Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    National Underwriter Sales Essentials (Property & Casualty): The Wedge
    National Underwriter Sales Essentials (Property & Casualty): The Wedge
    National Underwriter Sales Essentials (Property & Casualty): The Wedge
    Ebook163 pages2 hours

    National Underwriter Sales Essentials (Property & Casualty): The Wedge

    By Randy Schwantz

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    The Wedge offers a powerful, proven technique to distinguish you from the incumbent agent and help you win new business. You will dramatically increase your "win ratio" and add satisfied clients to your book of business by researching a potential client, building rapport, and discovering the client's inner dissatisfaction in the current relationship. Learn Why Traditional Selling Doesn't Work Learn What You Need To Know To Win Rapport, Discovery, Differentiation The Six Steps of The Wedge Wedge Scripting Aids and More! Randy Schwantz s The Wedge strips away the theoretical and packs in the most practical sales techniques to come along in the last ten years. If a salesperson is not Driving the Wedge, they re just spinning their wheels! Richard F. Yadon, Jr. Director of Sales Willis Corroon Corporation of Kansas After reading The Wedge, and applying its principles to my sales presentations, I landed a rather large account that I know a competitor was also avidly pursuing. That alone makes the investment in this book worthwhile. kemspeaks Amazon.com online reviewer Phoenixville, PA Randy Schwantz is President & CEO of The Wedge Group, a sales training and consulting firm headquartered near Dallas, Texas. He is in the business of helping agencies, carriers and other companies accelerate their profitable growth by integrating their sales people, support staff and executive leadership into a high-performance team.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherThe National Underwriter Company
    Release dateFeb 20, 2014
    ISBN9781939829702
    National Underwriter Sales Essentials (Property & Casualty): The Wedge

    Read more from Randy Schwantz

    Related to National Underwriter Sales Essentials (Property & Casualty)

    Related ebooks

    Business For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Whole Life Insurance: It's a Swiss Army Knife for Financial Planning

      May 1, 2020

      The stock market may be jittery right now, but my whole life cash value continues to chug along. In my 20 years of providing financial advice, I have found whole life insurance to be one of the most important, yet overlooked financial planning tools

      6 min read

    • Article

      15 Best Foreclosure Sites for Finding Properties

      Jan 6, 2021

      You may remember that foreclosures were a big part of the Great Recession. As the economy cratered, foreclosure filings soared. In the first half of 2010 alone, 1.65 million U.S. homes spun into foreclosure, according to data from ATTOM Data Solution

      3 min read

    • Article

      Real Estate Investing in 2021 Comes Down to 5 ‘Un’ Words

      Nov 10, 2020

      Unmatched. Unfortunate. Uncertain. Have you noticed a familiar pattern in some of 2020’s most-used words? When America’s content marketing leaders were recently surveyed for their most-unloved buzzwords of 2020, their top pick was “unprecedented.” Ca

      4 min read

    • Article

      Simple Works

      Jun 17, 2018

      Simple Works
      2 min read

    • Article

      Estate Planning Is More Important Than You Think

      Apr 6, 2020

      An estate plan is a necessary tool that allows you to protect, maintain and manage your property if you become ill or pass away. But more than that, it can also help people make sure their minor children are protected in the event of an emergency or

      4 min read

    • Article

      Why I Love My Whole Life Insurance Policy

      Aug 2, 2018

      At any given family or social event, once someone knows I am a financial planner I always get pulled to the side to answer some burning personal finance question. I can sympathize with doctors. I usually get asked about the market or some stock, but

      3 min read

    • Article

      Considering Real Estate? Know the ABCs of DSTs, TICs and 1031s

      Oct 1, 2020

      Investment real estate is the largest asset class in the U.S. behind the equity and bond markets. Millions of investors allocate some portion of their investment portfolio to income properties, including commercial and multifamily real estate, to div

      3 min read

    • Article

      PODCAST: The Ins and Outs of IRAs with Ed Slott, CPA

      Aug 23, 2021

      Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Overcast | RSS David Muhlbaum: Individual retirement accounts. Lots of people have one, but are they getting the most from them? We talked to a master of strategy, Ed Slott, about the ins and outs of IRAs.

      22 min read

    • Article

      Pay Now or Pay Later: Reducing Taxes Should Be a Retirement Priority

      Oct 1, 2019

      Do you have a plan to help reduce income taxes in retirement? That's become one of my top questions for the pre-retirees who attend my financial planning classes or come to my office for help. If they have to think about it, it means they likely do

      3 min read

    • Article

      Millennials, What Will It Take for You to Buy Life Insurance?

      Jul 30, 2021

      Start-ups are going to ridiculous lengths to rebrand an industry in desperate need of some younger customers.

      6 min read

    • Article

      Letter Of The Month

      Apr 28, 2022

      I have to respectfully disagree with Phil Slade’s article, “Why nice people often finish last” (March 2022). Phil needs to check his male privilege when highlighting his own experiences with negotiating. Research consistently demonstrates that women

      1 min read

    • Article

      Before You Do a 1031 Exchange, Consider These 4 Alternative Investment Options

      Jul 27, 2020

      One of the most attractive real estate tax benefits available in the U.S. is the like-kind exchange, which is governed by Section 1031 of the Internal Revenue Code. About one-third of all commercial and multifamily property sales in the U.S. involve

      3 min read

    • Article

      Kiplinger Q&A: Hill Harper

      Aug 27, 2019

      TV and film actor (ABC's "The Good Doctor," CBS's "CSI: NY" and Columbia Pictures' "Concussion") and author Hill Harper sees a void in the lesson plans for today's students ("We don't teach money," he laments) and believes celebrity influencers like

      7 min read

    • Article

      “I Worked Out Early That People Were My Best Asset And Investment”

      Jun 30, 2021

      What was your first job? I started in retail at the age of 16. I got a job at the local Just Jeans store and I absolutely loved it from the first moment I joined. I loved customers, I loved selling, I loved clothes, I loved learning, and at the end

      3 min read

    • Article

      Kiplinger Q&A: Laila Ali

      Apr 6, 2018

      Giving back is something that comes naturally to retired (and undefeated) professional boxer-turned-entrepreneur Laila Ali. Born the daughter of the late legendary boxer and activist Muhammad Ali and Veronica Porché Ali, she grew up listening to her

      6 min read

    • Article

      Be HAPPY & Fulfilled

      Jun 12, 2021

      Be HAPPY & Fulfilled
      4 min read

    • Article

      Be HAPPY & Fulfilled

      Jun 12, 2021

      Be HAPPY & Fulfilled
      4 min read

    • Article

      Be HAPPY & Fulfilled

      Jun 12, 2021

      Be HAPPY & Fulfilled
      4 min read

    • Article

      “I’m Very Careful With My Money”

      Sep 29, 2021

      What was your first job? I always wanted to work the minute I was able to. I had a neighbour who owned a restaurant at the top of the street, and I’d constantly ask if I could work there but was told that it wasn’t allowed until I was 14 and 9 month

      3 min read

    • Article

      Be HAPPY & Fulfilled

      Jun 12, 2021

      Be HAPPY & Fulfilled
      4 min read

    • Article

      Nipun Mehta Pays It Forward

      Aug 1, 2019

      Nipun Mehta Pays It Forward
      20 min read

    • Article

      David Harilela

      Feb 2, 2024

      David Harilela
      5 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for National Underwriter Sales Essentials (Property & Casualty)

    0 ratings

    0 ratings0 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

      Book preview

      National Underwriter Sales Essentials (Property & Casualty) - Randy Schwantz

      Copyright © 2014 by Randy Schwantz

      All rights reserved.

      No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without permission in writing from the publisher:

      The National Underwriter Company

      5081 Olympic Blvd., Erlanger, KY 41018

      International Standard Book Number: 978-1-939829-70-2

      Printed in the United States of America

      Dedication

      I want to dedicate this book to my mom and dad. When I turned eight years old, my dad started taking me on road trips. We would call on five or ten of his customers and get orders. He taught me to respect and love the profession of selling.

      And my mom told me a million times, there’s nothing you can’t do if you just make up your mind that’s what you want to do. Great advice, mom!

      Thanks mom and dad for your leadership, direction and encouragement. I love you.

      Acknowledgement

      Thank you Michael Graham, I could have never written this book without your help; Kevin Grant for encouraging me to develop The Wedge; and Pat Bonds for encouraging me to focus on this industry. And Mary Jo, thanks for your loyalty and persistence in helping develop the program that this book is based on.

      I want to thank my clients for your willingness to learn and for accommodating my endless questioning of your conversations, strategies and techniques in an effort to find a better way to sell

      And to my wife and kids, thanks for giving me the freedom to focus on this project on nights and weekends when we should have been outside playing or I should have been giving baths.

      Thank you all.

      Contents

      Dedication

      Acknowledgement

      Preface: The Mission

      Introduction

      Chapter One

      Chapter Two

      Chapter Three

      Chapter Four

      Chapter Five

      Chapter Six

      Chapter Seven

      Chapter Eight

      Chapter Nine

      Chapter Ten

      Chapter Eleven

      Appendix

      Sneak Preview: iWin

      Preface: The Mission

      Are you on a mission?

      Corporations have a mission statement plus long and short-term financial goals. At what stage in a producer’s career does he identify and quantify his own personal financial goals, his own mission?

      Ten years ago, this guy ruined my life.

      I was doing a sales training session in Houston. It was one of those late summer days in Texas when the skies open up and a deluge floods the city. We were beyond introductions and starting into the meat of the workshop when a latecomer entered the room. He was dripping wet, bleary-eyed and exhausted. He looked too miserable to ignore.

      Me: Join us. You look like you’ve had a tough night.

      Salesperson: Sorry. My daughter just started college. I drove her there yesterday, got her all set up, then back home overnight, an eleven hour drive. Sorry I’m late.

      Me: Tough drive in this rain.

      Salesperson: You can say that again.

      Me: Where’s your daughter going to school?

      Salesperson: Texas Tech.

      Me: Did you put her in an apartment or a dorm?

      Salesperson: An apartment.

      Me: What floor?

      Salesperson: Third floor.

      Me: You have any help carrying everything up or just yourself?

      Salesperson: Just me.

      Me: No wonder you’re tired. I bet your back hurts too. Do you have other kids in school?

      Salesperson: Yes, this is my second.

      Me: Where is she?

      Salesperson: She’s at Texas Tech also.

      Me: At least the good news is that it’s all paid for isn’t it?

      Salesperson: The salesperson dropped his head, shook it back and forth while saying, No, it isn’t.

      I was thinking, oh my gosh. Didn’t he know eighteen years ago, when this kid was born that she’d be going off to school? Why didn’t he prepare for it? He’s a Risk Manager. He’s all about preparation. Why didn’t he do it for himself? In fact, this guy had a large book of business and made very good money. How did he let himself get into this financial stress?

      Then I started thinking.

      Here I was, father of three daughters and one on the way. I was making a comfortable living and slowly growing my income. At the end of every year I tucked a few dollars into an education account for the girls and my own IRA. It was what I thought I could afford, but I didn’t know if it was enough.

      So I sat down with an investment advisor and told him the story about the guy in Houston and said

      I don’t want to be like him ten to fifteen years from now. I’ve got four daughters. I already know I need to buy four cars, four university tuitions, four weddings, and also fund my own retirement. I want to know, how much money do I need to save every year to accomplish that?

      He got his pencil, calculator, and a sheet of paper. About five minutes later he said, Are you ready? I’m thinking to myself, is it that bad? He then told me, In order for you to do the things you told me you wanted to do — the cars, universities, weddings and retirement, you have to save about $65,000 a year after tax. I’m thinking no way. At that point in my life, after making a house payment, utilities and paying for taxes, cars, private school tuition, and all the other stuff we had going on, I was able to save about $6,000 a year. Now I’ve got to save ten times that much?

      I needed to radically increase my personal income. . . soon.

      Like most people, I had monthly and annual sales goals. And, I would love to tell you that I was deeply inspired to achieve them, but that wouldn’t really be the truth. Most of the goal setting I had done up to that point was just that, throw a challenge goal out there, aim for the stars, and who knows maybe I’d hit one. But, they were just numbers and it didn’t feel real. Things really changed when I made a list with my daughters and wife, along with their current ages. I then plotted out on a timeline when I would need money for Kendall’s car, her university tuition, and a wedding. And then I did it again for Hunter, and again for Reagan, and again for Payton, four times, once for each girl. Then I started thinking about Lori and me. I put us on the timeline with our current ages and projected when I wanted to retire and how much money I wanted to have in the bank at that point in the future. It wasn’t until then that it became very real and I became very motivated, a man on a mission.

      That guy in Houston ruined my life, making me think about all this stuff. I was miserable for awhile, totally overwhelmed with the truth about my responsibility. Consider this: the average household income in America in 2007 was $50,233. All I had to do was increase my personal income by over twice what the average family earns so I could pay Uncle Sam about $35,000 and keep $65,000 to prefund my future.

      But now, rather than having random goals of do better, make more, be a high achiever, I had a goal that was personal. It wasn’t just about me, it was about my family. It was about putting myself in a position to say yes to them. The good news is I had time. If I had waited, I’m sure we would have gotten by somehow, everyone does. But, I didn’t want to be one of those guys that just gets by. I wanted to be a high achiever for a very real and tangible reason. I have four beautiful daughters and a great wife and I wanted to provide for them.

      By the way, that’s a real story. It began about ten years ago when Kendall was 7, Hunter 5, Reagan 3, and Payton had just been born. I think about it every day; it inspires me. My family and I have been blessed by people like you who buy my books, take my training, and introduce me into your agencies and businesses. As I result, I can tell you that in ten years, I not only achieved what I set out to do but was able to double it. I believe you can too when you get really clear about what’s important and commit to it.

      Here’s a question for you. What’s your inspiration? What makes you want to give it your all every day? I’ve polled almost 3,000 producers and sales people with a couple of simple questions. What’s your new business and growth goal for the year? How did you come up with it? Was it assigned to you by a sales manager or is it really yours? Did you just kind of pick it out of the air? Or, have you done some very serious thinking, mapping, and strategizing on exactly how much money you need to make every year to not only pay your bills, take a vacation, and own a nice home but to also make serious progress toward funding your family’s future.

      I find it interesting that out of the 3,000 producers I’ve polled, 10 percent or less had a plan that was longer than twelve months. And, in many cases, the plan or twelve-month goal was more an obligation to the sales manager or agency principal than a commitment to themselves and their family.

      My speaking coach, Robin Robins, said that everyone has a strategy for deciding where they will invest their money.

      1. Plan carefully. They budget what they are going to spend, making investments in what is going up in value.

      2. Spend everything they make. They may invest small amounts of money, but they mostly buy cars, toys, vacations, etc.

      3. Spend every penny they can get their hands on plus whatever they can borrow. They have a negative net worth.

      Her insight was clear and simple. The first group is wealthy. The second group is largest, classified as middle class, getting nowhere financially, and retiring dependent on social security and a modest IRA or 401k. The last group is essentially bankrupt, having spent their money on things they couldn’t afford.

      An empty

      Enjoying the preview?
      Page 1 of 1