How Much Bonus Commission is Enough? What Else is Your MGA Doing to Support You?

When you are thinking about switching to working with an MGA, calculating your bonus commission is an important consideration. Knowing what your first year commission is going to look like is crucial. However, it isn’t the only thing that is important – and there are several other things to investigate before making the decision to switch.

Most MGA’s employ a relatively standard format for calculating bonus commission. As an advisor you need to get paid, and you want to make sure that you are receiving fair compensation for all of your hard work. After all, you are the one that put all of the time and energy into finding those clients that have put their trust in your ability to provide them the best services possible.

Although the percentages of the first year’s premium paid to you is what ultimately puts money in your pocket, knowing when the bonus commission should be higher or lower can be tricky. Although your bonus commission is an important consideration, it can’t be the only one.

If the MGA that you are working with gives you the backing necessary to make your job easier, providing incentives and training to allow you to be the best at your job, a small variation in your first year commission may not make a big difference at all. Garnering a substantial number of new clients each year thanks to the support provided by a good MGA is what will make your bottom line grow.

As mentioned, although the bonus on your first year commission is an important consideration, it can’t be the only one. If you end up working with an MGA who ultimately doesn’t provide the support and resources that are necessary for you to thrive, your bonus commission really is not going to matter. If you can’t get new clients, making money will be impossible. Having the support of a good MGA means a lot more than just the bonus commission.

Working with an MGA that allows you access to a plethora of different companies will give you the chance to generate the best possible rates and plans for your clients. Since clients nowadays can easily find out different companies’ rates, it is important to be able to go through the various companies to find the best deal. Since your bonus commission is based on new clients only, being able to find the most attractive deal is essential.

Finding the right MGA can mean more money in your pocket, and not just based solely on your bonus commission. If you are working with an MGA that provides you with support and motivation that allows you to be the best that you can be, you will have the opportunity to make way more money. Using your skills as an advisor while still being able to access all of the different resources being offered by your MGA is what, in the end, makes all of the difference.

For more information about switching to an MGA or to find out about bonus commission rates, please contact Gary Mandel at Independent Financial Concepts Group at by calling 416-849-1653 or visit www.joinifcg.com  

Baby Boomers – Is Your Pension Plan Really Going to be Enough?

With a rapidly aging demographic in Canada, preparations for your financial future should be a no-brainer. But, like everything else, some things take a backseat to current needs, and unfortunately it seems as though retirement savings is one of those things. Too many people see their pension plan as an appropriate financial tool that will provide for them in the future – but with so many different financial retirement products out there, it is questionable as to whether that pension plan is really enough to support you.

Recent census data has shown that, in Canada, the number of people over age 65 has grown exponentially – which should not come as a surprise to anyone – and that these boomers will quickly outnumber those who are under 15. More surprising though is the fact that, even though the life expectancy rate has risen significantly over the last few decades, many people planning for retirement rely solely on a pension plan without looking at the other retirement products that will undoubtedly protect them in the future.

Since the life expectancy rate has risen, it is essential to recognize that most of us are likely to live well past the 65 mark – meaning that money put aside for retirement is going to have to stretch pretty far. So what retirement products are out there that you can take advantage of to supplement your pension plan? There are many.

The two main categories of retirement products are retirement savings plans and investments – although the two can often work in tandem. Putting away some money on a monthly basis, into a registered retirement savings plan for example, means that you are making a significant contribution to your retirement income. Investments are also an important retirement product option to consider outside of your pension plan as taking some risks can mean big rewards. Even if you are a bit nervous about the risk, working with a financial expert can help lower the risk and help you maintain a sound financial investment profile for retirement.

These statistics are not just important for boomers or those looking to retire in the next few years. Since it is clear that income from your pension plan is not likely to sustain you for the years following retirement, why not start early and build up as much savings as possible. There are various retirement products offered out there that it is not difficult for members of generation x and y to begin a smart retirement savings plan to prepare for the future. Being smart about it now means not having to worry about it down the road.

If you have been working and contributing to a pension plan for most of your adult life, you will have access to some money to support yourself – but is that pension plan enough? Not likely. Investing in the various retirement products available out there is so important, and in order to ease the stress of growing older, supplementing your pension plan funds is critical – and easy!

To find out more about how to supplement your pension plan and to learn about all of the different retirement products and options available to you, please contact Gary Mandel at Independent Financial Concepts Group at 416-849-1653 or visit www.wecoveryou.ca.

How Social Media is Changing the Way Insurance Advisors Engage Their Clients

Social Media Marketing has proven to be a game changer across literally every industry. It is unlike any other conventional form of marketing and it can sometimes be hard to put our fingers on how it can be used to attract more business. 

To truly engage in Social Media Marketing you have to set aside any pre-conceived notions that you may apply to conventional marketing because ROI from Social Media Marketing is more than just dollars and cents. 

In the insurance industry there are two primary ways to get business. Let’s discuss how Social Media Marketing would apply to these methods.

The first is through referrals from professional sources and existing clients. Through Social Media you can leverage sites like Facebook and LinkedIn to source, connect and market to referral sources and existing clients. Prospecting on LinkedIn for example takes professional networking to a whole new level. You can find the most professionals faster than ever before through LinkedIn Groups and advanced search.

Once connected, you can establish relationships with prospective clients by inviting them to meet or through messaging them about updates with your programs from time to time. This keeps professional connections and existing contacts connected and engaged. Through posting useful and relevant content you can benefit immensely if an existing client for example decides to share your content. When an individual shares your content, your content is now viewable to that person’s network. This is amazing because by a mutual connection sharing your content they essentially endorse and influence the people they have shared the content with. Studies have showing that 1 out of 3 people are influenced when someone else they know “likes” something that they were considering purchasing.

The second way that insurance advisors get business is through repeat business. Your existing client base is valuable. As life changes, so do your clients’ insurance needs. It is so important to stay fresh and current in the minds of your clients. By connecting to your clients using Social Media you are able to keep them up to date with new products and information. You increase your accessibility to them because now if they need to change their insurance, or require additional insurance or new insurance, you are only a click away.

If you have never engaged in Social Media Marketing, you may be confused about how to get started. The best thing you can do if you don’t have Social Media Marketing experience is get training and get your feet wet by beginning with one presence. For example, LinkedIn is a great way to source referrals so you may first want to focus on establishing your presence on LinkedIn. Facebook is also a great way to stay connected to your existing client base, so you may want to first consider establishing a presence on Facebook by creating an insurance group and inviting your clients to join.

Where training is a concern, this is one area where you should have support from your MGA. Because Social Media Marketing can be self-administered with the right training it is an affordable way that most insurance agents can market themselves. Social Media Marketing training will make you more efficient and productive and your MGA should be committed to your success, and that includes seeing that you understand and have access to the latest and greatest cutting edge marketing mediums.

IFCG is hosting a FREE seminar, “Making Social Media Marketing Translate into ROI,” on October 12^th from 12pm – 2pm. Courtney McElroy, CEO of Marketing Force, will be there to teach you how you can use Social Media to expand your networks and grow your portfolio. This session is open to all advisors no matter which company you work for and is intended to provide you with the basic tools and skill sets that will be needed to self-maintain your own Social Media Marketing campaign. You can register for the free seminar here http://joinifcg.com/seminar-schedule and don’t forget to bring your laptop.

Your MGA Must Keep You on Top of Current Marketing Trends Like Social Media Marketing or You Could be Left Behind

In the past ten years we have seen significant changes to the way that people communicate. This is true across every industry, the insurance industry included. Digital marketing has created the ability to network with others like never before, and it is crucial that the company you work for is ahead of digital marketing trends and that they are keeping you in the loop, especially given the competitive nature of the insurance industry. 

Digital marketing is essentially online marketing and is one of the most affordable and effective ways that an insurance advisor can market themselves in this day and age. Some forms of digital marketing are more expensive and complicated than others. Social Media Marketing is an example of digital marketing that is both affordable and easy to grasp, whether it is something that you do yourself or something that you hire a company to administer.

Social Media Marketing is not just about putting out content through blogs or tweeting or posting to your social media presence. Social Media represents significant benefits outside of the obvious goal to get your phone to ring. Some of these benefits include:

1.       Increasing online brand (you) awareness, credibility and authority - If you are constantly releasing strong content then those individuals in the networks where you post will begin to recognize you and your authority on the subject matter you release.

2.       Increased customer retention – In the insurance industry it is vital that you keep connected to your clients so that if life changes, you are only a click away. Because Social Media involves connecting to prospects or referral sources, once connected you can continue to market to them and remind them that you are there for them if they need you.

Well this all sounds great, but many insurance advisors still struggle with the learning curve associated with Social Media Marketing and that is why it is crucial to work with an MGA that is on top of emerging digital marketing trends and one who can give you the necessary insight.

The biggest problem that insurance advisors run into when trying to use this powerful networking medium is not knowing how to use it properly. Engaging in Social Media is about give and take. Some advisors use Social Media only to blast out self-promotion. This is one of the quickest ways to alienate an online community. Others have accounts but are not sure how to leverage them or find coming up with content to share challenging. Some advisors have no experience with Social Media at all and have not even gotten started.

If you are an insurance advisor who wants to engage in Social Media Marketing, your MGA should be equipped to provide you with training in this regard. In addition, your MGA should be engaging in Social Media Marketing themselves because this adds to your credibility. It is so affordable for your MGA to do so that you should expect it. Your MGA should have presences on the major social platforms and should be releasing blog content on their Social Media that you can in turn discuss within your own social networks.

Social Media Marketing is not like conventional marketing where you post an ad in the newspaper and then your phone rings. Engaging in Social Media Marketing takes time because it involves building up a vast network of prospects and referral sources. With good support from your MGA and a solid and consistent effort, you will find that Social Media Marketing will reduce your overall expenses and connect you to far more prospects and referral sources than ever before.

IFCG is hosting a FREE seminar, “Making Social Media Marketing Translate into ROI,” on October 12^th from 12pm – 2pm. Courtney McElroy, CEO of Marketing Force, will be there to teach you how you can use Social Media to expand your networks and grow your portfolio. This session is open to all advisors no matter which company you work for and is intended to provide you with the basic tools and skill sets that will be needed to self-maintain your own Social Media Marketing campaign. You can register for the free seminar here http://joinifcg.com/seminar-schedule and don’t forget to bring your laptop.

 

Long Term Care Insurance: What is it and How Will it Benefit You in the Future?

Planning for the future, whether by putting away savings for retirement or purchasing life insurance to help protect your loved ones, is incredibly important. Knowing what you will need for the future can be difficult, but proper and effective planning will allow you to relieve some of the stress that comes with getting older. One of the things that you can’t ignore when planning for the future is long term care and long term care insurance.

Once you have retired, you hope that your savings will be able to last and provide for you for as long as you need them to. However, this sometimes is not the case. What if your retirement planning did not plan for necessities such as long term care, either at home or, even more costly, in a long term care facility? How can you prepare for things such as this?

What is long term care insurance? Long term care insurance is a type of insurance that protects you in the case that you are no longer able to perform the types of activities that you enjoy on a regular basis, or if you require continuing supervision and care from someone.

What types of activities are included? Knowing how an insurance company assesses your ability/inability to perform your regular activities is important when contemplating purchasing long term care insurance. Things such as bathing, dressing and feeding are considered daily activities, and so if you are unable to complete these tasks without assistance, generally that is the point when an insurance company would begin to administer payments to you.

Long term care insurance plans cover all types of different services which you may require if you are no longer able to complete daily tasks on your own. These may include: in-home nursing care, therapy and rehabilitation, or personal and homecare services, such as assistance with bathing, dressing, cleaning and meal preparation.

If you and your family choose to have this care administered outside of the home, or if you choose to relocate to a live-in care facility, many of these services are also covered. This decision can be a costly one, so having long term care insurance can help alleviate many of these costs and get rid of some of the stress and tension that is unwanted in this situation.

What types of plans are offered? If you decide that long term care insurance is something that you feel is important for your future, it is a good idea to talk to an insurance advisor to discuss what options are available. Creating a customized plan allows you to take those things that are more important and leave out the things that are not.

When you plan for retirement you are often considering the costs associated with remaining in your own home and supporting yourself without the need for additional care. If however, you find yourself in a situation where these added costs are required, the impact to your retirement savings can be devastating, meaning financial strain for you and possibly your family. In order to protect those savings and have them stretch as far as you would like them to go, long term care insurance is an important consideration.

For more information on long term care insurance and its benefits, please contact Gary Mandel at Independent Financial Concepts Group at by calling 416-849-1653 or visit www.wecoveryou.ca

The Benefits of Personal Development: Does Your MGA Provide an Insurance Training Program?

Are you thinking about switching to an MGA but can’t decide what the real benefits are? Can’t decide whether or not to become an independent broker without the constricting ties of an insurance company? Although it may seem overwhelming, it doesn’t need to be! Switching to an MGA should be an easy decision. Knowing the benefits that come with working with an MGA can help.

What are you getting by remaining with an insurance company? Job security? Support and assistance? All of these things should be offered by a good MGA – plus more! Access to a much more diversified portfolio of insurance companies, your clients vested to you immediately, and the independence and ability to choose your own path for the future are all the things that come with working with the right MGA.

What else should your MGA be offering you? The right MGA should allow for personal development and growth to help you achieve your own goals and be able to offer the best services to your clients. An important question that needs to be asked before switching, therefore, needs to be whether or not your MGA provides an insurance training program.

What type of training should you expect from your MGA? A structured insurance training program has many benefits. Working with a team of experienced advisors, with both the background and knowledge that you can add to and gain from, you should have access to an insurance training program which offers information on such topics as:

·         Proprietary selling systems

·         Pre-approach and prospecting systems

·         Referral Generating Programs 

·         Client presentation tools

·         Daily activity accountability

·         Practice management

·         Production monitoring

A good insurance training program will also help you develop your skills and understanding of sales prospecting strategies, direct marketing, and modern sales techniques. It should also help you increase your goal setting and business planning skills, as well as your time management and work/life balance skills.

Working with an MGA can give you the chance to expand your client list and grow your bottom line. Working with the right MGA that provides an effective insurance training program that delivers consistent, ongoing training can help you achieve this. These benefits should include:

·         The convenience of CE credit qualifying hours at your own office

·         Regular weekly sales concept and product training

·         Information on case consultation, case packaging, joint field calls (no commission splitting)

·         Information on competition specialists – knowing / researching the best product solution for your client’s needs

·         Training on custom spreadsheets, reports, presentations

·         Retail client seminars

Staying with your current insurance company may seem like an easier option – but is it really? Switching to the right MGA doesn’t have to be difficult, and in the end it can mean much more for you. Gaining your independence and taking control of your clients is very important. Working with the right MGA should give you the ability to provide the best service to your clients as well as getting the most from all of the hard work that you do. Give yourself the opportunity to get the most from an MGA by choosing one that provides a consistent and effective insurance training program.

Switching to an MGA that provides a valuable insurance training program will allow you to reach your current and future goals. For more information, please contact Gary Mandel at Independent Financial Concepts Group at by calling 416-849-1653 or visit www.joinifcg.com

Participating Life Insurance vs Non-Participating Life Insurance – Which One is Best For You?

Planning for your future can be both an exciting and a stressful time. Figuring out what you need to do to plan for the years ahead can be tough, and sifting through the countless different things you need to choose from in order to protect and plan for the future may seem daunting. Like many of these things, life insurance, a necessary purchase whatever your situation, is very important.

There are so many different types of insurance out there that choosing between plans can be one of the biggest challenges to overcome. However, understanding the differences between the diverse plans will allow you to make an informed decision and get the most from whichever policy you choose.

Two of the most common types of insurance are participating life insurance and non-participating life insurance. Both have many benefits, and choosing one over the other is really just a matter of asking yourself what you want from your insurance policy.

What is participating life insurance? A participating life insurance plan is a policy that combines an insurance policy with a low-maintenance investment plan. These plans offer you the benefits of both a whole life insurance policy, providing guaranteed, tax-free, death benefits PLUS regular investment dividends paid out to you. You get the freedom of investing through the policy while all of the leg work is left to the professionals. Little risk – great reward!

The dividends paid out to you are based on the financial results of the Canadian Participating Fund. This investment fund is set up and reserved for participating policyholders only. Carrying a guaranteed cash value that increases each year, your investments can only increase.

What is non-participating life insurance? A non-participating life insurance plan is basically a life insurance plan without all of the added frills. The main difference between a non-participating and a participating life insurance policy is that non-participating insurance has no cash value and doesn’t pay dividends to the policy holder.

Both of these policies can be held for life – meaning that instead of ending after a term, they remain guaranteed until age 100. This means that your family remains protected. Also important, with both, premiums are set for the life of the policy. Although the premiums are a bit higher for a whole life insurance policy than a term life insurance policy, the benefits in the end are often worth it.

When you are thinking about planning for the future, both participating and non-participating life insurance policies carry important benefits while still protecting you and your loved ones. Both participating life insurance and non-participating life insurance policies can be customized to meet your individual needs. Whatever your financial situation, there is a plan the fits your current and future needs and goals.

To find out more about both participating life insurance and non-participating life insurance, as well as all of the other insurance products offered by Independent Financial Concepts Group, please contact Gary Mandel at 416-849-1653 or visit www.wecoveryou.ca.