Center Of Influence

The general perception of life insurance agents – based on surveys – is that the opportunities for life insurance agents are diminishing. In many respects, this is indeed accurate. However, for those experienced and technically proficient life insurance agents, there are significant new business opportunities that a large percentage of them are failing to capitalize upon.

The majority of larger cases, where life insurance is used to pay estate taxes, these clients often come from centers of influence. The possibility of providing life insurance for a billionaire, for example, will usually occur because an accountant or attorney or some other professional brings in the life insurance agent. This dynamic offers life insurance agents two ways to generate substantially more revenues with ultra-wealthy clients including single-family offices.

One way is by building stronger and more profitable relationships with centers of influence. By and large, the approach most high-end life insurance agents take is not systematic or strategic. Running around from one professional to another with the “latest and greatest” use of life insurance, while common, is mostly ineffectual. Instead, a very targeted process such as street-smart networking can readily result in life insurance agents being sent a steady stream of high-net-worth clients from other professionals.

Creating solid strategic partnerships with centers of influence will certainly result in connecting with more very affluent clients who need their services. This can potentially translate into increased annual revenues of 70% or more. However, to do meaningfully better requires proactively working with these centers of influence to mine their clientele

Most of the time, the center of influence will run onto a situation – commonly prompted by their ultra-wealthy clients – where life insurance is needed. At these times, they will consider bringing in a talented life insurance agent. For the benefit of everyone involved, by methodically evaluating the high-net-worth clients of a center of influence, almost universally, a sizable number of new and significantly large life insurance needs are uncovered. There are a number of ways to do this, and the using the Whole Client Model is one of those ways.

Recognizing that – while there are vastly different calibers of life insurances agents – life insurance is a commodity. Moreover, there are no truly proprietary strategies, especially in an industry that is known for joint-case work. Consequently, the ability to do a considerable amount of new business is a function of skillful business development. Processes like street-smart networking and the Whole Client Model can be instrumental in enabling life insurance agents to increase their revenues by 70% or more – often much more.