E.A.S.E.ing into the NexPhase of Life

by Mike "Cy" Cajthaml, Sr. Senior Vice President, Life Sales

At Creative Marketing, we've been committed to providing our agents with proven sales ideas and the training to support the implementation of those ideas for more than a quarter of a century now. In keeping with this tradition, we held our second Elite Agent Sales Event (E.A.S.E.) in February, bringing 100 of our top producers to the Kansas City area to learn techniques and strategies from some outstanding guest speakers and seasoned industry professionals.

Setting the scene

EASE is a life sales training program that's truly second to none. This agent academy gets into the hearts and minds of our producers and provides them with real solutions for selling more. The first EASE event was held in August 2010 with exceptional results. Attendees increased production by more than 125% within just 120 days of attending. Given that result, we worked hard to expand and revise an already-exceptional package to ensure February's event attendees can meet or beat those numbers. If you'd like to attend our next EASE event, call your Life Sales Consultant to learn how you can meet the production goals required to qualify.

To kick off this event, we were honored to have existing agents travel all the way to the gorgeous Overland Park Marriott hotel to come endorse the program. Mike Kerby and Steve Caldara opened by kindly sharing their experiences from the first EASE academy. Steve set the tone, letting agents know the training would help them learn to spot and identify opportunities for life sales and, more importantly, how to take advantage of those opportunities. Mike followed with his personal success story, sharing that he had produced only $10,000 in target life in 2010 leading up to the event. With the tools he was given by attending, he sold an additional $250,000 in target life just 45 days later!

Solutions for selling

With agents engaged and excited, Lou Cassara took the mic. Lou has been mentoring and inspiring fellow agents for more than 25 years. He's coached thousands of professionals throughout his career and has consistently been in the top 1% of his peers. Lou challenged listeners to take a deeper look at how they do business and develop better relationships with clients using CORE conversations, learning about their Challenges, Opportunities, Relationships and Experiences.

After reviewing the anatomy of a case from discovery to delivery, attendees were given the chance to sign up for Lou's very own training, The Cassara Clinic, at a specially negotiated tuition rate. This program includes attendance to his two-day workshop, 12 months of priority coaching, his complete system of learning materials and access to his online university. You, too, may be able to benefit from this one-of-a-kind experience. Call your Life Sales Consultant for more information on the next Cassara Clinic offering.

EASE continued with a number of high-energy presenters, providing attendees with the type of valuable networking and resources that makes Creative's training events special. One of the most popular presenters was Mark Roberts, a local producer who's part of our elite agent Tailor Made group. With more than 18 years in the financial services industry, Mark has developed a unique approach to Retirement Tax Strategies and distribution that truly sets him apart from "the other guys." He shared his three-bucket approach to maximizing clients' money and minimizing their overall tax burden. Using this technique, he explained how he saves clients an average of $186,000 in income taxes over a lifetime.

The event was sprinkled with great advice and valuable takeaways from a number of our very own Creative team members. Creative's director of agent education delivered a powerful presentation on our IMAX program, which producers can use to illustrate clients' and prospects' retirement outlook year by year. Attendees were intrigued by using this comprehensive yet simple program to put Mark Roberts' RMD taxation strategy to work. Carl Cathey, Creative's in-house underwriter, hit home on tips for packaging a sale, including the concept of using a well-written cover letter to get cases placed more quickly.

Starting the next phase

With so much great information being delivered by such reputable sources, there was only one thing left to make this EASE workshop a bigger success: the launch of our NexPhase sales program. NexPhase encourages agents to use their existing book of business to cement life sales and their client relationships. With the power of positioning, NexPhase includes four easy sales ideas and combines them with the coaching and support materials agents need to close life sales.

As clients age, they move through life's phases: accumulation, preservation and legacy positioning. NexPhase helps agents convert sales to build clients' legacies and provide them with solutions they may not have considered. With $2 trillion currently being held in deferred annuities waiting to be transferred to clients' heirs, there's a great deal of business just waiting to be done! NexPhase minimizes marketing and prospecting costs by having producers reach out to existing clients and turn them into clients for life.

Mike Kerby summarized the concept well, reminding agents to take action by calling their top clients and repositioning just 1% of their total asset value into life policies to increase your life sales. Agents can use NexPhase to help their family, help their clients and help their clients' families. It's a true win-win all around! Be confident and clear about who you are, what you do and how you serve. Start putting the power of NexPhase to work in your business by calling your Life Sales Consultant for your Sales Support Kit today.

"I had the good fortune of sitting next to Al Longtin, someone I really respect and admire, at EASE. Coupled with the passion of presenters like Mike Cy, it was invigorating to be part of such a positive program about life insurance, something that's not always in the forefront of Americans' minds. Carl Cathey's wit and enthusiasm about underwriting gave me a different perspective altogether. It really comes back to the people, and Creative's quality of leadership and knowledge is so important to our agent success."
— Steve Kelleher

"I really enjoyed the opportunity to meet and network with fellow advisors, the Tailor Made team and Creative staff. The NexPhase presentation guide and support materials are an exciting tool that, when used in the correct setting, I believe can uncover additional funds I hadn't considered. The program was a great affirmation that by following simple procedures, advisors can provide great benefits to clients through the use of unused or excess earnings to fund life insurance."
— Kirt Carstens

FOR AGENT USE ONLY. NOT FOR USE WITH THE GENERAL PUBLIC. 11582 - 2011/3/7 | 17678 068261