We’re coming up on the year mark of the unprecedented shutdown of businesses everywhere to reduce the spread of the Covid-19 virus. For final expense insurance agents, that meant the implementation of tele-sales. For many of us, moving from our very in-person, social jobs to a virtual work environment was a big adjustment—sometimes, a negative one. One final expense agent writes about her experiences over the last year compared to what she expected them to look like. You may find some similarities as you reflect on your own sales since the pandemic started!
Expectation #1: Clients will be wary and mistrustful
I thought that my final expense clients, especially new ones, would have a hard time building trust with me over the phone. I was worried that I wouldn’t be able to make a personal connection without physically being in person. Although this was challenging for me at first, I actually found new and different ways to build trust with new leads. Since I was focused on this element specifically, I found myself asking my clients questions about their personal lives and actually listening to and remembering the answers. We connected over Covid and the different ways our lives had changed. I took time with each call; since tele-sales had become my main focus, I made them more of a priority. The quality of my calls improved a lot, and I found I was making personal connections and building trust, even over the phone!
Expectation #2: People won’t want to talk to me
I’ve never felt like telesales have been my strong suit. Over the phone I felt spammy, robotic, and annoying. I always wanted to start by apologizing, and I often found myself lost for words. After the first few weeks of struggling over the phone, I recorded one of my presentations and took some notes on my “performance.” It was clear to me that my trepidation about telesales was affecting my ability to communicate effectively. So I practiced! I worked on my tone and speed to sound more confident. I rearranged the script I was using to make my introduction more concise. I added more personal questions. I even changed the greeting I was using. In reality, after I made these changes, I was connecting with more people than ever over the phone.
Expectation #3: My sales will go way down this year
I was sure that final expense insurance would be the last thing on people’s minds during a global pandemic, what with the economic impacts and healthcare implications. However, I couldn’t have been more wrong. For better or worse, Covid really caused a lot of people to consider how uncertain life can be. This harsh reality has really hit us hard. I’ve been so grateful to be able to offer people some comfort in this time of uncertainty by setting them up with a solid final expense insurance plan. I’ve found that my leads have been more open-minded and receptive to my message because of what we’re experiencing as a society these days.
