Christine Glover
 

Audio Interview (6 min)

30 Min Conference Call

Monday Conference Call 8/11/2005 – Christine Glover 

THE JOURNEY TO OFG 

Over seven years ago, I pursued my insurance license through the encouragement of a friend of mine.  He had sold health and life for years, and when I approached him about hiring me as part-time help, he thought I should get my license instead.  At the time, I had our first child, who was less than a year old, and was looking for a way to generate some income, without having to put in all of the hours.  When my friend explained to me how insurance commissions worked, I knew very quickly that insurance was my calling.   

So for the next six years, I sold mainly health insurance and a little life on the side.  Not completely happy with the struggles of health insurance, I was definitely looking for a new avenue.  We had also made a move to New Mexico when my husband took a new job, and settled about forty miles from the closest town.  The idea of trying to get a job in town and commuting everyday did not ever appeal to me, plus we now have two children with the oldest in school and the youngest under three.  The same friend that originally encouraged me to get my license stumbled across OFG.  After several conversations with Mark Meurer, I began my new venture the first part of January.   

Through the face-to-face appointments during the years I sold health insurance, I had prepared myself with the groundwork for direct sales.  When I sold health insurance, there were many times I felt alone in the business.  The most appealing thing initially about OFG was the support system that was already laid out.  Anytime I have had a question about something, it has always been answered in a timely fashion, if not sooner! 

MOVING MY BUSINESS FORWARD 

The main points I want to get across about moving my business forward have been that I have used the tools that are available to me and the tools are endless!  I have tried to continue to implement new ways to make my business efficient and as easy as possible for someone to buy insurance through me.   

One of those tools has been an agent website.  It gives me creditability with the people I talk with on the phone.  They want to know that I’m a “real person,” so they can go to my website and get a small glimpse of who I am.  My web address goes out on every email I send, whether it’s through Leadboss or Outlook Express. 

Speaking of Leadboss, it is my digital secretary and I use it everyday.  From keeping up with my client base, to touching base with my clients, to checking on the status of a medical exam, it has everything I need and much more.  I couldn’t do my job without it! 

A new tool I recently implemented is CheckMan (www.CheckMan.com) software.  Wow!  What a great asset it has been.  I have only been using it about a month, but it has already paid for itself a couple of times over.  It speeds up the entire process. 

I’m advancing my business not only with new tools but also with advice and guidance offered through the OFG system.  When I first came on board, I wanted to know specifically what a person’s schedule was like who had been working the business for a while.  I felt advice like this would help me by seeing how my day would run.  This has been key for me.  By writing down my schedule I stay organized and on track with the most important tasks I need to get done.  Here’s an example of what I do. 

            6-7 am Exercise

            7-8 am Clean up (myself, my house-if my house is messy, I have a hard time focusing, so I get this out of the way early in the day)

            8-9 am At desk- get organized and mail ready to go

            9-12 pm Make calls

            12-12:30 pm Lunch

            12:30-2 pm Case Management

2-5 pm Make calls 

When I can sneak in an evening of calling, I do, the golden hours are still the golden hours for selling.  Also working on Saturdays can be a gold mine.  I try to make calls every Saturday even if it is just for an hour or two.  It has been beneficial to my business and my momentum.   

Another idea was offered in a recent iForum teleconference when Pat made a comment that we should be making 50-100 dials a day.  That was helpful to me because I hadn’t heard a specific number before, and didn’t know how many calls I should aim to make in a day.  So I then began to make a mark every time I made a call and figured out how many calls I was making, and it wasn’t enough!  Just that minor adjustment has improved my success and it was so basic, so simple but oh so important. 

Lastly, another key for generating business has been working my warm market.  What that means is that I have begun to go back to past clients (both health & life) and help them re-evaluate their current situation.  Nine times out of ten, they need my help again and I don’t have to re-sell myself to them.  They already trust me.  I have also taped a couple of commercials at our local radio station to let people know exactly what I do.  I don’t want to be a “secret agent.”  I have already had some responses through those advertisements.  As agents, it is our responsibility to promote our products, and ourselves.  If we don’t do it, who will? 

MY ADVICE TO NEW AGENTS 

My best advice to a new agent would be to become a student of the system.  You don’t have to re-invent the wheel.  Listen to the people who have worked it, who are working it, and apply the things they are saying.  We call it “plugging in”.  

The quicker you get in the habit of using Leadboss, making every conference call, iSeminar, iForum, dialing 50-100 dials a day, and etc., the quicker you will begin to make money and have this business work for you.   

I’ll leave you with this thought:  “You must learn from the mistakes of others, because you can’t live long enough to make them all yourself.”  -Pat Wedeking, iSeminar 7/05 

SELL! SELL! SELL!