can lead to financial ruins for even the hardest working new agent.
Meaning- No real saving and then go and spend $2-3k on marketing (Yes, they may loan you this money but remember- it's a loan!) and do that a few times with no real sales and will be in big trouble quick.
Expenses- what’s covered? What’s not?
Do you have to purchase certain software and monthly fee’s?
E&O cost?
What is their marketing plan for new agents?
Cost of that plan and average return?
Make sure you understand how long it will be till you own your book and the captive contract you will have to sign.
The second interview should be your time to really get your questions answered. The first interview is a feeling out process but don't waste time skirting issues that are a concern from here on out.
My answer to savings and ramp up time -
Really depends on the agent and warm market. Will have a very hard time selling Life as primary product just peddling term. Sure you can sell some large term policies and do well but from what I remember NYL's bonus monies are based primarily on WL.
Mention this as if your warm market is considerable and is made up of high net worth or at least upper middle class you have a far better chance. Average middle class people have a hard time swallowing the prem. of WL products even if they make sense. This is why most every financial company hiring a new sales person will ask for a "list"
They want to see how long you have lived in your current area and what your contacts are. Sure you know this but just stating it.
For sure ask the question regarding savings and how long will it take to get up and running on average?
Compare to answers you get here.
How long has the manager been in that position?
How many of the current agents has he hired?
Average tenure of those agents?
Again if training and support is main objective then make sure where you stand in that area. As mentioned great training means nothing if the agent is lazy. However, poor training and no support can lead to financial ruins for even the hardest working new agent.
Meaning- No real saving and then go and spend $2-3k on marketing (Yes, they may loan you this money but remember- it's a loan!) and do that a few times with no real sales and will be in big trouble quick.
Expenses- what’s covered? What’s not?
Do you have to purchase certain software and monthly fee’s?
E&O cost?
What is their marketing plan for new agents?
Cost of that plan and average return?
Make sure you understand how long it will be till you own your book and the captive contract you will have to sign.
The second interview should be your time to really get your questions answered. The first interview is a feeling out process but don't waste time skirting issues that are a concern from here on out.
My answer to savings and ramp up time -
Really depends on the agent and warm market. Will have a very hard time selling Life as primary product just peddling term. Sure you can sell some large term policies and do well but from what I remember NYL's bonus monies are based primarily on WL.
Mention this as if your warm market is considerable and is made up of high net worth or at least upper middle class you have a far better chance. Average middle class people have a hard time swallowing the prem. of WL products even if they make sense. This is why most every financial company hiring a new sales person will ask for a "list"
They want to see how long you have lived in your current area and what your contacts are. Sure you know this but just stating it.
- 11,280
Everytime I have been interviewed for a captive company they always tell you what you want to hear and always make thier company seem like the best place in the industry. You are definetly going to have to test waters on your own.
Just don't get in a place where you don't have options to leave. Any place shuld give you decent training. Just follow what they say and work their system like they say and you will see results. I always second guessed everything and always thought that there were easier ways to prospecting.
Unless you are in management, i haven't seen any captive place worth staying, which brings another point. HOw easy is it or is it possible for you to move up to management.
Just don't get in a place where you don't have options to leave. Any place shuld give you decent training. Just follow what they say and work their system like they say and you will see results. I always second guessed everything and always thought that there were easier ways to prospecting.
Unless you are in management, i haven't seen any captive place worth staying, which brings another point. HOw easy is it or is it possible for you to move up to management.
- 477
The consumer ultimately buys you because they like and trust you. However, the name recognition does mean something. It's not like you would be a stunning success at NYL, but a complete failure at Northwestern, Metlife, Ameriprise, etc. unless the training is awful. The good name will be a help, but beyond that it's YOU that will make or break it.
I left my old job with hardly a nickel to my name and I've managed to get by, but things need to be better and they look to be improving. I would advise you work your old job and start part-time and make a couple thousand in commission that will be there to help carry you. I had a hard time doing that because I worked an odd shift and no one was home when I was home.
Yes, that part can be frustrating. When you go in for training, the day is largely gone by the time everything is done. You have to find ways around it and book most appointments on non-training days.
- 477
I would put them in the top 1% or so for financial strength and service to clients, but there are a handful of companies that are comparable out there.
- 2,908
As a consumer no matter what you are buying (speaking for myself), if you are not sure about the actual product, you go for name recognition.
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While that is true you have to give at least some consideration to the fact that you would be an agent with an investment and commitment to a company and cannot pivot as easily as a consumer if things change. Prudential, for example, has extremely high name recognition and you might argue that product specifics are not of major importance becasuse there is such high name recognition. That theory falls short when you are a prudential agent and attorneys are on TV day and night with an 800 number to call if you have been defrauded. I know at least two agents who were driven out of the business as a result of that fiasco several years ago and believe me the consumers out there remember it even though Prudential has high name recognition. Now it is Ameriprise that has extremely high name recognition but agents, consumers, state regulators, and class action suits are getting grimmer each year. You would be one unhappy camper if you just joined them based on name recognition without any thought to the strengths and weaknesses of their products and their basic set-up for reps and you would eventually be selling into an environment where you are having to overcome dirt on your company.
I am not even remotely suggesting that this applies to New York Life and in fact associating with them is probably a good way to avoid some of these issues. I am just saying be careful about thinking that name recognition is always a plus. If the there is no integrity at the product level then eventually that blows up publically and that can put a crimp in your career too. If you are an independant broker and one of the companies starts getting a bad rap for either real or imagined reasons then you can just lay low and work more with the other companies you represent. Can't do that if you are captive. You are flying their flag for better or worse.
Winter
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While that is true you have to give at least some consideration to the fact that you would be an agent with an investment and commitment to a company and cannot pivot as easily as a consumer if things change. Prudential, for example, has extremely high name recognition and you might argue that product specifics are not of major importance becasuse there is such high name recognition. That theory falls short when you are a prudential agent and attorneys are on TV day and night with an 800 number to call if you have been defrauded. I know at least two agents who were driven out of the business as a result of that fiasco several years ago and believe me the consumers out there remember it even though Prudential has high name recognition. Now it is Ameriprise that has extremely high name recognition but agents, consumers, state regulators, and class action suits are getting grimmer each year. You would be one unhappy camper if you just joined them based on name recognition without any thought to the strengths and weaknesses of their products and their basic set-up for reps and you would eventually be selling into an environment where you are having to overcome dirt on your company.
I am not even remotely suggesting that this applies to New York Life and in fact associating with them is probably a good way to avoid some of these issues. I am just saying be careful about thinking that name recognition is always a plus. If the there is no integrity at the product level then eventually that blows up publically and that can put a crimp in your career too. If you are an independant broker and one of the companies starts getting a bad rap for either real or imagined reasons then you can just lay low and work more with the other companies you represent. Can't do that if you are captive. You are flying their flag for better or worse.
Winter
I would want at least a few months of living expenses. If you are going to be writing mainly life insurance, it can take 2-3 weeks for most policies to get issued and paid. The client will need to get all the medical stuff done and possibly medical info from the doctor (APS), which for the most part is out of your control. If you think that you may have some significant qualified money rollovers or non-qualified money into annuities or mutual funds, you get paid on this rather rather quickly. Either way it is important to have a lot of irons in the fire, becuase you never know what cases may or may not go through when you need them to. You don't want to have to rely on "that one case" to pay your monthly bills, because if that one case doesn't go through you're screwed.
- 297
Yep, look at Edward Jones. They were exposed and fined Millions.
/snicker They were supposed to be the "slow and steady" company
MetLife has had a number of issues also.
As I mentioned folks have a jaded view of all financial/insurance companies.
NHB hit it on the head - They are buying you.
Baby boomers and younger understand more then ever the need to have options. Even with Life insurance where it can often be an emotional sale they will not buy until they hit the net and run thier own numbers.
Let alone HNW clients. They for sure understand the need for unbias input. Well, at least as unbias as you can get in the financial realm.
/snicker They were supposed to be the "slow and steady" company
MetLife has had a number of issues also.
As I mentioned folks have a jaded view of all financial/insurance companies.
NHB hit it on the head - They are buying you.
Baby boomers and younger understand more then ever the need to have options. Even with Life insurance where it can often be an emotional sale they will not buy until they hit the net and run thier own numbers.
Let alone HNW clients. They for sure understand the need for unbias input. Well, at least as unbias as you can get in the financial realm.
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- 477
While that is true you have to give at least some consideration to the fact that you would be an agent with an investment and commitment to a company and cannot pivot as easily as a consumer if things change. Prudential, for example, has extremely high name recognition and you might argue that product specifics are not of major importance becasuse there is such high name recognition. That theory falls short when you are a prudential agent and attorneys are on TV day and night with an 800 number to call if you have been defrauded. I know at least two agents who were driven out of the business as a result of that fiasco several years ago and believe me the consumers out there remember it even though Prudential has high name recognition. Now it is Ameriprise that has extremely high name recognition but agents, consumers, state regulators, and class action suits are getting grimmer each year. You would be one unhappy camper if you just joined them based on name recognition without any thought to the strengths and weaknesses of their products and their basic set-up for reps and you would eventually be selling into an environment where you are having to overcome dirt on your company.
I am not even remotely suggesting that this applies to New York Life and in fact associating with them is probably a good way to avoid some of these issues. I am just saying be careful about thinking that name recognition is always a plus. If the there is no integrity at the product level then eventually that blows up publically and that can put a crimp in your career too. If you are an independant broker and one of the companies starts getting a bad rap for either real or imagined reasons then you can just lay low and work more with the other companies you represent. Can't do that if you are captive. You are flying their flag for better or worse.
Winter
Great post! Sometimes name recognition can backfire. Fortunately, I believe I have a company that always errors on the side of caution and has thus far avoided such things, but no one can tell what tomorrow brings. I see those attorneys and often wonder if they're legit or just ambulance chasing scum. I mean, there is no doubt there are some shady people in this business, but all too often it amounts to little more than "Boo hoo, I lost money in the market". It makes me sick to see those attorneys soliciting people that lost money in tech stocks. I can understand if advisors were out there putting seniors into such investments, but any soundminded person with some investment knowledge should realize the associated risks and it seems to me to be little more than a lawyer looking for a payday. All I'm saying is I still think of Prudential and Metlife as good companies despite the ambulance chasers.
As to the indy versus captive thing, there are pros and cons to each. But for the sake of this thread relating to someone first looking at the business, captive is almost always the only real option. I think "training and support" would be at the top of the "pros" column under captive.
- 477
Exactly. I've already had money in the bank in my mind that never materialized. Anyone considering the business has to understand that only a percentage of that which looks promising will materialize. How much that percentage is depends on YOU somewhat, but it will never be near 100%. And, once in a while, you get something that you didn't think would amount to a sale that wants to buy, but that doesn't happen nearly enough to offset the disappointments.
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