A Note Card A Day - A Simple System To Get More Done

On the way home from a great meeting in Phoenix with mentor/coach/hero, Van Mueller, I was thinking about all of things that needed to get sone in my office. Selling, marketing, servicing, putting out fires, prospecting, training new staff...the list is endless and, if not managed, leaves you heading home at the end of a very BUSY, but not very productive day. There is a big difference between being busy and being productive, usually only the latter grows your agency!

So how do you manage your time and efforts in order to have the most productive day possible? You've heard it said many times before - MDRT agents market first, every day - but what method do you use you're spending the right amount of time marketing, the necessary time learning and the needed time preparing? I use a very simple method that I developed called the "Note card System" that helps me make sure I get the most important tasks of the day done AND lets me see and keep track of my goals on a daily basis. The whole thing takes me 3-5 minutes a day and lets me go home feeling like I've won every single day! Here's how it works:

Some of my note cards from 2012

1. Go to your local office supply store and buy the biggest pack of lined note cards you can find. I usually just buy 2,000 at a time so I've got them ready for the whole year.
2. Every morning I start by listing my business goals for the year down the right side of the card. For me, I list how many units I want to write, how much life and annuity premium I'd like to sell, the persistency I want to maintain in my agency. There's no right or wrong goals, just list what you want to accomplish. This step alone will help you increase your production. By writing down your goals for the year every single day before you head into the office will cement in your mind what you are working for and keep you focused on the right things.
3. Down the left side of the card I use the 14 lines to list out the most important things I have to get done - TODAY - to make sure I accomplish my goals. First I list everything that I know I need to accomplish in no particular order. I write them down as I think of them and try to come up with at least 10 things. Then, I prioritize from the most to the least important and usually from the most difficult (or most dreaded) to the easiest so that things get easier throughout the day.
4. As soon as I get to work I start working my way through my list. I've never been able to get through everything in a day, but the things that do not get accomplished get re-evaluated the next morning and added to the next day's list if they still need to get done.

Being a successful agent and growing your agency requires discipline and focus. Having a system in place, even one as simple as the note card system, will help you stay focused on the right things and remind you throughout the day of what you're working for. As an added bonus, the back of the note card gives you a great place to jot down important things throughout the day. I use the back for my "lesson of the day." Before I head home from the office I write down the most important thing I've learned during the day and then use it as a reminder of the lesson the next morning while putting together that day's note card.

A Few One-Liners Used With Success Since Vegas

I've been working on my client language since returning from the 2 day conference in Las Vegas and have had some great success asking my clients old questions in new or different ways. The questions themselves are the same ones that have been used in the life insurance industry for decades, but now that I'm asking them in a new way I'm seeing new results!

New Question 1: I tried this first question the day after returning from Vegas with a young couple who came into the office to sign the application for the insurance on their very first home. My question, "John, if you don't make it home from work tonight, do you want Ashley to lose the home or lose the mortgage?" John's response, "We just bought the house, of course I don't want her to lose it." The result was a mortgage pay-off life insurance policy for both John and Ashley. The entire sales process took less than 2 minutes and now the young family is protected from the financial tragedy of losing their home if either John or Ashley die prematurely.

I've had the opportunity to ask 3 couples that question over the past 2 weeks and two of the couples took action and invested in a plan to pay of the mortgage for their spouse if they die. I feel great about being able to help these young families and can't wait for my next opportunity to ask this great question again.

New Question 2: The second question is in response to the common objection "I can't afford it." There are few things I find more frustrating than spending time with a prospect and learning about their personal situation - the new motorcycle they're so proud of, the boat in the garage for summer fun, or the 5 lattes every week on the way to work - before being told that they just can't afford to protect their family. The new question I had the opportunity to ask a client yesterday fit this situation perfectly; "Ron, may I ask you a question? If it's difficult to afford the premium while you're here, how will Cheryl ever afford the problem when you're gone?"

The result - a second appointment next week to further discuss the options of making sure that Cheryl will be financially protected if Ron doesn't make it home from work.  This was the 4th year in a row Ron gave me the "I can't afford it" excuse, but this is the first time we're getting back together.

Little adjustments in the questions we ask our clients can make a big difference in the answers we receive. Thanks to Van, I'm seeing better results with two new questions that are helping me inspire my clients to take action and protect their families.

Articles And Paperwork From Van Mueller

If you were at the Vegas meeting and listened to Van speak about the challenges that we are facing in America, you know how important it is to share this information with our clients. To help us all do that, Van gave us about 250 articles and ideas to become familiar with and use in our presentations. Here are the links to those articles and ideas. Print them, learn them, use them with your clients and watch your agency grow!

Thanks Van!!

Van's Packet 1: https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B-AKd1hVvbDTWXB5NDdxRkhUejJjNWFRTC16VzI0Zw

Van's Packet 2: https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B-AKd1hVvbDTUGxPeEc3eDBRR2E1RnJVX2NETm4yQQ

High Touch In A High Tech World

Danger Will Robinson, Danger!

I've talked a lot about the importance of using new tools and techniques to keep in touch with clients, most of which being some form of technology.  But it's important to make sure that technology is not your ONLY form of contact with you clients. Clients are people, and people need real-life human interaction to feel loved and special (and you want your clients to feel loved and special)!

It's vital to the success of your agency to find the time and opportunity for increased and improved contact with your clients. If your clients don't receive at least 13 touches from you each year they most likely don't even remember who you are. But it's just as important to make sure those touches are personal, and not just a meaningless letter or video. Your clients want to know that you remember them before they make sure they remember you.

Here are a few ideas to personalize you client contact program and keep your clients happy to hear from you throughout the year:

1. Call your clients twice per year just to check in on them and make sure things are going okay. No cross-selling, no products, just the question of how things are going and the offer to help with anything they need.
2. P.I.R. The Professional Insurance Review is an obvious one, but is often skipped by agents who mistakenly think their clients don't need or want them. Even clients who start out griping about coming in for an annual review usually walk out with a smile on their face and a renewed appreciation for you and your office. If you have clients who refuse to do an annual review, you don't really have a client. At best they are a customer and at worse they are a price shopper with no appreciation for how you take care of their family.
3. Personal notes about clients in newsletters, emails and other communication to hi-lite achievements and client businesses go along way towards making a client feel appreciated. Pick a new client each month and write a short article about how wonderful they are. Include it every piece of communication you do throughout the month (your blog, newsletter, email blasts, mailings, etc.) and give multiple copies to your client so they can share the piece with their friends and family.
4. Personalize your birthday message. Instead of sending a generic birthday card, make a personal video or phone call for your client. A personal message from you on their birthday will do wonders for your relationship with your clients.
5. Thanks a Latte: Pick a client each week to deliver a latte to. The message is easy, "Hi, it's Robert - your favorite insurance agent - and I'm going to be driving past your (home or office) tomorrow on my way to an appointment. I really appreciate our relationship and the work we do for you and I wanted to drop off a latte to say thanks. What's your Starbucks drink of choice?"

These 5 ideas (and the hundreds more like them you can come up with on your own) will go along way towards making you THE insurance and financial advisor your clients think of, remember, and stick with even during challenging times. You can't control the rates you offer your clients but you CAN control the feeling they have about you and your agency. You CAN leave a lasting impression and make sure your clients feel loved and special.

Increase your retention and your referrals by implementing new personal touches to you agency. Do it today!

Robert Edgin