A,
A,
Ah, those magic words Aca,!aEURoe Aca,!A"Attract ClientsAca,!?. Virtually every agent and advisor I know loves the idea of
attracting clients, and would be even happier if there was a Aca,!A"magic formulaAca,!? for accomplishing it. Well,
actually there is a formula that works like magic for attracting clients to you. And IAca,!a,,cm going to reveal it Aca,!aEURoe
right here, right now. (OK, to be more specific, itAca,!a,,cll be at the end of the article. But no cheating! You
need to read through the article for the formula to make sense.)
A,
First of all, this isnAca,!a,,ct about simply Aca,!A"gettingAca,!? clients. ItAca,!a,,cs about attracting them to you. It is the concept of
building a business without chasing prospects, dogging down purchased leads, or operating a Aca,!A"quote
millAca,!? Aca,!aEURoe turning out quote after quote hoping to have the lowest price. Unfortunately, many agents are
either trained or take it upon themselves to uncover prospects Aca,!A"at armAca,!a,,cs lengthAca,!?. It seems that either
intentionally or inadvertently, companies often train their agents to build their business by pursuing
prospects. Although many companies and managers praise the benefits of Aca,!A"attractingAca,!? clients, when it
comes time to meet production quotas, all the methods which Aca,!A"pursueAca,!? clients are the ones
encouraged. By the time Aca,!A"meeting production quotasAca,!? become an issue, drastic measures are called for.
The solution, of course, is to avoid being in that place of Aca,!A"catch-upAca,!? to begin with. By learning how to
attract clients and by applying those methods consistently, you side-step the need to pursue clients
altogether. Virtually every agent who has a sizable, growing business Aca,!aEURoe characterized by high retention
and a steady flow of client referrals Aca,!aEURoe does it by attracting clients rather than pursuing them.
A,
There are two key components to successfully attracting clients. The first key is to understand that
people will be attracted to you by WHO YOU ARE, rather than by WHAT YOU DO. While there will be a
small group of people who will do business with you strictly based on your depth of knowledge, most
people Aca,!aEURoe in fact, the majority of people Aca,!aEURoe will do business with you because of who you are. Having
good knowledge of your products, services, and industry is important. And having strong technical skills
is useful and important as well. ItAca,!a,,cs just that being knowledgeable and skillful isnAca,!a,,ct sufficient.
Let me offer some proof. IAca,!a,,cm willing to bet that weAca,!a,,cve all known one or more agents who were an
absolute fountain of knowledge regarding policy clauses and implications. And yet, they went out of
business due to lack of clients. In contrast, IAca,!a,,cm also willing to bet that weAca,!a,,cve also known agents who
really werenAca,!a,,ct all that sharp when it came to understanding clauses, presentations, and analyses. And
yet, these agents built and sustained large agencies. The reason, of course, is that clients were attracted
to them for who they were, more so than what they knew.
A,
So, how do we maximize Aca,!A"Who We AreAca,!?? We maximize and amplify who we are by continually
improving our communication skills, our social skills, and our integrity. In short, Aca,!A"who we areAca,!? is defined
by our people skills. When we have good people skills, we:
A, Communicate clearly and cleanly
A, Are relatable
A, Do what we say weAca,!a,,cre going to do
A, Are professional in attitude and manner
A, Have a positive attitude
A, Take an interest in others
A, Treat people with respect
A,
A,
A,
A,
A,
A,
A,
A,
A,
How do we improve in these areas? The easiest way to start is by simply being more mindful of each of
those people skills. Just by drawing our attention to each aspect of good people skills, we can begin to
improve. However, one of the challenges most of us have in improving ourselves, is that often weAca,!a,,cre
blind to what we do and say. We operate on Aca,!A"auto-pilotAca,!?, and as such, arenAca,!a,,ct even aware of how we
come across to others. Additionally, how we think we come across to others doesnAca,!a,,ct really matter.
What matters is how others feel about us. Therefore, an excellent way of improving our people skills is
to enlist the help of others. Ask people around you to help. Ask a spouse or significant other. (Hey!
TheyAca,!a,,cre always hoping to improve us anyway, right?) Ask a fellow agent. Ask a manager. Tell them
youAca,!a,,cre working to improve your people skills, and 1) ask them which people skills they feel youAca,!a,,cre really
good at, and 2) ask them which ones they feel are candidates for improvement. Then, ask them to point
out to you any words, actions and reactions which represent opportunities for improvement as they
arise. Not only will people be happy to help, but they will respect you for your efforts.
The second key component in attracting clients is actually getting out, so that people get a chance to see
you, know you, and be attracted to you! The reality is that when you are in your office behind your
desk, prospects never get to experience you and those people skills you possess. The result? If you try
to get clients from behind your desk, you end up having to pursue them. On the other hand, when you
get out and allow people to interact with you, you end up attracting them.
OK, so hereAca,!a,,cs the Aca,!A"magic formulaAca,!? I promised. The way to successfully attract clients is to improve your
people skills, and get out and meet people. I know itAca,!a,,cs a pretty simple formula, but Aca,!| it works like
magic.
A,
A, Michael Beck, Aca,!A"The Insurance & Advisor CoachAca,!?. Michael, an executive coach, speaker,
and trainer, helps insurance and financial professionals succeed faster and easier. He can be reached
at 866-385-8751 or mbeck@theinsurancecoach.com
Visit www.TheInsuranceCoach.com to learn more.
A,
Meet The Experts
Review articles and blog posts by our list of insurance experts!
Click Here For Participating Firms
VIEW RATINGS FOR INSURERS
Enter name of Insurance Company and press GO button.