Finally Have Gonads to CC -- But Need Help.

[DecisionMan]

Jason, I can appreciate your desire to contribute to this forum given your sales experience but there are a few problems with your approach.

1. Its transparent that your desire "to help" has a profit motive. Many of us have taken people off-line and coach them privately, at no cost, and have made good friends and colleagues in this manner.

2. Those that may desire to make profit have done so by having excellent contributions with no request for business, no commercials, and worked up the chain so-to-speak to build their credibility. One individual I do business with, for example, gets all my business because he's real good at what he does.

You can't just walk into this forum (or most others) with your "help" and expect people to fawn over you.

3. Those of us who've spent years in Sandler training recognize your methods in your post and video, and frankly, unless one is a full-time Sandler trainer I just don't think the wanna-be's come across as good. No offense, but sitting in a coatroom in a lawnchair looking down at your laptop camera just doesn't make the grade.

4. This is an insurance forum. Have you sold insurance? It would help your credibility.

Just make some nice neat, simple, to-the-point posts from this point out, stay out of the fray for a 100 messages or so, get the lay of the land so you see who will flame you and who makes constructive posts, and build your credibility that way.

Just yesterday another company came on strong with huge posts that happened to be plagiarized and avoided for too long addressing the elephant in the room. So forum members are a little sensitive at the moment to newbies coming on strong.

For what it matters, I like your posts.

 

[Jason Kanigan]

Well thank you. I appreciate your comment.

In response, this is what I'm thinking:

I did not try to sell anything on the main forum I participate in for over 3 months(!).

I make plenty of money from my "day job" and do not rely on forum marketing as a source of income. I give away a great deal of valuable information. I did not present any kind of commercial or offer as far as I'm aware, and I did not expect anyone to fawn over me.

All I have done is respond to posts, and issue a video which I made for a more relaxed forum. If you need to see me in a tie, you can, but I don't need any more credibility. I am not a wanna-be and have the testimonials to prove it.

Thank you.

Jason, I can appreciate your desire to contribute to this forum given your sales experience but there are a few problems with your approach.

1. Its transparent that your desire "to help" has a profit motive. Many of us have taken people off-line and coach them privately, at no cost, and have made good friends and colleagues in this manner.

2. Those that may desire to make profit have done so by having excellent contributions with no request for business, no commercials, and worked up the chain so-to-speak to build their credibility. One individual I do business with, for example, gets all my business because he's real good at what he does.

You can't just walk into this forum (or most others) with your "help" and expect people to fawn over you.

3. Those of us who've spent years in Sandler training recognize your methods in your post and video, and frankly, unless one is a full-time Sandler trainer I just don't think the wanna-be's come across as good. No offense, but sitting in a coatroom in a lawnchair looking down at your laptop camera just doesn't make the grade.

4. This is an insurance forum. Have you sold insurance? It would help your credibility.

Just make some nice neat, simple, to-the-point posts from this point out, stay out of the fray for a 100 messages or so, get the lay of the land so you see who will flame you and who makes constructive posts, and build your credibility that way.

Just yesterday another company came on strong with huge posts that happened to be plagiarized and avoided for too long addressing the elephant in the room. So forum members are a little sensitive at the moment to newbies coming on strong.

For what it matters, I like your posts.

 

[moonlightandmargaritas]

I give away a great deal of valuable information.

Maybe.

Value, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder.

 

[Jason Kanigan]

Maybe.

Value, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder.

Sure. My clients and followers elsewhere would have an opinion.

Anyway I think it's great that there are other consultative salespeople on the forum. Elsewhere, most people don't even know there's an alternative to features-and-benefits selling. We can work with each other if everyone is feeling cooperative. Or you can troll. Up to you.

 

[rousemark]

Maybe.

Value, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder.

I agree .. I have yet to see anything offered by him that I would consider or "great value"..

 

[Rearden]

Jason, this is the toughest forum to participate in.

Insurance agents -- especially the ones who've commented already, have probably seen it all and experienced all sorts of BS.

Underwear agents, etc...

I know you don't BS -- but if you look up "cynic" in the dictionary, you'll see a picture of insurance-forums.net next to it.

 

[DecisionMan]

Valuable information: The phone script he posted in #76 was very good.

A lot of agents are constantly looking for scripts, and his suggestion covers two products, is not sales-y, elicits an emotional response, and gets to the heart of the matter quickly.

Few people within the entire forum have found a good phone script for purely final expense, but Jason's suggestion leads with health which is always easier and has a nice pivot to FE with another good emotional word ("unsure").

It opens up two potential products, creates emotion in the prospect's mind, refers to a "situation" (which is a great word), and creates a conversation.

It can be used for T65s, or the market Frank used to hit from 66+.

 

[moonlightandmargaritas]

Valuable information: The phone script he posted in #76 was very good.

Agreed. Problem is it is identical to a Sandler Sales Training "No Pressure Cold Call" script. Verbatim.

Coincidence, or he "borrowed" it (nothing wrong with that - as long as you don't call it "proprietary")?

 

[DecisionMan]

Hmm. Interesting thought M&M, but I'm not sure about "verbatim."

After all, the "No Pressure Cold Call" is more of an outline than a script, into which one puts the FUDWACA words to elicit emotion along with the specifics to one's industry.

The fact that he happened to fill-in-the-blanks specific to our industry, and even more specifically to the senior market, is helpful. But I don't think its proprietary.

How proprietary is the USP, or the elevator speech, or the myriad of cold-call scripts that come somewhat close to the no-pressure-cold-call?

I wonder how many posts throughout the forum appear to come close to some Sandler selling methods, or other trainer's selling methods? I bet there's a lot of other comments on answering objections, scripts, referral methods, etc. that are borrowed, copied, or coincidence as well.

The Sandler selling system isn't as much about the technique and specific wording as it is Attitude and Behavior. The attitude that salespeople have rights too, that we are in the business of disqualifying prospects, and a set of behaviors that do the opposite of traditional selling methods (like quote and hope).

In rereading my post hitting Jason I may have come on too hard and I'm looking forward to his future contributions. Its just that there were some problems with the way he initially approached the forum (and my 'Sandler' problem with him is more specific to the video), but overall he has some good, constructive comments. He just needs to more slowly introduce himself through a few simple, constructive comments.