Be Smart Enough to Say "I Don't Know"

I have written before about how I am currently eating a dairy free diet. It’s due to a milk protein allergy my son has. It’s very important that I don’t eat anything with milk in it, and my son lets me know pretty quickly if I do. When I order any food I am constantly asking, “Does this have milk in it?” “Does the bread used for your sandwich have milk in it?” “Does the sauce you use for your pasta contain cream?” - “No cheese please”. I have learned to read the ingredients on everything, from chips, to sausage, to pesto sauce… I have found a plethora of food that you wouldn’t think contained dairy but does. So I ask every time I order or buy food.

At the grocery store today, I considered ordering a Panini sandwich (no cheese) and asked the lady behind the counter if there was milk in the marble rye bread it came with. She looked at me, blank eyed and stated… “No I wouldn’t think there is”. I quickly responded with “will you please double check for me?” She looked annoyed that I asked her to do more than grill a Panini and stomped off to the back room to check. She returned with the answer of “I don’t know”- Apparently they use an outside vendor for their bread and the bread shows up in a big unmarked box. So there is no way they would know. So why would she tell me otherwise? This reminded me of something my mother has always told me when dealing in my career. “Be smart enough to say I don’t know – but I can find the answer for you”.

It’s always better to be willing to look up an answer than to give a false one. Many times as an agent you can get nervous to say “I don’t know.” The fear that our customer won’t see us as the resource we are takes over and temptation to guess becomes strong. You need to resist. You need to have confidence enough in your intelligence to say I don’t know. You can show how big a resource you are, in the simple fact that you know where to find the answer. This is my tag line in all of my trainings. “Don’t memorize the answer – know where to find it”. Policies change and there are too many details to keep stored in your mind. Even if you are a super genius with a photographic memory, by the time you set it to memory the insurance company will change their policy. Knowing where to find the answer, and being eager and willing to seek it out will be the winning ticket to sales every time. And trust me your clients will be happier knowing you gave them the right answer instead of an immediate one.

Don't Be a Burlington Coat Factory

I have made a few New Years resolutions this year. 1st I want to get better at sending out thank you notes. Second I want to stop spending my weekend days in my PJs. I have resolved to get dressed! – I have already broken this resolution by spending last Sunday in my comfy pajama pants. But what is change without a little set back, right? Third I made the resolution to read more, and by read more I don’t mean the fiction novels that I love. I mean educational stuff, biographies, memoirs, marketing techniques, etc. Whatever subjects my mood dictates, but things that I can interpret and that will become useful.

I made this final resolution in the last week of 2009 and ordered the book The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin. This is a book I heard about on Twitter- That’s right I am turning into a social media diva. The book is a memoir of how Gretchen Rubin spent a year trying to be “happier” using different techniques like singing in the morning, cleaning her closets, or reading Aristotle. I figured this would be a great New Years resolution book. I could read it to satisfy my own resolution and maybe learn some fun techniques to bring more happiness into my life. After all who doesn’t want more happiness? She breaks the book up into the 12 months of the calendar year, tackling a different happiness technique each month. So far I am only ½ through January. But while reading about how Gretchen was gaining energy from cleaning out her closets she spoke about a concept that I teach in my trainings for The Virginia Farm Bureau.

I currently work for the Virginia Farm Bureau as a trainer/sales representative. I train newly licensed agents on Individual Health insurance policies. I also sell these policies.

In my training when we get to the part about quoting for you clients, I always, in every workshop, get the same question. “How do I know what to quote?” My answer is always the same. This is the value you are selling as an insurance agent. With the plethora of products available in the market, your clients are looking to you to show them the products that will fit them the best. “Don’t be Burlington Coat Factory”

Gretchen Rubin writes in her book “having few clothing choices made me feel happier. Although people believe they like to have lots of choice, in fact, having too many choices can be discouraging. Instead of making people feel more satisfied, a wide range of options can paralyze them.” This is my Burlington Coat Factory theory in a nutshell.

I can not stand shopping at Burlington Coat Factory for a jacket. There are just too many choices. There are rows and rows on top of rows of jackets. My indecisiveness kicks in and I become flustered. I want the best one, the one that is going to keep me safe and warm. The one I will look good wearing. But which jacket is that? Is it the black one with all the buttons, the brown one with the fur, the yellow one with the hood? Before I know it I am completely overwhelmed and I leave empty handed and “not covered”.

I prefer shopping at the little boutique shops, the choices are far less but I always end up leaving with the purchase I went in seeking. It’s less daunting, there is a sales clerk there to help me, tell me the value of my jacket, and how it looks on me. They assist me in getting covered.

Selling insurance is the same. You want to be up front with your clients, ask them what deductibles feel comfortable to them. Ask them if they want co-pays, or dental riders. Ask them what they like about their current plan. Ask them what options are familiar to them. Narrow the choices down and show them what will fit their wants & needs. Be their sales clerk. Show them a set of policies that will keep them safe and warm. Let them know what policies looks good on them. Sell the value of using you as their agent. Your main goal is to make it less daunting for them. They can buy that insurance anywhere but they can’t get your help anywhere.

No matter what you are selling, jackets with buttons, and fur - or insurance policies with co-pays and deductibles, you want to make sure your clients get the coverage they need and look good while doing it.

Happy to See Me

Ok, here we go... My very first never before seen Blog!

Every morning I eat breakfast. I have to. If you know me then you know I am a VERY slender person. Since I was a little girl and my fellow elementary school mates were calling me "ethi" because they said I looked like I came from Ethiopia I have been very self-conscious about my weight. This is beside the point. Basically I eat breakfast every morning. I need the calories!

I am also a creature of habit, I like to do the same things, routines - I find peace in this. Yes I am that crazy person that walks up to the elevator, and even though the button has already been pushed by the other individual waiting for a lift, I still feel the compulsion to hit the button. It is my routine. Walk up to the elevator - Hit the button - Go for a ride. So it goes without saying that when I visit a restaurant I tend to order the same thing every time.

Most mornings I do one of three things: If I am particularly organized one morning and have allowed time for it I will make myself breakfast in my kitchen. If I am running behind I will run by Panara Bread on my way to work, or if I am really late I will grab something to eat in the work cafeteria.

Since I have an eight month old little boy - for the most part I am doing it Panara Style. Due to a dairy allergy my son has, the fact that I am nursing because he is allergic to all formula, and my compulsion for routine I always get a large orange juice & two pumpkin muffins (Yes two- I need the calories). There is a girl that works at my local Panara Bread in the mornings. She is so nice. She knows my name, she asks about my son, is always willing to check for dairy content if I for some reason do change my order, and genuinely seems happy to see me. She makes me want to stop at Panera in the morning.

I can't tell you how many times, I get into a kick where I will eat the same thing for lunch for a week, or will frequent the same establishment a few times a month wanting the same meal. My problem is when you do this- you are no longer a "stranger" to the person serving you. This is where they work, they go there every day because the have to. Often times my frequency is met with annoyance. "Oh goodness I have to help this customer again." I often times get strange glances or attitudes that say that they are simply annoyed to deal with me yet again. But not at Panara.

How often do we do this with our clients? People always say you are more polite to strangers than you are to your own family. Why is this, and do these same attitudes for the norm carry to our re-accruing clients? I have heard the saying over and over again "treat me like a prospect- not a client." Is this the same as treat me like a stranger not your mother?

This girl at Panera has made me feel comfortable in my own skin. Something as simple as what I want to order for breakfast is accepted and appreciated. She is Happy to See Me.

We should be doing this with all our clients, no matter how frequently they call with questions, you should receive them happily- Remember they are working with you because they chose to. Make them feel comfortable in their own skin; no matter if they are buying a muffin or a Health insurance plan. You want to project the attitude that you are happy to see them. Let me just say this, my mother went out and found a pumpkin muffin recipe for me so I could make my own muffins and save myself the $3.00 every morning; I still go to Panara - They are happy to see me.