I have had requests to write about getting the "big ones." Getting large cases to write requires advanced skill sets as well as advanced knowledge about products. Those subjects are not what this article is about. It's about how to find them.
Large cases typically begin with relationships. I like to begin relationships with easy-to-sell ideas. That's why term insurance is my favorite product. Establishing a relationship can be accomplished by almost any means. If you establish the relationship first, the rest happens with time and consistent contact with people.
Back in the '70s, when I was in the printing business, I remember an insurance agent who became a great friend of the owner of the company where I worked. He came into the office about once every two months and visited. I'm not sure that he ever sold the owner a policy. I don't think he did, but I know that he sold several key employees significant policies and he never seemed to be trying very hard. While he visited the owner, he simply got to know the other employees as he made his visits. I'm sure that, as he drove around the city, he just stopped in hundreds of businesses to visit and created clients everywhere.
He wasn't a backslapper, just cordial and pleasant. He always wore a suit and always seemed to be very interested in what the employees did. I think he took notes in his car before he pulled away because he was able to greet each employee by name when he came by. Resistance dropped on each visit and he became a fixture after a few visits. That was very effective and it seemed to be a very pleasant way to do business.
I don't believe that anyone from our company ever socialized with him after hours. So the business relationship that he established was founded on friendship, but apparently did not strain his family life.
As you fill your contact file with prospects, keep those contacts active. Stay in touch with them. Keep notes on discussions so that each subsequent conversation is cordial and pleasant. Keep accurate notes on discussions of importance and details about your prospects' personal lives. It's always great when someone asks me about the outcome of problems with one of my loved ones or business situation. It shows that they care.
Each time you visit, the contact should feel comfortable, so be patient. You should be in this for the long haul. Remember that face time in prospecting or selling is all the same. This is a people business. You don't have to be the life of the party, but being capable of talking about another person's interests is important.
One last thing: Business owners don't want you to waste their time. In our current economic environment, staying in business means you're successful. Business owners are under a great deal of stress. They don't have time for nonsense. They love to talk about their business and, as time goes on, if they don't feel pressured to do business, they will begin to confide in you as a friend.
Develop the art of listening to people's troubles with an empathetic ear and business will take care of itself.
Kim L. Magdalein is a producer and owner of PresentYourPractice.com. He entered the industry in 1985, and went into private practice in 2001 serving the Jacksonville, Fla., retirement community. He has personally presented hundreds of seminars and created a thriving practice. He created Present Your Practice in 2004 to serve producers with seminar productions and methods for optimizing seminar attendance with qualified prospects. He can be reached at (800)909-9894.
