Stick With the Plan

Whatever you’re doing to build your business, it will get easier and more successful over time.

By Bonnie Cashman

Ever since I’ve been in the benefits business, I have not had to use special tricks to get ahead or grow my business.

On the contrary, I look at the repetitive nature of sales as the biggest advantage I have over my competition. Specifically, I stick to my sales process and know how to listen to a client.

When I started marketing employee benefits nearly 25 years ago, I cold-called employer groups. Now, there’s nothing earth-shattering about this strategy except for the fact that I didn’t waver from it. Other benefit brokers became frustrated with cold calling or simply got lazy, but I kept at it and eventually grew a solid book of business. Maybe I didn’t know any better at the time, but it worked, so I stuck with it. Since then, I’ve been fortunate enough to gain referrals, but while that eliminates a lot of the difficulty involved in prospecting, any benefits broker worth his weight knows that the sale is far from over even when you gain a referral.

And that’s where I stand out. Regardless of how long you’ve been in sales, you’ve obviously found a process that you’re comfortable with. Well, stick with it. Streamline your efforts, but once you get into a groove, embrace it. It sounds easy coming from someone who’s been in the business for as long as I have, but I will say this: There’s a difference between being efficient and cutting corners.

I have a seven-step process that I follow for every client, regardless of how long that client has been with The Balanced Program. These steps entail factfinding, analyzing needs and providing solutions.

Is this process efficient? You bet it is. Do I skip a step because I can predict a client’s needs or simply try to fit an employer group into a boilerplate package? No way. My company doesn’t generate $1.5 million annually providing benefits to 700 employer groups by adopting a one-size-fits-all mentality.

Think of the sales process as cooking. After you’ve followed a recipe once or twice, you’ll find that your preparation speed will naturally increase. Consider this the prospecting phase. In terms of the actual cooking, however, there is no substitute for time and effort. If the garlic needs to sauté five minutes, two minutes won’t cut it. If the chicken needs to roast 90 minutes, you’ll have ruined your dinner if you simply raise the oven temperature and shorten the cooking time.

The most important part of the sales process is listening to your clients’ needs. Here’s what I find funny about listening: There are producers out there who are so anxious to sell a product that they don’t truly hear what their clients are telling them. You’re already investing the time to let a prospect talk, so why not take advantage of it?

How many times have you been in front of an employer representative, waiting for him to stop talking so you can pitch your benefits package? You may not do it intentionally, but your clients are likely to notice. They appreciate it when you listen to their needs and respond accordingly.

The more you listen, the more you’ll realize that the employer will tell you what direction he needs to go. Besides, he may need more than what you were originally going to try to sell him.