Advice for New Agents Part I

Every sales organization has its own unique system of recruiting, training, and installing their sales force into the marketplace. In my current line of work, I deal with a lot of newly hired agents in the insurance and financial services industry that sell under a "captive" arrangement. Their challenges are many.

They must learn to navigate the organizational maze of a large corporate structure while concurrently starting their own small business organization that is geared to market & sell. It is a daunting challenge for them, to say the least; especially during those first several years as a new agency owner.

Given the opportunity, I share with new agents the following keys to success:

1. Be Urgent.Too often, new agent trainees look at their production requirements without the requisite urgency needed to be successful. For some reason, a false sense of security develops in the new agent and they get off to a slow or mediocre start when it comes to sales results. I can only theorize that one of several things are causing this phenomenon. First, they think their production requirements are not that difficult to achieve. Secondly, they feel that they have plenty of time to reach their production goals and do not need to be in any hurry. And lastly, it may just simply be a matter of laziness. Whatever the explanation is for the lack of urgency on the part of the new agent, it is not a mind-set conducive for the start of a successful sales career.

I am not trying to add to the stress that new agents are challenged with early in their careers. But the reality is this; time is not a new agent's ally and falling behind on production requirements is a very easy thing to let happen...and a very difficult thing to have to overcome. Be urgent.

2. Don't Be Patient with Your Needs. The home office of many sales organizations are there, ultimately, to support the marketing & sales efforts of their agents. As a new agent, your "needs" are many, particularly at the onset of your sales career. When a "need" arises and assistance is requested, do not patient to your own detriment. Specifically, if there is a marketing or sales need for support such as the need for sales materials, sales ideas, or marketing support...get it somehow, someway...right away. Don't let the procrastination or the overburdened workload of others be the reason your sale is delayed or lost.

More narrowly defined, I wouldn't be patient with needs that are: 1.) commonly provided in support of the new agent, 2.) are time sensitive, 3.) and are marketing & sales in nature. I also would be as professional and considerate as possible in how I got that need fulfilled. I am not suggesting a new agent be rude and bully their way around an organization to get what they need. Just don't let your success as a sales professional fall victim to the whims or schedules of other people or the machinations of an organization's many different layers. If you are ever going to fail at an endeavor; I would suggest that it is much nobler and mature to own your failure. Don't excuse away success by reasons of someone else and their inability to provide or do what is needed for your benefit. Nor would I want to fault circumstances that are within my control for why I failed to accomplish something. Don't be patient with your needs.

3. Keep Your Focus. There are three distinct functions that any agent must manage as a sales professional; 1.) The Organization, 2.) Marketing Activities, 3.) Selling Activities. Marketing is all those things an agent does to get & keep people (customers). Selling is what we do in front of people while the organization is defined as all those things an agent does to support the marketing and selling functions of the agency. Put in their proper order, marketing & sales should be paramount among the duties of a sales professional; the organization is secondary. Please do not misunderstand me. Maintaining the function of a healthy and efficient agency (organization) is important. But when given a choice on what to invest time on, I recommend the investment be made in marketing & selling activities first...all others are secondary.

A sales professional's time is precious. Because of that fact, it is wise for an agent to make the best use of the time provided each work day in order to maximize the revenue generating capability of the agency. What better use of an agent's time is there than to use it on those activities which will directly impact revenues into the agency. Therefore, endeavor to push all activities that are not directly related to marketing & selling functions to the periphery of the work day as much as is possible. Use those premium hours in the work day to generate appointments & opportunities to speak and meet with people (marketing) and to conduct sales conversations (selling). Work on the organization before, after, and in-between marketing & selling time when you are able. Being busy doesn't mean you are being productive. It simply means...you are busy. Focus your time on marketing & selling first...and be busy about all the other things afterward. (Part II to follow)

Copyright © 2010 - Tony Cefalu