Senior Market Advisor March 01, 2008

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Feature

  • Annuity taxation primer - The good, the bad and the obvious

    By David Port

    As tax time looms, you're confident that you have a handle on the tax ramifications - positive and negative - of annuities on those of your clients who own them. After all, there is little mystery and nothing especially new about how the tax code

  • A boomer marketing starter kit

    By Mike Werling

    When two lamps appeared in the steeple of the Old North Church to indicate the British were coming by sea, tradition says, Paul Revere went tearing through the roads outside of Boston shouting "The British are coming," and the situation was dire.

  • For LTCI the future is now

    By Joseph Finora

    Lots of us will need long term care but few of us want to discuss it. It's easy to see why. The idea of needing help to meet one's basic needs is depressing. Throw in the fact that you may not be able to pay for it without exhausting your...

  • The 2008 marketing organization reader survey results

    By Staff Writer

    Competition can work in an advisor's favor. But constantly searching for the perfect MO can mean frequent changes in alliance, hardly an optimal outcome in a business where continuity is the name of the game. Still, change is sometimes necessary. S

  • Converting leads into clients

    By Ed McCarthy

    An experienced senior advisor knows that converting leads to prospects and ultimately to clients can be much more difficult than it appears. In theory, at least, anyone above a specified age qualifies as a lead: Cynics call that the "fog-a-mirror"

Special Section

Up Front

  • Big changes for now, and moving forward

    By Daniel Williams

    "Change is inevitable, growth is intentional," according to writer Glenda Cloud. Those looking to succeed in this business (or who have already found success) more than likely are constantly evolving as businesspeople, adapting their talents to

That's Life

  • Teach your children well

    By Philip E. Harriman

    "Hindsight is always 20-20."~ Billy Wilder The idea of time travel has fascinated man for centuries. No doubt, the invention and use of such a machine would significantly alter the course of history. But imagine the potential personal

Coach's Corner

  • Personal practice makes perfect

    By Kelly Shaw

    The next element in closing the sale is the element of powerful presentation and a three-option close. Remember this: some of the best-paid performers in the world are top-notch salespeople. These top people have one thing in common, when they give

Profitable Practice

  • Making your income predictable

    By Norm Trainor

    The following is based on one of The Covenant Group's clients, Colin. All of the names and telling details have been changed. When Matt helped Colin prepare his income and expense pro forma, he gave him the solution to his greatest business

LTCI Insider

  • The downside of LTC self-insurance

    By Margie Barrie

    Q. I work with a wealthy clientele and when I mention LTCI insurance to them, many of them reply that they have plenty of money and can afford to self-insure the risk. Can you suggest some ways to counter that objection? A. This is a common

Annuity Advisor

  • GLWBs avoid the full market monte

    By Jack Marrion

    Historically, withdrawing 5 percent or 6 percent each year from your retirement nest egg would have worked most of the time. Unfortunately, when this failed it often failed badly leaving folks with remaining years and no remaining cash. The

Practice Management

  • Choosing the right growth strategy

    By Andrew J. Sherman

    Not everyone always has aspirations to build the next Roman Empire, but everyone wants to see progress from one year to the next, even if it's just in the amount of money they can take home to their families.

Ethics in Action

  • Is your ethics edge getting dull?

    By Steven McCarty

    You're ethical, right? You do thorough fact-finding with clients. You recommend only suitable products. You believe in full disclosure. And since you do these things, your clients believe you are ethical. So what's the problem? The problem is

The Motivated Seller

  • Burn your boat!

    By John Boe

    I believe that the great NFL Hall of Fame coach Vince Lombardi had it right when he said, "The quality of a person's life is in direct proportion to their commitment to excellence, regardless of their chosen field of endeavor." Do you agree with

Compliance Watch

  • Each senior is different

    By David Hollander

    This will be the first of three articles relating to FINRA's (previously NASD) NTM 07-43, published in September, 2007. This article will focus on the issue of suitability as it relates to seniors. Depending on which state you live in, an

The Close

  • Rise of the independents

    By Dean Zayed

    I feel it is high time to give accolades to some of the "players" in the multi-trillion-dollar financial services industry players that I think have overcome incredible odds to achieve great success.

Feedback

  • AHIA backs reformation, not replacement

    By Staff Writer

    The Association of Heath Insurance Advisors, NAIFA's health and employee benefits advocate, applauds the President's call for reliance on the private health insurance market in his recent State of the Union Address, as AHIA has long supported the

Seniors Speak Out

Vitals

  • MDRT production amounts released

    By Staff Writer

    To qualify for MDRT'S 2009 Round Table, U.S.- based professionals must earn at least $87,900 in eligible commissions paid to qualify, or they must have $175,800 in eligible paid premium or new money invested.Court of the Table aspirants must prove

  • Memory affects ability to imagine

    By Staff Writer

    As older people's memory fades, so does their ability to imagine future scenarios. A Harvard University study, published in Psychological Science, looked at the correlation between episodic memory and the capacity for imagination and found they

  • Cost containment, Efficiency can improve

    By Staff Writer

    Insurance industry executives are constantly hunting for ways to improve efficiency and cut costs to remain competitive. Deloitte has done some of the work for them, with its 12th annual benchmarking studies, LIONS 2007 and ACES 2007, which look

New Products

  • Annuity aimed at smokers

    By Staff Writer

    Building the means to have a solid retirement income is no easy task. The job is even more difficult for smokers, who often are denied life insurance or annuity coverage, or are forced to pay much higher rates for that coverage. One company has

  • UL products enhanced

    By Staff Writer

    Life Insurance co. of the Southwest announced improvements to two of its universal life products, Harbor and Horizon UL products. The Harbor policies have restructured guarantees, meaning a 5 percent guaranteed interest rate for the first 10

  • Rider improves cash surrender value

    By Staff Writer

    Liquidity can be a problem for wealthy individuals who need large amounts of life insurance protection. AXA Equitable saw that as a problem and came up with a life insurance rider meant to alleviate the issue for wealthy policyholders. Its Cash

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