Can "Appointment Setters" Get Paid Commission?

[Frank Stastny]

My only question for you is while she is calling for you if you don't have a booked full calendar what will you be doing?

That is one reason I suggested that he start doing it himself. Also, what is he going to do if she decides she doesn't want to do it after a while? Does he just stop selling insurance until he can find another person to make his calls?

Any agent who learns how to prospect will never be without someone to sell insurance to. Those who have to rely on others to do their prospecting really haven't learned one of the most important parts of this business.

If she is that good on the phone, I think he should consider getting her licensed and the two of them work as a team with her doing the prospecting and appointment setting and him doing the selling.

 

[Beans]

if you want to avoid liability just don't come out and say that bonuses paid are a portion of the commissions received. Done.

It's silly actually since ANY pay and ANY bonus by definition is a portion of the commission.

Ok great, thank you...

 

[Cornelius]

The answer to your question is in your prelicense book.

 

[Beans]

The answer to your question is in your prelicense book.

Ok all of the above except for cornelius - thanks a lot for your help guys...

Cornelius... umm... I don't currently have one of those to reference...so.. thanks?

 

[dyadvisor]

What you never mentioned was the FTC, and getting pre-approved to call. Those $13,000+ fines can add up in a hurry. There are definitely ways to work about pay based on performance.... that is if you are concerned about great leads or junk leads.

I do not know the laws if your state. But if she is an independent contractor she can bill you for services rendered. Just like a computer repair tech, those service charges can be different every time. Just be creative, and she will know what to bill you for that service period.

There is no law I know of stating that an independent contractor has to use a set billing charge for each service.

I had a virtual full time computer programmer for 23 years. Every month his pay varied. However, the last 8 years as an employee it was set.

 

[VolAgent]

I do not know the laws if your state. But if she is an independent contractor she can bill you for services rendered. Just like a computer repair tech, those service charges can be different every time. Just be creative, and she will know what to bill you for that service period.

There is no law I know of stating that an independent contractor has to use a set billing charge for each service.

If her pay seems to roughly correspond to a percentage of the commission, its game over. This is an area that if they decide to investigate, they have already decided you're guilty. The investigator is simply looking for enough evidence to convince a judge of your guilt now. Everything will be examined in a new light and be used to prove their contention that you paid insurance commissions to an unlicensed person.

 

[dyadvisor]

You are absolutely correct on that point. My "creativity" meant that a person can have a discussion with you and discuss the sales progress every 6 months or so.

I would be much more concerned about "hiring" someone and not having an absolutely clear independent contractor agreement. Plus training that person what word usage to never use.

 

[VolAgent]

I would be much more concerned about "hiring" someone and not having an absolutely clear independent contractor agreement. Plus training that person what word usage to never use.

Spot on. It is much more important to never appear on the DOIs radar, than to dot every I and cross every T.

Now, don't read this wrong. Don't do anything illegal or unethical. The problem is, once they have their sights set on you, they will find something to get you on.

 

[AndreaSti]

What if you pay a percentage of overall monthly sales? We have a similar situation with a company that is optimizing our site. They are getting a % of overall sales that come in, no matter how the lead came in. The thinking is, the client isn't being solicited, they are visiting our site (since they can now hopefully find it in the first place). Also, we are discontinuing other methods of advertising so anything they might get paid on that wasn't web generated would be referral business, but we are willing to not worry about that if the numbers are high enough. Keeps the tracking paperwork down as well. They aren't licensed agents, but are responsible for driving business to our web site. They don't do any talking at all, our web site does. That being said, their comp is based upon new sales, so wouldn't that be a % of commission since that is the way we are comped here? These folks are willing to put their expertise on the line to get us hits but we, like Beans still have to make the sale. Again, they aren't getting a flat fee, but a % of sales, even if it is a pre-paid dental or something. I know this isn't exactly like Beans situation but still might be legally.

 

[Guest]

Bad move m8. It smells too much like paying commission, even if it is disguised.