Tag Archives: FEATURED

Part 1 of 4: The Results of Dysfunction We are up to our necks in charts and graphs prepared by academic experts, government regulators, and industry marketing hype—all addressing or attempting to obscure, based on their various agendas, how the healthcare industry works in relation to the  money in and money out. It is incredibly obvious that dysfunction reigns. Transparency …

It was an early morning meeting chaired by the Senior Vice President. There wasn’t any reason to anticipate fireworks on that particular day so the atmosphere was rather relaxed. A sales manager was the last to arrive, and as he sat down, he whispered to the person next to him, “All I want to do is sell.” The meaning was …

Being a sales trainer in the health insurance field, I’ve seen many agents who jump into the business when they’re not fully prepared to succeed. I’m going beyond obvious sales skills, such as qualifying, assessing needs, handling what most people call objections, closing and follow up. I’m also going beyond product knowledge. For the sake of time, I want to …

How can you stay self-motivated and productive in the midst of turbulent times and a sluggish economy? How do you persevere as a salesperson when times are tough, and customers seem to be holding on to every penny in fear of economic uncertainty? Every challenge, setback and personal difficulty you encounter in life also brings with it the seed of …

Trust can mean different things to different people. Trust is also a function of both character and competence. To demonstrate trust, we need to see it in action. For some advisors, establishing and extending trust can be accomplished quite quickly. If there is trust between an advisor and a client, you’ll see more effective communication and collaboration, and of course, …

Ongoing management: Low performers, mid-level performers and even high performers need it. It does not assume high performance, and once high performing, it does not assume it will always continue. Everyone needs to be managed on a consistent basis. In sales, the goal of ongoing management is participation rate. Participation rate is the percentage of sales team members who are …

We last noted that the dust may have settled on the first round of PPACA enrollment and that the “who won and lost” discussions may be slowing down. However, the news since the last article’s publication appears to have still prompted more questions than answers: Do we NOW know how many have enrolled? The Obama administration tracked plans purchased on …

I probably wrote what I am about to share with you in my head a dozen times over the course of the last year. It’s a topic we all talk about together as agents and financial experts but rarely share in quite the way I am about to share with you now. I will forgo explaining the math because, if …

Headlines related to the Affordable Care Act and the new healthcare and insurance landscape seem to change more often than the weather. But one thing seems certain in its uncertainty: The future of Medicare Advantage plans. A recent online article stated that, “Because of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, seniors enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans are paying higher …

I am not an agent. I don’t work for an insurance carrier, and I’m not affiliated with a brokerage or wholesaler of any kind. However, I do consider myself to be a valuable component of the insurance industry as a whole. When our family business came to Texas in 2001, it was to provide technology and operations workflow beginning with …