Staying the Course | May 2002 Advisor in the Spotlight

Staying the Course
(Advisor in the Spotlight)

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Transitioning from the personal market to the business market has its rewards and pitfalls.

By: Lucretia DiSanto Jones

Transitioning from the personal market to the business market can be great for your life and your income. It can also be a big mistake if you're not careful. R.J. Kelly, ChFC, MSFS, CLU, who will present "Becoming the Wizard of Ahs in the Business Insurance Market" at the MDRT annual meeting in June, spoke with Advisor Today recently. He tells other advisors what blunders to avoid when expanding their markets.

Advisor Today: Why did you make the transition from personal to business markets?
Kelly: I graduated from college in June of 1977, and began studying to pass my life insurance test in July. My start date was August 15. And at age 22, I was beginning in a city that I didn't know, with a few fraternity brothers as contacts. So, I was scrambling. I spoke with anyone that moved and fogged a mirror. I had the privilege of qualifying for MDRT my first full year in the business.

"The reason I didn't qualify for MDRT the second year was that I stopped doing what worked from me the first year." —R.J. Kelly

What makes me passionate about speaking to others about the transition to the business markets is that after qualifying the first year, I didn't qualify the second. I made my transition to the business market unconsciously. It was brought about by three issues:

One, I'm a morning person. My brain shuts down in the early evening!

Two, music has long been a part of my life. So many evenings were being used for that.

Three, I had been taught that the greatest income came from working with business owners and professionals, so I worked toward that. Still, that first year I averaged 14 hours a day, seven days a week.

After the first year, I heard a tape by Bruce Etherington saying that if I didn't want to have evening appointments, to stop asking for them. If someone asks for an evening appointment, I say, "My hours are 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. I think we can probably find something during those times."

Who works during the day? Professionals and business owners. My practice soon began to deal with their needs. My approach to them was, "You and I are both in the people business. I want to build a network of other professionals and would like to understand what you do. Are you a breakfast or lunch kind of person--or would you prefer meeting for coffee?" I found that to be very successful and quickly built a network of other professionals. Many of them became clients--especially for disability insurance, term insurance and some permanent.

Over time, many of these clients asked me to help them with their investment ideas, so I obtained my ChFC, Series 7, and eventually my MSFS, became a registered principal and passed my registered investment advisor exam.

Advisor Today: Would you share some suggestions and tips for staying afloat during the transition?
Kelly: The reason I didn't qualify for MDRT the second year was that I stopped doing what worked from me the first year. I got lazy and didn't keep seeing a lot of people. I had a case that I was banking on getting issued in time, and it didn't.

The key to success and survival is to add business prospects into the normal mix of family business. Also, take your best business-owner prospects and work with another seasoned agent. A seasoned agent will teach you so many things and find business you would never recognize.

Advisor Today: When making this transition, what mistakes can advisors make?
Kelly: Not doing what is working for you. Trying to become someone or something you are not. Not using joint work with a more experienced agent. Trying to learn too many things at once instead of concentrating on one or two areas and drilling down deep.

Survival in this business is having enough income over time so you can grow in the business and then start branching out to other areas. One of the real tendencies … is trying to copy what [others] are doing--instead of continuing to do what has been working well.

For more information on the Million Dollar Round Table annual meeting, June 23-27 , visit www.mdrt.org.

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Staying the Course (Advisor in the Spotlight)

Staying the Course
(Advisor in the Spotlight)