In 1998, Jason and Keith Dudum opened the doors of Dudum Financial and Insurance Services Inc. in Lafayette, Calif., just outside of San Francisco.
To say the business has done well would be an understatement.
At 32, CEO Jason J. Dudum, LUTCF, is a seven-time MDRT Top of the Table qualifier and earned Pacific Life's Preston Hotchkis Distinguished Achievement Award in 2008, recognizing him as "the life insurance producer who best personifies Pacific Life's standards of excellence through high sales production, dedication to the community and overall personal achievement."
President Keith J. Dudum, 31, became one of the youngest Top of the Table qualifiers ever when he was just 26, and is now a six-time TOT qualifier.
Jason specializes in advanced estate planning and asset management while Keith is a well-respected expert in employee benefits, international corporate benefits and retirement planning. The complementary combination makes business owners the firm's ideal client, providing many opportunities for each brother's respective expertise to be utilized. Often, a sale in the group benefits area opens doors to individual planning, or vice versa.
The company has satellite offices in Seattle and Palm Springs, and both Jason and Keith spend significant time on the road seeing clients. The firm has accounts in 23 states and six foreign countries, including Dubai, Egypt and Italy.
Both took the time recently to share the story of their success with Life Insurance Selling.
1. Jason, I understand you got your start in the industry back in college. What first drew you to the insurance business?
Jason Dudum: While in college (at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo), I never imagined a career in the insurance industry. I always wanted to do something to help people. I also wanted the freedom in life to be my own boss, travel around the world, and spend time with my family. After interviewing for a summer internship with a major insurance company, I thought a career in life insurance would help me achieve these goals.
2. Did you help lead Keith toward the business, or did he find it on his own?
Jason: When I graduated from college and started in the business full-time, my brother Keith was working with Morgan Stanley as a stock broker. Keith was already developing his financial skills and client relationships. When we decided to go into business together and establish Dudum Financial, it was a very natural transition for both of us.
3. Tell us the circumstances of how the two of you came to start your own business in 1998.
Jason: I was putting in a lot of hours as a captive agent and seeing a lot of the potential profit go to the agency. There were also underwriting constraints that limited me on who I could work with. I had a handful of clients that I was not able to help because of health problems and they were able to buy elsewhere. Couple that fact with a limited product offering under the captive system, and it was an easy decision to go independent.
4. Both of you have obviously risen to be top producers much faster and at a much younger age than most. What were some of the key events or milestones that propelled you on your way?
Keith Dudum: While there were not any real "milestones" or "turning points," there has been a constant progression that has occurred throughout our careers. We have been in business now for more than a decade and each year has provided more success than the previous one. The main reason for that has been the constant drive to achieve more. If we sell 200 policies one year, then we think we should sell 300 the next and 450 the year after that. We have never allowed ourselves to become complacent and we set our goals extremely high.
5. Was qualifying for MDRT's Top of the Table a big goal, or was it more of just a natural consequence of hard work?
Jason: While we never consciously set out to make Top of the Table, once we made it, it has become an annual expectation for us. We have always focused on working hard and taking care of our clients, and the rewards have followed.
6. How has qualifying for Top of the Table helped you professionally?
Jason: Top of the Table has afforded us the opportunity to learn from some of the best in the business from all over the world in the areas of practice management, sales ideas and technical knowledge. After having been members now for numerous years, it is exciting to now be part of that group providing the ideas and topics for TOT. I continue to be involved with the Program Committee and Keith has spoken at numerous industry events. Previously I served on two MDRT committees, helping to get younger members involved in this great organization.
7. Did you have any influential mentors? Do you follow any types of sales or prospecting systems?
Keith: While we do have mentors in this industry, their influence is mainly on the technical and product side. Our drive and determination that helped to build the business was really passed on to us through the work ethic of our father and grandfathers. They were each entrepreneurs that taught us about hard work, dedication and commitment to your clients. Our prospecting system, which we learned from our father, is a "friendship first" philosophy. We become friends with our clients first, establishing and building a relationship. We never want to be thought of as a "transactional business." There have been times when we offer sporting or entertainment event tickets to a client and they ask us if we are going with them. In other words, we earn our referrals instead of asking for them.
8. Tell us about your selling process, from how an initial meeting is typically set up to closing.
Jason: We use the two-appointment sale. We never meet with a prospect already having a sale in mind; we meet with a notepad and a pen to simply gather information. The goal of this meeting is to ask a lot of questions and start developing the client relationship. We then will set up a follow-up meeting where we present ideas on how to help the client reach his or her goals. At this point, we have provided enough information and have addressed the major concerns; a sale should naturally follow.
9. How important is prospecting for new clients to you these days, and how has it changed over the past decade?
Keith: Obviously, when we first started we would meet with anyone and everyone, and then continually follow up until a sale was either made or lost. I remember using my checkbook to prospect for clients. In my mind, the easiest people to approach would be the people I had done business with -- the people I wrote checks to. For someone just starting out, it was a great way to sharpen my skills and learn my craft ... and you know, it really worked. As time went on and our client base expanded, we have become more selective and particular about the type of prospect we meet with. We have learned that if someone is to purchase a policy from you they "must care." If they don't care, then you are better off not wasting your time trying to chase them down -- just move on to the next opportunity. Currently, our prospecting for new clients now evolves from our established relationships with our top clients.
10. Do you classify your clients into any sort of A/B/C-type system? And how do you service existing clients? (annual reviews? client appreciation events?)
Jason: We do. We have an A/B/C system where our A clients are contacted on a monthly basis by either Keith or myself. These can include lunch meetings, dropping donuts off at the client's office, or simply a catch-up phone call. Our B clients are contacted on a quarterly basis by our licensed staff. Our C clients receive general correspondence from our firm annually.
11. I've heard that the two of you work long hours, arriving early and leaving late. Tell us about how your days are spent during a typical week.
Jason: The typical day starts at around 7 a.m. for us. We usually set aside the first hour of the morning to review business with our brokerage manager. The rest of our staff gets in around 8 a.m. and we see appointments both in the office and at locales more convenient for our clients. In the late afternoon we try to schedule any non-client conference calls or business matters. While the staff usually leaves around 5 p.m., Keith and I will then begin to set appointments or prepare for client dinners or functions. We really try to see our A clients and prospects as often as we can under whatever circumstance may arise. Lunch, dinner, sporting and philanthropic events -- they all serve to strengthen our relationships and lead to future business opportunities.
12. Explain how each of your practices complements the other and what types of synergies this creates for Dudum Financial.
Keith: With me focusing on employee benefits for corporations, and Jason focusing on individual estate, insurance and financial planning, our ideal client is the business owner. This type of client provides an opportunity for both of our respective expertise to be utilized. Once we have cultivated the relationship with this one person (who is also the decision-maker), sales from both of our areas develop naturally.
13. Tell us about the roles of some of the other key people in your organization, and what kind of importance you place on support staff.
Jason: Keith and I both have assistants that help us with our day-to-day responsibilities. We also have a brokerage manager that handles all of our carrier relationships, industry affiliations and broker network. We have dedicated account managers at our corporate headquarters as well as each of the satellite offices that provide comprehensive customer service. Keith and I have always taken the approach that in order to be successful, you must have a great support system. With this in mind, we have always hired based on pure talent and potential rather than how experienced an individual was or the specific skill set that the job required. We truly believe that when a talented individual becomes available, it benefits our business to explore a potential relationship, even if we do not have the immediate need for their services.
14. What's it like being in business with your brother -- is there any type of sibling rivalry going on in terms of production goals or otherwise building the business?
Jason: Keith and I come from a competitive sports background. He played Division I college football (at both San Diego State and Saint Mary's College) and I was an accomplished collegiate golfer (at Cal Poly-SLO), so we are both really competitive by our nature. We challenge each other to work harder, close bigger cases, and establish stronger relationships. While the occasional conflict can arise, it is never anything that adversely affects the way we work together. We are brothers first and foremost and business partners second.
15. What are each of your interests/hobbies away from work, and how has your workload/level of success hurt/helped you in pursuing those interests? Are you able at this point to enjoy the fruits of your labors, or are you working so much that those types of things are on the back burner at this point?
Keith: Luckily for both of us we are effectively able to mix our personal interests with our business interests. We each love playing golf and are members of local country clubs, which allows us to spend a lot of time with our friends and clients on the course. We also love to travel to our different office locales to spend time with our staff and help in the development of each of the three locations. At some point each of us will settle down to family life, but currently our practice remains our main focus.
16. What meetings/conferences do you regularly attend, and what do you get out of them?
Jason: We attend numerous conferences annually. These include MDRT Top of the Table, two broker-dealer conferences (the annual conference and leader's club), NAILBA (National Association of Independent Life Brokerage Agencies), and the International Forum. These conferences can cause time constraints when it comes to client meetings. However, nothing can replace the conversations we have with other top producers finding out what's working and not working for them. This time is invaluable as we also further develop relationships with our major life insurance carriers.
17. Tell us about your community involvement, and what it means to you or your business.
Jason: I am a national board member for the archdiocese of our church. This role requires me to travel quite a bit but also allows for excellent natural networking opportunities. When getting involved in your community, always focus on the work at hand. The relationships you develop will turn into sales opportunities, but they can never be the focus.
Keith: I take an active role in alumni events for my university where I speak often to graduating business majors concerning current economic conditions and opportunities. I like to think that when these young aspiring business people see someone not much older than themselves taking an active leadership role, they can't help but picture themselves in a similar position.
18. Any advice for other young producers out there who aspire to reach the Top of the Table?
Keith: You don't make money sitting at your desk and reading the newspaper. You have to get out there and see the people. One of the most important things I learned early on in my career was taught to me by a legend in our industry, and while I was looking for the secret to success, he explained to me that all I needed to do was "see the people." This was the best advice I have ever been given, and my brother and I follow it to this day.
19. Do you think the two of you will still be running Dudum Financial in 10 years? Are you both in it for the long haul, or do either of you see yourself getting into another venture?
Keith: Absolutely. We both love what we do. There is no reason to think that we won't be doing this in 20 years, let alone 10. We are both in our early 30s with no plans to stop any time soon. You know, over the past decade we have been fortunate enough to establish a successful practice and provide an important service. There is something very fulfilling about going to work and helping people preserve their wealth and legacy. When we deliver proceeds from a life insurance policy, we realize just how important our jobs are. Providing security for our client's children and children's children is a great feeling and one that keeps us so firmly committed to this business.
20. Anything else you would like to add?
Jason: The most important key to success in my opinion is persistence. Whether you are working on an underwriting offer or developing new client relationships, I have found that having a positive attitude and the belief that you will succeed can mean all the difference in the world. Keith and I never go into a new venture believing anything other than success will follow. Sure there may be instances where it seems like the deck is stacked against you; in those instances we just work harder. We may not succeed in everything we set out to do, but we will never fail for lack of trying. If you take this type of approach in business and life, more often than not you will come out on the winning end.
