In need of a Mentor

[elitensupreme]

Hi everyone, I am reaching out for help because I sincerely need it. The best way I know of achieving a goal is to contact people who have already achieved it and absorb their mentality.

Here is my situation. I am currently a car salesman. I work 12 hour days for a man that has basically had everything givin to him through minority grants. He is now going to lose his business because of bad financial decisions. Even though I am the best salesman we have I am actually just barely scratching my way above poverty level. He cannot keep inventory in anymore, there is no profit on our vehicles and he is starting to cut corners to try and save his azz. All of these things are diminishing my oppertunity to make money. Furthermore and more importantly the long days are killing my relationship with my fiance. We see each other for one hour every night and im afraid we are starting to grow apart. This is the woman I want to have kids with and I refuse to jepordise our future any longer.

I am here because I am absolutely determined to open an independant agency. I managed a furniture store for a while and Opened a small car lot once. I know I have the management skills to run my own business again. I am a hell of a sales man and a self starter so this is something I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that I can do. I just need a push in the right direction. Insurance appeals to me because there is no product I have to restock and no huge upfront cost to opening an agency out of my home office. As well as the monthly commission pay instead of upfront and all at once. As far as i am concerned insurance is a get rich slow business.

I would be thrilled if someone would be willing to kind of take me under their wing. Or give me any input for that matter. I have learned a lot already but I still have about a million questions. If it comes to this I am willing to give up a percentage of my business for the guidence. I am usally a very private and independant person however I can see my quality of life slipping right now which is why im basically pouring my heart out to a bunch of strangers. I have been on top and been on bottom and one of the most truthfull lines I have ever heard is "when your up it never seems good enough and when your down you dont think you will ever be up again" Well guys I can tell you it sucks to have champagne taste and a beer budget.

Anyone willing to help can PM me or just respond to this. I am willing to give my real contact information if someone needs it. Well im exhausted, stressed and sleppy so goodbye for now...

 

[midwestbroker]

All depends on what you are wanting to sell when it comes to insurance. Saying you want to buy insurance is like saying you want to buy a car. There are lots of cars out there, just like lots of insurance options to sell:

P&C (auto and home)
Health - Individual / small group
Disability
Life
Senior Market (Medicare)
Financial Products (series license 6, 63, etc)

Start reading around the board for a bit and see what you want to sell and then start posting away.

If you are just now making ends meet, I would consider a captive position to get your feet wet and some money in the bank. Then you could go independent. Sure, the start up costs are low to start being an insurance agent (as opposed to buying a business or franchise), but the commissions can also be low when starting off and no residual income coming in. Just a thought...

 

[Mr. Bill]

Good advice from MWB. Good luck to you!!!

 

[elitensupreme]

Thanks midwest. I want to sell Health, Life and auto mainly... Home and boat eventually. I have heard that it is hard to get contracts for auto? Why? I am in Illinois what about you midwest? Also if your an insurance broker can you explain to me what the process is to get contracts?

 

[magent1]

Do you plan on running the agency from your home? That might be difficult if you are looking to sell P&C. Have you talked to any agents around your area. They may be willing to hire you and from there you can learn the business and if you work hard for the agent he may help you start your own or at least help you out with contacting the right carriers, etc. Just a thought.

 

[midwestbroker]

I am not a P&C agent (auto/home) but here is my understanding of that side:

If you want to do auto and home, it goes hand in hand. Most carriers offer a discount for having both, so most people do both. If you go the P&C route, then they want your primary focus to be that.

All the P&C agents I know are captive (Allstate, Farmers, American Family, etc). Plus, they all have store front offices. Drive down most any main street and you will pass about 3+ insurance offices. My friend who is an American Family agent has Allstate and Farmers offices within walking distance.

Also, it is a different license. You will need a P&C license, and a health and life license.

If you want to do individual health and life, that would be more along the lines of home office. Go to the individual health board and look around. John has an article posted about getting started on the top of this thread.

Personally, I only do senior market products here in the Kansas City metro.

Get your license, contract directly with the carriers or find a good IMO (Insurance Marketing Organization) and start selling.

 

[elitensupreme]

I read the post about getting started and I found it very helpful however it does not say much about P&C. The reason I want to sell auto so bad is because I think I could market it among used car dealers and give them an incentive to push it for me. We have someone who is doing that now where I work and 8 times out of 10 when I suggest their insurance company the customer calls and gets a quote.

Why do I need an office for P&C? Cant I just go to the customers home for claims? Also is it common for established agents to let new agents sell P&C for them for a percentage?

I have found out that I can get both my Health, Life and P&C license for around 500 bucks.

 

[tryan326]

I don't sell P&C but I can only imagine that you would be more successful selling that type of insurance from an office rather than your home b/c thats not traditionally what clients are used to and they might not take you as seriously as someone with an office. As far as L&H people are used to agents coming to their home or either buying via phone so that would be much easier to sell from an home office. Just make sure before you dive in a take your licensing exams you attend some type of class online or otherwise b/c depending on your state the test will not be a breeze.

 

[JustinTime]

Hey Elitensupreme,

If you are considering doing life and health insurance I encourage you to consider the senior life and health insurance market for many reasons... below are a few:

1. Most senior don't work, so they're home or easier to get ahold of during the day. This usually allows you to spend more time at home at night.

2. Currently there are around 43 million Americans on Medicare (basically 65 years old or older). By 2030 it is predicted that there will be more than 79 million Americans on Medicare. This is a huge segment to market to and the baby-boomers are causing this growth.

3. Commissions + renewals are a great way to earn a living. Because it's not as demanding as car sales you can still take a vacation and get paid (via renewals). The senior insurance market is a lot more condusive to this. Like you mentioned it is more of a getting rich slow business.

If you're interested in knowing more I recommend contacting, Senior Marketing Specialists at 800-689-2800 and be sure to ask for Ryan. They focus on Medicare Supplement , Medicare Advantage plans, Final Expense, Long Term Care, and Part D.

Even though they're located in Missouri, they have several agents in Illinois and have over 5,000 agents nationwide that go through them for some type of senior life and health insurance product. You can also check them out at Senior Marketing Specialists.

 

[HomeService]

justin, that's who recruited me into the business in 1986. I would agree that elite should check with them, they also have under age 65 products as well, or will know where to steer elite and how he should go about it.