Has anyone had an issue selling Medicare?

[Jennifer9922]

I’ve been in health insurance for about 8 years and sales for over 20. I’ve sold to people under 65. Sales and people are generally ok and pretty nice. This is my first time selling Medicare. At first it was ok and the clients weren’t that bad but now almost every old person I talk to is extremely rude hostile negative towards me. I’m very nice professional and polite. Many talk over me insult my voice and are so negative and mean. I can’t even do my job as an agent. Every old person has something horrible and rude to say. They directly insult me and act as if I’m speaking gibberish. I speak clearly and articulately. It is difficult to even chat with these rude weird people. It might be the leads bc they telemarket to these people but the level of rudeness they show is unheard of.

I’m floored and in shock. I fear gettign on the phone because every person is so angry and rude. Some aren’t awful but most are just bad. I’ve never encountered people this mean even going door to door. Many elderly people say they can’t hear me but they repeat what I say and can. Many are just hostile and mean for no reason and purposely want to insult me. I have a nice voice and project well. They want to be very negative to me and it’s just too much. These people are not idiots and know what they are doing. They want to treat me like crap and bring me down. Is this normal when dealing with seniors? I have yet to encounter a kind sweet senior. Is there something wrong with these elderly people

 

[rousemark]

I’ve been in health insurance for about 8 years and sales for over 20. I’ve sold to people under 65. Sales and people are generally ok and pretty nice. This is my first time selling Medicare. At first it was ok and the clients weren’t that bad but now almost every old person I talk to is extremely rude hostile negative towards me. I’m very nice professional and polite. Many talk over me insult my voice and are so negative and mean. I can’t even do my job as an agent. Every old person has something horrible and rude to say. They directly insult me and act as if I’m speaking gibberish. I speak clearly and articulately. It is difficult to even chat with these rude weird people. It might be the leads bc they telemarket to these people but the level of rudeness they show is unheard of.

I’m floored and in shock. I fear gettign on the phone because every person is so angry and rude. Some aren’t awful but most are just bad. I’ve never encountered people this mean even going door to door. Many elderly people say they can’t hear me but they repeat what I say and can. Many are just hostile and mean for no reason and purposely want to insult me. I have a nice voice and project well. They want to be very negative to me and it’s just too much. These people are not idiots and know what they are doing. They want to treat me like crap and bring me down. Is this normal when dealing with seniors? I have yet to encounter a kind sweet senior. Is there something wrong with these elderly people

No. The problem is you have contempt for them and it shows through. It is very obvious from the way you describe the situation. Suggest you find another market...

 

[Jennifer9922]

Contempt for who. u must be mad too. I’m kind to them. How can I delete my post it’ll probably get responses from trolls.

 

[vic120]

Yes I run into the occasional rude person But honestly way less than When I worked the under 65 market

Many are very nice which I rarely ran into under 65

There must be some issue on your end either product, Attitude or some misinfo or something that is getting them upset where you have so much of an issue

either that or are you working the Medicaid market?

or deceptive marketing?

whatever it is it's not just the way seniors are in general

 

[Jennifer9922]

it could be deceptive marketing on the company’s part that’s true. But yes it’s an issue and really weird. well it’s good to know it’s not a common thing I had
no clue what was going on. I’m very nice to these people. they are nothing but rude and vile back. It’s a disrespect I’ve never heard of. They are the worst interactions I’ve ever had in my life.

 

[fed up]

Remember that they are getting pounded with calls and conflicting information. If you do a seminar they are there for food and you addressing their one question which they will never ask. Start your conversation agreeing with everything they bring up. Ask about the last person they met with. Ask about any issues with drugs. If they sound like a PIA maybe refer them to Walmarts pharmacy and dont do a drug plan. Let them lead the presentation

 

[Jennifer9922]

I’m super kind to them and they use it against me the whole time. They also aren’t stupid and know what they’re doing. They’re like predators. They’re not innocent sweet people. They will go on and on ranting rudely too. Many times they won’t let me talk. I’m scared to talk to them. It’s demoralizing and ruining my self esteem. Im older too and have interacted with thousands of people on the phone. I didn’t know interacting with seniors would be so bad

ok to rouse mark I don’t expect people to be rude to me. I have nothing against old people I respect everyone. They are the ones harassing abusing and disrespecting me very badly. I had no idea older people were this mean and abusive. I’ve done phone sales for decades and have never dealt with this hostility. These people are sick and hostile. I get they can’t hear and might be upset but thats no excuse to abuse someone. They’re not rude to the person Who sent them to me. They don’t have to abuse people- they choose to and it’s not ok bc they’re old and in pain. There’s no excuse for this. They are very abusive and very mean. They lack just basic decency and respect. A conversation is out of the question. Interactions are just yelling rudeness anger hate hostility Arrogance dominance. No one is this mean or rude on the phone. These people are monsters.

 

[rousemark]

Contempt for who. u must be mad too. I’m kind to them. How can I delete my post it’ll probably get responses from trolls.

is your problem. You are expecting people to be rude to you. I myself am an "old" person in your terms.. I am 75. But I do not think my response was rude ti you or trollish. I tried to offer some sincere advice. Either change your attitude toward your potential Clint or find another market. Why beat yourself over it if you cannot make a change.

Now, if you are still with me, how are you marketing. Live transfers? Some of us are inundated with calls. Try everything to stop them with no success. If you are taking live transfers, I will guarantee you the person contacting you is railroading some to allow the call to be transferred to you. They agree to get rid of that person and then they find themselves on the phone with you and they take out their frustration on you.
As for hearing, the most common hearing loss involves the higher pitches which includes many female voices. And, even though they can pick out enough to figure out what you are saying it is difficult for them to do so. And, the harder it is, the more irritating it becomes. That is not your fault but they have to vent to someone and you are not only available but are perceived as the one causing the problem.
Finally, when you ask questions, you can not expect the answer to be playing to you. But sometimes people sincerely want ti help. Don't be so quick to take offense and take time to talk it out. Wish you the best of luck.
PS.. One other question .. Why did you choose Medicare as your market focus.

 

[fed up]

So let them rant and agree with them. "I hear that all the time", " I understand what you are going through" " Has anyone been able to help you". They are not mad at you, they are mad at Medicare, their physician, their pharmacist. And no one wants to LISTEN to them. You are there to find a hole, a pain point, a need. Keep pushing and the pain point will be exposed. Then you let them sell themselves

 

[Ins_Queen]

Jennifer, I moved from commercial P&C (35+ years) to Medicare 7 years ago and there was a learning curve for working with seniors. Many are isolated and are lonely and just want to talk, and now it's even worse for them due to the virus. I found that listening really helped me build a little bridge and through that conversation I was able to indirectly get answers; you may just spend the time building trust so the next time you call they may be willing to talk about their Medicare or schedule an appointment. Also, you may live in an area that is over run by Medicare agents that are dialing from home like you are, and these seniors are so tired of being interrupted all day long and after a while it becomes frustrating. Perhaps F2F might work well for you to build your book. BTW, my first year I thought I made a really bad decision switching to Medicare, but as I learned the products and developed my own spiel, it became easier. Now I cannot imagine a better way to work my way through my 60s. To answer your question, yes there are some that are incredibly rude but they are few and far between. Best of luck.

Edit: Just a quick observation. I don't view Medicare as being sold as it's all about relationships and education, and the sale just comes naturally.