Turning Prospects Into Clients: Are These INs Keeping You Out’

Year by year, it becomes increasingly challenging to secure appointments with new prospects. Therefore, it also becomes essential that you convert most prospects into sales. Yet studies indicate that even senior agents close only about one third of their new prospects. Failing a sale, you remain on the outside, and standing against you are several INs that conspire to keep you out. Listed below are examples of INs and the antidotes that can neutralize each of them, allowing you to close more sales. To sell new prospects more successfully, you must master antidotes to all the INs that are keeping you out.

INdifference
Many prospects lack interest in, or concern about, insurance products and services you have available. Whether they are unaware of problems, in denial, out of touch or preoccupied with fighting the fires of daily life, they see nothing to be gained by working with you.

Antidote: Stimulate prospects to envision a pleasing difference from their current situation, then show them how to achieve it. Third-party concerns are extremely effective in highlighting the opportunities your prospects commonly desire. They paint word pictures or stories about unnamed third parties who confronted a situation or looked for a better opportunity similar to your prospect, and succeeded with your help. Conclude with a directive probe to confirm the prospect’s similar interest and open the discussion.

For example, imagine you are talking with a prospect that seems indifferent to expanding his current liability coverage. Since he is the CEO of a medium-sized corporation, you try this third-party concern: “Joe, many of my clients are finding it difficult to secure new board members because of potential personal liability risks. Have you faced a similar situation?” Prospect: “One of my best board prospects just refused to run.”

Voila! You just converted an indifferent prospect into a receptive candidate for directors and officers liability insurance. Do a little prep work prior to your interviews, and third-party concerns will help convert indifference into invitations to tell prospects how you can be of help. The first law of sales says: “Find out what prospects really want, show them where it is, and they’ll move heaven and earth to get it.”

INcumbents
Many prospects feel loyal to their incumbent agent. Therefore, even when a new prospect is dissatisfied enough to initiate the contact with you, your basis for a successful sale must be something in addition to offering good coverage at a super-low premium.

Antidote: A global question is just the tool to help you drive a wedge of dissatisfaction between prospects and their incumbent agents, without the need for you to criticize the incumbent in any way. Since the only answers to global questions indicate unmet needs, they ferret out areas of dissatisfaction or opportunity. They also establish a competitive arena based more on your knowledge, products and superior service than on any other factor. Here are two powerful examples you can use or adapt to drive wedges: “If you were to consider changing agents, what are the three most important factors you’d consider in making the final decision?” Or, “If you were to change carriers, what are the three most important improvements you’d like to make?”

On the flip side, the superlative service and the personal relationships you develop with current clients will help prevent competitors from driving a wedge between you and them. Renewals and repeat business are your rewards. You’re in!

INability to buy
Prospects may lack buying authority or money, or the timing may not be right for them. When any one of these crucial points of disqualification slip under your radar detector, you will be ticketed for reckless selling and fined the commission on a lost sale.

Antidote: If the relationship between you and a prospect is built on mutual trust and respect, he or she may become your ally. An ally tells you “the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth” in order to help you get the business. Asking an ally the right questions encourages them to coach you by providing honest and forthright answers. As part of every sale, ask qualification questions similar to the following prior to presenting your proposal:

To verify buying authority, ask: “In addition to yourself, who else will be involved in making the decision?” Or, “Please describe the process your company will follow in selecting a new broker?” To verify financial ability, ask: “How would you characterize your budget?” Or, “Roughly, how much are you paying now in premiums?” To assure that you face no timing issues or other deal breakers, ask: “If my policy (or plan/proposal) meets all your needs, is there anything that might keep you from going ahead with it?”

You can make presentations to anyone, but only qualified prospects can buy. To avoid heartache and wallet break, thoroughly qualify every prospect prior to presenting your solutions.

INertia
Prospects are resistant to change, seeking to maintain the status quo. This is in accord with the law of physics that states, “A body at rest tends to remain at rest.” Until prospects feel a desire for relief of pain or seek higher levels of pleasure, physics remains in charge, keeping you out.

Antidote: The antidote is two-pronged. First, ask enough probing questions to fully diagnose the pain and second, describe concrete benefits that clearly relieve it. Many agents are skilled at eliciting indications of pain from prospects, and then they fumble the ball by offering abstract benefit statements in lieu of the concrete benefits they could describe if they would diagnose the effects of the pain more fully.

The Huthwaite research detailed in the book, SPIN Selling, found the deeper salespeople drilled down into needs, the more successful they tended to be. The least successful heard a pain disclosure and quickly promised a solution similar to this poor example:

Prospect: “We’re looking for an agent who will provide good service.” (pain)

Agent: “I assure you that my service is excellent. For instance ….”

Your competitors will likely make a similar abstract benefit claim “excellent service.” You can counter that claim by drilling down after the disclosure, beginning with this elaboration probe, “Tell me about the service you desire.” In the example, the client said, “Good service.” What does that mean? A little drilling would have revealed the prospect is really seeking an agent who will provide him or her with an integrated plan of coverages and investment options.

The time you spend drilling down the pain-or-pleasure issue will help you present your solution in concrete terms that allow prospects to see clearly how you meet needs as they describe them. Inertia disappears and you get the sale.

INaccessibility
Prospects, many of whom are shielded by gatekeepers trained to rebuff your approaches, are likely to be unresponsive to your voice and e-mail inquiries. With so many agents trying to reach them with various sales offers, prospects are forced to screen out most calls from strangers and allow in only calls from trusted friends.

Antidote: The antidote is obvious, if not easily accomplished. Remember what their mothers always told them: “Don’t talk to strangers!”

The prospects you want to convert to clients frequent social clubs, service group meetings, industry events, educational seminars, houses of worship, sporting events, alumni meetings, musical events, youth activities and other open gatherings. Brush up your networking skills and your 30-second introduction, and join potential prospects in safe activities and venues where they get to know you on a favorable–and personal–basis. After a suitable time, your prospecting calls will be accepted because you have become a valued friend with mutual interests.

For a quick injection of accessibility, nothing beats a strong referral. Your referrer calls a prospect on your behalf to introduce the excellent work you do, and suggests an appointment over breakfast or lunch to get acquainted. (Naturally, you are the host.) Your referrer talks about the superlative service you have provided as his agent, and you are in.

To enjoy rapid, open-door access to 15 prospects, ask each of five friends to introduce you to three people they influence. Try this request: “Joe, if you were to go into the insurance business tomorrow, who are the first three people you would call to tell them the good news?”

A few hours spent each week developing friendly contacts with future prospects removes the IN and gives you accessibility.

INsecurity
Prospects may lack trust, confidence and comfort in your recommendations. Therefore, they stall and waffle to avoid the risks and consequences inherent in making a decision.

An unrelated study indicated that nearly two-thirds of price objections were actually unrelated to price. They were prompted by the buyers’ fear of consequences if they made a poor or unpopular buying decision. The same obstacles are often found by agents and brokers representing smaller, specialized or regional insurance carriers. Those responsible for buying are insecure because the provider doesn’t have a familiar name. But you can overcome this obstacle by implementing some business tactics that have proven successful over the years.

Antidote: No single antidote is sufficient to give buyers a secure feeling, but a combination of the following actions will provide a large dose of assurance:

–Maintain the highest levels of integrity in speech and action;

–Remember that prospects favor those whom they know, like and trust. Disclose enough personal information about yourself that prospects can feel they know and like the real you;

–Provide references and testimonial letters describing your track record before you ask them to buy;

–Early in the sales process, provide information about the credibility and strength of your company and describe your qualifications (e.g., CPCU) and the services you’ll provide before, during and after the sale;

–Complete a thorough needs analysis prior to presenting your solution;

–Apply creativity to develop unique insurance or benefit solutions to the issues prospects want solved;

–Close each sale with complete confidence in your recommendations.

Some level of prospect insecurity is involved in most new sales. To counteract that, you will need to plan multiple ways of identifying and providing solutions to your prospects’ issues. Relieving their insecurity prevents you from being left out.

INsufficient differentiation
If prospects see you and the incumbent agent as apples-to-apples, you lose. Whenever there is no clear difference between you and the prospect’s current agent, incumbent advantage and inertia will combine to keep you out.

Antidote: No single action produces a miracle for differentiating yourself. Listed below is a powerful combination of ingredients that will give you a huge advantage and set you apart from other agents who may be pursuing the same business:

–Ask global questions and offer third-party concerns to identify issues the other agents may have overlooked;

–Probe deeply into each important issue, allowing prospects to describe details and their feelings in their own words;

–Base your presentation on concrete rather than abstract terms. Pepper your presentation by dramatizing the solution to each prospect’s individual situation;

–Qualify for educational and industry designations;

–Create unique ways to describe your services and plans;

–And, most of all, avoid preparing apples-to-apples quotes, hoping a low price will fetch you the business. Not likely! The incumbent will get a “second look,” counter your price and you’ll remain out.

When prospects perceive uniqueness in you, your products and your agency or brokerage, price ceases to be the major factor in their buying decision. In short, they begin to buy you rather than your products. Remember that aphorism, and begin marching to the beat of a different drummer.

INternet
The expansion of e-commerce is dramatically affecting the lives of transactional agents; those who primarily promote a product or provide quotes during sales calls. Their jobs are being eliminated.

Antidote: Agents who quickly improve their needs analysis skills to sell more consultatively will add buyer value and enjoy even greater rewards than they do now. Providing the following list of eight value-added services to your prospects helps make you indispensable to them:

1. Diagnose known and unknown needs and opportunities.
2. Provide advice that leads to more satisfying solutions.
3. Customize the solutions to meet prospects’ specific personal needs.
4. Act as the client’s advocate.
5. Provide superlative service.
6. Provide implementation assistance.
7. Follow up for client satisfaction.
8.Solve additional problems by granting prospects access to your relationship network.
9. Share knowledge such as Best Practices.

The focus required to eliminate the eight INs that can keep you out of so many sales is considerable. Paying attention to each of the myriad details required by the antidotes may seem overwhelming at first, but I assure you the effort you exert each day to master them makes the next day–and the next sale–easier. Soon all the processes will become natural habits and will come to you reflexively. The alternative is to get left out.

Conrad Elnes is the chairman of the board and lead sales trainer for Sales Training Institute Inc. and STI International. For more informa-
tion, visit www.salesinstitute.com.

Topics Agencies