Let's Talk Cold Calling

[Newby]

This entire thread is bizarre.

If door to door works for selling insurance you will be the most sucessful insurance salesman in the US because noone else is doing it.

You shouldn't limit yourself to just insurance, there's a lot of things you can sell at the same time. You should get contracted with a security alarm company or possibly a contractor for the girl scouts, I heard their cookies go quick door to door.

I'm just teasing you, sort of.... but if you like it and it works do it.

However I would be concerned going inside anybody's house I had never talked to.

Saleswolf, I know it won't be as efficent as what you do because I've read your previous threads and you have it going on, BUT if an agent (I would think especially med sups) isn't selling much and has no appointments today I can assure you that going door to door in a good middle-class neighborhood would be a very likely way of making a sale or two today. It works.

 

[senior-advisor-indiana]

Newby, when you say door to door, do you have an old lead or something with you or is it a completely cold knock? If so, don't you think alot of the people would not even qualify because of their age? Thats alot of door knocking just to find a senior, and alot more door knocking to find an interested senior.

 

[Frank Stastny]

Newby, when you say door to door, do you have an old lead or something with you or is it a completely cold knock? If so, don't you think alot of the people would not even qualify because of their age? Thats alot of door knocking just to find a senior, and alot more door knocking to find an interested senior.

Buy a list of people between the ages of 68 and 75, forget the "turning 65" people. Every name on the list that doesn't have a phone number, go knock on their door.

Tell them you are the new Senior Insurance Specialist in the area and you just wanted to stop by to introduce yourself and drop off some information. If they don't slam the door in your face, then offer to do a free review of their policies to make sure the policies they have are the "best investment of their premium dollar" and are the ones they need today considering all of the major changes that Medicare has made in the last 12 months.

Explain to them that you usually only work by appointment, but you have a few minutes to at least take a look at what they currently have.
You can also ask them a question you know they can't answer.

Example, "Do you know if the policy you currently have has the extended At Home Recovery benefit? That benefit is becoming more and more important each year." (Most are going to have Plan F, that is a good thing because you should be selling them Plan D or at least Plan G. That in itself will save them several hundred dollars a year.) Or, "Do you completely understand what your options are under the different, low cost Medicare Part C plans? Very few people really understand them, the ones who do are saving up to a thousand dollars a year."

No, asking that question is not a violation of CMS (Center for Medicare/Medicaid Services) stupid rules.

It is always good to throw in the phrase, "Fixed Income". They love using that term. Something like, "I know that being on a "fixed income" is really tough today. You almost have to mortgage the back 40 to just fill your tank with gas. (I sell in the country, they understand that) I'm sure you would be interested in any area we can find that will save you money." (Don't pause and wait for an answer, go right into.) "Who did you say you have your Medicare Supplement insurance with? Would it be inconvenient if I asked for a glass of water, it is really hot out here."

At this point you can either wait for them to tell you who they have their insurance with and then ask for a drink or immediately follow the question about their current carrier with the request for a drink. If you sense that they may not tell you who their insurance is with then ask the two questions together and find out the answer to who their carrier is when you get the water.

When you ask for the water, and they act like they are going to get it for you, then carefully assume that they are also going to let you in the house and begin slowly moving closer to the door. Getting in the house at this point is kind of like choreographing a ballet. Your moves must be smooth and look natural. DO NOT PUT YOUR FOOT IN THE DOOR AND PUSH THEM ASIDE. LOL

Like anything else, this takes a lot of practice to get it right. The best way to learn is by making mistakes and learning from them. Give yourself at least a couple of months or more of doing it a few days a week to "get it right".

Know that you are going to screw it up for a while, that is a good thing. It will teach you what to do and what not to do. Learn to read their body language and know what to say and how to say it to different people.
Selling is a game, make it fun and challenging. Remember, you are only trying to get to the kitchen table at this point, DO NOT try to sell them anything standing at the door.

Talking about this makes me want to go out and knock on some doors. hahaha The challenge of getting in the house can really be fun, honest.

 

[Guest]

Buy a list of people between the ages of 68 and 75, forget the "turning 65" people..

Curious. What is wrong with 'turning 65' lists?

Al

 

[Frank Stastny]

Curious. What is wrong with 'turning 65' lists?

Al

Absolutely nothing other than they have never, ever been anything but a huge waste of time for me. I honestly believe, after trying to market to them numerous times during the last 12 what ever years, that they do know more than I do.

They all want to "study on it" and have me waste my time educating them. They usually end up going either with the cheapest kid on the block or AARP. Most of them make a really bad decision and it takes a while for them to be convinced that they didn't know what they were doing.

It isn't until they have had a policy for a couple of years, been hit with some healthy premium increases or have moved on to concentrating on other things that they will finally realize that maybe, just maybe, I may know a little more than they do about Med Supp insurance.

They are usually awesome prospects when they reach 67 or 68. They are usually still fairly healthy and have become a whole lot "smarter" than they were when they were 64 1/2.

Kind of like kids when they are in their teens. They all know more than their parents do. Seniors may be getting "older" in years, but when it comes to Med Supp they seem to me to be "going backwards".

I don't waste time on turning 65 people unless it is a referral. They are the best turning 65 people I have found.

Turning 65 people are also bombarded with tons of information and phone calls. That in itself makes them not "hot" prospects. Let the "dust" settle for a couple of years and then talk to them.

You will make more money and save yourself a lot of hassle and agrivation. At least that is what I have found to be true in Missouri.

 

[Tar Rat]

Why not just go to a retirement community and pass out a flyer offering free ribbon candy as a pretext to sell med sups? HA!

 

[Frank Stastny]

Why not just go to a retirement community and pass out a flyer offering free ribbon candy as a pretext to sell med sups? HA!

I get more "takers" with prunes. Hard to hold their attention for a long time though.

 

[Newby]

Newby, when you say door to door, do you have an old lead or something with you or is it a completely cold knock? If so, don't you think alot of the people would not even qualify because of their age? Thats alot of door knocking just to find a senior, and alot more door knocking to find an interested senior.

Franks post #43 was excellent information. But who care what age they are if you also sell life insurance. Anyone who is willing to talk is fine. Remember, I was selling funeral plans. Try selling those to 25 year olds.

Plus, you can tell seniors by the cars, the flowers, the "Grandkids spoiled here" sign in the yard. Blindfold me and take me to any middle-class street in the USA and I can tell you within 10-years what age the head of household is at each house 80% of the time. And I bet you can too.

 

[Frank Stastny]

Plus, you can tell seniors by the cars, the flowers, the "Grandkids spoiled here" sign in the yard. Blindfold me and take me to any middle-class street in the USA and I can tell you within 10-years what age the head of household is at each house 80% of the time. And I bet you can too.

Good point. When I started selling that is exactly what a lot of us did.

I use to use the phone book to get seniors to call. There weren't too many non-seniors who's names were Ina, Oval, Bernice, Harvey, Mildred, etc.

I knew an agent who use to cruise the country roads looking for really big cars that were like boats. They were almost always owned by seniors she said. She sold a lot of insurance that way.

Leads are really a relatively new concept, I would guess within what, the last 12 years or less. The company I started with was charging agents $25 for a direct mail lead even though it was only a PO Box and no phone number. The leads were turned face down, shuffled and dealt to the agents like a deck of cards.

If an agent got one of those for the bargain price of $25 he was told to hang out at the Post Office, watch the PO Box and then follow the person home. The soccer moms would have you hung up by your thumbs today if you tried that.

This was way back in 1993. One doesn't need leads to be successful even today. Just a little hard work and a creative mind. There were very financially successful agents "way back then" also.

I believe that you can talk to almost any very financially successful agent and if you ask them the key to their success, I'd be willing to bet that they will say finding people to sell to and getting an appointment.

Anyone can sell insurance if you take them by the hand and lead them to the right people.

 

[J.R.]

One doesn't need leads to be successful even today.

Hmmmm, I might disagree there.

I believe that you can talk to almost any very financially successful agent and if you ask them the key to their success, I'd be willing to bet that they will say finding people to sell to and getting an appointment.

Hmmm, seems like the opposite of your previous sentence. An agent does need leads, but he does need people to sell to and get an appt. Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't that a lead