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Clearwater, FL 33763
23 Ways to Sharpen Your Sales Performance
Too many salespeople either fail completely or never really succeed because they think selling is about them. It isn’t.
It’s about customers — and customers only. Here are 23 ways to improve your sales performance by getting better focused on customers:
1. Look for the demons and dreams
In other words, be alert to a customer’s hopes and fears — what they want to gain and what they don’t want to lose. That’s what they care about, not a sales pitch.
2. Be present
Far too many salespeople are not really there when they’re with customers. Sure, they’re talking and seemingly involved, but they come across as if they’re more interested in making the sale than they are in understanding and satisfying their customers — and customers know it.
Read more...
It’s about customers — and customers only. Here are 23 ways to improve your sales performance by getting better focused on customers:
1. Look for the demons and dreams
In other words, be alert to a customer’s hopes and fears — what they want to gain and what they don’t want to lose. That’s what they care about, not a sales pitch.
2. Be present
Far too many salespeople are not really there when they’re with customers. Sure, they’re talking and seemingly involved, but they come across as if they’re more interested in making the sale than they are in understanding and satisfying their customers — and customers know it.
Read more...
23 Totally Genius, Little-Known Apps for Work All Salespeople Should Use
Want to instantly get better at life? The answer is sometimes as easy as downloading an app.
These days, there really is an app for everything, from instantly finding any file you’ve ever saved to having your car’s gas tank filled up while you’re at work.
The 23 apps below won’t just make you a more successful salesperson -- they’ll make you a more successful person, period.
Better yet, they’re all relatively undiscovered. You just gained a competitive advantage.
Read more...
These days, there really is an app for everything, from instantly finding any file you’ve ever saved to having your car’s gas tank filled up while you’re at work.
The 23 apps below won’t just make you a more successful salesperson -- they’ll make you a more successful person, period.
Better yet, they’re all relatively undiscovered. You just gained a competitive advantage.
Read more...
Are You a Cold Calling Failure?
If you’re like me, it’s not so much the fact of cold calling that you hate, it’s the results (or lack of) that has you filled with despise.
If eight out of 10 cold calls resulted in a sale, I’m sure you would have a different view of making those cold calls.
So let’s fix the problem.
Why your cold calls are failing
If we are going to come up with a solution, we first need to identify the problem. And when it comes to cold call failures, there’s a whole list of possible culprits.
Here are a few…
Read more...
If eight out of 10 cold calls resulted in a sale, I’m sure you would have a different view of making those cold calls.
So let’s fix the problem.
Why your cold calls are failing
If we are going to come up with a solution, we first need to identify the problem. And when it comes to cold call failures, there’s a whole list of possible culprits.
Here are a few…
Read more...
Efficiency Tips to Help Insurance Agents Boost Their Bottom Line
Efficiency is a major key to the success of each and every insurance agency. But while it seems like an obvious factor to consider, it’s often largely overlooked. The challenge for agents begins with setting priorities and determining the best ways to meet goals. At the end of the day, efficiency is really about improving performance and maximizing time and effort. And it’s something that every agency needs to consciously address.
Here are the top three tips to make your practice run much more efficiently and, in turn, boost your bottom line.
1. Know your client’s motivation
First and foremost, you’ll be more likely to land the sale when you understand the buyer’s reasoning. All too often, agents spend too much time and effort on the hard sell, ignoring what makes each sales opportunity a bit different from the one before.
Learn to maximize your time. Become a better listener, and figure out what makes each client unique. Make sure you’re in command of the situation by quickly educating the client on how the product fits their specific needs. That means approaching the sale from the buyer’s perspective. Break it down and avoid complicated insurance terminology whenever possible. Instead, you should serve as the financial educator.
Read more...
Here are the top three tips to make your practice run much more efficiently and, in turn, boost your bottom line.
1. Know your client’s motivation
First and foremost, you’ll be more likely to land the sale when you understand the buyer’s reasoning. All too often, agents spend too much time and effort on the hard sell, ignoring what makes each sales opportunity a bit different from the one before.
Learn to maximize your time. Become a better listener, and figure out what makes each client unique. Make sure you’re in command of the situation by quickly educating the client on how the product fits their specific needs. That means approaching the sale from the buyer’s perspective. Break it down and avoid complicated insurance terminology whenever possible. Instead, you should serve as the financial educator.
Read more...
The End of 'I'm Not Interested'
Whenever I conduct a live workshop or an online training, invariably someone asks the question “What should I say when my prospect says she’s not interested?” My response is invariably “It’s probably too late.”
Certainly you can try to recover from the “I’m not interested” response. You can gently ask why (in a tone that says you’re confused and really, really want to know the answer).
If you ask why, prospects will explain what they mean, which can be very helpful for fine-tuning your pitch.
If someone says “I’m not interested,” it can mean only one of two things:
Read more...
Certainly you can try to recover from the “I’m not interested” response. You can gently ask why (in a tone that says you’re confused and really, really want to know the answer).
If you ask why, prospects will explain what they mean, which can be very helpful for fine-tuning your pitch.
If someone says “I’m not interested,” it can mean only one of two things:
Read more...
Your Referral Network is Larger Than You Realize
The game Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon teaches us that we are all connected, sometimes in unexpected ways.
Have you ever played the game, “Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon"?
Or perhaps you've seen the Kevin Bacon Visa Check Card ad from 2002? The concept is simple: We’re all connected … sometimes in the most absurd and unbelievable ways.
Finding those connections is key to lead generation and getting referrals.
“Six Degrees of Separation” is a theory posited by psychologist Stanley Milgram in a 1967 study, for which 296 volunteers from Boston and Nebraska attempted to get a document to a Massachusetts stockbroker using only their acquaintances. Sixty-four of those letters reached their target after going through six connected people.
But in the digital age, we don’t need six people to connect us to Kevin Bacon or anyone else. More recent research shows it now takes fewer than five. A 2011 study by Facebook and the University of Milan, which mined data from the social media site’s 721 million active users, found that the number of intermediate links between two strangers — or “degrees of separation” — is now only 4.74. Researchers summarize: “When considering another person in the world, on average, a friend of your friend knows a friend of their friend.”
This is great news for referral sellers! We’re connected to any decision-maker we want to reach by just a few people.
Read more...
Or perhaps you've seen the Kevin Bacon Visa Check Card ad from 2002? The concept is simple: We’re all connected … sometimes in the most absurd and unbelievable ways.
Finding those connections is key to lead generation and getting referrals.
“Six Degrees of Separation” is a theory posited by psychologist Stanley Milgram in a 1967 study, for which 296 volunteers from Boston and Nebraska attempted to get a document to a Massachusetts stockbroker using only their acquaintances. Sixty-four of those letters reached their target after going through six connected people.
But in the digital age, we don’t need six people to connect us to Kevin Bacon or anyone else. More recent research shows it now takes fewer than five. A 2011 study by Facebook and the University of Milan, which mined data from the social media site’s 721 million active users, found that the number of intermediate links between two strangers — or “degrees of separation” — is now only 4.74. Researchers summarize: “When considering another person in the world, on average, a friend of your friend knows a friend of their friend.”
This is great news for referral sellers! We’re connected to any decision-maker we want to reach by just a few people.
Read more...
Marketing: Use What Has Worked and What Is Working
Millennial Jay Stubbs combines old-fashioned networking skills with new-fashioned social media to find and close clients
“Everyone is a prospect until they become your client or you attend their funeral.” This sounds like old-school selling or something you’ll hear watching Glengarry Glen Ross. It is, however, the attitude of one of LIMRA's Top 25 Rising Stars of Distribution Under 40 for 2016. Jay Stubbs is unusually successful for a guy his age, and he's become so by combining historically tried and true marketing and networking techniques with new ideas to reach the next generation. At the same time, he continues to build business with older clients, the ones we’d typically associate as targets of insurance sales. Along the way he's built a business that would make many jealous.
I asked Stubbs what he's done differently to grow his business. His tactics aren't unusual, but he's applying them differently to appeal to different generations. For example, networking is often the bones of growing a financial services business and Stubbs certainly networks a lot. Most people his age aren't great networkers so he instantly stands out.
He's not only networking, but taking leadership roles in his local civic organizations — typically full of older members, so an under-40 participant, again, stands out. And Stubbs doesn't wait his turn for leadership. He immediately seeks responsibility. With responsibility, Stubbs has learned, comes member contact lists, which he judiciously utilizes to further his networking.
Read more...
“Everyone is a prospect until they become your client or you attend their funeral.” This sounds like old-school selling or something you’ll hear watching Glengarry Glen Ross. It is, however, the attitude of one of LIMRA's Top 25 Rising Stars of Distribution Under 40 for 2016. Jay Stubbs is unusually successful for a guy his age, and he's become so by combining historically tried and true marketing and networking techniques with new ideas to reach the next generation. At the same time, he continues to build business with older clients, the ones we’d typically associate as targets of insurance sales. Along the way he's built a business that would make many jealous.
I asked Stubbs what he's done differently to grow his business. His tactics aren't unusual, but he's applying them differently to appeal to different generations. For example, networking is often the bones of growing a financial services business and Stubbs certainly networks a lot. Most people his age aren't great networkers so he instantly stands out.
He's not only networking, but taking leadership roles in his local civic organizations — typically full of older members, so an under-40 participant, again, stands out. And Stubbs doesn't wait his turn for leadership. He immediately seeks responsibility. With responsibility, Stubbs has learned, comes member contact lists, which he judiciously utilizes to further his networking.
Read more...
Millennials Most Likely To Rely On Mom For Health Info
LOS ANGELES – June 7, 2016 – A new survey commissioned by the national non-profit Transamerica Center for Health Studies (TCHS) shows the percentage of uninsured millennials has declined to 11 percent – an all-time low for this population – however, more than half of millennials (54 percent) have been diagnosed with a health condition. The most common health conditions that millennials are facing include depression (17 percent), weight issues (15 percent overweight and 7 percent obesity) and anxiety disorders (14 percent).
This study, conducted in March through April 2016, by Harris Poll found that among 1,171 adults ages 18-36:
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This study, conducted in March through April 2016, by Harris Poll found that among 1,171 adults ages 18-36:
- The percentage of uninsured millennials has steadily declined from a high of 23 percent in 2013, while the percentage of millennials who are insured privately, not through an employer or publicly has increased since 2014.
- African Americans and Latino millennials are the least likely to be insured (15 percent and 17 percent respectively are uninsured). Very few Asian/Pacific Islander millennials are uninsured (3 percent).
- A majority of the uninsured are women (60 percent) and unemployed (68 percent).
- Uninsured millennials are significantly less likely than insured millennials to say they are in excellent or good health (62 percent vs. 79 percent, a 17 percentage point gap).
Read more...
Americans Unsure About Paying For LTC
CHICAGO (AP) — Demand for long-term care is expected to increase as the nation ages, but the majority of Americans 40 and older lack confidence in their ability to pay for it.
The annual cost of long-term care expenses range from $17,680 for adult day care to more than $92,000 for a private room in a nursing home, according to Genworth Financial.
Yet an Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research survey finds that a third of Americans 40 and older have done no planning for their own-long term care needs, such as setting aside money to pay for a home aide or to help with daily activities or a room in a nursing home.
Why?
The poll says about 4 in 10 don't think they will ever need long-term care.
"I'm very healthy at 68 and I really don't have any impending and current problems. I'm self-sufficient," said Brad Woolsey, of a small community near San Francisco, California.
That mindset runs counter to figures from the U.S. Administration on Aging, which says nearly 70 percent of people turning 65 will need help with daily activities in their golden years.
Read more...
The annual cost of long-term care expenses range from $17,680 for adult day care to more than $92,000 for a private room in a nursing home, according to Genworth Financial.
Yet an Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research survey finds that a third of Americans 40 and older have done no planning for their own-long term care needs, such as setting aside money to pay for a home aide or to help with daily activities or a room in a nursing home.
Why?
The poll says about 4 in 10 don't think they will ever need long-term care.
"I'm very healthy at 68 and I really don't have any impending and current problems. I'm self-sufficient," said Brad Woolsey, of a small community near San Francisco, California.
That mindset runs counter to figures from the U.S. Administration on Aging, which says nearly 70 percent of people turning 65 will need help with daily activities in their golden years.
Read more...
Knowing Health Care Can Push Advisors Ahead of Competition
Life and health insurance agents who want to stay ahead of their competition might consider becoming experts at funding medical costs in retirement, a health care financing expert said.
Simple math will dictate that it’s only a matter of time before health care costs eat away at the what retirees can expect to take home in Social Security, said Ron Mastrogiovanni, CEO of the health care cost projection software firm HealthView Services.
“What I tell them (advisors) is that clients are extremely interested in addressing this problem,” Mastrogiovanni said. “It’s the No. 1 issue and to ignore it is a competitive issue for advisors.”
Advisors don’t need a degree from Caltech, or even expertise in Medicare financing, to understand that health care inflation threatens to rob clients of a comfortable retirement unless they follow a health care retirement financing plan, he said.
“It’s not that complicated in terms of what we need to know in terms of how to plan effectively,” he said.
When advisors see the numbers, they tend to recoil
at the cost of health care in retirement or grouse that they don’t know much about the nuances of Medicare.
Many advisors themselves are uncomfortable with projecting health care costs in retirement until they come across simple, clear and easy software applications complete with webinars and help desks to get them through the calculations, Mastrogiovanni said.
Read more...
Simple math will dictate that it’s only a matter of time before health care costs eat away at the what retirees can expect to take home in Social Security, said Ron Mastrogiovanni, CEO of the health care cost projection software firm HealthView Services.
“What I tell them (advisors) is that clients are extremely interested in addressing this problem,” Mastrogiovanni said. “It’s the No. 1 issue and to ignore it is a competitive issue for advisors.”
Advisors don’t need a degree from Caltech, or even expertise in Medicare financing, to understand that health care inflation threatens to rob clients of a comfortable retirement unless they follow a health care retirement financing plan, he said.
“It’s not that complicated in terms of what we need to know in terms of how to plan effectively,” he said.
When advisors see the numbers, they tend to recoil
at the cost of health care in retirement or grouse that they don’t know much about the nuances of Medicare.
Many advisors themselves are uncomfortable with projecting health care costs in retirement until they come across simple, clear and easy software applications complete with webinars and help desks to get them through the calculations, Mastrogiovanni said.
Read more...
Elements of a Perfect Insurance Sales Call
Nobody likes receiving a canned sales presentation. Insurance can be a dry subject for many people so it’s especially important to maintain a good balance and respect for each contact. Employing a well-formed and organic sales call script makes connecting with insurance prospects more effective, from providing the right tone for your pitch to ensuring eloquent presentation of all topics.
Elements of an Insurance Sales Call
Well-crafted sales pitches and charming manners go a long way in closing a lead. The makeup of the perfect sales call varies from person to person. Presenting a compelling pitch, backed by solid information and delivered with an interested and affable demeanor often concludes in what everyone agrees is the mark of cold-call perfection – closing the deal.
When discussing insurance policies, as with any sales call, go into the session with a goal in mind. The ultimate prize being of course, an in-person meeting to close a sale. However, understand that there is value in other results, even if it is just getting a foot in the door or getting the name of the right contact person in a company or the decision maker.
Crafting the Perfect Call Script
To create a great sales script, Keith Rosen, author of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Cold-Calling, offers these tips:
Read more...
Elements of an Insurance Sales Call
Well-crafted sales pitches and charming manners go a long way in closing a lead. The makeup of the perfect sales call varies from person to person. Presenting a compelling pitch, backed by solid information and delivered with an interested and affable demeanor often concludes in what everyone agrees is the mark of cold-call perfection – closing the deal.
When discussing insurance policies, as with any sales call, go into the session with a goal in mind. The ultimate prize being of course, an in-person meeting to close a sale. However, understand that there is value in other results, even if it is just getting a foot in the door or getting the name of the right contact person in a company or the decision maker.
Crafting the Perfect Call Script
To create a great sales script, Keith Rosen, author of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Cold-Calling, offers these tips:
Read more...
Recognize What Makes Female Clients Different
Lauren Faustini struggled for many years to find an adviser who was not solely focused on her money. Most of the advisers she worked with just made investment recommendations and barely knew her name. Now her adviser listens to what she needs, takes notes and helps with all her concerns, including finding her an elder attorney when her father-in-law's health was failing.
“Advisers should be more in touch with a woman's situation instead of just advising them on what to do with their money,” Ms. Faustini said.
It's time for advisers (and statisticians) to quit lumping all women together when it comes to their investing needs and what they ultimately expect from a financial adviser.
It's not as simple as the cliché headline trucked out for every female investor story: “What do women want?”
What one woman wants is often very different from another based on where they are in their lives.
For instance, a woman just starting out in her career and a wealthy widow have distinct money fears and goals, and often resemble their male counterparts in those same life stages more than they do each other.
Read more...
“Advisers should be more in touch with a woman's situation instead of just advising them on what to do with their money,” Ms. Faustini said.
It's time for advisers (and statisticians) to quit lumping all women together when it comes to their investing needs and what they ultimately expect from a financial adviser.
It's not as simple as the cliché headline trucked out for every female investor story: “What do women want?”
What one woman wants is often very different from another based on where they are in their lives.
For instance, a woman just starting out in her career and a wealthy widow have distinct money fears and goals, and often resemble their male counterparts in those same life stages more than they do each other.
Read more...
Employees’ health worries may be soothed by disability insurance
Health concerns loom large in employees’ minds, particularly the financial aspects — which can be catastrophic.
But while many of those concerns could be allayed by disability insurance, employees don’t seem to know enough about it to benefit.
That’s according to Lincoln Financial’s special report “M.O.O.D. (Measuring Optimism, Outlook and Direction) of America on Employee Benefits,” which found that only 18 percent of employees feel very confident that they could pay the resulting bills if they were struck by serious illness or injury.
Read more...
But while many of those concerns could be allayed by disability insurance, employees don’t seem to know enough about it to benefit.
That’s according to Lincoln Financial’s special report “M.O.O.D. (Measuring Optimism, Outlook and Direction) of America on Employee Benefits,” which found that only 18 percent of employees feel very confident that they could pay the resulting bills if they were struck by serious illness or injury.
Read more...
Understanding the Different Breed of Affluent Clients in Millennials
With affluent boomers heading into retirement and the gradual, but undeniable, decline of the once vaunted middle class, financial advisors have fewer opportunities to add assets under management.
One hot spot for advisors, though, is the next generation of high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth investors. These younger, more technologically driven prospects are the sons and daughters — even grandchildren in some instances — of highly affluent investors in their 60s, 70s and 80s.
According to U.S. Trust Insights on Wealth and Worth, children of affluent boomers can expect to receive “trillions” in inheritance wealth. The nationwide study of 642 adults with at least $3 million in investable assets — including 37 percent with $3 million to $5 million, 31 percent with $5 million to $10 million, and 32 percent with more than $10 million — shows they have weathered the storm from the Great Recession and are ready to hand off assets to their children in the next decade.
Like most affluent investors, that next generation of HNW and UHNW investors offers a financial “sweet spot” for wealth managers.
Read more...
One hot spot for advisors, though, is the next generation of high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth investors. These younger, more technologically driven prospects are the sons and daughters — even grandchildren in some instances — of highly affluent investors in their 60s, 70s and 80s.
According to U.S. Trust Insights on Wealth and Worth, children of affluent boomers can expect to receive “trillions” in inheritance wealth. The nationwide study of 642 adults with at least $3 million in investable assets — including 37 percent with $3 million to $5 million, 31 percent with $5 million to $10 million, and 32 percent with more than $10 million — shows they have weathered the storm from the Great Recession and are ready to hand off assets to their children in the next decade.
Like most affluent investors, that next generation of HNW and UHNW investors offers a financial “sweet spot” for wealth managers.
- By and large, investors with $100,000 to $1 million in assets are “affluent investors.”
- The upper end of HNWI caps out at approximately $5 million.
- More than $50 million in wealth classifies a client as an “UHNW investor.”
Read more...
Talking Points: 6 Annuities Benefits to Highlight in Sales Conversations
You've drawn in new business with your successful prospecting efforts. You have scheduled several new-client meetings and developed a list of compelling, thought-provoking questions to elicit responses that can help you better understand each person and their needs. Your new client is now sitting across from you at your office table, and you have started the annuities conversation.
What should you highlight to strengthen the case for buying into a fixed indexed annuity (FIA)?
Retirees and pre-retirees tend to have the same qualms about investing in annuities. In general, advisors need to educate clients about the benefits of annuity ownership while countering negative perceptions about the product.
In a Huffington Post blog, personal finance expert and wealth manager Carlos Dias Jr. suggests several reasons why retirees should consider indexed annuities, despite their bad reputation. “A lot of arguments exist against their favor,” Dias says. “Most struggle with annuities and how they promise future gain for present sacrifice.”
It’s important to emphasize that an annuity is an excellent long-term financial investment with a number of unique benefits that sets it apart from other retirement finance vehicles. Understanding the six most common client concerns and conveying a FIA’s specific features and benefits in your new-client conversations can pave the way to sales success.
Read more...
What should you highlight to strengthen the case for buying into a fixed indexed annuity (FIA)?
Retirees and pre-retirees tend to have the same qualms about investing in annuities. In general, advisors need to educate clients about the benefits of annuity ownership while countering negative perceptions about the product.
In a Huffington Post blog, personal finance expert and wealth manager Carlos Dias Jr. suggests several reasons why retirees should consider indexed annuities, despite their bad reputation. “A lot of arguments exist against their favor,” Dias says. “Most struggle with annuities and how they promise future gain for present sacrifice.”
It’s important to emphasize that an annuity is an excellent long-term financial investment with a number of unique benefits that sets it apart from other retirement finance vehicles. Understanding the six most common client concerns and conveying a FIA’s specific features and benefits in your new-client conversations can pave the way to sales success.
Read more...
Life Insurance Activity Ends Strongest Quarter
Braintree, MA. (April 7, 2016) — Ending the strongest quarter yet of the current expansion, U.S. application activity for individually underwritten life insurance was up 4.9% in March year-over-year, all ages combined, according to the MIB Life Index.
Life Insurance application activity was up 5.4% Q1-2016 as compared against Q1-2015. Since its initial positive breakout in Q3-2014, the MIB Life Index has been progressively stronger in each successive quarter. March’s application activity was off -1.2% from that of February, tempered by February’s robust results.
U.S. life insurance application activity increased across all age groups; it is the fourth consecutive quarter where younger age life insurance activity (ages 0-44) has led all others.
Read more...
Life Insurance application activity was up 5.4% Q1-2016 as compared against Q1-2015. Since its initial positive breakout in Q3-2014, the MIB Life Index has been progressively stronger in each successive quarter. March’s application activity was off -1.2% from that of February, tempered by February’s robust results.
U.S. life insurance application activity increased across all age groups; it is the fourth consecutive quarter where younger age life insurance activity (ages 0-44) has led all others.
Read more...
LTC Regulator Panel May Consider Viaticals, Hybrids
Some members of the NAIC's LTC Innovation Subgroup want to go beyond the stand-alone LTCI silo.
Members of the new Long Term Care Innovation Subgroup want to talk about possible alternatives to traditional stand-alone long-term care insurance (LTCI) as well as to traditional LTCI.
The subgroup, part of the Senior Issues Task Force at the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), has adopted proposed charges that call for it to "review the number of alternative products structures being developed, and, in some cases, sold by companies (i.e., long-term care/life combination products, term products, and universal long-term care insurance policies."
The subgroup hopes to "consider whether these are viable alternative products and what other types of products may assist in financing long-term care costs," according to the proposed charges.
The Senior Issues Task Force adopted the subgroup's proposed charges during a conference call meeting in February.
Read more...
The subgroup, part of the Senior Issues Task Force at the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), has adopted proposed charges that call for it to "review the number of alternative products structures being developed, and, in some cases, sold by companies (i.e., long-term care/life combination products, term products, and universal long-term care insurance policies."
The subgroup hopes to "consider whether these are viable alternative products and what other types of products may assist in financing long-term care costs," according to the proposed charges.
The Senior Issues Task Force adopted the subgroup's proposed charges during a conference call meeting in February.
Read more...
Flipping the Switch on an Annuity Income Stream
When it comes time to discuss retirement planning with your clients, focus on the core thinking behind their goals: building financial security for the latter part of life. Given recent market uncertainty, your clients may be more inclined to take a conservative approach to their investing. Recommending financial vehicles that maintain a balanced portfolio can offset market concerns and set your clients up for a comfortable retirement.
One of the best ways to help a client build confidence in his or her financial plan is by recommending the client lock in a portion of his or her savings into a guaranteed lifetime income using a fixed annuity. A fixed annuity complements an existing investment portfolio while helping ensure your client generates income for his or her post-retirement years — regardless of how the market performs.
In addition, a fixed annuity can easily be positioned for your client, no matter what the retirement income situation may be, as it can be turned from an accumulation vehicle to an income stream if your clients determine they need supplemental income. As such, it’s important to talk with your clients about when they may plan to take income from the annuity so that you can best position the right type of fixed annuity.
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One of the best ways to help a client build confidence in his or her financial plan is by recommending the client lock in a portion of his or her savings into a guaranteed lifetime income using a fixed annuity. A fixed annuity complements an existing investment portfolio while helping ensure your client generates income for his or her post-retirement years — regardless of how the market performs.
In addition, a fixed annuity can easily be positioned for your client, no matter what the retirement income situation may be, as it can be turned from an accumulation vehicle to an income stream if your clients determine they need supplemental income. As such, it’s important to talk with your clients about when they may plan to take income from the annuity so that you can best position the right type of fixed annuity.
Read more...
Indexed Annuities, Indexed Life Sales Hit Record High
Fourth quarter sales 2015 of fixed indexed annuities (FIAs) soared to a record $15.5 billion. This marks a 30 percent increase compared with the year-ago period, according to Wink’s Sales & Market Report.
The hot-selling annuity category also finished 2015 at a record $53 billion in sales, an increase of 13 percent over 2014.
“We not only hit a record this quarter, but also for the year,” said Sheryl J. Moore, president and CEO of Moore Market Intelligence and Wink Inc., a database company which compiles sales statistics on life and annuity products.
Indexed annuities have been top sellers recently. Their popularity has risen as more retirees and preretirees in search of income find themselves drawn to an investment that offers exposure to market gains that track an index while protecting investors from any losses.
Factors expected to boost FIA sales include higher future interest rates, low current interest rates, lifetime income benefits and protection of principal, according to a report on FIA distribution trends published last year by the Insured Retirement Institute.
Record indexed annuity sales, published in the 74th Edition of Wink’s Sales & Market Report, were widely expected. In addition, data issued earlier this year from LIMRA Secure Retirement Institute showed record sales of indexed annuity products.
Read more...
The hot-selling annuity category also finished 2015 at a record $53 billion in sales, an increase of 13 percent over 2014.
“We not only hit a record this quarter, but also for the year,” said Sheryl J. Moore, president and CEO of Moore Market Intelligence and Wink Inc., a database company which compiles sales statistics on life and annuity products.
Indexed annuities have been top sellers recently. Their popularity has risen as more retirees and preretirees in search of income find themselves drawn to an investment that offers exposure to market gains that track an index while protecting investors from any losses.
Factors expected to boost FIA sales include higher future interest rates, low current interest rates, lifetime income benefits and protection of principal, according to a report on FIA distribution trends published last year by the Insured Retirement Institute.
Record indexed annuity sales, published in the 74th Edition of Wink’s Sales & Market Report, were widely expected. In addition, data issued earlier this year from LIMRA Secure Retirement Institute showed record sales of indexed annuity products.
Read more...
Key Moments in the Evolution of Fixed Indexed Annuities
The fixed indexed annuity (FIA) just celebrated its 20-year anniversary. Introduced in 1995, FIAs have lived up to their promise: to protect premium and credit interest from market risk and ensuring the safety of the invested principal.
Have you ever wondered how FIAs grew to be such an important investment option in such a relatively short period of time? In an article that appeared in NAFA Annuity Outlook, author Jack Marrion, president of Advantage Compendium Ltd., a St. Louis-based firm that provides research and consulting services to financial organizations, outlines some key developments in the evolution of the fixed indexed annuity. Here are some highlights:
1995: With the assistance of Genesis Financial of Canada, in February 1995, Keyport Life introduced the first equity-linked indexed annuity, the KeyIndex. The first indexed annuity was purchased on February 15 by a 60-year-old Massachusetts man for a premium of $21,000. The account value at the end of a five-year term was $51,779.
1996: More and more carriers began to offer indexed annuities, with 20 carriers offing FIAs by the end of 1996. More than $1.5 billion in FIA sales were reported for the year.
1997: The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) began grappling with how to regulate indexed annuities—whether to classify them as securities or not. 1997 ended with more than $3 billion in FIA sales and 37 carriers offering this type of annuity.
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Have you ever wondered how FIAs grew to be such an important investment option in such a relatively short period of time? In an article that appeared in NAFA Annuity Outlook, author Jack Marrion, president of Advantage Compendium Ltd., a St. Louis-based firm that provides research and consulting services to financial organizations, outlines some key developments in the evolution of the fixed indexed annuity. Here are some highlights:
1995: With the assistance of Genesis Financial of Canada, in February 1995, Keyport Life introduced the first equity-linked indexed annuity, the KeyIndex. The first indexed annuity was purchased on February 15 by a 60-year-old Massachusetts man for a premium of $21,000. The account value at the end of a five-year term was $51,779.
1996: More and more carriers began to offer indexed annuities, with 20 carriers offing FIAs by the end of 1996. More than $1.5 billion in FIA sales were reported for the year.
1997: The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) began grappling with how to regulate indexed annuities—whether to classify them as securities or not. 1997 ended with more than $3 billion in FIA sales and 37 carriers offering this type of annuity.
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Employers Expand Use Of Voluntary Benefits
ARLINGTON, Va., March 02, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Motivated by the need to meet the changing needs and lifestyles of an increasingly diverse workforce, 92% of U.S. employers believe voluntary benefits and services (VBS) will be important to their employee value proposition over the next three to five years, according to a survey by Willis Towers Watson (NASDAQ:WLTW). This compares with 73% in 2015.
The findings from Willis Towers Watson’s 2016 VBS Survey reflect that as cost pressures from providing traditional core benefits continue, employers are viewing VBS as an inexpensive way to enhance their portfolio of benefit offerings.
“The growth of VBS is widespread among employers of all sizes and in all industries,” said Amy Hollis, Voluntary Benefits leader of Willis Towers Watson. “The appeal is simple: These programs enrich traditional benefits by offering a high level of personalization to employees while leveraging group purchasing power. Moreover, because these programs are voluntary, they add little or no cost to employers.”
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The findings from Willis Towers Watson’s 2016 VBS Survey reflect that as cost pressures from providing traditional core benefits continue, employers are viewing VBS as an inexpensive way to enhance their portfolio of benefit offerings.
“The growth of VBS is widespread among employers of all sizes and in all industries,” said Amy Hollis, Voluntary Benefits leader of Willis Towers Watson. “The appeal is simple: These programs enrich traditional benefits by offering a high level of personalization to employees while leveraging group purchasing power. Moreover, because these programs are voluntary, they add little or no cost to employers.”
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DOL Rule Heralds New Era in Distribution
The Department of Labor rule designed to corral conflict of interests among financial advisors will likely lead to new ways of distributing insurance products into qualified retirement plans, say insurance carrier executives.
The comments, gleaned from earnings calls with analysts last week, suggests a brighter and more optimistic picture of how the industry will adapt. The controversial rule drew the ire of industry lobbyists and advisors when it was initially published last year.
Instead of advisors heading the for the proverbial career exit in the wake of sagging sales, carriers and distribution partners seem to be poised to find innovative ways to sell more financial products through qualified retirement plans.
“It’s pretty clear to us that there’s going to be an array of advisor business models coming out of this change if and when this reg becomes final,” said Nora Mary Everett, president of Retirement and Investor Services with Des Moines, Iowa-based Principal Financial Group.
Advisors and broker-dealers are going to take different routes, she added. After all, there is a “huge amount of optionality, many exceptions (and) many exemptions,” between what the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) allows and what the new DOL rule will require, she said.
Some advisories will opt for the fiduciary route with a third-party advisory service, Everett said. Other advisors will instead prefer a nonfiduciary mode with a third-party advisory service.
The new DOL proposal, which would hold advisors managing qualified retirement accounts to a fiduciary standard, is expected to appear in final form sometime in March or April.
Proponents, who include the Obama administration, consumer groups and labor unions, say the rule will shield investors from bad advice.
Financial advisors and many financial services industry executives argue the rule will only make it harder and more expensive for distributors to do business, forcing herds of advisors to abandon the profession and leave small savers lacking access to retirement advice.
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The comments, gleaned from earnings calls with analysts last week, suggests a brighter and more optimistic picture of how the industry will adapt. The controversial rule drew the ire of industry lobbyists and advisors when it was initially published last year.
Instead of advisors heading the for the proverbial career exit in the wake of sagging sales, carriers and distribution partners seem to be poised to find innovative ways to sell more financial products through qualified retirement plans.
“It’s pretty clear to us that there’s going to be an array of advisor business models coming out of this change if and when this reg becomes final,” said Nora Mary Everett, president of Retirement and Investor Services with Des Moines, Iowa-based Principal Financial Group.
Advisors and broker-dealers are going to take different routes, she added. After all, there is a “huge amount of optionality, many exceptions (and) many exemptions,” between what the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) allows and what the new DOL rule will require, she said.
Some advisories will opt for the fiduciary route with a third-party advisory service, Everett said. Other advisors will instead prefer a nonfiduciary mode with a third-party advisory service.
The new DOL proposal, which would hold advisors managing qualified retirement accounts to a fiduciary standard, is expected to appear in final form sometime in March or April.
Proponents, who include the Obama administration, consumer groups and labor unions, say the rule will shield investors from bad advice.
Financial advisors and many financial services industry executives argue the rule will only make it harder and more expensive for distributors to do business, forcing herds of advisors to abandon the profession and leave small savers lacking access to retirement advice.
Read more...
Starting the Annuity Conversation
Your client is sitting on the other side of the desk. You’ve wrapped up the small talk and you’re both halfway through your mugs of coffee. So how do you bring up the topic of annuities?
There’s no single best way to begin the annuities conversation, says John Roberts, marketing director for Orange County, Calif.-based TWH Annuities and Insurance Agency Inc. in a blog originally posted on the InsuranceWebX site. “It all depends on the depth of your relationship with a client,” Roberts says, adding that the approach varies according to how long and how well you know the client. You’d have to tailor your approach depending on whether the client is a new referral, someone you met at a networking function, someone who’s been a health or life client for many years, or a friend or relative.
Roberts warns against using a repertoire of standard approaches, which can come across as a hard sell. “Please don’t come up with 10 best opening lines,” he warns. “Everybody can smell it coming, and what good intelligent people want is conversation, not a sales pitch. Don’t sell – listen.”
There is a big difference between using old and tired lines and asking clients some thought-provoking questions. Roberts says that although agents shouldn’t have opening lines, there are some conversation starters that work to facilitate a give-and-take dialogue. Agents can include questions in conversations to elicit responses that will help determine whether annuities are appropriate for the client – or not.
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There’s no single best way to begin the annuities conversation, says John Roberts, marketing director for Orange County, Calif.-based TWH Annuities and Insurance Agency Inc. in a blog originally posted on the InsuranceWebX site. “It all depends on the depth of your relationship with a client,” Roberts says, adding that the approach varies according to how long and how well you know the client. You’d have to tailor your approach depending on whether the client is a new referral, someone you met at a networking function, someone who’s been a health or life client for many years, or a friend or relative.
Roberts warns against using a repertoire of standard approaches, which can come across as a hard sell. “Please don’t come up with 10 best opening lines,” he warns. “Everybody can smell it coming, and what good intelligent people want is conversation, not a sales pitch. Don’t sell – listen.”
There is a big difference between using old and tired lines and asking clients some thought-provoking questions. Roberts says that although agents shouldn’t have opening lines, there are some conversation starters that work to facilitate a give-and-take dialogue. Agents can include questions in conversations to elicit responses that will help determine whether annuities are appropriate for the client – or not.
Read more...
STCi: Smart Choice or a Waste of Sales Time?
With a renewed push to sell short-term care insurance (STCi), it’s a good time to ask whether STCi is even worth selling.
Agents familiar with the process of selling STCi appear to be of two minds about the coverage, which typically lasts for a 360-day period or less.
For clients who don’t qualify for long-term care insurance (LTCi) and get turned down, STCi is a viable option on the grounds that some coverage is better than no coverage at all, said Barbara Stahlecker, national marketing director with Premier LTC Brokerage, a field marketing organization.
There’s much to recommend in the sale of an STCi policy.
Very few, if any, STCi policies have experienced price increases, the simplified underwriting process is easy and with premiums of less than $100 a month in many cases, any future rate increases on STCi policies are far more palatable than the rate hikes with which carriers have plastered consumers with LTCi policies.
“I am not aware of any STC policy that has experienced a price increase and, in fact, the carriers are very interested in selling much more,” Stahlecker said in a recent email to InsuranceNewsNet.
Preliminary estimates show that 2015 is heading for a record year of STCI sales, though from a very small base.
There were 26,237 STCi policies sold in the first six months of 2015, an increase of 71 percent compared with the year-ago period, according to the National Advisory Center for Short Term Care Information. The center created a new database dedicated to tracking STCi.
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Agents familiar with the process of selling STCi appear to be of two minds about the coverage, which typically lasts for a 360-day period or less.
For clients who don’t qualify for long-term care insurance (LTCi) and get turned down, STCi is a viable option on the grounds that some coverage is better than no coverage at all, said Barbara Stahlecker, national marketing director with Premier LTC Brokerage, a field marketing organization.
There’s much to recommend in the sale of an STCi policy.
Very few, if any, STCi policies have experienced price increases, the simplified underwriting process is easy and with premiums of less than $100 a month in many cases, any future rate increases on STCi policies are far more palatable than the rate hikes with which carriers have plastered consumers with LTCi policies.
“I am not aware of any STC policy that has experienced a price increase and, in fact, the carriers are very interested in selling much more,” Stahlecker said in a recent email to InsuranceNewsNet.
Preliminary estimates show that 2015 is heading for a record year of STCI sales, though from a very small base.
There were 26,237 STCi policies sold in the first six months of 2015, an increase of 71 percent compared with the year-ago period, according to the National Advisory Center for Short Term Care Information. The center created a new database dedicated to tracking STCi.
Read more...
Life Insurance Buys vs. Needs: An Infographic
We’ve long tracked in this space the alarmingly high number of Americans who remain uninsured. Last September, LIMRA pegged the life insurance “coverage gap” — or the total of life insurance needs less life insurance in-force — at a whopping $16 trillion. That’s up from $15 trillion in 2013.
One reason for the gap is the perception that Americans have about the cost of life insurance. As we noted in the prefacing text to an infographic we posted in August, many U.S. consumers overestimate the cost of life insurance: millennials by 213 percent; and Gen Xers by 119 percent.
Now comes new data from Life Happens, a 21-year-old organization that coordinates campaigns to raise consumer awareness about the value of life, disability income and long-term care insurance; that serves as a resource to agents and brokers who sell these products. Based on a September 2015 online poll of 1,022 U.S. adults conducted by KRC Research, the survey data points to a “wide disconnect between the values individuals hold, and the actions they take to meet those goals.”
In respect to life insurance, the disconnect is particularly jarring. Whereas less than half of the survey respondents say they would buy life insurance for the benefit of loved ones in the event of their passing, more than 40 percent also acknowledge that surviving family members would “feel the financial impact” of their death within months.
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One reason for the gap is the perception that Americans have about the cost of life insurance. As we noted in the prefacing text to an infographic we posted in August, many U.S. consumers overestimate the cost of life insurance: millennials by 213 percent; and Gen Xers by 119 percent.
Now comes new data from Life Happens, a 21-year-old organization that coordinates campaigns to raise consumer awareness about the value of life, disability income and long-term care insurance; that serves as a resource to agents and brokers who sell these products. Based on a September 2015 online poll of 1,022 U.S. adults conducted by KRC Research, the survey data points to a “wide disconnect between the values individuals hold, and the actions they take to meet those goals.”
In respect to life insurance, the disconnect is particularly jarring. Whereas less than half of the survey respondents say they would buy life insurance for the benefit of loved ones in the event of their passing, more than 40 percent also acknowledge that surviving family members would “feel the financial impact” of their death within months.
Read more...
How Annuities Will Be Transformed by DOL Fiduciary Rule
After DOL’s rule is adopted this year, advisors will face a very different world when designing or selling annuities
Now that the department of Labor (DOL) fiduciary rule has survived the budget process, virtually assuring its path to adoption in 2016, it is time to give some thought as to what this rule will likely mean for the future design of annuity products. To predict how annuity products may change going forward, we must first understand that under the proposed DOL fiduciary rule, advisors will have two options for providing individual retirement account (IRA) recommendations.
The Choices Are…
Option #1: Advisor serves as a fiduciary under ERISA. This option eliminates all conflicts of interest between the client and advisor. For example, commissions will no longer be an acceptable means of compensation. Advisors serving as a fiduciary under ERISA must either charge an hourly rate, a flat fee or a flat percentage of assets under management regardless of the asset class.
It is important to note here that an ERISA fiduciary differs greatly from a fiduciary under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (’40 Act). Since I am not an ERISA attorney, I won't attempt to explain the differences between the two in their entirety. Ultimately, the key distinction is that the ERISA fiduciary cannot have any conflicts of interest, while a ’40 Act fiduciary has to “pledge” to disclose and manage the conflicts.
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Now that the department of Labor (DOL) fiduciary rule has survived the budget process, virtually assuring its path to adoption in 2016, it is time to give some thought as to what this rule will likely mean for the future design of annuity products. To predict how annuity products may change going forward, we must first understand that under the proposed DOL fiduciary rule, advisors will have two options for providing individual retirement account (IRA) recommendations.
The Choices Are…
Option #1: Advisor serves as a fiduciary under ERISA. This option eliminates all conflicts of interest between the client and advisor. For example, commissions will no longer be an acceptable means of compensation. Advisors serving as a fiduciary under ERISA must either charge an hourly rate, a flat fee or a flat percentage of assets under management regardless of the asset class.
It is important to note here that an ERISA fiduciary differs greatly from a fiduciary under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (’40 Act). Since I am not an ERISA attorney, I won't attempt to explain the differences between the two in their entirety. Ultimately, the key distinction is that the ERISA fiduciary cannot have any conflicts of interest, while a ’40 Act fiduciary has to “pledge” to disclose and manage the conflicts.
Read more...
Short-Term Care Insurance Finding a Market
Big premium increases for long-term care insurance (LTCi) have created new opportunities for short-term care insurance (STCi), a category that has kept a relatively low profile. Until now.
Proponents of STCi say the time has come to push hard and loud to promote the value of STCi. New plans call for launching a dedicated STCi website as well as a marketing campaign targeted at agents and consumers.
The flurry of activity surrounding STCi is no accident as 2015 shapes up to be record year for sales, predicted Jesse Slome, executive director of the American Association for LongTerm Care Insurance in Westlake Village, Calif.
There were 26,237 STCi policies sold in the first six months of 2015, an increase of 71 percent compared with the year-ago period, according to the National Advisory Center for Short Term Care Information, a new database dedicated to tracking STCi.
Premiums up
STCI premiums jumped 54 percent in the first half of this year compared with the year-ago period, the organization reported. Annual figures for 2015 will be released over the next few weeks.
“Agents need to seek other options to meet their client needs and a policy that provides one year of coverage is a very viable solution,” said Slome, in an interview with InsuranceNewsNet.
LTCi price increases and tighter underwriting standards have made it more difficult for consumers to qualify for LTCi, but they still want some protection, Slome said.
Costs for LTCi coverage rose 8.6 percent from 2014 to 2015, according to the 2015 Long-Term Care Insurance Price Index released in January 2015. LTCi carriers are raising prices to make up for years of underpricing LTCi policies. The current 2016 price index has not been released yet.
Read more...
Proponents of STCi say the time has come to push hard and loud to promote the value of STCi. New plans call for launching a dedicated STCi website as well as a marketing campaign targeted at agents and consumers.
The flurry of activity surrounding STCi is no accident as 2015 shapes up to be record year for sales, predicted Jesse Slome, executive director of the American Association for LongTerm Care Insurance in Westlake Village, Calif.
There were 26,237 STCi policies sold in the first six months of 2015, an increase of 71 percent compared with the year-ago period, according to the National Advisory Center for Short Term Care Information, a new database dedicated to tracking STCi.
Premiums up
STCI premiums jumped 54 percent in the first half of this year compared with the year-ago period, the organization reported. Annual figures for 2015 will be released over the next few weeks.
“Agents need to seek other options to meet their client needs and a policy that provides one year of coverage is a very viable solution,” said Slome, in an interview with InsuranceNewsNet.
LTCi price increases and tighter underwriting standards have made it more difficult for consumers to qualify for LTCi, but they still want some protection, Slome said.
Costs for LTCi coverage rose 8.6 percent from 2014 to 2015, according to the 2015 Long-Term Care Insurance Price Index released in January 2015. LTCi carriers are raising prices to make up for years of underpricing LTCi policies. The current 2016 price index has not been released yet.
Read more...
Pre-retirees Seeking Guaranteed Income Stream
The most recent retirement market analysis from LIMRA Secure Retirement Institute predicts that over the next 10 to 20 years and beyond, there will be an unprecedented migration of people and assets moving into retirement.
By 2025, says LIMRA in The Retirement Income Reference Book 2015, a reference that provides insights on the retirement market and that addresses the various facets of both planning and managing retirement income, a whopping 66 million Americans will leave the workforce and retire. That number is even more significant when one realizes that within the next 10 years, the number of retirees in the U.S. will increase by 40 percent from the current figure of 48 million retirees.
The skyrocketing number of retirees, largely from the Baby Boomer generation, will shift a considerable $25 trillion in assets toward retirement income, roughly double the amount available today. In addition, investors aged 60 and older control nearly 60 percent of all financial assets in the U.S.
In a LIMRA podcast, “Explore Opportunities in the Retirement Income Market,” Jafor Igbal, assistant vice president of LIMRA Secure Retirement Institute and author of the reference book, discusses key research findings and identifies emerging trends. In the podcast, Igbal identifies three important opportunities in the retirement income market for the industry in general and advisors in particular:
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By 2025, says LIMRA in The Retirement Income Reference Book 2015, a reference that provides insights on the retirement market and that addresses the various facets of both planning and managing retirement income, a whopping 66 million Americans will leave the workforce and retire. That number is even more significant when one realizes that within the next 10 years, the number of retirees in the U.S. will increase by 40 percent from the current figure of 48 million retirees.
The skyrocketing number of retirees, largely from the Baby Boomer generation, will shift a considerable $25 trillion in assets toward retirement income, roughly double the amount available today. In addition, investors aged 60 and older control nearly 60 percent of all financial assets in the U.S.
In a LIMRA podcast, “Explore Opportunities in the Retirement Income Market,” Jafor Igbal, assistant vice president of LIMRA Secure Retirement Institute and author of the reference book, discusses key research findings and identifies emerging trends. In the podcast, Igbal identifies three important opportunities in the retirement income market for the industry in general and advisors in particular:
Read more...
Why (and how) Insurers are combining whole life with indexed universal life
Today’s insurance product marketplace is flooded with options, leaving most clients familiar with the overwhelming feeling that they must choose one. Insurance carriers, however, have answered this issue with product innovation — and the next product trend may be one that allows clients to combine the guarantees of traditional whole life insurance with the upside participation potential of an indexed universal life insurance (IUL) product.
Understanding the details of these new products can help clients experience the best of both worlds, eliminating the need to choose between valuable features by combining elements of both into a single, optimal value product.
IUL versus whole life
A whole life insurance policy is a permanent policy that provides for a guaranteed death benefit on the death of the insured in exchange for set, guaranteed premium payments. The carrier issuing the policy invests a portion of the premiums, building cash value in the policy that the insured can borrow against in the future. These policies also typically provide annual dividends, which can be used to further build the cash value of the policy.
Indexed universal life insurance policies, on the other hand, are cash value life insurance products that are tied to a specific stock index (or indexes, such as the S&P 500) and provide returns based upon a formula that is correlated to market performance. These policies often come with both an earnings cap and an earnings floor, so that, for example, the policy might earn no more than 10 percent but no less than 2 percent, meaning that the policy can continue to grow even in an economic downturn.
Clients who are interested in the market participation and downside protection investment components of indexed universal life may, however, also be drawn to the guarantees provided through a traditional whole life policy.
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10 Life Insurance Tax Facts You Need to Know
Ah, tax season: that time of year when clients and advisors alike are faced with a string of uncertainties and unanswered questions. How are single premium life insurance policies taxed? How can the generation-skipping transfer tax exclusion be leveraged using an ILIT? Find answers to these and other ponderings in our timely tax primer.
Q: Are premiums paid on personal life insurance deductible for personal tax purposes?
A: No. Premiums paid on personal life insurance are a personal expense and are not deductible.Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) regulations specifically provide that “[p]remiums paid for life insurance by the insured are not deductible.” It is immaterial whether the premiums are paid by the insured or by some other person. For example, premiums paid by an individual for insurance on the life of his or her spouse are nondeductible personal expenses of the individual. Premiums are not deductible regardless of whether the insurance is government life insurance or regular commercial life insurance. Although life insurance premiums, as such, are not deductible, they may be deductible as the payment of alimony or as charitable contributions.
Q: Is the interest increment earned on prepaid life insurance premiums taxable income?
A: Yes. Any increment in the value of prepaid life insurance or annuity premiums or premium deposit funds constitutes taxable income in the year it is applied to the payment of a premium or is made available for withdrawal, whichever occurs first. The interest treated as taxable income, however, will be included in the cost basis of the contract. Thus, for purposes of IRC Section 72, the cost of the contract would be the amount of premiums paid other than by discount, plus the amount of discounted funds and any increments on such funds that were subject to income taxation. The rule taxing interest increments has no applicability, however, to single premium policies. A later ruling explains in detail how the interest will be taxed.
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Q: Are premiums paid on personal life insurance deductible for personal tax purposes?
A: No. Premiums paid on personal life insurance are a personal expense and are not deductible.Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) regulations specifically provide that “[p]remiums paid for life insurance by the insured are not deductible.” It is immaterial whether the premiums are paid by the insured or by some other person. For example, premiums paid by an individual for insurance on the life of his or her spouse are nondeductible personal expenses of the individual. Premiums are not deductible regardless of whether the insurance is government life insurance or regular commercial life insurance. Although life insurance premiums, as such, are not deductible, they may be deductible as the payment of alimony or as charitable contributions.
Q: Is the interest increment earned on prepaid life insurance premiums taxable income?
A: Yes. Any increment in the value of prepaid life insurance or annuity premiums or premium deposit funds constitutes taxable income in the year it is applied to the payment of a premium or is made available for withdrawal, whichever occurs first. The interest treated as taxable income, however, will be included in the cost basis of the contract. Thus, for purposes of IRC Section 72, the cost of the contract would be the amount of premiums paid other than by discount, plus the amount of discounted funds and any increments on such funds that were subject to income taxation. The rule taxing interest increments has no applicability, however, to single premium policies. A later ruling explains in detail how the interest will be taxed.
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Annuity Innovation Continues as Industry Braces for DOL Fiduciary Rule
Insurance provides continue to roll-out new annuity products to meet demand for lifetime income products, even as the Department of Labor finalizes a fiduciary rule that could severely impede how industry markets those products.
The Insured Retirement Institute’s annual state of the industry report suggests demand for lifetime income products is strong, and likely to grow in light of an aging country.
Sales of Investment Oriented Variable Annuities have grown 94 percent over the past five years, and now make up 16 percent of all variable annuity sales, the report found.
Sales of fixed indexed annuities have increased 50 percent since 2011.
The number of insurers offering deferred income annuities has doubled since 2012 and are expected to hit $2.6 billion sales this year, more than double the $1 billion in sales for DIAs in 2012.
And qualified longevity annuity contracts, or QLACs, were a remote option as recently as 2014, when only one provider offered the products.
But regulation from the Department of Treasury last year encouraged wider adoption of QLACs.
QLACs allow retirement savers to defer as much as $250,000 in IRAs and 401(k) plans into contracts that begin making monthly payments at age 85.
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The Insured Retirement Institute’s annual state of the industry report suggests demand for lifetime income products is strong, and likely to grow in light of an aging country.
Sales of Investment Oriented Variable Annuities have grown 94 percent over the past five years, and now make up 16 percent of all variable annuity sales, the report found.
Sales of fixed indexed annuities have increased 50 percent since 2011.
The number of insurers offering deferred income annuities has doubled since 2012 and are expected to hit $2.6 billion sales this year, more than double the $1 billion in sales for DIAs in 2012.
And qualified longevity annuity contracts, or QLACs, were a remote option as recently as 2014, when only one provider offered the products.
But regulation from the Department of Treasury last year encouraged wider adoption of QLACs.
QLACs allow retirement savers to defer as much as $250,000 in IRAs and 401(k) plans into contracts that begin making monthly payments at age 85.
Read more...
Demographics are key: Who's Most Likely to Be Receptive to the FIA Message
Fixed indexed annuities (FIAs) are a great investment option for many people, especially those who are nearing or concerned about their retirement and who are looking to ensure that they have sufficient finances to support their lifestyle.
Recent research from the Insured Retirement Institute, 2015 Fixed Indexed Annuity Distribution Trends, reveals that consumer interest is high across the board for fixed indexed annuities. “While they are not very likely to ask about [FIAs], almost 40% of distributors believe their customers are completely open to using them in their portfolios,” says the report. According to the IRI survey results, approximately 70 percent of consumers from all demographic groups are at least somewhat receptive to purchasing FIA products, with nearly half (47%) either very receptive or extremely receptive about using them as part of their portfolios.
Brokers who are familiar with the various benefits of this unique annuity type can communicate the details to their clients. But, it turns out that there are specific demographic groups most receptive to hearing the FIA message.
For a recent fixed indexed annuity study sponsored by Athene and done in conjunction with LifeHealthPro, research firm Beacon Technology Partners surveyed 543 brokers who sold at least one annuity product to a client within the previous 12 months, and who worked as an investment or insurance professional for a minimum of one year. The survey found that there are three product FIA selling points – the potential for earnings, high participation rates and guaranteed minimum interest rates. In addition, study participants say that they expect sales of FIAs this year to increase either substantially or somewhat over last year’s levels.
Read more...
Recent research from the Insured Retirement Institute, 2015 Fixed Indexed Annuity Distribution Trends, reveals that consumer interest is high across the board for fixed indexed annuities. “While they are not very likely to ask about [FIAs], almost 40% of distributors believe their customers are completely open to using them in their portfolios,” says the report. According to the IRI survey results, approximately 70 percent of consumers from all demographic groups are at least somewhat receptive to purchasing FIA products, with nearly half (47%) either very receptive or extremely receptive about using them as part of their portfolios.
Brokers who are familiar with the various benefits of this unique annuity type can communicate the details to their clients. But, it turns out that there are specific demographic groups most receptive to hearing the FIA message.
For a recent fixed indexed annuity study sponsored by Athene and done in conjunction with LifeHealthPro, research firm Beacon Technology Partners surveyed 543 brokers who sold at least one annuity product to a client within the previous 12 months, and who worked as an investment or insurance professional for a minimum of one year. The survey found that there are three product FIA selling points – the potential for earnings, high participation rates and guaranteed minimum interest rates. In addition, study participants say that they expect sales of FIAs this year to increase either substantially or somewhat over last year’s levels.
Read more...
Are Americans More Focused on Short- Or Long-Term Finances?
When it comes to finances, are Americans short-sighted, or future focused?
According to a brief from The Center for Retirement Research at Boston College based on data from a FINRA Investor Education Foundation online survey of 25,509 American adults ages 25-60 that looked at a state-by-state financial capability, workers are primarily concerned about their ability to satisfy their day-to-day needs and aren’t focused on their future finances—even if their day-to-day finances are under control.
The study explores whether households of all ages and income levels are shortsighted when it comes to their finances. Individuals of all ages are clearly short-sighted, while the specific problems that trouble individuals vary by age and life stage, according to the CFRR brief. Distant needs such as retirement saving consistently take a back seat to more pressing, immediate concerns.
“Among day-to-day problems, the inability to access $2,000 is associated with much larger reductions in satisfaction at younger ages, and heavy debt burdens are related to a greater reduction at older ages,” the brief states. “Among distant problems, only not saving for college and not having medical insurance are associated with statistically significant reductions in all three age groups.”
And younger workers see less satisfaction because they’re concerned with repaying student loans. Middle-age workers are more concerned with lacking life insurance and with having a mortgage greater than the value of their home. Workers approaching retirement age are focused on repaying student loads and also having a mortgage greater than the value of their house.
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According to a brief from The Center for Retirement Research at Boston College based on data from a FINRA Investor Education Foundation online survey of 25,509 American adults ages 25-60 that looked at a state-by-state financial capability, workers are primarily concerned about their ability to satisfy their day-to-day needs and aren’t focused on their future finances—even if their day-to-day finances are under control.
The study explores whether households of all ages and income levels are shortsighted when it comes to their finances. Individuals of all ages are clearly short-sighted, while the specific problems that trouble individuals vary by age and life stage, according to the CFRR brief. Distant needs such as retirement saving consistently take a back seat to more pressing, immediate concerns.
“Among day-to-day problems, the inability to access $2,000 is associated with much larger reductions in satisfaction at younger ages, and heavy debt burdens are related to a greater reduction at older ages,” the brief states. “Among distant problems, only not saving for college and not having medical insurance are associated with statistically significant reductions in all three age groups.”
And younger workers see less satisfaction because they’re concerned with repaying student loans. Middle-age workers are more concerned with lacking life insurance and with having a mortgage greater than the value of their home. Workers approaching retirement age are focused on repaying student loads and also having a mortgage greater than the value of their house.
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Shaquille O'Neal: 'I Spent 1M in about 45 Minutes...but it was well Worth It'
(CNN) Less than an hour after signing his first professional contract, 20-year-old Shaquille O'Neal had already spent his first million.
"The first thing I wanted to do was relieve my parents of their jobs," O'Neal told CNN ahead of the new 2015-2016 NBA season in Oakland, California. "I (spent) a million dollars in about 45 minutes, but it was well worth it."
The most dominant player in the league during his prime, O'Neal would go on to make a further $291 million in NBA salary alone, according to basketball-reference.com, while earning four titles before settling into life as an studio analyst for TNT's "Inside the NBA."
"My momma is happy, her house is paid for; she had the car that she knows she would never get in her dreams, a Mercedes-Benz. My father (had) one, I had one. I was good," O'Neal says, reflecting on the overnight lifestyle upgrade that affects young professionals in the world's best paying league.
"But now you have to educate yourself on how to maintain that, and a lot of people don't do that."
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"The first thing I wanted to do was relieve my parents of their jobs," O'Neal told CNN ahead of the new 2015-2016 NBA season in Oakland, California. "I (spent) a million dollars in about 45 minutes, but it was well worth it."
The most dominant player in the league during his prime, O'Neal would go on to make a further $291 million in NBA salary alone, according to basketball-reference.com, while earning four titles before settling into life as an studio analyst for TNT's "Inside the NBA."
"My momma is happy, her house is paid for; she had the car that she knows she would never get in her dreams, a Mercedes-Benz. My father (had) one, I had one. I was good," O'Neal says, reflecting on the overnight lifestyle upgrade that affects young professionals in the world's best paying league.
"But now you have to educate yourself on how to maintain that, and a lot of people don't do that."
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Agents Need Stronger Holiday Sales Message
In affluent Denver, at the foot of the Rocky Mountains, financial planner Kristi C. Sullivan stares at the sight of big-box store shoppers fighting to be first to buy 50-inch flat-panel TV at a deep discount.
Several thoughts come to mind, she writes in an email to InsuranceNewsNet:
If only consumers were so gung-ho about buying life insurance and annuities.
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Several thoughts come to mind, she writes in an email to InsuranceNewsNet:
- Does that person have a savings account, life insurance or retirement savings?
- People who are heavily tattooed spent a fortune on the body ink.
- Women stumbling around her local mall in six-inch stilettos staggering under the weight of shopping bags.
If only consumers were so gung-ho about buying life insurance and annuities.
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What Annuities Can (and Can't) Do for Retirees
A 65-year old American male has a 10% chance of living to the age of 96. Let's say he wants to fund $100,000 of spending during his 96th year of life. Since he values spending certainty, he’ll put the money in a diversified portfolio of long duration bonds. Assuming today's long-term 4% rate on 30-year corporate bonds and a 1% advisor fee, he’ll have to set aside $41,200 today to cover the desired $100,000 in spending at age 96.
The problem, of course, is that 90% of the time our new retiree won't make it to age 96. He’ll live to 76, or 86, or 90. But he can't ignore the 10% chance that he’ll be around to spend the money in 31 years. If he doesn't set the money aside, he’d better be OK with living on Social Security.
Now, let's say he has nine friends who are each in this predicament. Each one plans to invest $41,200 today to fund the $100,000 in future spending. Since only one of them is going to be around by age 96, why not pool these funds together for the one remaining retiree lucky enough to be alive in 31 years? They can call it a long life income club. Instead of setting aside $41,200, they can set aside $4,120.
Even better, they can hire a third party to manage the investments and make sure the payment is made in 31 years. Maybe they can each chip in $5,000 to cover expenses — still a lot cheaper than the $41,200 they’d have to pay without the long life income club.
As the reader knows, we don't have to start creating long life income clubs. We already have them in the form of insurance companies that sell annuities that pool retirees together to provide a stream of future income. The most popular types of annuities are those that blend features of an investment with a lifetime income option. But they aren't necessarily the most efficient way to create retirement income, and figuring out which one makes sense isn't easy. So let's take a quick look at the options.
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The problem, of course, is that 90% of the time our new retiree won't make it to age 96. He’ll live to 76, or 86, or 90. But he can't ignore the 10% chance that he’ll be around to spend the money in 31 years. If he doesn't set the money aside, he’d better be OK with living on Social Security.
Now, let's say he has nine friends who are each in this predicament. Each one plans to invest $41,200 today to fund the $100,000 in future spending. Since only one of them is going to be around by age 96, why not pool these funds together for the one remaining retiree lucky enough to be alive in 31 years? They can call it a long life income club. Instead of setting aside $41,200, they can set aside $4,120.
Even better, they can hire a third party to manage the investments and make sure the payment is made in 31 years. Maybe they can each chip in $5,000 to cover expenses — still a lot cheaper than the $41,200 they’d have to pay without the long life income club.
As the reader knows, we don't have to start creating long life income clubs. We already have them in the form of insurance companies that sell annuities that pool retirees together to provide a stream of future income. The most popular types of annuities are those that blend features of an investment with a lifetime income option. But they aren't necessarily the most efficient way to create retirement income, and figuring out which one makes sense isn't easy. So let's take a quick look at the options.
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6 Ways to Use Life Insurance Strategies for the Affluent Market
Life insurance truly is a multipurpose solution. Savvy financial professionals are leveraging the power of innovative life insurance strategies to counteract some key tax planning and estate transfer needs for affluent and super-affluent consumers alike.
Definitions of wealth categories vary, but for the purposes of this article, affluent consumers are defined as having $1 million to $5 million in investible assets (excluding their home) and super-affluent clients as having $5+ million.
First, let’s explore a particular wealth transfer issue that, in my experience, tends to impact affluent as well as super-affluent consumers. Then, we’ll review some other challenges that may impact clients in the two wealth categories.
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Definitions of wealth categories vary, but for the purposes of this article, affluent consumers are defined as having $1 million to $5 million in investible assets (excluding their home) and super-affluent clients as having $5+ million.
First, let’s explore a particular wealth transfer issue that, in my experience, tends to impact affluent as well as super-affluent consumers. Then, we’ll review some other challenges that may impact clients in the two wealth categories.
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Voluntary Opening Doors for Brokers
The ubiquitous “one-size-fits-all” tag in clothing is starting to give way to the more realistic “one-size-fits-most.” A similar trend is gaining momentum in the benefits industry, where voluntary products are addressing specific employee needs.
“The recent voluntary products, such as accident, cancer, critical illness and hospital confinement, emerged to help fill gaps not covered by major medical insurance,” says Rich Williams, senior vice president, growth markets, for Colonial Life in Columbia, South Carolina.
“With health care costs increasing, many employers are moving to plans with higher deductibles and co-pays, leaving employees with greater financial exposure.”
Kathy O’Brien, vice president, voluntary benefits, for Unum National Client Group in Chattanooga, Tennessee, has been tracking the same trends.
“The interest in voluntary benefits has been on a steady increase for the past several years, but we are seeing more and more interest in employee-pay products like accident, critical illness and hospital indemnity,” she says. “More employers are interested in voluntary benefits to supplement their benefit offerings to their employees, and it allows an employee to tailor their benefits to fit their own individual needs.
“While there has been an increase in the popularity of the benefits more related to health care, there is still a strong interest in permanent life insurance products, which have historically been a key benefit for the voluntary business.”
This increased interest coincides with implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
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“The recent voluntary products, such as accident, cancer, critical illness and hospital confinement, emerged to help fill gaps not covered by major medical insurance,” says Rich Williams, senior vice president, growth markets, for Colonial Life in Columbia, South Carolina.
“With health care costs increasing, many employers are moving to plans with higher deductibles and co-pays, leaving employees with greater financial exposure.”
Kathy O’Brien, vice president, voluntary benefits, for Unum National Client Group in Chattanooga, Tennessee, has been tracking the same trends.
“The interest in voluntary benefits has been on a steady increase for the past several years, but we are seeing more and more interest in employee-pay products like accident, critical illness and hospital indemnity,” she says. “More employers are interested in voluntary benefits to supplement their benefit offerings to their employees, and it allows an employee to tailor their benefits to fit their own individual needs.
“While there has been an increase in the popularity of the benefits more related to health care, there is still a strong interest in permanent life insurance products, which have historically been a key benefit for the voluntary business.”
This increased interest coincides with implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
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Trust-owned Life Insurance = Opportunities for Insurance Professionals
With interest rates at record lows, trust-owned life insurance (TOLI) should be reviewed regularly to determine the risk of lapse. However, many trusts are administered by family members or others who lack the expertise to conduct policy reviews. Insurance agents have an opportunity to become a valuable member of the estate planning team by offering to review TOLI universal life policies and making recommendations for policies on the verge of lapse.
As the cornerstone of an estate plan, TOLI enables the trust to provide a cash inheritance to survivors, to cover estate taxes, liquidate debit, or create a legacy through charitable gifts. But because of its long-term investment horizon to maturity, a trust-owned life insurance policy is often overlooked by those monitoring or managing the overall trust.
According to an analysis of life settlements conducted several years ago, approximately 40 percent of life insurance policies sold in the secondary market involved trust-owned life insurance. However, given the recent developments explained above, it is likely the percentage of TOLI policies sold in the secondary market will increase substantially in the future.
Insurance advisors have an opportunity to play a key role in salvaging TOLI policies on the verge of lapse. In cases where the policy is at risk of lapse without a substantial infusion of cash to keep it in force, the reviewing professional may want to recommend to the client that a life settlement is a prudent course of action to explore.
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7 Ways to do More with Year-end Reviews
Year-end client reviews are too often viewed as just another item to check off of an advisor’s to-do list.
Instead, make them an important tool to strengthen your relationship with clients and remind them of the value you provide and the many things you’ve done for them during the last 365 days.
It’s that time of year again when clients make the annual pilgrimage to your office to review their finances. You make some small talk about the holidays, travel plans, kids and grandchildren, and then you run through a quick review of the relevant financial information. Everything looks good, see you next year.
That’s an exaggeration, of course—most advisors put significant effort into making their year-end reviews beneficial for clients. Still, there’s a risk these meetings become perfunctory, especially when the clients’ lives and the financial markets have been uneventful. But structuring the meetings in order to get through them as quickly as possible can be a mistake. Doing so neglects an opportunity to do a better job for clients, strengthen your relationship and remind them about the value of the services you provide.
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Instead, make them an important tool to strengthen your relationship with clients and remind them of the value you provide and the many things you’ve done for them during the last 365 days.
It’s that time of year again when clients make the annual pilgrimage to your office to review their finances. You make some small talk about the holidays, travel plans, kids and grandchildren, and then you run through a quick review of the relevant financial information. Everything looks good, see you next year.
That’s an exaggeration, of course—most advisors put significant effort into making their year-end reviews beneficial for clients. Still, there’s a risk these meetings become perfunctory, especially when the clients’ lives and the financial markets have been uneventful. But structuring the meetings in order to get through them as quickly as possible can be a mistake. Doing so neglects an opportunity to do a better job for clients, strengthen your relationship and remind them about the value of the services you provide.
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Top Publications for Financial Advisors
An important component of any profession is staying abreast of current strategies, research and practices in the field. The financial advisor profession has several online and print publications to inform and educate their readership. Most of the popular publications translate academic research, current trends, practices and new thinking into easily understood articles. In addition to print magazines, there are websites, webcasts, podcasts and other education formats.
Popular Publications
Financial Planning offers both a print and digital edition. Founded in 1970 it has grown into a multi-media educational platform for advisors and is part of SourceMedia, an Observer Capital business-to-business digital media organization. The Financial Planning platform strives to provide news, information, opinions and the latest findings to support financial planners and assist them in their businesses. In addition to the magazine, Financial Planning also produces podcasts, conferences and newsletters. Current articles include “6 Smart Ways to Appeal to Executive Clients” and “It’s Not too Late to Save for Retirement,” along with updates on the latest news stories that influence financial planners and their clients.
Financial Advisor Magazine is another well regarded publication serving financial planners, registered investment advisors (RIAs) and independent broker-dealers. It focuses on information which best serves the wealthy client. Additionally this publication aims to go beyond the traditional planning approaches and introduce newer applications of financial management. Current topics include “Indexing’s Existential Controversy” and “Efficient Branding and Communications.”
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Popular Publications
Financial Planning offers both a print and digital edition. Founded in 1970 it has grown into a multi-media educational platform for advisors and is part of SourceMedia, an Observer Capital business-to-business digital media organization. The Financial Planning platform strives to provide news, information, opinions and the latest findings to support financial planners and assist them in their businesses. In addition to the magazine, Financial Planning also produces podcasts, conferences and newsletters. Current articles include “6 Smart Ways to Appeal to Executive Clients” and “It’s Not too Late to Save for Retirement,” along with updates on the latest news stories that influence financial planners and their clients.
Financial Advisor Magazine is another well regarded publication serving financial planners, registered investment advisors (RIAs) and independent broker-dealers. It focuses on information which best serves the wealthy client. Additionally this publication aims to go beyond the traditional planning approaches and introduce newer applications of financial management. Current topics include “Indexing’s Existential Controversy” and “Efficient Branding and Communications.”
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Vast Majority of Short-Term Care Insurance Buyers are Over Age 60
Nine out of 10 individuals who purchased short-term care insurance coverage in 2014 were age 61 or older according to a just released study by the National Advisory Center for Short Term Care Information.
"Short-term care insurance is clearly seen as a benefit for seniors," declares Jesse Slome, director of the National Advisory Center. The new organization, established as part of the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance, conducted the first industry benchmark study examining sales and buyer data on over 30,000 policies issued by nine leading insurers who market short-term care insurance policies.
According to the study, just over half (51%) of buyers were between ages 61 and 70. Over one-third (36%) were between ages 71 and 80 when they applied for their short-term care insurance policy. "Some four percent were over age 80," Slome reports. A number of short-term care insurance policies will accept applicants up to age 89. Nine percent of buyers were age 60 or younger according to the study.
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"Short-term care insurance is clearly seen as a benefit for seniors," declares Jesse Slome, director of the National Advisory Center. The new organization, established as part of the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance, conducted the first industry benchmark study examining sales and buyer data on over 30,000 policies issued by nine leading insurers who market short-term care insurance policies.
According to the study, just over half (51%) of buyers were between ages 61 and 70. Over one-third (36%) were between ages 71 and 80 when they applied for their short-term care insurance policy. "Some four percent were over age 80," Slome reports. A number of short-term care insurance policies will accept applicants up to age 89. Nine percent of buyers were age 60 or younger according to the study.
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why financial advisers need to talk to clients about elder care
With baby boomers aging and average life expectancies rising, financial advisers are finding that they need to address elder care in their conversations with clients.
Bernard Krooks, founding partner of the law firm Littman Krooks LLP and chair of its elder law and special needs practice, explains the health-related discussions that advisers and clients should be having, in a recent Take 15 interview with Lauren Foster.
“We find that many clients — and their advisers — spend their entire lives focusing on how we’re going to accumulate wealth,” Krooks says. “They fail to realize that it can take a very long period of time to accumulate substantial wealth. But it can take, unfortunately, a very short period of time to lose it if you or someone in your family gets stricken with the wrong illness.”
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Bernard Krooks, founding partner of the law firm Littman Krooks LLP and chair of its elder law and special needs practice, explains the health-related discussions that advisers and clients should be having, in a recent Take 15 interview with Lauren Foster.
“We find that many clients — and their advisers — spend their entire lives focusing on how we’re going to accumulate wealth,” Krooks says. “They fail to realize that it can take a very long period of time to accumulate substantial wealth. But it can take, unfortunately, a very short period of time to lose it if you or someone in your family gets stricken with the wrong illness.”
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7 customer questions about ANNUITIES and how to respond
Those considering annuities typically have plenty of questions about their potential purchase. In particular, retirees and those nearing retirement age are concerned about several possible scenarios. They need to ensure that they don’t outlive their money. They want the benefit of possible upside potential from involvement in the stock market, but they want to be protected from the volatility inherent in that type of investment. These individuals also want to know what’s involved in their annuity agreement.
Craig W. Lemoine, CFP, and Jarrett L. Davis, professor of financial planning technology at The American College in Bryn Mawr, Penn., outlined the seven questions individuals should ask before buying into an annuity in a recent article in Forbes. Savvy agents and brokers who can respond to these questions can provide information that will help put their annuity-considering clients’ minds at ease about an annuity contract.
Following are Davis and Lemoine’s take on the questions individuals need to ask themselves before an annuity purchase. These are also the questions clients will ask agents and brokers—and the responses you’ll need to educate and inform customers.
1.) Will the insurance company selling me the annuity be able to make good on its promises?
Individuals rely heavily on insurer credit ratings, so it’s essential to come armed with the credit rating of companies whose annuities you sell. Organizations that rate insurance companies include AM Best, Fitch, Moody’s and Standard and Poor’s. Know the ratings of each before beginning a conversation on annuities with a customer.
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Craig W. Lemoine, CFP, and Jarrett L. Davis, professor of financial planning technology at The American College in Bryn Mawr, Penn., outlined the seven questions individuals should ask before buying into an annuity in a recent article in Forbes. Savvy agents and brokers who can respond to these questions can provide information that will help put their annuity-considering clients’ minds at ease about an annuity contract.
Following are Davis and Lemoine’s take on the questions individuals need to ask themselves before an annuity purchase. These are also the questions clients will ask agents and brokers—and the responses you’ll need to educate and inform customers.
1.) Will the insurance company selling me the annuity be able to make good on its promises?
Individuals rely heavily on insurer credit ratings, so it’s essential to come armed with the credit rating of companies whose annuities you sell. Organizations that rate insurance companies include AM Best, Fitch, Moody’s and Standard and Poor’s. Know the ratings of each before beginning a conversation on annuities with a customer.
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WHEN IT COMES TO LONG-TERM CARE INSURANCE, AMERICANS DON'T GET IT
A newly-released survey shows just how conflicted Americans are about long-term care insurance. And how unrealistic they are about how much long-term care costs and how much insurance they can buy for what they are willing to spend.
The survey, completed in 2014 by the consulting firm RTI International and the survey research firm GfK Research for the US Department of Health and Human Services, found that consumers prize two attributes above all others when they think about long-term care insurance: They want lifetime coverage and low premiums. Their willingness to buy any LTC insurance declines dramatically as premiums rise and the benefit period shrinks.
For instance, fewer than half of those surveyed were willing to spend more than $50-a-month for a long-term care insurance policy that covers $100-a-day for 3 years.
In the real world, it is possible for a 60-year-old to buy such a policy. But it would come with no inflation protection beyond the right to buy additional insurance in the future. And it would provide a total maximum benefit of only about $109,000. To put it another way, it would pay less than half the daily cost of a nursing home stay or about five hours a day for home health aide time. Not nothing, for sure, but much less protection than consumers say they want.
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The survey, completed in 2014 by the consulting firm RTI International and the survey research firm GfK Research for the US Department of Health and Human Services, found that consumers prize two attributes above all others when they think about long-term care insurance: They want lifetime coverage and low premiums. Their willingness to buy any LTC insurance declines dramatically as premiums rise and the benefit period shrinks.
For instance, fewer than half of those surveyed were willing to spend more than $50-a-month for a long-term care insurance policy that covers $100-a-day for 3 years.
In the real world, it is possible for a 60-year-old to buy such a policy. But it would come with no inflation protection beyond the right to buy additional insurance in the future. And it would provide a total maximum benefit of only about $109,000. To put it another way, it would pay less than half the daily cost of a nursing home stay or about five hours a day for home health aide time. Not nothing, for sure, but much less protection than consumers say they want.
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HOW TO BEST COMMUNICATE RETIREMENT PLANNING TO FEMALE CLIENTS
Purely as a result of gender, women bear some financial burdens to a greater degree than men. Specifically here are the burdens they face:
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- U.S. women currently are living 4.8 years longer than men from birth, according to the Social Security Administration. At age 65, a female has a 32.6% probability of living at least to age 90, compared to a 21.2% probability for a male of the same age. This longevity advantage means that women bear the burden of having to plan for longer retirements. Most married women need to plan for the possibility of outliving a spouse and having to make financial decisions alone at some point.
- Due to a combination of lower historic wages and time taken off from work to raise children, today’s retired women qualify for lower Social Security retirement benefits on average than men. In 2015, the average annual benefit received by women age 65 or older was $13,500, compared to $17,600 for men.
- Several studies have indicated that women are more likely than men to become responsible for the financial, emotional and medical care of elderly parents or their own spouses.
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SEE WHAT YOUR PROSPECTS SEE
Reed, an advisor in LA, was telling me about his frustrations with a doctor-lawyer couple. He thought they were already his clients, but after leaving several messages for the husband to set up a time to meet with them, he had not gotten a response.
“I finally had a great conversation with his wife, and I told her I had been trying to reach him to schedule a time to see them,” he said. “But she told me that because of his schedule, I’d have to speak with him. So I was right back at square one.”
“These are clients who are obviously not jumping up and down at the idea of meeting with you,” I observed. “Do they know why you want to see them?”
“Well, no,” he responded.
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“I finally had a great conversation with his wife, and I told her I had been trying to reach him to schedule a time to see them,” he said. “But she told me that because of his schedule, I’d have to speak with him. So I was right back at square one.”
“These are clients who are obviously not jumping up and down at the idea of meeting with you,” I observed. “Do they know why you want to see them?”
“Well, no,” he responded.
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5 WAYS TO CEMENT RELATIONSHIPS WITH CLIENT COUPLES
But often advisors were found to “give one member of the couple more status: the male,” the survey found.
There are probably no goals more important for financial advisors than attracting new clients and keeping the ones they already have. But death and divorce pose big challenges to that.
A 2011 study by Spectrem Research found that 70 percent of widows changed their advisor within a year of the death of their husbands. A TIAA-CREF study released Wednesday found that 32 percent of advisors report losing female clients after a divorce.
Since couples typically account for about 60 percent or more of an advisor’s client base and wives tend to outlive their husbands, advisors need to pay attention to what TIAA-CREF is calling the “Couples Conundrum.”
“Despite their best efforts to work with both members of a couple, advisors often do not have adequate insights into the remaining spouse to serve him or her as effectively as possible in the event of a major life transition,” said Jennifer Pedigo, managing director and head of institutional business development at TIAA-CREF Asset Management, in a statement. “It’s critical that advisors are able to make a real connection with both partners.”
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A 2011 study by Spectrem Research found that 70 percent of widows changed their advisor within a year of the death of their husbands. A TIAA-CREF study released Wednesday found that 32 percent of advisors report losing female clients after a divorce.
Since couples typically account for about 60 percent or more of an advisor’s client base and wives tend to outlive their husbands, advisors need to pay attention to what TIAA-CREF is calling the “Couples Conundrum.”
“Despite their best efforts to work with both members of a couple, advisors often do not have adequate insights into the remaining spouse to serve him or her as effectively as possible in the event of a major life transition,” said Jennifer Pedigo, managing director and head of institutional business development at TIAA-CREF Asset Management, in a statement. “It’s critical that advisors are able to make a real connection with both partners.”
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Three Estate Planning Mistakes Farmers & Ranchers Make and How to Help Avoid Them
Don't get plowed under.
Farming or ranching is more than a means of livelihood – it is about preserving a legacy and unique way of life. Unfortunately, many farmers and ranchers don’t fully protect their legacy with an up to date estate plan. An out of date or inadequate estate plan could result in a farm or ranch that has been passed down for generations ending up being sold and converted into non-agricultural use. Sadly, a lack of planning can cut a legacy short and end a family’s unique lifestyle choice.
The subdivision of the family farm or ranch into residential lots or plowing under the soil to build the next mall or office building can be avoided. In this article you will learn about three common estate planning mistakes farmers and ranchers make and how you can help to avoid them.
Mistake #1 – Failing to Plan or Failing to Update an Out of Date Plan
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Farming or ranching is more than a means of livelihood – it is about preserving a legacy and unique way of life. Unfortunately, many farmers and ranchers don’t fully protect their legacy with an up to date estate plan. An out of date or inadequate estate plan could result in a farm or ranch that has been passed down for generations ending up being sold and converted into non-agricultural use. Sadly, a lack of planning can cut a legacy short and end a family’s unique lifestyle choice.
The subdivision of the family farm or ranch into residential lots or plowing under the soil to build the next mall or office building can be avoided. In this article you will learn about three common estate planning mistakes farmers and ranchers make and how you can help to avoid them.
Mistake #1 – Failing to Plan or Failing to Update an Out of Date Plan
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Medicare and Skilled Nursing Care Bills
Before 2013, Medicare paid for SNF care only if a patient was still getting better.
Margie Barrie, a veteran long-term care insurance (LTCI) agent, marketer and educator, has been writing articles about long-term care (LTC) planning and related issues for years.
Here she looks at how Medicare coverage can help with some types of LTC expenses, or LTC-like expenses, in some situations.
Question: As part of my client presentation, I discuss Medicare and how you can’t depend on it to pay for long-term care expenses. My explanation includes that you must be getting better every day in order for Medicare to pay a nursing home bill. Is that still correct or have the rules changed?
Answer: The rules have changed! And I must admit it was rather embarrassing how I learned about it. I was meeting with Donna Blizman, a health agent who specializes in Medicare supplements and a past president of the Sarasota National Association of Health Underwriters (NAHU) chapter, to provide her with a LTC policy. When I went through my customary Medicare explanation, she informed me that it was no longer correct.
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Here she looks at how Medicare coverage can help with some types of LTC expenses, or LTC-like expenses, in some situations.
Question: As part of my client presentation, I discuss Medicare and how you can’t depend on it to pay for long-term care expenses. My explanation includes that you must be getting better every day in order for Medicare to pay a nursing home bill. Is that still correct or have the rules changed?
Answer: The rules have changed! And I must admit it was rather embarrassing how I learned about it. I was meeting with Donna Blizman, a health agent who specializes in Medicare supplements and a past president of the Sarasota National Association of Health Underwriters (NAHU) chapter, to provide her with a LTC policy. When I went through my customary Medicare explanation, she informed me that it was no longer correct.
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Do You Know these 13 Annuity Terms?
Annuities are complex products designed to meet a number of complex needs. For many, they are the lynchpin in a secure retirement. For many others, they are shrouded in mystery: How do they work, who do they work for, and when should they be purchased?
To answer these questions well, you need clear, concise definitions to a complete annuity glossary. Here, we’ve collected a shortlist of terms that may very well come up in conversations with clients. How many of them do you know?
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To answer these questions well, you need clear, concise definitions to a complete annuity glossary. Here, we’ve collected a shortlist of terms that may very well come up in conversations with clients. How many of them do you know?
- annuity certain: An annuity that pays a specified amount for a definite and specified period of time, such as 5 or 10 years, with remaining payments going to a designated beneficiary if the annuitant dies before the end of the specified period.
- annuity certain, life: An annuity payable for a specified minimum number of periods or, if longer, for as long as the annuitant lives; a combination of an annuity certain and a life annuity.
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Life Insurance: The Often Missed Opportunity for Wealth Management Accounting Practices
For those accounting firms that embrace wealth management, the focus of their efforts, many times, is on asset management. There are a number of reasons for making investment advisory services central to their efforts including:
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- Consistent revenues: Investment management is a retainer business compensated by success. Over time, the accounting firm can accumulate substantial assets under management resulting in reliable and significant revenues.
- The bull market: With the indices periodically reaching new heights, investing monies is appealing as the appreciation of client’s assets results in more revenues without the need to attract new clients.
- Client insight: Many accountants know how a client is doing when it comes to investing. This provides them the possibility of capturing assets from underperforming financial advisors.
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A Dose of Reality for a Hot-Selling Insurance Product
Regulators limit what gains insurers can cite for ‘indexed universal life’ policies.
Come Sept. 1, the marketing pitches for one of the hottest life-insurance products might become a lot less enticing.
The product, called indexed universal life, relies on investment gains based on stock-market indexes. The policies promise annual interest based on formulas pegged to stock indexes.
But a fight had broken out between life insurers that promote the policies and others that consider the policies too risky for people who need life insurance. After lengthy debate, state insurance regulators last month adopted a new guideline for marketing material used by insurers and agents. A key feature now is a limit on the annual investment gain that can be used to illustrate a policy’s potential performance.
Sales of indexed policies grew 23% last year by a key measure of premiums, the strongest growth of any type of individual life insurance, according to LIMRA, a research trade association for the financial-services industry. Premiums from indexed universal life now represent one-fifth of all new individual life-insurance sales. In contrast, overall sales of individual life insurance—including combination savings-and-death-benefit policies with interest linked to insurers’ bond-heavy investment portfolios—grew just 2% in 2014.
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Come Sept. 1, the marketing pitches for one of the hottest life-insurance products might become a lot less enticing.
The product, called indexed universal life, relies on investment gains based on stock-market indexes. The policies promise annual interest based on formulas pegged to stock indexes.
But a fight had broken out between life insurers that promote the policies and others that consider the policies too risky for people who need life insurance. After lengthy debate, state insurance regulators last month adopted a new guideline for marketing material used by insurers and agents. A key feature now is a limit on the annual investment gain that can be used to illustrate a policy’s potential performance.
Sales of indexed policies grew 23% last year by a key measure of premiums, the strongest growth of any type of individual life insurance, according to LIMRA, a research trade association for the financial-services industry. Premiums from indexed universal life now represent one-fifth of all new individual life-insurance sales. In contrast, overall sales of individual life insurance—including combination savings-and-death-benefit policies with interest linked to insurers’ bond-heavy investment portfolios—grew just 2% in 2014.
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Do You Know these 13 Life Insurance Terms?
lf you've been selling life insurance for any time at all, you know that it's an industry filled with jargon and acronyms. To be part of the insider's club, you have to speak the language. Harder still, you have to be able to translate that language for clients who barely know what an annuity is, let alone the ins and outs of a fifth dividend option.
Now, it's time to test your industry knowledge. We've rounded up thirteen terms that separate the novice from the true insurance scholar. How many of them do you know?
adhesion: There is no true bargaining or “meeting of the minds” in a life insurance contract. Bluntly, a policy owner can “take it or leave it” but may not bargain for specific terms or conditions. In other words, the party who buys life insurance must adhere to an established, preexisting standard contract and its terms. The law provides special protection to one forced to accept a contract of adhesion and, other things being equal, will interpret the terms of such a document in favor of the policy owner rather than the insurer.
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Now, it's time to test your industry knowledge. We've rounded up thirteen terms that separate the novice from the true insurance scholar. How many of them do you know?
adhesion: There is no true bargaining or “meeting of the minds” in a life insurance contract. Bluntly, a policy owner can “take it or leave it” but may not bargain for specific terms or conditions. In other words, the party who buys life insurance must adhere to an established, preexisting standard contract and its terms. The law provides special protection to one forced to accept a contract of adhesion and, other things being equal, will interpret the terms of such a document in favor of the policy owner rather than the insurer.
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5 Ways to Prospect in Retirement Communities
Now here’s a challenge: How do you build a business in a world where nobody works? Their income earning days are behind them. Even more difficult, how do you raise your visibility in the land of second homes and vacation properties?
You might say: “Why choose to build a business there?” The answer is simple: That’s where you and your family work. Your spouse might work in the medical field and he/she recently took a job at the local hospital. Maybe your family has lived in this resort area for generations.
“The land where nobody works” is a misconception. People who relocate after completing their working career often choose their new locale very carefully. Retirees like college towns because they are surrounded by people of all ages. They also move to areas with great medical facilities because you never know when you might need specialized care.
Retirement and resort communities are often on an upwardly expanding trajectory. If new homes are being built and sold, someone is doing the construction or selling the furnishings. Agents who are new residents often feel they are at a disadvantage because they don’t know anyone. In retirement communities, many people are newcomers.
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You might say: “Why choose to build a business there?” The answer is simple: That’s where you and your family work. Your spouse might work in the medical field and he/she recently took a job at the local hospital. Maybe your family has lived in this resort area for generations.
“The land where nobody works” is a misconception. People who relocate after completing their working career often choose their new locale very carefully. Retirees like college towns because they are surrounded by people of all ages. They also move to areas with great medical facilities because you never know when you might need specialized care.
Retirement and resort communities are often on an upwardly expanding trajectory. If new homes are being built and sold, someone is doing the construction or selling the furnishings. Agents who are new residents often feel they are at a disadvantage because they don’t know anyone. In retirement communities, many people are newcomers.
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Avoiding E&O Claims from New Business
Being sued in an E&O claim is unfortunate, but that is why you purchase professional liability insurance. You worked hard to build your practice, and adequate E&O insurance is a prudent and imperative way to protect that practice.
Knowing what puts agents most at risk of an E&O claim is a vital way to help ensure you take steps to prevent it from happening to you.
According to the Swiss Re Corporate Solutions Attorney Survey of Agents E&O Litigation, the root causes of claims tend to fall into the same categories over and over. And most, 40 percent, arise from the process of generating new business.
According to the National Ethics Association, the most common reason life and health agents face claims from new business is for allegations of misrepresenting the scope of coverage procured.
“Most fundamentally, claims arise when customers don’t receive the insurance coverage they thought they purchased, either through the agent’s processing error or failure to properly explain policy provisions or deliberate misrepresentation,” said Harry J. Lew, chief content officer at the National Ethics Association. “In other words, any time there’s a gap between the customer’s expectations and the insurance company’s delivery of benefits, you have a potential E&O claim at hand.”
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Knowing what puts agents most at risk of an E&O claim is a vital way to help ensure you take steps to prevent it from happening to you.
According to the Swiss Re Corporate Solutions Attorney Survey of Agents E&O Litigation, the root causes of claims tend to fall into the same categories over and over. And most, 40 percent, arise from the process of generating new business.
According to the National Ethics Association, the most common reason life and health agents face claims from new business is for allegations of misrepresenting the scope of coverage procured.
“Most fundamentally, claims arise when customers don’t receive the insurance coverage they thought they purchased, either through the agent’s processing error or failure to properly explain policy provisions or deliberate misrepresentation,” said Harry J. Lew, chief content officer at the National Ethics Association. “In other words, any time there’s a gap between the customer’s expectations and the insurance company’s delivery of benefits, you have a potential E&O claim at hand.”
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5 Proven Ways to Respond When a Prospect Is "Too Busy"
Of all the brush-offs you get while prospecting, the old standby: “I’m too busy to talk now,” is right up there with, “I’m not interested,” and “Just email me something.”
The reason this is such a popular response with prospects is that most salespeople don’t know how to handle it. They’re easily put off and happy to call back later. Of course, now that the prospect has your caller ID#, they’ll know to let the call go to voicemail the next time they see it!
The key to handling this stall — as well as all others — is to sidestep it and earn the right to ask a few quick qualifying questions to determine if you’re dealing with the right person in the first place. That’s exactly what the following rebuttals allow you to do.
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The reason this is such a popular response with prospects is that most salespeople don’t know how to handle it. They’re easily put off and happy to call back later. Of course, now that the prospect has your caller ID#, they’ll know to let the call go to voicemail the next time they see it!
The key to handling this stall — as well as all others — is to sidestep it and earn the right to ask a few quick qualifying questions to determine if you’re dealing with the right person in the first place. That’s exactly what the following rebuttals allow you to do.
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25 Steps to Close a Sale During the First Call
Margie Barrie, a veteran long-term care insurance (LTCI) agent, marketer and educator, has been writing articles about long-term care (LTC) planning and related issues for years.
Here she gives a reader ideas about how to make sales more efficiently.
Question: I want to reduce my two-call closes and increase my one-call closes. How can I accomplish that?
Answer: We all want to significantly increase our sales of LTCI and other products, and closing on the first appointment is an excellent way to accomplish that.
Gene Cutler excels at first-call closes. A New York agent and a regional sales director for ACSIA Partners, his first-call closing numbers are impressive: 80 percent for face-to-face appointments and 60 percent for phone appointments.
Here are 25 techniques and key phrases that he uses:
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Here she gives a reader ideas about how to make sales more efficiently.
Question: I want to reduce my two-call closes and increase my one-call closes. How can I accomplish that?
Answer: We all want to significantly increase our sales of LTCI and other products, and closing on the first appointment is an excellent way to accomplish that.
Gene Cutler excels at first-call closes. A New York agent and a regional sales director for ACSIA Partners, his first-call closing numbers are impressive: 80 percent for face-to-face appointments and 60 percent for phone appointments.
Here are 25 techniques and key phrases that he uses:
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Why Cash Value Life Insurance May Be the Estate Planning Tool Your Clients Need
For boomer or senior clients with sufficient net worth, moving money from low-yielding assets into life insurance can be a very smart investment.
Even with the stock market reaching new highs recently, some investors are still reeling from the memory of the economic downturn of the previous decade and its aftershocks. As a result, there is a segment of investors who are risk-averse and have turned to low-yielding assets such as certificate of deposits (CD), money markets and cash. If investors have assets earmarked for their heirs in a CD, they may have sought the relative safety of this fixed interest vehicle. After all, many investors want to at least preserve the amount set aside for heirs.
The cost for this safety is a very limited potential for growth in today’s low interest rate environment. The national average for CDs changes from week to week and varies according to duration. The rates are relatively low by historical standards, sometimes dipping below 1 percent. These low rates of return, compared with the current modest inflation of 2 percent to 3 percent, mean CD assets often lose buying power in today’s planning environment.
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Even with the stock market reaching new highs recently, some investors are still reeling from the memory of the economic downturn of the previous decade and its aftershocks. As a result, there is a segment of investors who are risk-averse and have turned to low-yielding assets such as certificate of deposits (CD), money markets and cash. If investors have assets earmarked for their heirs in a CD, they may have sought the relative safety of this fixed interest vehicle. After all, many investors want to at least preserve the amount set aside for heirs.
The cost for this safety is a very limited potential for growth in today’s low interest rate environment. The national average for CDs changes from week to week and varies according to duration. The rates are relatively low by historical standards, sometimes dipping below 1 percent. These low rates of return, compared with the current modest inflation of 2 percent to 3 percent, mean CD assets often lose buying power in today’s planning environment.
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Taking Advantage of Trends in Whole Life Insurance
These are the new opportunities for advisors and agents selling whole life policies.
Life insurance sales have always hinged on the idea of love. Most individuals want to provide for those who are financially dependent upon them.
The additional benefits are the living benefits for the policyholder. But for some prospects, especially those without devoted family ties, it can be very challenging to part with substantial sums of money with no opportunity to benefit themselves. The pendulum continuously swings between these two types of sales. Today there’s been a much stronger orientation towards the living benefits type of sale.
In the whole life arena, there are two prongs to the “What’s In It For Me” (WIIFM) sale. The first is cash accumulation and the key lever is the tax advantages inherent in a life insurance contract. Many purchasers believe that the different layers of government will continue to tax the richest 1, 5 or 10 percent of the country at even higher levels. Those same individuals are searching for ways to maximize the value of their assets.
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The additional benefits are the living benefits for the policyholder. But for some prospects, especially those without devoted family ties, it can be very challenging to part with substantial sums of money with no opportunity to benefit themselves. The pendulum continuously swings between these two types of sales. Today there’s been a much stronger orientation towards the living benefits type of sale.
In the whole life arena, there are two prongs to the “What’s In It For Me” (WIIFM) sale. The first is cash accumulation and the key lever is the tax advantages inherent in a life insurance contract. Many purchasers believe that the different layers of government will continue to tax the richest 1, 5 or 10 percent of the country at even higher levels. Those same individuals are searching for ways to maximize the value of their assets.
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Advisers: Ask Your Clients how They Take Care of Their Health
Do you have clients who worry about beating the index? Probably. But do you know what the top concern is for most clients? Health care.
A recent survey by Merrill Lynch and Age Wave found that health care expenses are people’s foremost financial concern in retirement. Put another way, the number one potential threat in retirement is unpredictable health care costs.
When you take a look at the numbers, it’s not surprising why many pre-retirees and retirees are fretting. According to the latest retiree health care cost estimate from Fidelity Benefits Consulting, a 65-year-old couple retiring in 2014 would have needed an average of $220,000 to pay for medical expenses during retirement.
But are you average? Are your clients average?
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A recent survey by Merrill Lynch and Age Wave found that health care expenses are people’s foremost financial concern in retirement. Put another way, the number one potential threat in retirement is unpredictable health care costs.
When you take a look at the numbers, it’s not surprising why many pre-retirees and retirees are fretting. According to the latest retiree health care cost estimate from Fidelity Benefits Consulting, a 65-year-old couple retiring in 2014 would have needed an average of $220,000 to pay for medical expenses during retirement.
But are you average? Are your clients average?
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3 Ways Annuities Help Beat the Interest Rate Blues
One question I get all the time when I talk with financial advisors is, “How do I tackle the low interest rate environment?” The perception is that all fixed products, including fixed deferred and income annuities (“fixed annuities”), are less attractive when rates are low.
But what many advisors don’t know – and what they’re pleased to hear – is that there’s no reason to wait for interest rates to rise to optimize your clients’ retirement portfolios; fixed annuities can deliver real value to your clients now.
Your clients are barreling towards retirement whether interest rates go up or not. For clients who are digging in their heels, hesitant to move until rates do, it is important to explain that there is a cost of waiting. Just consider what clients – no matter their risk tolerance – could have earned in the last few years from equity returns, the interest on a high yield fixed income product, or the payments from an income annuity, instead of waiting on the sidelines.
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But what many advisors don’t know – and what they’re pleased to hear – is that there’s no reason to wait for interest rates to rise to optimize your clients’ retirement portfolios; fixed annuities can deliver real value to your clients now.
Your clients are barreling towards retirement whether interest rates go up or not. For clients who are digging in their heels, hesitant to move until rates do, it is important to explain that there is a cost of waiting. Just consider what clients – no matter their risk tolerance – could have earned in the last few years from equity returns, the interest on a high yield fixed income product, or the payments from an income annuity, instead of waiting on the sidelines.
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Index Annuity Sales See Strong Start in 2015
Wink, Inc. Releases First Quarter, 2015 Indexed Sales Results
Pleasant Hill, Iowa. May 21, 2015- Forty-nine indexed annuity carriers participated in the 71st edition of Wink’s Sales & Market Report, representing 99.8% of indexed annuity production. Total first quarter sales were $11.3 billion. First quarter indexed annuity sales were down nearly 5.0% when compared to the previous quarter, and up nearly 5.0% when compared with the same period last year. “Indexed annuity sales began the year with sales greater than any other first quarter has in the history of the product line!” exclaimed Sheryl J. Moore, President and CEO of both Moore Market Intelligence and Wink, Inc. She added, “Imagine what record sales levels will be achieved in 2015, with a start this strong!”
Noteworthy highlights for the first quarter include Allianz Life continuing to maintain their position as the #1 carrier in indexed annuities, with a market share of 20.3%. American Equity Companies also maintained their position as the #2 carrier in the market; while Security Benefit Life, Great American Insurance Group, and Athene USA held-on to round-out the top five. Allianz Life’s Allianz 222 Annuity was the #1 selling indexed annuity for the third consecutive quarter.
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Pleasant Hill, Iowa. May 21, 2015- Forty-nine indexed annuity carriers participated in the 71st edition of Wink’s Sales & Market Report, representing 99.8% of indexed annuity production. Total first quarter sales were $11.3 billion. First quarter indexed annuity sales were down nearly 5.0% when compared to the previous quarter, and up nearly 5.0% when compared with the same period last year. “Indexed annuity sales began the year with sales greater than any other first quarter has in the history of the product line!” exclaimed Sheryl J. Moore, President and CEO of both Moore Market Intelligence and Wink, Inc. She added, “Imagine what record sales levels will be achieved in 2015, with a start this strong!”
Noteworthy highlights for the first quarter include Allianz Life continuing to maintain their position as the #1 carrier in indexed annuities, with a market share of 20.3%. American Equity Companies also maintained their position as the #2 carrier in the market; while Security Benefit Life, Great American Insurance Group, and Athene USA held-on to round-out the top five. Allianz Life’s Allianz 222 Annuity was the #1 selling indexed annuity for the third consecutive quarter.
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$112 billion in life insurance policy lapses by seniors – shame on all of us!
The face value of life insurance policies lapsed, or surrendered back, to life companies annually by seniors over age 65 is enormous.
Based on 2008 data compiled by publicly available sources, more than 250,000 universal and variable universal policies with a face value of approximately $57 billion were lapsed by seniors over age 65. When term and whole life policies are included, the number of policies exceeds 1.1 million with a face value of $112 billion. If the data were available for 2014, the amount would be even greater.
So, why shame on all of us? This data illustrates that tens of thousands of seniors with billions of dollars of life insurance are forfeiting potential financial benefits from policies that are simply lapsed back to the carriers. Why is this so? Lack of awareness!
For example, a 2010 survey prepared for the Insurance Studies Institute reported that more than half of seniors over the age of 65 are not familiar with the option to consider selling their life policy. Further, 90 percent of seniors who have let a policy lapse would have considered selling it if they had known a life settlement was an option.
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Based on 2008 data compiled by publicly available sources, more than 250,000 universal and variable universal policies with a face value of approximately $57 billion were lapsed by seniors over age 65. When term and whole life policies are included, the number of policies exceeds 1.1 million with a face value of $112 billion. If the data were available for 2014, the amount would be even greater.
So, why shame on all of us? This data illustrates that tens of thousands of seniors with billions of dollars of life insurance are forfeiting potential financial benefits from policies that are simply lapsed back to the carriers. Why is this so? Lack of awareness!
For example, a 2010 survey prepared for the Insurance Studies Institute reported that more than half of seniors over the age of 65 are not familiar with the option to consider selling their life policy. Further, 90 percent of seniors who have let a policy lapse would have considered selling it if they had known a life settlement was an option.
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10 Reasons My Closing Ratio Tops 90%
Turning prospects into happy, satisfied clients has not always been easy for me. When I first started in the industry, my closing ratio was an abysmal 20% to 30%. In fact, it was so bad I had to take a salaried job as legal counsel to a mutual fund board, just to make ends meet.
Fast forward to today. It still amazes me that getting and keeping beloved clients is now the easy part of this business. Here are some of the steps we took to go from 20% of our prospects engaging us and following our advice, to over 90 percent.
1. We found a great niche that worked for us.
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Fast forward to today. It still amazes me that getting and keeping beloved clients is now the easy part of this business. Here are some of the steps we took to go from 20% of our prospects engaging us and following our advice, to over 90 percent.
1. We found a great niche that worked for us.
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How to Build a Diversified Life Insurance Portfolio for Your Clients
How diversified are your clients with their life insurance coverage?
The average client has quite a few different needs when it comes to life insurance. Some are temporary, while others are permanent. And some clients may even have needs they’re not aware of yet. So how do you find one policy that can meet all of their needs? Most of the time, you don’t. You may just need to shift their way of thinking about life insurance coverage.
A diversified life strategy can help you design customized solutions for clients, which can provide them with significant flexibility for changing needs. With this approach, clients allocate their total budgeted premium for life insurance needs among two or more policies in order to diversify among product types and policy durations. This helps meet multiple needs and balance product risk.
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A diversified life strategy can help you design customized solutions for clients, which can provide them with significant flexibility for changing needs. With this approach, clients allocate their total budgeted premium for life insurance needs among two or more policies in order to diversify among product types and policy durations. This helps meet multiple needs and balance product risk.
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Zip code Analysis of Annuity Markets Reveals Surprises, Opportunities
A common question that big data scientist Bill Poll is getting these days is, “Where should I move my annuity practice?”
The questions are coming from annuity professionals who have reached certain event-based decision points about their practices, said Poll, who is a managing partner and co-founder of Information Asset Partners (IAP), Metuchen, N.J.
The professionals are looking for quantitative insights to help them make those decisions. The firm responds by crunching vast amounts of consumer information — big data — that helps identify current annuity markets based on the buying behavior of people who have bought annuities in the past two years.
Many companies use analytics services on a recurring basis. But annuity professionals just now are incorporating analytics into their businesses, and so are putting a toe in the water first — by using analytics on an as-needed basis.
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The questions are coming from annuity professionals who have reached certain event-based decision points about their practices, said Poll, who is a managing partner and co-founder of Information Asset Partners (IAP), Metuchen, N.J.
The professionals are looking for quantitative insights to help them make those decisions. The firm responds by crunching vast amounts of consumer information — big data — that helps identify current annuity markets based on the buying behavior of people who have bought annuities in the past two years.
Many companies use analytics services on a recurring basis. But annuity professionals just now are incorporating analytics into their businesses, and so are putting a toe in the water first — by using analytics on an as-needed basis.
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The Treasures hidden in Employee Benefits
People often don't realize that they're missing out on valuable employee benefits. Here's how one planner helps them get what's theirs.I’m talking with a client, Sarah, about her work benefits.
“Are you signed up for disability insurance through work?” I ask. Since Sarah, who’s in her 30s, has at least 25 years until retirement, this insurance is a very important component of her financial plan.
Sarah says she thinks she is.
“Great,” I say. “How long is the waiting period on that, and what percentage of your salary is covered?”
Sarah responds with a big “Ummmm, I have no idea.”
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“Are you signed up for disability insurance through work?” I ask. Since Sarah, who’s in her 30s, has at least 25 years until retirement, this insurance is a very important component of her financial plan.
Sarah says she thinks she is.
“Great,” I say. “How long is the waiting period on that, and what percentage of your salary is covered?”
Sarah responds with a big “Ummmm, I have no idea.”
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5 Life Insurance Game-Changers & Cautionary Notes for 2015
Life insurance industry innovations, trends and pitfalls that advisors should heed in the year ahead...
With the New Year now past us, you should be aware of several significant changes in store for the life insurance industry. Many of the changes are great for both agents and their customers, though there are some pitfalls to avoid. Technology has played a big part in many of the new trends. And the industry has been adapting and moving quicker to meet the needs of consumers as these new technologies become mainstays.
If you have clients or customers who have been putting off meeting with you or have been reluctant to explore life insurance because of the perceived drawn-out process, below are some great opportunities for you to offer your customer along with easier, less expensive, and quicker life insurance options.
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With the New Year now past us, you should be aware of several significant changes in store for the life insurance industry. Many of the changes are great for both agents and their customers, though there are some pitfalls to avoid. Technology has played a big part in many of the new trends. And the industry has been adapting and moving quicker to meet the needs of consumers as these new technologies become mainstays.
If you have clients or customers who have been putting off meeting with you or have been reluctant to explore life insurance because of the perceived drawn-out process, below are some great opportunities for you to offer your customer along with easier, less expensive, and quicker life insurance options.
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How to Sell an Annuity, from A to Z
As an independent advisor, Steven A. Plewes enjoys the freedom to run his business as he sees fit. Working entirely from home through a cloud-based system, Plewes helps his clients — who span 20 states — reach their financial goals by specializing in wealth management and retirement planning. Careful to use annuities that are tax-efficient and low-cost when he can, Plewes believes that annuity products support his philosophy that one's portfolio is only as good as the income it can consistently generate.
We sat down for a Q&A with Plewes to pick his brain about marketing and selling annuities.
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We sat down for a Q&A with Plewes to pick his brain about marketing and selling annuities.
- How do you spark interest in annuities?
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100 Reasons Final Expense Insurance Is an Opportunity You Can't Afford to Overlook
After experiencing the death of a dear loved one, and the terrible challenges that followed, my life was forever changed. However, my loss has become an inspiration to help others, particularly through encouraging other financial professionals to adopt end-of-life planning as a standard and routine part of what we do.
The more I strive to educate families and train financial professionals on end-of-life planning, the more passionate I become about this unique and niche opportunity. In fact, in my entire 24-year career in this great industry, I can honestly say that nothing has been as satisfying, or as opportunistic, as specializing in end-of-life planning.
Think about it. What could be more rewarding than helping families minimize or eliminate some of the most difficult emotional and financial challenges during one of the worst days of their lives in a situation where they are uncomfortable, unfamiliar, and unprepared?
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The more I strive to educate families and train financial professionals on end-of-life planning, the more passionate I become about this unique and niche opportunity. In fact, in my entire 24-year career in this great industry, I can honestly say that nothing has been as satisfying, or as opportunistic, as specializing in end-of-life planning.
Think about it. What could be more rewarding than helping families minimize or eliminate some of the most difficult emotional and financial challenges during one of the worst days of their lives in a situation where they are uncomfortable, unfamiliar, and unprepared?
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5 Things Life Insurers Need to Do to Stay Competitive
A recent report from the Deloitte Center for Financial Services reveals that the industry has to keep working on areas such as targeting underserved markets, simplifying products and launching new distribution programs. Today, in the middle and the long term, the life insurance and annuities industries are going to be:
- Experiencing new avenues for expansion
- Operating in a state of perpetual limbo in terms of regulations and legislation
- Staring at a transformation in talent with millennials and an aging insurer workforce
- Transitioning from a paper form business into a digitalized business
- Dealing with cyber security risks, in terms of potential liability and harm to their reputation
- Growing due to mergers and acquisitions
The report’s outlook for 2015 reveals that in the short-term, there should be a more favorable environment for growth in the U.S. because of the economic recovery and the chance that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates in the second half of the year. Deloitte is also projecting an increase on both net household wealth and real disposable personal income over the next two years. This may signal an improvement in sales for life insurance and annuity products when combined with a falling unemployment rate, Deloitte says.
For the longer-term or the bigger picture, Deloitte recommends that insurers focus on these five things to stay competitive:
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- Experiencing new avenues for expansion
- Operating in a state of perpetual limbo in terms of regulations and legislation
- Staring at a transformation in talent with millennials and an aging insurer workforce
- Transitioning from a paper form business into a digitalized business
- Dealing with cyber security risks, in terms of potential liability and harm to their reputation
- Growing due to mergers and acquisitions
The report’s outlook for 2015 reveals that in the short-term, there should be a more favorable environment for growth in the U.S. because of the economic recovery and the chance that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates in the second half of the year. Deloitte is also projecting an increase on both net household wealth and real disposable personal income over the next two years. This may signal an improvement in sales for life insurance and annuity products when combined with a falling unemployment rate, Deloitte says.
For the longer-term or the bigger picture, Deloitte recommends that insurers focus on these five things to stay competitive:
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5 Fixed Annuity Questions You Need to Stop Asking
It’s a new year, and a great time to look at new ways of growing your business. If you’ve chosen to do that by starting to sell fixed and indexed annuities, great; you’ve chosen well. Fixed annuity products are more popular and more consumer-friendly than ever.
It’s no secret, though, that there are a lot of misconceptions out there about annuity products. You make it clear that you’ve got some preconceived (and often incorrect) assumptions when you ask the following questions.
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It’s no secret, though, that there are a lot of misconceptions out there about annuity products. You make it clear that you’ve got some preconceived (and often incorrect) assumptions when you ask the following questions.
Read more...
Appeals Court Finds No Breach of Duty in Index Annuity Case
A U.S. appeals court in California has ruled in favor of EquiTrust, which was alleged to have violated federal and state laws in the sale of an index annuity, after the court found the carrier and the annuity had delivered on the contract’s promise.
In the case, Harrington v. EquiTrust Life Insurance Co., the plaintiffs Mary Helen Eller and Paul Harrington sued Equitrust on the grounds that marketing material used in the sale of the EquiTrust MarketPower Bonus Index Annuity amounted to mail and wire fraud.
Harrington argued that premium bonus promises, the annuity’s market value adjustment and the circumvention of state nonforfeiture contained in marketing documents and the annuity contract was a violation of the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) and Arizona state laws.
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In the case, Harrington v. EquiTrust Life Insurance Co., the plaintiffs Mary Helen Eller and Paul Harrington sued Equitrust on the grounds that marketing material used in the sale of the EquiTrust MarketPower Bonus Index Annuity amounted to mail and wire fraud.
Harrington argued that premium bonus promises, the annuity’s market value adjustment and the circumvention of state nonforfeiture contained in marketing documents and the annuity contract was a violation of the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) and Arizona state laws.
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How to Plan for the Great Wealth Shift
The oldest baby boomers are approaching age 70. As this segment of the demographic — which spans the two decades from 1946 to 1964[1] — moves deeper into their post-retirement years, many are starting to think about how to pass on their wealth. And they have a lot of wealth to transfer. A study from Accenture found baby boomers’ net worth equals nearly $7 trillion.[2]
Although clients might have initially chosen to invest in an annuity to accumulate retirement savings, a fixed annuity also can be used as a wealth transfer strategy.
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Although clients might have initially chosen to invest in an annuity to accumulate retirement savings, a fixed annuity also can be used as a wealth transfer strategy.
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Business Succession Planning: Look to Life Insurance
With 28.2 million small businesses in America, and with four of every 10 grappling with a transfer of ownership issue, the market seems primed for business succession planning outreach.
If you’re looking to expand your client base and the range of services you provide, there may be no time better than now to educate your customers and prospects on the use of life insurance in business succession planning. With 28.2 million small businesses in America, according to the Small Business Administration (SBA), and with four of every 10 grappling with a transfer of ownership issue, the market seems primed for outreach.
A recent MarketWatch article explains that “as much as planning for retirement can be a complex and confusing process for working Americans, it’s a whole other ballgame for those who are small-business owners. Not only do they have to manage their company’s day-to-day operations, develop and meet their sales and business goals, and provide for their employees, they also have to figure out what will happen to their business when they’re ready to move on.”
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A recent MarketWatch article explains that “as much as planning for retirement can be a complex and confusing process for working Americans, it’s a whole other ballgame for those who are small-business owners. Not only do they have to manage their company’s day-to-day operations, develop and meet their sales and business goals, and provide for their employees, they also have to figure out what will happen to their business when they’re ready to move on.”
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Preconceived Prejudices and the problem with 'Profitable' Clients
“Putting the client first”—do you consider it a central business philosophy or a tired cliché?
If you fail to offer a product or service solely because you can’t make money at it, you’re squarely with the latter, no matter how much lip service you pay.
Social Security is a prime example. Too many advisors (wrongly) imagine outdated stereotypes of nearly destitute senior citizens living on government-sponsored fixed incomes. Indeed, we’ve spoken with top advisors with hundreds-of-millions in assets under management and an equal amount in production who simply refer their clients to the local Social Security Administration office or the toll-free number.
This is a bad move because as more baby boomers retire, they’re redefining what Social Security means, just as they’ve seemingly done with almost every other aspect of retirement.
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If you fail to offer a product or service solely because you can’t make money at it, you’re squarely with the latter, no matter how much lip service you pay.
Social Security is a prime example. Too many advisors (wrongly) imagine outdated stereotypes of nearly destitute senior citizens living on government-sponsored fixed incomes. Indeed, we’ve spoken with top advisors with hundreds-of-millions in assets under management and an equal amount in production who simply refer their clients to the local Social Security Administration office or the toll-free number.
This is a bad move because as more baby boomers retire, they’re redefining what Social Security means, just as they’ve seemingly done with almost every other aspect of retirement.
Read more...
Term vs. Whole LIfe: Why Rent If You Can Afford to Own?
For decades, I have studied and learned a wide variety of ways to explain the differences between term and whole life insurance.Regardless of how you choose to review the key differences with your client, their decision almost always boils down to cost: Is it affordable and will it fit into their budget?
When you remove the real estate downturn and mortgage problems of the past six years, owning a home has traditionally been a much better long-term decision than renting. There are very few individuals or families who would willingly choose to rent rather than own a home if they could afford to own. Not only does ownership carry a psychological and status gain, but there are also long-term financial and tax benefits that make home ownership the better strategy. There is a strong connection between this analogy and the decision to buy whole life versus term.
4 easy steps to explain the key differences:
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When you remove the real estate downturn and mortgage problems of the past six years, owning a home has traditionally been a much better long-term decision than renting. There are very few individuals or families who would willingly choose to rent rather than own a home if they could afford to own. Not only does ownership carry a psychological and status gain, but there are also long-term financial and tax benefits that make home ownership the better strategy. There is a strong connection between this analogy and the decision to buy whole life versus term.
4 easy steps to explain the key differences:
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Forgotten Something?
Offering disability income insurance is an excellent way to satisfy a very real client concern.
Why offering disability income protection should be part of your practice...
Are you leaving business on the table? You probably are if you’re not helping clients protect themselves against an illness or injury that prevents them from working. Here’s how I’ve found success in making individual disability income insurance (IDI) an integral part of my business.
Income protection is part of a holistic approach
If you take a holistic approach in helping clients meet their needs, then you know that involves developing and presenting a variety of financial solutions, such as:
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Are you leaving business on the table? You probably are if you’re not helping clients protect themselves against an illness or injury that prevents them from working. Here’s how I’ve found success in making individual disability income insurance (IDI) an integral part of my business.
Income protection is part of a holistic approach
If you take a holistic approach in helping clients meet their needs, then you know that involves developing and presenting a variety of financial solutions, such as:
Read more...
Life Insurance Remains Vital to Financial Security
According to LIMRA research, Americans’ top financial concern is having enough money for retirement. This is even more pronounced with Generations X and Y consumers, where 75 percent list saving for retirement as their top priority.
Hat’s off to the financial services industry for doing such a remarkable job of promoting the importance of saving and planning for retirement.
However, sometimes the plans we make simply don’t turn out as we expected. Sometimes people don’t live to enjoy retirement. Life insurance provides financial security to your loved ones when you are unable to. Our industry needs to balance the message of saving for retirement with the message of protecting against the unexpected.
There are 58 million households underinsured, according to LIMRA research. Seven in ten families with children under 18 — that’s 11 million families — would be in financial jeopardy if the primary wage earner died. We need to do a better job of conveying the value of life insurance as part of a holistic financial strategy.
Why don’t people buy life insurance?
Read more...
Hat’s off to the financial services industry for doing such a remarkable job of promoting the importance of saving and planning for retirement.
However, sometimes the plans we make simply don’t turn out as we expected. Sometimes people don’t live to enjoy retirement. Life insurance provides financial security to your loved ones when you are unable to. Our industry needs to balance the message of saving for retirement with the message of protecting against the unexpected.
There are 58 million households underinsured, according to LIMRA research. Seven in ten families with children under 18 — that’s 11 million families — would be in financial jeopardy if the primary wage earner died. We need to do a better job of conveying the value of life insurance as part of a holistic financial strategy.
Why don’t people buy life insurance?
Read more...
Three Reasons Why Americans Don't Insure Their Income
Twenty-seven percent of working adults think they have a greater chance of being audited by the IRS than experiencing an illness or injury that prevents them from working for a period of time. The actual odds? One percent for an audit vs. 25 percent for being out of work.
The Council for Disability Awareness' new report, "America's Income Protection Picture," identifies several factors preventing many full-time working adults from insuring their income. And the majority of consumers believe their income is one of the "most important things in life." Access the full report here: http://disabilitycanhappen.org/research/consumer2014/.
Whether a millennial at the start or height of her earning years, or a baby boomer saving for retirement, a consumer's ability to work and earn an income is probably his or her most valuable financial resource. Yet 57 percent of working adults surveyed said they lack disability insurance, which is one of the best ways for a consumer to replace a portion of his income if he or she can't work for several months – or even several years – due to an illness or injury.
Read more...
The Council for Disability Awareness' new report, "America's Income Protection Picture," identifies several factors preventing many full-time working adults from insuring their income. And the majority of consumers believe their income is one of the "most important things in life." Access the full report here: http://disabilitycanhappen.org/research/consumer2014/.
Whether a millennial at the start or height of her earning years, or a baby boomer saving for retirement, a consumer's ability to work and earn an income is probably his or her most valuable financial resource. Yet 57 percent of working adults surveyed said they lack disability insurance, which is one of the best ways for a consumer to replace a portion of his income if he or she can't work for several months – or even several years – due to an illness or injury.
Read more...
5 Ways to Kill the LTCi Slump
“LTCI is dead,” a financial planner told me recently.
“Really?” I asked. “Why would you think that?”
“Well, because no one can get approved, it’s way too expensive, and I don’t want my clients to be faced with rate increases. Now I sell hybrids to all of my clients. That way at least someone is guaranteed a benefit.”
“What do you do about the clients who can’t afford to plunk down $100,000 for a policy? Or clients who can’t qualify? Or clients who want a partnership policy?”
Silence.
Long-term care insurance isn’t dead. What is true is that the industry is down this year — by some accounts as much as 32 percent.
Here’s a look at three reasons for the slowdown — and five ways to respond.
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“Really?” I asked. “Why would you think that?”
“Well, because no one can get approved, it’s way too expensive, and I don’t want my clients to be faced with rate increases. Now I sell hybrids to all of my clients. That way at least someone is guaranteed a benefit.”
“What do you do about the clients who can’t afford to plunk down $100,000 for a policy? Or clients who can’t qualify? Or clients who want a partnership policy?”
Silence.
Long-term care insurance isn’t dead. What is true is that the industry is down this year — by some accounts as much as 32 percent.
Here’s a look at three reasons for the slowdown — and five ways to respond.
Read more...
4 Ways to Achieve Success in Life Insurance Sales
Life insurance producers face each New Year intending to make it the best one yet -- a banner year. But as we all know, it takes more than even the best intentions to be successful in our business.
Even though there is an abundance of good advice on how to pump up production, all too frequently the results at year’s end are below expectations. My job includes getting acquainted with producers and following their careers, and it’s abundantly clear that the most successful individuals focus on a few issues. I call it “A Life Insurance Producer’s Four-Point Plan of Success.” It may be helpful in the year ahead.
What it entails:
1. Demonstrate the value of life insurance as an asset class
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Even though there is an abundance of good advice on how to pump up production, all too frequently the results at year’s end are below expectations. My job includes getting acquainted with producers and following their careers, and it’s abundantly clear that the most successful individuals focus on a few issues. I call it “A Life Insurance Producer’s Four-Point Plan of Success.” It may be helpful in the year ahead.
What it entails:
1. Demonstrate the value of life insurance as an asset class
Read more...
Two Ways to Increase LTC Product Sales
Margie Barrie, a veteran long-term care insurance (LTCI) agent, marketer and educator, has been writing articles about long-term care (LTC) planning and related issues for several years. Here, she takes a question about simple, effective ways to increase sales.
Q. I’m always looking for great ideas to increase my sales and grow my business. Can you provide some suggestions?
A. Here are two ideas to consider adding to your marketing strategy. They are provided by Stana Martin, an ACSIA Partners agent from Kansas City, Mo., who happens to have a Ph.D. in communications.
The first question is about clients who try to put you off.
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Q. I’m always looking for great ideas to increase my sales and grow my business. Can you provide some suggestions?
A. Here are two ideas to consider adding to your marketing strategy. They are provided by Stana Martin, an ACSIA Partners agent from Kansas City, Mo., who happens to have a Ph.D. in communications.
The first question is about clients who try to put you off.
Read more...
New Medicare Advantage Rules Benefit Seniors
Starting next year, the government will offer some seniors enrolled in private Medicare Advantage insurance an opportunity to leave those plans if they lose their doctors or other health care providers.
Last year, thousands of seniors in at least 10 states were left stranded or assigned new doctors when insurers discontinued contracts with the physicians.
The Medicare Advantage policies cover 16 million seniors and are an alternative to the government-run Medicare program. Medicare Advantage members can get care only from a network of providers under contract to participate in their plan. They must remain in their plans for the calendar year, with some rare exceptions, but losing their doctor has not been among the permitted reasons.
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Last year, thousands of seniors in at least 10 states were left stranded or assigned new doctors when insurers discontinued contracts with the physicians.
The Medicare Advantage policies cover 16 million seniors and are an alternative to the government-run Medicare program. Medicare Advantage members can get care only from a network of providers under contract to participate in their plan. They must remain in their plans for the calendar year, with some rare exceptions, but losing their doctor has not been among the permitted reasons.
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Student Loan Debt: Making the Disability Umbrella Bigger
Who knows what will happen to product terms or prices, but Ebola may be sales rocket fuel for anyone trying to persuade young doctors to max out on disability insurance.
Dr. Marcus Spencer, a 33-year-old medical doctor, has suddenly become one of the most famous people in the United States, for a few days, by becoming the first person in New York City to have a confirmed case of Ebola.
Spencer may be in isolation for weeks. Some of the doctors and nurses who care for him may end up facing restrictions on activities of their own, either because they themselves come down with Ebola or because of safety precautions.
It's not clear how Spencer's usual employer, the charity that employed him as a volunteer in Guinea, or the hospital that's treating them will handle any Ebola-related quarantine or isolation time, but the situation has forced hundreds of thousands of health care providers around the country to think about how they would pay their bills -- including sky-high student loan bills -- if they were off of work for the standard three-week Ebola exposure quarantine period, the six-week period recommended by some, or even longer.
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Dr. Marcus Spencer, a 33-year-old medical doctor, has suddenly become one of the most famous people in the United States, for a few days, by becoming the first person in New York City to have a confirmed case of Ebola.
Spencer may be in isolation for weeks. Some of the doctors and nurses who care for him may end up facing restrictions on activities of their own, either because they themselves come down with Ebola or because of safety precautions.
It's not clear how Spencer's usual employer, the charity that employed him as a volunteer in Guinea, or the hospital that's treating them will handle any Ebola-related quarantine or isolation time, but the situation has forced hundreds of thousands of health care providers around the country to think about how they would pay their bills -- including sky-high student loan bills -- if they were off of work for the standard three-week Ebola exposure quarantine period, the six-week period recommended by some, or even longer.
Read more...
5 Opening Lines to Sell Individual Disability Income Insurance
As an adviser, you are confident and skilled when it comes to selling the products that make up your core business. Products such as long-term care, health and life insurance can help prepare your clients for the unexpected.
However, you may be leaving money on the table — and exposing clients to risk — by not selling one product that can help protect your clients’ income and maintain their standard of living: individual disability income insurance.
Many agents recognize the need for their clients to buy IDI, but struggle at effectively proposing it. However, there is a natural segue to IDI from just about any insurance or investment product. In many instances, the timing may be ideal if you are putting your client through medical underwriting for another purchase.
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However, you may be leaving money on the table — and exposing clients to risk — by not selling one product that can help protect your clients’ income and maintain their standard of living: individual disability income insurance.
Many agents recognize the need for their clients to buy IDI, but struggle at effectively proposing it. However, there is a natural segue to IDI from just about any insurance or investment product. In many instances, the timing may be ideal if you are putting your client through medical underwriting for another purchase.
Read more...
The Little-Known IRS Rule that Could Change Your Client's Retirement Plan
For clients who have recently started to see rebounding 401(k) values, the prospect of allowing those funds to remain exposed to market fluctuations may seem too great a risk as they near retirement age and begin to crave retirement income guarantees. Fortunately, options exist to allow these clients to take control of their risk exposure using their 401(k) funds without actually waiting until retirement. By taking advantage of little-known IRS rules that provide for in-service 401(k) withdrawals, the client can use funds that are already earmarked for retirement to implement an annuity strategy that guarantees income during retirement — without incurring a single penalty — while they are still working and contributing to the 401(k).
In-Service withdrawals: the rules
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In-Service withdrawals: the rules
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How to Overcome Your Client's Annuity Misconceptions
As a broker, you are poised to profoundly affect your client’s financial decisions by bringing them sound advice and recommending the best vehicles for their hard-earned retirement dollars.
Many brokers have found that recommending a fixed annuity can help clients gain an advantage and maintain peace of mind leading up to and during retirement.
Many potential purchasers are unaware of the benefits of a fixed annuity purchase.
Consider the following misconceptions clients often have, and learn how you can help inform them about how an annuity can actually help them realize their objectives for retirement or financial planning for beneficiaries.
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Many brokers have found that recommending a fixed annuity can help clients gain an advantage and maintain peace of mind leading up to and during retirement.
Many potential purchasers are unaware of the benefits of a fixed annuity purchase.
Consider the following misconceptions clients often have, and learn how you can help inform them about how an annuity can actually help them realize their objectives for retirement or financial planning for beneficiaries.
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The valuable Prospecting Tool You Probably Already Own
A financial calculator can be one of the best investments an advisor can make. I purchased an HP 12c financial calculator when I opened my practice in 1985. Now, I have an app on my iPhone that functions the same way. It’s called HP 12c lite.
This little calculator has closed many sales for me and it is an excellent prospecting tool. Try this: Ask a prospect what average returns they have been getting for the last 10 years. Their first answer will almost always be, “I don’t know.” Shocking!
It is beyond my comprehension that anyone would not know, to the decimal point, what his or her earnings are. Can you imagine someone not knowing their salary for their job? Preposterous! However, many seem to be unaware of their actual returns and their potential returns elsewhere. If they are averaging 10 percent and you may be able to improve that by 5 percent per year, the difference is staggering.
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This little calculator has closed many sales for me and it is an excellent prospecting tool. Try this: Ask a prospect what average returns they have been getting for the last 10 years. Their first answer will almost always be, “I don’t know.” Shocking!
It is beyond my comprehension that anyone would not know, to the decimal point, what his or her earnings are. Can you imagine someone not knowing their salary for their job? Preposterous! However, many seem to be unaware of their actual returns and their potential returns elsewhere. If they are averaging 10 percent and you may be able to improve that by 5 percent per year, the difference is staggering.
Read more...
A Simple Three-Step Process to Selling Life Insurance
One of the biggest challenges most financial professionals face is helping clients (and prospects) truly understand life insurance. The harsh reality is that life insurance is a very complicated, misunderstood, and often overlooked piece of a comprehensive financial plan.
The best solution I have found is to make this difficult discussion an educational process versus a sales process. What most families want, need, and truly appreciate is to simplify life insurance into something they can grasp. This will allow them to make an educated and informed decision. In other words, what most clients really want is a basic understanding of the good, the bad, and the ugly regarding:
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The best solution I have found is to make this difficult discussion an educational process versus a sales process. What most families want, need, and truly appreciate is to simplify life insurance into something they can grasp. This will allow them to make an educated and informed decision. In other words, what most clients really want is a basic understanding of the good, the bad, and the ugly regarding:
Read more...
Four Challenges that Make a Great Argument for Life Insurance
Most life insurance professionals look beyond the life insurance industry for major trends that may impact our clients and our businesses. Policies at the federal level ranging from new health care laws to tax reform to budget challenges will have a major impact on our businesses in the coming years. At a minimum, they will certainly have an impact on the minds of consumers, how they seek financial advice, and what types of solutions they seek to overcome their challenges and meet their goals. With all of these forces swirling, the consumer’s mind is undoubtedly cluttered with concerns surrounding four major challenges:
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Consumers Still Hungry for Dental, Vision and Disability
Many Americans have aching holes in their personal protection plans.
Analysts at Cigna (NYSE:CI) report on the gaps in a recent electronic survey of 1,847 U.S. residents ages 25 to 64, with an annual household income of at least $25,000.
The Cigna analysts found big, lingering gaps in the benefits survey participants had and the benefits they wish they had. About 63 percent of the participants said they had dental insurance -- but only 7 percent of the remaining 37 percent said they were not interested in owning dental insurance. Thirty percent said they wish they had dental insurance.
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Analysts at Cigna (NYSE:CI) report on the gaps in a recent electronic survey of 1,847 U.S. residents ages 25 to 64, with an annual household income of at least $25,000.
The Cigna analysts found big, lingering gaps in the benefits survey participants had and the benefits they wish they had. About 63 percent of the participants said they had dental insurance -- but only 7 percent of the remaining 37 percent said they were not interested in owning dental insurance. Thirty percent said they wish they had dental insurance.
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When Customer Service Means Saying No
The other day, a potential client inquired about having me speak at his company’s annual meeting. Typically in this situation, one of the first questions I’m asked is “Are you available on this date?”
That one was easy to answer. (I was.) Once we started discussing his goals, however, I realized that I was not the right fit for the meeting. So I happily recommended one of my colleagues. My would-be client was surprised that I was so willing to turn over business to a competitor. While I consider my competition to be “friendly,” nevertheless, I was turning away business.
Why would I do this? Three reasons:
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That one was easy to answer. (I was.) Once we started discussing his goals, however, I realized that I was not the right fit for the meeting. So I happily recommended one of my colleagues. My would-be client was surprised that I was so willing to turn over business to a competitor. While I consider my competition to be “friendly,” nevertheless, I was turning away business.
Why would I do this? Three reasons:
Read more...
5 Ways to Sell Life Insurance to Millennials
“To sell or not to sell life insurance to millennials, that is the question” – from William Shakespeare’s newly discovered blog series, Two Noble Insurancemen.
OK, that’s not a real blog by the English renaissance playwright and poet. And this should not be a question you have to ask yourself. You should already be selling life insurance to millennials, also known as Generation Y.
After all, this market already has families and lives that need to be insured. According to LIMRA’s U.S. Consumers Today: The Generations report, only 34 percent of Gen Y owns individual life insurance and 39 percent said they would buy life insurance within the next 12 months.
But why is this generation not reaching out to advisors, when a lot of surveys and reports indicate that they are interested in financial advice, planning and buying life insurance? In honor of Life Insurance Awareness Month, here at LifeHealthPro.com we asked a few of the industry’s experts on millennials and insurance how to reach out to this digital-native generation. We hope that their responses will give you ideas on how to sell life insurance to Gen Y.
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OK, that’s not a real blog by the English renaissance playwright and poet. And this should not be a question you have to ask yourself. You should already be selling life insurance to millennials, also known as Generation Y.
After all, this market already has families and lives that need to be insured. According to LIMRA’s U.S. Consumers Today: The Generations report, only 34 percent of Gen Y owns individual life insurance and 39 percent said they would buy life insurance within the next 12 months.
But why is this generation not reaching out to advisors, when a lot of surveys and reports indicate that they are interested in financial advice, planning and buying life insurance? In honor of Life Insurance Awareness Month, here at LifeHealthPro.com we asked a few of the industry’s experts on millennials and insurance how to reach out to this digital-native generation. We hope that their responses will give you ideas on how to sell life insurance to Gen Y.
Read more...
The New Age of Annuity Sales: Connecting with a Younger Demographic
The annuity purchaser demographic is changing. What was previously thought of as an investment strategy for retirees is now making a foothold with a younger group of investors — a group that understands the need for a sound retirement investment strategy.
Savvy younger investors want progressive brokers who can help them build a creative and lucrative retirement package. Here’s how you can do it.
Get to know younger investors
Although retired baby boomers may still be the bread and butter of brokers’ fixed annuity sales, smart brokers are shifting part of their efforts to focus on a slightly younger age group. And for good reason.
A Gallup and Committee of Annuity Insurers survey found that nonqualified annuity owners are an average of 51 years old at the time of their first purchase. In addition, nearly 40 percent of these first-time annuity purchasers were younger than age 50. According to a recent LIMRA study, half of all annuity purchasers are under the age of 60.
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Savvy younger investors want progressive brokers who can help them build a creative and lucrative retirement package. Here’s how you can do it.
Get to know younger investors
Although retired baby boomers may still be the bread and butter of brokers’ fixed annuity sales, smart brokers are shifting part of their efforts to focus on a slightly younger age group. And for good reason.
A Gallup and Committee of Annuity Insurers survey found that nonqualified annuity owners are an average of 51 years old at the time of their first purchase. In addition, nearly 40 percent of these first-time annuity purchasers were younger than age 50. According to a recent LIMRA study, half of all annuity purchasers are under the age of 60.
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Worth a Look: Hybrid Annuity/LTC Products
As traditional stand-alone long-term care insurance policies have become more costly, financial advisors are likely to be hearing more objections related to both premium expense and to the "what if I don't use it" effect.
While most clients typically aren't disappointed if they never file a claim on their homeowners or auto insurance policy, for some reason with long-term care insurance, the use-it-or-lose-it objection seems to be a real biggie. Luckily, there is a way to cover this potential need without having to buy a separate long-term care (LTC) insurance policy.
Linking LTC coverage to annuities
In responding to both consumer and agent demand, insurance companies have recently come up with "hybrid," or linked, policies. With these plans, the benefits of both an annuity and long-term care, for instance, may be used. Yet, if the client never needs long-term care, he or she doesn't "lose" because the benefit of using the annuity for retirement income remains.
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While most clients typically aren't disappointed if they never file a claim on their homeowners or auto insurance policy, for some reason with long-term care insurance, the use-it-or-lose-it objection seems to be a real biggie. Luckily, there is a way to cover this potential need without having to buy a separate long-term care (LTC) insurance policy.
Linking LTC coverage to annuities
In responding to both consumer and agent demand, insurance companies have recently come up with "hybrid," or linked, policies. With these plans, the benefits of both an annuity and long-term care, for instance, may be used. Yet, if the client never needs long-term care, he or she doesn't "lose" because the benefit of using the annuity for retirement income remains.
Read more...
Licensed to Sell... and Stay Compliant!
A message from Kim O'Brien, NAFA President & CEO:
There have been a number of significant developments in state actions against sellers of annuities that provide great insight into what regulators and prosecutors are watching these days. In the last issue of Annuity Outlook Magazine, we spoke about the “State of the States” on these same pages and provided a list of what was happening in various states. In this issue, we will focus on what we’ve learned from these activities and what you should be doing to protect your annuity sales business and ensure you are both compliant and successful.
Whenever we at NAFA speak to annuity professionals, we are most commonly asked the following three questions:
1. What licenses should I get?
2. What designations may I use?
3. How can I be sure my seminars, website, and marketing materials are compliant?
Read more...
There have been a number of significant developments in state actions against sellers of annuities that provide great insight into what regulators and prosecutors are watching these days. In the last issue of Annuity Outlook Magazine, we spoke about the “State of the States” on these same pages and provided a list of what was happening in various states. In this issue, we will focus on what we’ve learned from these activities and what you should be doing to protect your annuity sales business and ensure you are both compliant and successful.
Whenever we at NAFA speak to annuity professionals, we are most commonly asked the following three questions:
1. What licenses should I get?
2. What designations may I use?
3. How can I be sure my seminars, website, and marketing materials are compliant?
Read more...
Be the Air Your Clients Breathe
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You can’t live without water for more than a few days. It doesn’t matter if you’ve had the best survival training, after a few days without water your body just stops working.
Water isn’t something that is nice to have. It’s something you need in order to stay alive. The same can be said of food and oxygen and sunlight. Without those things you will not survive. They aren’t luxuries; they are absolute essentials. To achieve the outrageous success you crave, you need to be the water, food, oxygen and sunlight others need in their lives right now. You need to be so valuable to them they just can’t make it without you. Read more... |
LTCi Watch: Matchmaker
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Having a spouse correlates with a huge reduction in the risk that consumer will enter a nursing home.
In the past, while thinking about topics for blog entries, I've thought about the concept of "risk reduction marketing" -- efforts to reach out to prospects and clients with ideas and swag that may actually help keep people comfortable and safe. Long-term care insurance (LTCI) marketers could consider emphasizing what great, helpful, insightful people they are by using small, inexpensive flashlights as novelty giveaways. The recipients might use the flashlights to look inside their noses and cabinets on ordinary days -- and to stay safe during blackouts. LTCI marketers could protect clients against the risk of macular degeneration and other vision problems that can be caused or aggravated by exposure to sunlight by simply encouraging the people they meet to invest in good sunglasses. Read more... |
Generation X: Ready or Not, Here They Come
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These middle-aged prospects are ready for guidance and products that offer more safety. Are you ready for them?
Baby Boomers have been big business for insurance professionals. But the spotlight is moving its way across the stage to shine on Generation X. They are ready for guidance, specifically on products that offer more safety. This wave of younger financial consumers (roughly defined as those between 34 and 49 years old) come with little confidence about investing after walking through the dot-com boom and recent recession. They yearn for financial security. Fixed annuities become a natural solution to meet many of their financial planning needs. Studies conducted since the 2008 crash reveal everyone is a bit more conservative. Even more, Gen Xers in their 40s said they want even greater certainty about retirement income than Baby Boomers did. Read more... |
How Listening Better Will Make You Richer
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A financial adviser explains that when you hear only what you want to hear, you can end up making some bad money choices.
Allison sat in my office, singing the praises of an annuity she had recently purchased. She was 64 years old, and she had come in for a free initial consultation after listening to my radio show. “The investment guy at the bank,” she crowed, “told me this annuity would pay me a guaranteed income of 7% when I turn 70.” I asked her to tell me more. Read more... |
Stories, Not Stats, Sell Disability Insurance
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Insurance agents and financial advisors in the disability space would do themselves a favor if they held off on the pie charts, the statistics and the tables, according to Carol A. Harnett, the new president of the Council for Disability Awareness (CDA).
Instead, advisors should approach prospects through storytelling to connect emotionally with prospects because it’s more effective, said Harnett. “Start telling stories from the audience perspective and you start to gain their attention,” said Harnett, in an interview with InsuranceNewsNet. Read more... |
Don't Fall for this Trap
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How should you respond when prospects ask you to tell them about your stuff? Most salespeople would get excited by this question, because they would think their prospects were interested in what they have to offer. But the truth is your prospects are really looking for a way to dismiss you. So beware: If you attempt to talk about your stuff at this stage, you’re doomed.
So what should you do? Rather than trying to give a quick overview of your offering, tell them a story. Be prepared to share a real-live customer scenario which you know will appeal to them. Read more... |
Free Can be Very Profitable
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Sometimes one of the greatest ways to provide great customer service is to give something of value away for free. It doesn’t have to be anything big or expensive. It can be something small—even really small. It just has to be valuable to the customer.
Think about the owner of a restaurant who buys his regular customers a drink or a dessert. Actually, that’s not small enough. I’m talking really small—something that costs your only a dollar or two. Read more... |
Annuities + LTC: Does the Rider Fit?
Protection against future long-term care (LTC) expenses is important for all clients and, for the right client, combining LTC insurance with an annuity product can make all the difference between comfort and anxiety late in life. That the need for coverage is relatively universal, however, does not mean that the analysis of a particular combination annuity-LTC product is any less nuanced. Just as every client is different, not all LTC riders are created equally—and your advice can prove crucial in finding the most suitable product for the individual client
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Life Insurance Words Mystify Consumers
Imagine you are a consumer who knows nothing about the life insurance industry. You are talking with an agent who is describing a life policy. The agent mentions the policy’s death benefit. What might you think the term “death benefit” means?
Researchers put that question to a test. They presented “death benefit” and several other commonly used life insurance terms to consumers and asked what those terms mean.
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Researchers put that question to a test. They presented “death benefit” and several other commonly used life insurance terms to consumers and asked what those terms mean.
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Forgotten something? Why offering disability income protection should be part of your practice.
Are you leaving business on the table? You probably are if you’re not helping clients protect themselves against an illness or injury that prevents them from working. Here’s how I’ve found success in making individual disability income insurance (IDI) an integral part of my business.
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Delivering a death claim or life settlement check
When most producers think about life insurance, they think of term, universal life, whole life, interest sensitive life, survivorship life or variable life. They think of cost – “I can get it for you cheaper,” the tax benefits, creative ways to pay for it, and how much commission they will make on the sale.
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5 things that make an advisor great
We’ve all been to sales meetings, conferences and seminars where great producers share the secrets of their success. But it’s often the secret behind the secret that forms the real basis for success. Here are 5 things that differentiate great advisors from the rest of the pack:
The "sloppy" mistakes that lead to life insurance agent lawsuits
Working as an expert witness in life insurance claims denial cases for more than 15 years, Jim Bullock of the Peel Institute has seen his fair share of agents forced to defend their actions in court after a client was denied payment. The number one thing that lands life insurance agents in the witness box? Sloppy work on initial applications.
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Consumers overestimate cost of life insurance
The median estimate given by individuals under the age of 25 years is $1,000—nearly 10 times its actual cost of $150 a year.
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On Choosing Baseball Bats and Life Insurance
When I was growing up, one of the rites of spring was going to the local sporting goods store with my dad and picking out just the right baseball bat for the upcoming season. The choices were modest compared to what are available today. Did I want a bat made out of wood or aluminum? What length should I choose? A thin handle or a thick one? I would pick and choose and take numerous practice swings until I found one that was “just right.”
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Genworth CEO: Rising Costs Should Prompt Conversations on Long Term Care Planning
The cost of long term care continues rising at a rate outpacing inflation creating significant financial planning challenges for the nearly 12 million Americans currently in need of long term care services. According to the Genworth (NYSE: GNW) 2014 Cost of Care Survey released today, the cost of receiving in-home care continues to rise, though at a more moderate rate of growth.
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Early Planning is Essential to Managing Retirement Income Risks
Over the past four years, the Insured Retirement Institute (IRI) has seen baby boomers’ confidence in their financial preparations for retirement steadily dropping, with only about a third optimistic about their situation.
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LLC or C Corp? The Tax Implications for Advisors
In early 2012 I posted a blog on a change I had made in my business structure. Specifically, I closed the LLC and changed to a C Corp. That blog garnered a lot of good comments, as many advisors were interested in reducing their own tax burden. That year, 2012, was the first in which I filed as a C Corp and 2013 will be the second. Now that I have had some time under the new structure, I thought I'd reveal the results. But first, a brief background is in order.
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Will the situation in Russia increase life and annuity sales?
Every time the USA faces a crisis, real or imagined, the stock market stumbles. We saw one take place in 2001 during the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center. It happened again with the invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan. Last year, the stock market expanded at a rate in excess of our GDP. This year, we may be due for a correction; however, uncertainty appears to doom the market, which now appears to be the case with the situation in Ukraine. When the market is perceived to be unstable, there is a flight to safety — such as gold, money markets, treasury bonds, and life and annuity products.
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5 challenges advisors must overcome in 2014
At the end of last year, LifeHealthPro and Retirement Advisor asked independent producers about their successes and failures, about the policies that defined their practices, about the products their clients found exciting and relevant. One thing became clear: The opportunities are vast, but the challenges are mounting. Being successful as an independent agent in 2014 means being adaptable and intuitive. It requires creativity, digital savvy and a constantly evolving knowledge of the regulatory environment. Read more...
Annuitants top concern is securing best rate
Top annuity concerns are “relatively easy to address with additional information and ideally access to financial advice”.
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Allianz Life Receives Top Honors from DALBAR for Sales and Service
Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America announced that for the third consecutive year it earned DALBAR’s Award for Excellence in Sales Support and the Financial Intermediary Service Award. The DALBAR awards recognize companies that achieve the highest level of service within the financial services industry. DALBAR only awards firms that exceed industry norms in key service and sales areas. Read More...
Advisors Put To Test By LTC Insurance Market Upheaval
Long-term health care products are evolving quickly, in some cases being combined with annuities or life insurance policies, and advisors need to keep up with the changes, says one consultant.
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As Boomers Age, This Coverage Looks Hot
Part of their planning will likely include considering a long-term care policy.
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What to Know about the Medicare Advantage Disenrollment Period
The Medicare Advantage Disenrollment Period begins on January 1st and lasts through February 14th.
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Financial Professionals Underestimate Appeal of Annuities Among Consumers, Genworth Survey Finds
Consumers perceive annuities more positively than financial professionals give them credit for, according to The Future of Retirement Income, a new study released by Genworth.
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How to transfer IRAs to LTC insurance
Nearly 10,000 baby boomers are turning 65 every day, and they will for the next 16 years. Where will they get the money to purchase long-term care insurance (LTCI)?
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Cigna Expands Medicare Offerings for 2014 Annual Enrollment to Serve Growing Aging Population
2014 enrollment season marks a first for Cigna to market comprehensive Medicare offerings nationwide, result of HealthSpring and Great American Supplemental Benefits acquisitions.
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A Lifetime of Life Insurance Upgrades with No Expiration Date
Indexed UL crediting bonus is the latest in a long list of no-charge upgrades for Securian policyholders.
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Advisers missing opportunity as Gen Xers short themselves on life insurance, analysis shows
Generation X investors are in a prime position to step up their life insurance coverage, but advisers are missing the boat on the opportunity.
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5 ways to use social media for Life Insurance Awareness Month — and beyond
It’s September, and Life Insurance Awareness Month (LIAM) has arrived. Life insurance and annuity producers should be taking advantage of this opportunity to market their services to clients.
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IRS approves Post-Death Annuity Exchange
Clients who inherit an annuity may now have a few more options thanks to a recent private letter ruling from the IRS...
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A Medicare Tax Break
Some self-employed can deduct Medicare insurance premium... Read More
MEDICARE ADVANTAGE ENROLLEES COULD TAKE HIT IN 2014
| LIFEHEALTHPRO
The proposed cuts will result in premium increases of $50 to $90 per month, AHIP warns. READ MORE
What are your prospects really saying?
The One Thing Your Team Wants You to Stop Doing
Business bloggers at Harvard Business Review discuss a variety of business topics including managing people, innovation, leadership, and more. READ MORE
Improving Your Sales Process by Answering the Phone
This post is part of a series on insurance marketing and training sponsored by Astonish. It’s almost maddening how many sales opportunities are lost by... READ MORE
7 Most Powerful Sales Tools
It's not about the worksheets: These tools are what really create success sales. READ MORE
Problems with jointly owned deferred annuities
Every so often, I get a call from an attorney or agent about a deferred annuity that someone decided should be owned in joint tenancy with right of survivorship (JTWROS). Sometimes, there's no serious problem. Sometimes, there is. Occasionally, the problem is beyond fixing. READ MORE
JJ Ramberg: Turn No Into Yes
Negotiating | Even when a customer says 'no' is the final answer, you can turn that around. JJ Ramberg, host of MSNBC's Your Business, explains how. WATCH VIDEO
The World's Dumbest Sales Mistake
A simple technique to make certain that people actually read your sales-oriented emails. READ MORE
7 Skills That Entrepreneurs Are Not Born With & Need To Learn
Many people believe that good entrepreneurs are naturally born, rather than trained or experienced in the art of business. I believe there is a natural born component required. On the natural born side, some entrepreneurs seem to have a strong vision and the ability to inspirationally lead others…READ MORE
Retirement Worries Grow; 30-Somethings Most Uneasy - ABC News
Retirement Worries Grow; 30-Somethings Most Uneasy READ MORE
6 Ways Your Brain Attempts To Sabotage Your Goals & Dreams
The 6 ways that your brain plays tricks on you to sabotage your goals and dreams. READ MORE
How I’m going to steal your client
The competition is courting your clients. What are you doing to keep them? READ MORE
5 Ways to Get People to Actually Listen to You
You may be a fact- and logic-driven leader, but others don't think like you do. Learn to get your point across through emotional connection. READ MORE
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