Senior Market Advisor April 01, 2008

Free Product Information

Feature

  • The incredible, evolving annuity

    By Joseph Finora

    Very few products in this industry have evolved like that of the annuity, which has come to take on a variety of shapes and forms while promising to become increasingly flexible as people's future needs continue to change. "Variable annuities we

  • The long view

    By David Port

    For an established product trading in a mature market, a few percentage points of growth do not a good year make. But in a still-maturing business such as long term care insurance, where the gap between growth potential and actual performance has y

  • 1035 exchanges involving annuities

    By Peter Weinbaum

    As flight attendants always tell us, contents may shift during flight. Client circumstances, as well as the financial environment, have a tendency to change. Contracts that were suitable when purchased may no longer be effective today. Meanwhile,

  • The best-kept secret

    By Curtis Cole

    The life settlement industry is getting a lot of welldeserved attention these days, but the focus has been one-sided. Everyone, it seems, is looking for agents and brokers who have clients with unwanted life insurance policies to sell. But let me

Up Front

  • Spring training

    By Daniel Williams

    It seems difficult to comprehend, as snow continues to fall every few days in Denver as I'm writing this in early March, but Major League Baseball's spring training is underway. Then again, the teams are taking those first baby steps for what they

That's Life

  • Courage of their convictions

    By Philip E. Harriman

    "To see what is right, and not do it, is want of courage, or of principle."-- Confucius As the American presidential election season gets into full swing, it is both astonishing and troubling to see that neither major party is talking about

Coach's Corner

  • Keep your cool, close with confidence

    By Kelly Shaw

    The summary trial close is the final step in closing the sale, which I identify as the "element of hurry." It consists of two parts. First, summarize and review the main points of your presentation. List all the features and benefits that they have

Profitable Practice

  • Living your mission

    By Norm Trainor

    The following is based on one of Norm Trainor's clients, Joel Goodhart. When I first started coaching Joel Goodhart, he was a Top of the Table advisor and was already a peak performer. Yet, like many successful financial advisors, Joel has a

LTCI Insider

  • Can you afford the risk?

    By Margie Barrie

    Note: This column is a continuation of the information I shared in last month?? 1/2 s column. To read that column, please click here. Q. I work with a wealthy clientele and when I mention LTCI insurance to them, many of them reply that they have

Annuity Advisor

  • Claim the obvious benefit

    By Jack Marrion

    Bayer Aspirin advertises they have an ingredient that will help protect people from heart attacks. The ingredient is called aspirin and at my local drugstore they charge me 8 cents a tablet for Bayer's brand. The drugstore also sells generic

Marketing Playbook

  • The Web-based playing field is changing

    By Maribeth Kuzmeski

    Getting the word out about your firm can be a challenging endeavor. In the past, advisors have used brochures and business cards, seminars and direct mail. Today, the way information is being disseminated about advisors is changing dramatically.

Know More

  • Is your practice crisis ready?

    By Dr. Larry Barton

    When tragedy strikes our communities, we look to expert first responders to rush to our aid: without well-equipped and trained police, firefighters and EMTs, we'd be in harm's way when we need support at our side. Unfortunately, most senior

Practice Management

  • Guidelines for establishing advisory boards

    By Andrew J. Sherman

    The quality of a growing financial services company's executive and management team and the staff selected by that team are critical to your growing company's long term success and to meeting growth objectives. But who can the senior management team

Ethics in Action

  • When the bubble bursts, it's time for champagne.

    By Steven McCarty

    As I write this column, it's early February. The media has been chock full of ominous economic reports. Unemployment is edging higher. Growth is slowing, yet inflation is obvious. Home equity is evaporating as housing prices plummet. Credit card

The Motivated Seller

  • The truth about lying

    By John Boe

    Some people can't tell a lie, others can't tell the truth, and unfortunately, most people can't tell the difference. Can you tell when someone is pulling the wool over your eyes? Whether you're a homicide detective questioning a suspect, a manager

Compliance Watch

  • Seminars and credentials go under the microscope

    By David Hollander

    Note: FINRA's Regulatory Notice 07-43 echoes a series of complaints and issues in the securities sales area that were addressed in California in Senate Bill 620 with respect to the sale of life insurance, including annuities, to seniors. A leading

The Close

  • The ins and outs of IMOs

    By Dean Zayed

    Last month I began a multi-part series in which I hope to acknowledge and congratulate some of the players in this great industry. I highlighted the independent financial advisor as an emerging and impressive participant who has overcome severe odds

Feedback

  • NAPFA to SEC: More consumer education needed

    By Staff Writer

    One of the primary roles of the Securities and Exchange Commission is to protect investors. The National Association of Personal Financial Advisors is encouraging the SEC to make disclosures easier to understand.Since 1983 NAPFA, the leading

Seniors Speak Out

Vitals

  • Term premiums fall, others level

    By Staff Writer

    Consumers have seen premiums for term life insurance fall for the last decade or more, fueled by longer life expectancies and, according to the Insurance Information Institute, decreasing death rates in the 25-to-44 age group. While term rates will

  • Companies renew ethics membership

    By Staff Writer

    The insurance marketplace Standards Association, a standards-setting organization for the life, annuity and long term care insurance marketplace, has announced that several Prudential companies have qualified to renew their IMSA memberships.

  • Savings behavior, confidence not aligned

    By Staff Writer

    MassMutual wanted to know if the amount people save toward retirement equate to an appropriate level of confidence? To find out, the company conducted a study that included responses from 17,000 people at 2,300 MassMutual-administered

  • Views of retirement waver

    By Staff Writer

    The ideal retirement age in the United States is 58. But, the most-often anticipated age for retirement is 64, a full six years later than most would like to call it quits. That is even though the average age Americans begin saving for retirement is

  • Mortality information beefed up

    By Staff Writer

    The American population continues to get older, and as it does, life insurers are going to need ever-better information about older Americans. Tillinghast, the insurance consulting practice of Towers Perrin, released its "Older Age Mortality Study"

  • Retirees can't find the map

    By Staff Writer

    Ninety-five percent of retirees who have worked with an advisor in the first two years of retirement found that professional help valuable. That's the good news. The bad news, according to a survey from Thrivent Financial, is that only 22 percent of

  • Steps taken to protect seniors

    By Staff Writer

    Senior Advisors know that it only takes a few bad apples to draw unrelenting scrutiny of everyone's actions. That is happening in the industry right now, and regulatory agencies have taken note. A new initiative has grown out of the atmosphere of

  • Giving annuities their fair due

    By Staff Writer

    The national association for Fixed Annuities is leading the charge to make sure annuity products are fairly represented in mainstream media outlets, writing letters to newspaper editors and commenting on any proposed legislation at the federal

  • LTCI dividend paid again

    By Staff Writer

    While some companies are finding it difficult to stay in the long term care insurance market, one company has managed to find a way to pay its fourth consecutive dividend. New York Life Insurance Co. announced that its LTCSelect Premier product will

New Products

  • Term ROP introduced in NY

    By Staff Writer

    ING, through ReliaStar Life Insurance Co. of New York, has introduced ING Return of Premium Term NY, a policy that gives individuals death benefit protection and the ability to get their premiums back at the end of the term. Policyholders get level

  • Dental plan brings affordable coverage

    By Staff Writer

    Poor oral health has been tied to myriad other health problems, as mouth problems become larger bodywide problems. Seniors especially need to take care of their teeth and gums. To that end, eHealth Companion has introduced eHealth Companion Dental,

  • Genworth enhances LTCI policy

    By Staff Writer

    Long Term Care Insurance is at the top of many lists as one way to alleviate the strain on Medicare and Medicaid. Genworth Financial Inc. is one company working to get LTCI into the spotlight. Its popular Cornerstone Advantage product has been

Red Flag Reminder

  • Health insurance scammers return

    By Staff Writer

    They're back . . . health care hucksters who attempt to part your clients from their health-insurance premiums. If the U.S. economy falls into a recession, you'll probably be seeing more, so warn your clients now.In the last wave of health care