Name. Your Goalbook AN AGENT S PERSONAL GUIDE TO SUCCESS AT AMERICAN NATIONAL INSURANCE COMPANY

Transcription

1 Name Your 2014 Goalbook AN AGENT S PERSONAL GUIDE TO SUCCESS AT AMERICAN NATIONAL INSURANCE COMPANY

2 American National is the issuer of life insurance and annuity products. Personal and commercial lines are offered through American National subsidiaries, including American National Property And Casualty Company (ANPAC ), and the Farm Family group of companies. Securities products are distributed through Securities Management and Research, Inc. (SM&R), Member FINRA/SIPC. SM&R is independent of the American National Family of Companies. Securities products are offered by prospectus only, involve investment risk, and are subject to market fluctuations and the possible loss of principal. Products and services may not be available in all states, and eligibility requirements will apply. Property and casualty insurance is issued by one of these members of the American National family of companies: American National Property And Casualty Company (ANPAC ), Springfield, MO; American National General Insurance Company; Pacific Property And Casualty Company (California); American National Lloyds Insurance Company (Texas); American National County Mutual Insurance Company (serviced by ANPAC- Texas); ANPAC Louisiana Insurance Company (Louisiana); United Farm Family Insurance Company, Glenmont, NY (MD, PA); and Farm Family Casualty Insurance Company, Glenmont, NY (CT, DE, MA, ME, NH, NJ, NY, RI, VA, VT, WV). Life insurance and annuity products are issued by American National Insurance Company, Galveston, Texas; Farm Family Life Insurance Company, Glenmont, New York; or American National Life Insurance Company of New York, Glenmont New York.

3 Goals What are your goals in life? For your agency? For your family? As an entrepreneur, setting goals is critical to both you and your family s success. Without having clear goals, strategies to achieve those goals, and an action plan to execute your strategies, you will find it difficult to achieve the success you have envisioned. 1

4 2 List as many of your own goals as you can think of in 15 minutes. Write down everything you would like to accomplish in your life. Don t consider whether they are realistic or impossible, just write them down. These goals should be both short-term and long-term. Don t try to put them into any order of importance; that will come later.

5 Life Goals: Real and Imagined Material/Financial: (What do I want to own? How much do I want to earn? What will my agency look like?) Achievement: (What do I want to become? What impact do I want to make? What do I want to accompllish? Where do I want to stand in my agency?) Personal Development: (What do I want to learn? What designations do I want to earn? What do I want to be able to do?) 3

6 Your career goals Why are goals important? Goals provide direction and focus for where you want to go and what you want to achieve. Your productivity and drive are greatly enhanced when you have a purpose. Once your goals have been established, you will develop strategies (what I must do) for accomplishing those goals. Your strategies will tell you HOW to achieve those goals. Your action plan will tell you WHEN you will achieve those goals. Without this direction you have only created a dream that you hope to accomplish some day. Finally, you will be asked to develop an action plan for each goal to help you execute the strategies. Writing down how you plan to accomplish the goal is only as good as the strategy and action plan you put into effect and the measurements you use to track the success of those strategies. The reason most people never reach their goals is that they don t define them, or ever seriously consider them as believable or achievable. Winners can tell you where they are going, what they plan to do along the way, and who will be sharing the adventure with them. Denis Waitley Best-selling author and motivational speaker 4

7 S M AR When writing your goals, you should use the SMART system. This five-part system will keep you on track for developing goals for success. Your goals should be specific. What is the end result of your goal? Your goals must be measurable. How will you know if you achieved your goal if you cannot measure the results? All goals must be achievable. There should be two measurements minimum (must) and superior (dream). You MUST accomplish the minimum goals to survive. The superior goals you aspire to achieve. Your goals must be realistic. Setting goals that lead to failure is both self-defeating and demoralizing. You want to strive to achieve your goals. Your goals must be challenging to keep you focused each day, but the goals cannot be so difficult or unrealistic that they cannot be achieved. Finally, your goals must be timely. If you are a beginner in the industry, you can t expect to achieve the same level of success as someone who has 20 years of experience. Set your goals on your own timetable, and geared for your level of expertise, with minimum and superior goals indicated. 5

8 Self-Assessment Probably the most difficult task to complete is a personal and professional self-assessment. By doing this, you will discover your strengths and weaknesses. It will also provide you with information on those areas that you cannot control. It is imperative that you are completely honest with yourself when completing this task. Your self-assessment (SWOT Analysis) is divided into four parts; Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. Before you begin a SWOT Analysis, complete a current self-assessment of your skills by completing the Self-Assessment Checklist. Completing the Self-Assessment Checklist will tell you where you think you currently stand under each category. Following the Self-Assessment Checklist you will complete your SWOT Analysis where you will use the results of your Self-Assessment Checklist to determine your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Self-Assessment Checklist This proficiency checklist serves as a self-inventory of your skills and abilities. Its purpose is to determine the performance/potential gap in your selling skill. Rate yourself using a scale of 1 to 5. (1 = poor; 5 = superior) 1. Displaying a professional presence Setting reachable goals with established action plans Planning time and activities for the next day Executing goals Networking in profitable areas Cultivating relationships Contact call effectiveness Skill in fact-finding and probing Sales presentation effectiveness using the AN Sales Process Meeting resistance/objectives Closing skill and strategy Obtaining referred lead endorsements Monitoring results Involving specialists in joint selling Credentials, Designations Staying active in community Reading, listening, watching for personal improvement Managing financial affairs Knowledge of the following products Life Insurance Personal Lines Commercial Lines Agricultural Lines Securities* Conducting regular Professional Insurance Reviews Total Possible Score 120 Your Score Your Performance/Potential Gap * Only agents who are registered through an independent broker-dealer may offer securities. 6 On the next page complete your SWOT Analysis.

9 SWOT analysis Strengths are those attributes that you should use to your advantage and continue to develop. When operating your agency, you should use your strengths to develop and retain new customers and provide the service your customers expect and demand. Strengths are areas that you cannot control, but you can choose to take actions to develop additional strengths. Strengths: Weaknesses are the most difficult to uncover and address, as we don t often like to admit we are deficient in any area. But to be successful, you must identify your weaknesses and determine if they are something to work around or to correct. For example, being in sales without a competent and personalized sales track will make it very difficult to succeed. Can you work around not having this sales presentation, or do you need a plan to correct this weakness and make it a strength? Weaknesses are also areas that you cannot control, but you can choose to take actions to correct them. Weaknesses: Opportunities can be found everywhere but often require thought and focus to identify. Opportunities can be found within your agency, company, industry, community, or family and friends. What opportunities can you identify that give you an edge with your prospects and customers? Most opportunities are beyond your control. Opportunities: Threats are those things that can affect your agency and that you need to be prepared for. What is your worst case scenario? Threats are beyond your control. List only those things you cannot control. Threats: 7

10 I feel that the most important step in any major accomplishment is setting a specific goal. This enables you to keep your mind focused on your goal and off the many obstacles that will arise when you re striving to do the best. Kurt Thomas World-class Olympic gymnast 8

11 Vision and Mission Statement Determining the goals you want to accomplish in life requires much thought. If careful thought is not given to those goals, you will find them difficult to reach. Have you found yourself giving more thought to planning your vacation than your agency? Part of planning is determining what you want to accomplish. First you should determine your vision for what you want your agency to become. Where do you see your agency in the future? This should be reflected in a Vision Statement. My Vision Statement: One you have determined your vision, and have an idea of when you want to get there, what steps have you implemented to get there? This plan should be stated in a Mission Statement. A Mission Statement tells the reader/listener how you will achieve your Vision Statement. My Mission Statement: Finally, don t create so many goals that they conflict with each other for your attention, time, or money. Set priorities and work on the 3-5 most important goals you want to accomplish for the year. Take those yearly goals and break them down into 4 distinct 90-day goals you must accomplish to reach your yearly goals. 9

12 Effort 10 Prior to setting your goals, it is important to know several key factors: What have you discovered using the SWOT Analysis that may have an affect on your production? What are the minimum sales and superior sales that you must make? Minimum are those sales that you must make to pay your expenses, have money to contribute to your household, and to grow your agency. Superior sales are those that you want to reach but that are beyond the minimum sales. What is your average closing ratio each week? This ratio will tell you how many appointments you closed compared with the number of appointments you kept. What was the average sale per appointment? It helps to track this by product. For example, how many life sales by type did you have and what was the average sale? How many sales for P&C, commercial, etc? The type will often reflect your marketing efforts and what you determined to be your target market. How many appointments do you have on average each week? Your number of appointments each week is a critical factor in your success. Without this activity there are no sales. Without sales there is no business. Before you can know where you want to go, it is important to know where you are. Answer the questions on the Planning Form found on pages The information can be gathered from the various reports that are available to you as well as your monitoring and record keeping. The projections for next year will be based on what you expect and will commit to doing. From the completed plans, your manager will be able to determine how the agency might better support you and your goals. With this information you can track your success by using a Weekly Effort Formula - page 11. This formula will help you determine what you need to accomplish in order to achieve both your minimum and superior goals. The formula is made up of: 1. Your goal for the number of Submitted Club Credits. (Review the marketing conference workbook.) 2. Appointments set appointments that have been agreed upon. 3. The number of opening interviews probing, fact-finding interview to determine whether or not you have a prospect. A prospect is an individual who recognizes need(s), reveals a hot button, will make a money commitment, is insurable, and is capable of buying from you. 4. Number of closing interviews presentation of the recommendation where you ask the prospect to buy. 5. The number of life applications and units submitted applications sent to the home office 6. Number of pre-approach calls contact call to arrange an appointment under favorable conditions Start with the number of submitted club credits (average sales time number of apps = total premium) you want to achieve. How many submitted applications do you need to submit? How many closing interviews do you need for this many applications? How many opening interviews do you need to achieve the closing interviews? How many appointments are needed each week and how many pre-approach calls must you make to have the number of appointments? To arrive at these numbers, it is important to start at the bottom of the formula and work backwards, starting with the end result. With the average sales multiplied by the number of applications you expect to send to the home office, you will have an idea of your commissions, which relates to your financial needs. Complete the Weekly Effort Formula on the next page to establish your production goals.

13 Life Weekly Effort Formula (Read page 10 before completing) P&C/AG Comm PRE-APPROACH CALLS EACH WEEK APPOINTMENTS EACH WEEK OPENING INTERVIEWS EACH WEEK CLOSING INTERVIEWS EACH WEEK SUBMITTED APPLICATIONS EACH WEEK SUBMITTED CLUB CREDITS Review the Marketing Conference Awards Booklet Update weekly and provide the results to your manager. 11

14 Never forgetting No client likes to feel forgotten. Too often a policy is sold to someone, and there is no further contact with that individual or family. Every one wants to feel important and protected against the unknown. Professional Insurance Reviews (PIRs) are an important part of the service you provide to your client. Some clients will need to be contacted every year, while others only every 18 months to two years. PIRs are an excellent way to keep in touch with clients, develop referrals, increase production and feel confident that the clients are well-protected. PIRs should be an important part of the initial sale, outlining what it means, and that it is an important part of your service to them. Give them reasons for wanting to see you by providing the coverage they currently need and letting them know you will be following up to make sure nothing has changed. If you have not completed a PIR and are not sure how to start, there are several options. Is there someone in the agency from whom you can learn? Discuss a process with your manager to help you get started. What is important is getting started. You can also go to ANAgentCentral/TEDMain/American National Sales Process, step number 9. Each stage is designed to assist you in the development of your reviews. Using the American National Sales Process is a must when conducting your initial sale and PIRs. The factfinder found in the Sales Process is the tool you use when conducting both the initial sale and the PIR. You may find that your clients have never had this experience and will thank you for your time and concern. How many PIRs will you conduct next year? If you are new, how many do you think you will conduct? Part of goal setting is projecting what you think you will do and then work toward that goal. Take time to complete the form on the following page. Determine your process and time frame for conducting the PIRs, develop your projections, and decide what you expect to gain from those PIRs. 12 On average, customers who have their policy needs reviewed on a yearly basis report an overall satisfaction score of 867, nearly 80 index points higher than those who did not have their policies reviewed in the past year. J.D. Power Company, October 2006

15 Helping Your Clients (Read page 10 before completing) 1. On each sale, stress the need to your clients for a Professional Insurance Review (PIR) to update their risk and financial coverages. Read the American National Sales Process, step #9. Attach a written copy of your process for conducting PIR s. 2. Which expected policies, by type, do you feel your market will need and purchase? (Check all that apply.) q Life q Auto q Home q Commercial q Agriculture 3. What staff level is needed to accomplish your goals? Indicate how many and the type of staff members you will need this year and next year. CSR Staff Current Year Next Year Life Personal Asst Personal Lines Commercial Other Total 4. What vertical markets(s) are you targeting? How did you determine these markets? Hint: Review your completed VRM workbook. 5. Who are the specialists you will work with? Life Sales Director: Ag/Commercial Specialist: 6. What professional courses do you plan to complete this year? q ANPAC School q Ag/Commercial School q ANICO School q NAIFA q FOCUS Sessions q LUTCF q CLU q ChFC q ANICO Professional Seminar (Galveston) 13

16 Planning ahead Without goals, and plans to reach them, you are like a ship that has set sail with no destination. Fitzhugh Dodson Author and motivational speaker Once you have established your sales, on average, and compared your sales with your expenses, you can determine if you are in a position to reach your goals or if you need to make a correction. (Review your completed Agency Plan.) It is imperative to establish your strategies to reach your goals. Strategies help you determine what you will do on a regular basis to accomplish your goals. When you say you are going to do something, the first questions you or anyone else should ask are how and when. What are you going to do to reach that goal? For example, you say you will market to a particular group of individuals based on your natural market. How are you going to do that? Where will you find this group? In which publications should you advertise? What works best for you to contact this group? You need to raise your commissions to reach your personal and financial goals. How will you do this? When will you do this, and why did you select this goal? To increase your commissions you need to increase your sales. Which products or markets show the most promise for sales increases? Will you increase the average sale or the number of sales? How will you increase your sales? By what amount do you need to increase your sales? How and where will you obtain your leads? You have determined that you need to learn more about the products and the sales presentation. Which products? Where will you obtain that knowledge? How long will it take? How will you measure whether you have gained the knowledge you need? You want to make Marketing Conference, MDRT, or achieve one of the bonuses available through American National. What are the requirements? Are they based on the production of one product? Are the requirements based on premium, commissions, units, etc.? Breaking requirements or goals down to smaller parts through which your success can be measured on a weekly basis will help you get on target and recognize what you need to do to help reach your goal. On page 3, you were asked to write down your goals. Now you need to review those goals and categorize them as short-term or long-term. Short-term (one year or less) will be goals set on a daily, weekly, monthly, and annual basis. Long-term goals (more than one year but less than five years) will be those you plan to achieve within five years. Your short-term goals should build on each other. Make sure to start with the one-year goals and work backward. What do you need to do each month to reach your annual goals? What do you need to do each week to reach your monthly goals? 14

17 Strategies: My Action Plan When you set your goals, what are your strategies for accomplishing them? What specific activities will you complete each day? Will there be a cost involved? Who will be responsible for completing that task? On what date will you start the activity? How will you measure whether your activity(ies) has been successful? How often will you check to see if your strategies have been successful (often called the end date )? To whom will you be accountable for your successes and failures? It often helps to have a board of directors to report to. This could be your manager, friend, or family member. Your board of directors can be individuals who will give you honest feedback and who have your best interests at heart. Being accountable to someone else can help you execute and complete your strategies. Meet with someone, such as your manager, on a regular basis and work with a mentor. Your strategies should be known to your manager who could, in turn, meet with you regularly to see if you are meeting your goals. Your manager could also determine whether your results are better or worse than predicted. Set a regular date, time and location to report your results to your board of directors. These meetings must be on a regular basis and close enough to the end date to make any corrections before it is too late. How will you implement your strategies? It is easy to say you are going to do something; actually doing it is the hard part. How will you follow through? Procrastination can be very powerful. Fear of failure can keep you from implementing the strategies. The complexity of the execution will depend on the complexity of the goal. Some strategies will require more execution and greater resources. You are asked to complete a net set of 90-day goals and action plans (strategies) for a Short-Term look at your goals/strategies: (Jan Mar; Apr Jun; July Sep; Oct Dec). On the next page write down your long-term and short-term goals. 15

18 Goals for Year (Review pages 5 and 20 before completing) Long Term Goals (5 year) List your long term goals that you wish to accomplish in 5 years. You will not have to answer further questions about your long term targets but consider the obstacles and the impact of these goals on your business and your personal life Short Term Goals (1 year) Write three goals that you want to achieve this year and your strategy for reaching these goals. Read page 15 before determining your golas and establishing short term goals. Make these goals realistic and measurable. On the next 3 4 pages, you will answer questions about these goals and create a timeline for completion of tasks. 1. Strategy: 2. Strategy: 3. Strategy: 16

19 90 Day Action Plan: Goals and Strategies 90 Day Goal #1 (Identify the first goal from page 16. What goals must you accomplish this quarter (see page 15) to help you reach the goal?) What is your proactive strategy to help you complete goal #1 during this quarter? What results do you expect to see at the end of this quarter by accomplishing this 90 day goal? What challenges/obstacles do you anticipate? Outline each action step you will take to complete the task of reaching goal #2 based on the proactive strategy. You should have a target date before the end of the 90 days. Task to be Accomplished Action Steps Person Responsible Target Date What will be the total cost for these tasks? 17

20 90 Day Action Plan: Goals and Strategies 90 Day Goal #2 (Identify the first goal from page 16. What goals must you accomplish this quarter (see page 15) to help you reach the goal?) What is your proactive strategy to help you complete goal #1 during this quarter? What results do you expect to see at the end of this quarter by accomplishing this 90 day goal? What challenges/obstacles do you anticipate? Outline each action step you will take to complete the task of reaching goal #2 based on the proactive strategy. You should have a target date before the end of the 90 days. Task to be Accomplished Action Steps Person Responsible Target Date What will be the total cost for these tasks? 18

21 90 Day Action Plan: Goals and Strategies 90 Day Goal #3 (Identify the first goal from page 16. What goals must you accomplish this quarter (see page 15) to help you reach the goal?) What is your proactive strategy to help you complete goal #1 during this quarter? What results do you expect to see at the end of this quarter by accomplishing this 90 day goal? What challenges/obstacles do you anticipate? Outline each action step you will take to complete the task of reaching goal #2 based on the proactive strategy. You should have a target date before the end of the 90 days. Task to be Accomplished Action Steps Person Responsible Target Date What will be the total cost for these tasks? 19

22 You have developed your goals, determined what is needed to be profitable, established strategies to accomplish your goals, and decided how you will execute those strategies. What is next? This is not a one-time activity. You should review your goals at the end of each year in anticipation of the next year. You should re-evaluate your strategies quarterly to determine if they are working. If you discover problems, it will give you time to determine new strategies or ways to fine-tune the current strategies. Using a plan for goal-setting is critical. You have to set goals that are almost out of reach. If you set a goal that is attainable without much work or thought, you are stuck with something below your true talent and potential. Steve Garvey Professional Baseball Player 20

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26 AMERICAN NATIONAL INSURANCE COMPANY ONE MOODY PLAZA GALVESTON, TX Form 7395 RV 12-13