Success or Failure - It's In YOUR Hands!

Running a business today is not an easy task. You have to be on your toes to be successful in today's tough economy and aggressive business environment. Being an independent insurance agent is no different. You will have your good days and your bad days. The key is knowing how to learn from your mistakes and making a positive out of a negative.

While making calls from leads to generate appointments, more times than not, the caller on the other end of the line either already has insurance, has no money to buy insurance, or gets upset because you called them and asked to be put on the DO NOT CALL list. What do you do when this happens? Do you give up because of frustration, or do you use this as an opportunity to learn and improve upon your skills?

Most people, including myself in the beginning, would simply say OK and hang up. But I have learned to make this negative into a positive by addressing any objection with a question. For example, if I get "I already have insurance", I simply follow up with a question, such as "That's great! Do you get it for free, or do you have to pay for it?". By following up each objection with a question, you will 1) not only keep the caller on the line longer, but 2) will force the caller to start thinking about what exactly does this pereson have to offer. Of course, this is not the case 100% of the time but it works for me at least 7 or 8 times out of 10, which is not bad.

You have to learn to take a NEGATIVE and turn it into a POSITIVE. Afterall, most people react out of impulse just to get you out of their hair. But subconsciously, their brain is really telling them to listen to what they are being told. Thus the need to ask questions in response to each objection you get. This, in turn, gives them time to process what their brain is trying to tell them. For me, this usually results in an appointment being scheduled.

No matter what your profession is, every day is filled with new learning opportunities. Some will not be apparent but others will be more obvious. All you need is the insight to identify and take advantage of these priceless opportunities when they present themselves. By doing so will greatly improve your chances for success.

Being PERSISTENT is a very important element in the formula for success. Finally, PROCRASTINATION can be found nowhere in the formula for success, and therefore has no place in a successful business.