LIFE INSURANCE CORPORATION OF

INDIA


SELLING SKILLS & SELLING PRACTICES
PROJECT



A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A SALEPERSON

Submitted by:
Shipra1ha
PG20101269
Sec- C

INTRODUCTION

The LiIe Insurance Corporation oI India (LIC) is the largest state-owned liIe insurance company
in India, and also the country's largest investor. It is Iully owned by the Government oI India. It
also Iunds close to 24.6 oI the Indian Government's expenses. It was Iounded in 1956 with the
merger oI more than 200 insurance companies and provident societies.
Headquartered in Mumbai, Iinancial and commercial capital oI India, the LiIe Insurance
Corporation oI India currently has 8 zonal OIIices and 101 divisional oIIices located in diIIerent
parts oI India, at least 2048 branches located in diIIerent cities and towns oI India along with
satellite OIIices attached to about some 50 Branches, and has a network oI around 1.2 million
agents Ior soliciting liIe insurance business Irom the public.

HISTORY
The Oriental LiIe Insurance Company, the Iirst corporate entity in India oIIering liIe insurance
coverage, was established in Calcutta in 1818 by Bipin Bernard Dasgupta and others. Europeans
in India were its primary target market, and it charged Indians heItier premiums. The Bombay
Mutual LiIe Assurance Society, Iormed in 1870, was the Iirst native insurance provider. Other
insurance companies established in the pre-independence era included
Bharat Insurance Company (1896)
&nited India (1906)
ational Indian (1906)
ational Insurance (1906)
Co-operative Assurance (1906)
Hindustan Co-operatives (1907)
Indian Mercantile
General Assurance
Swadeshi LiIe (later Bombay LiIe)


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SUBSIDIARIES

LIC owns the Iollowing subsidiaries:

O LiIe Insurance Corporation oI India International: This is a joint venture oIIshore company
promoted by LIC which commenced operations in July, 1989 with the objectives oI oIIering &S$
denomimated policies to cater to the insurance needs oI #Is and providing insurance services to
holders oI LIC policies currently residing in the GulI. LIC International operates in all
GCC countries.

O LIC epal: A joint venture company Iormed in 2001 with the
Vishal Group oI Industries, epal.

O LIC Lanka: A joint venture company Iormed in 2003 with the
Bartleet Group oI Companies, Sri Lanka.

PRODUCTS
LIC deals in the Iollowing products:
O Insurance Plans:
As individuals it is inherent to diIIer. Each individual's insurance needs and requirements are
diIIerent Irom that oI the others. LIC's Insurance Plans are policies that talk to you individually
and give you the most suitable options that can Iit your requirement.
The insurance plan consists oI:













O Pension Plans:
Pension Plans are Individual Plans that gaze into your Iuture and Ioresee Iinancial stability
during your old age. These policies are most suited Ior senior citizens and those planning a
secure Iuture, so that you never give up on the best things in liIe.
Pension plans consist oI:
Pension Plus
Jeevanidhi
JeevanAkshay-VI
ew JeevanDhara-I
ew JeevanSuraksha-I


O &nit Plans:
&nit plans are investment plans Ior those who realise the worth oI hard-earned money. These
plans help you see your savings yield rich beneIits and help you save tax even iI you don't have
consistent income. It consists oI:
Samridhi Plus
Endowment Plus
Pension Plus

OSpecial Plans
LIC`s Special Plans are not plans but opportunities that knock on your door once in a liIetime.
These plans are a perIect blend oI insurance, investment and a liIetime oI happiness!
It consists oI:

Golden Jubilee Plan
Health plan
Golden Jubilee
Special Plan
Micro insurance plans



O Group Plans
Group Insurance Scheme is liIe insurance protection to groups oI people. This scheme is ideal
Ior employers, associations, societies etc. and allows you to enjoy group beneIits at really low
costs.

Group Term Insurance Schemes
Group Insurance Scheme in Lieu OI EDLI
Group Gr-atuity Scheme
Group Super Annuation Scheme
Group Savings Linked Insurance Scheme
Group Leave Encashment Scheme
Group Mortgage #edemption Assurance Scheme
Group Critical Illness #ider


O ithdrawn Plans:

Jeevanischay
ealth Plus
JeevanAastha
JeevanVarsha
ortune Plus
Market Plus I
ProIit Plus
Money Plus-I
Child ortune Plus
JeevanSaathi Plus




ISSION AND VISSION OF LIC

MISSIO:

"Explore and enhance the quality oI liIe oI people through Iinancial security by providing products and
services oI aspired attributes with competitive returns, and by rendering resources Ior economic
development."

VISSIO:

"A trans-nationally competitive Iinancial conglomerate oI signiIicance to societies and Pride oI India."



PRODUCTS SOLD AND TO WHO
As mentioned earlier LiIe Insurance Corporation oI India deals in the inancial Products. These
Products range Irom insuring liIe to the retirement plans, health plans etc. eventually securing the
liIe oI a person.
C&STOME#S
Hitesh Bhatia
#aman Verma
OBSERVATIONS AND LEARNINGS FRO THE SALESAN
O What does it take to be successful in sales:
To have sales as your proIession and actually being a good and a successIul salesman are two
diIIerent things. To be successIul in sales a Salesman should possess Good communication
skills, good knowledge about the product, presentation ability. He should also have a good
personality with good listening powers. He should be patient and conIident. Sales job is very
demanding and needs a lot oI hard work along with presence oI mind to achieve targets and
retain one`s position in the company. To be successIul in sales, the interests oI both the company
one works Ior and the customers he deals with need to be kept in mind.

O DESCRIPTION OF INITIAL PRODUCT KNOWLEDGE, GETTING PRODUCT
KNOWLEDGE AND SELLING SKILLS TRAINING?
. I was asked to attend a training session where we all were told about diIIerent kinds oI liIe
insurance policies and how to understand what policy is to be sold to what kind oI a customer.
Other then this training, the salesperson whom I met, explained to me that LiIe Insurance is one
oI the most diIIicult products to sell especially in India where the people resist accepting the Iact
that one day they are going to die and hence they need to be insured. Statistics prove that only
around 5 oI the population oI the country is insured and there is a huge market in terms oI the
rural population which the insurance companies can cater to. Also people believe that only LIC
policies are reliable and rest all companies are Iraud which makes it all the more diIIicult to sell
liIe insurance policies oI private companies.
urther he also brieIed me about diIIerent insurance plans,i.e, Term plans, endowment plans,
&LIPs, etc. This training was essential since without product knowledge go out in the Iield with
conIidence to make a sales call

O HOW TO PREPARE FOR A SALES CALL?
1. Prepare an Elevator Pitch:hen a potential customer wants to know about your product or
service, he should not be required to go through loads oI inIormation beIore making a conclusion
about what it actually does. Elevator Pitch should summarize inIormation about your business,
product or service and what it intends to do in not more than two sentences.
2. Prepare A Paying Customer`s CaseStudy:II you have a paying customer, prepare a case
study detailing the problem that the customer had, how your solution helped solve the problem,
and what were the quantiIied beneIits that your customer had using your solution.II possible, try
to include customer testimonials and reIerence inIormation by taking an approval.
3. Customize YourPresentation:Try gathering as much inIormation about the customers, their
business, problems and opportunity areas in business and any other inIormation which is related
with your product or service.&se the web, reports, press releases, newsletters, industry journals
to Iind inIormation and then use this inIormation to customize the sales presentation Ior making
it more relevant Ior your customer.
. Use Appointment CallEffectively:The call Ior Iixing appointments can be eIIectively used to
establish rapport with the customer on the basis oI common background, contacts, interests
etc.The call can also be used to Iind useIul Iacts and inIormation about the customer which can
later be used during the sales meeting.
Once you have done all oI the above depending on your business, you can be sure oI making a
great Iirst impression because you are already prepared Ior explaining your business, product or
service and that too which is highly customized Ior them.

O .HOW DO YOU PREPARE FOR A SALES PRESENTATION?
ake the presentation relevant to your prospect. One oI the most common mistakes
people make when discussing their product or service is to use a generic presentation. They say
the same thing in every presentation and hope that something in their presentation will appeal to
the prospective customer.The discussion oI your product or service must be adapted to each
person; modiIy it to include speciIic points that are unique to that particular customer. II you use
PowerPoint, place the company`s logo on your slides and describe how the key slides relate to
their situation. Show exactly how your product or service solves their speciIic problem. This
means that it is critical to ask your prospect probing questions beIore you start talking about your
company.
Create a connection between your product/service and the prospect.In a presentation
to a prospective client, I prepared a sample oI the product they would eventually use in their
program. AIter a preliminary discussion, I handed my prospect the item his team would be using
on a daily basis instead oI telling him about the item I placed it in his hands. He could then see
exactly what the Iinished product would look like and was able to examine it in detail. He was
able to ask questions and see how his team would use it in their environment.
Get to the point: Today`s business people are Iar too busy to listen to long-winded
discussions. Know what your key points are and learn how to make them quickly. I remember
talking to a sales person who rambled at great length about his product. AIter viewing his
product and learning how much it would cost I was prepared to move ahead with my purchase.
&nIortunately, he continued talking and he almost talked himselI out oI the sale. Make sure you
know what key points you want to discuss and practice verbalizing them beIore you meet with
your prospect.
Use showmanship.In the book, The Sales Advantage, an example is given how a
vending sales person lays a heavy sheet oI paper on the Iloor and asks his prospect, 'II I could
show you how that space could make you some money, would you be interested? Consider the
impact oI this approach compared to the typical approach oI saying something like, 'e can
help you make more money. hat can you do to incorporate some Iorm oI showmanship into
your presentation?
O DOES NONVERBAL COUNICATION PLAY A PART IN SALES?
onverbal communication plays a crucial part in sales since success is a combined result oI
verbal communication and a good eye contact, a Iirm, loose, erect body posture and open
gestures that move towards the buyer. These signals give the impression oI power, conIidence
and satisIaction.

O HOW DO YOU HANDLE OB1ECTIONS?
Objection handling is one oI the most Iundamental and indispensible sales techniques. This is the
process oI understanding and taking necessary actions to counteract the objections raised by the
prospect while making a sale. Objection handling is a matter oI acquiring more sales skills and
sales tips.&ncovering and dealing with sales objections challenges you intellectually and
emotionally. It requires that you know not only your product, but yourselI and your prospect as
well. Product knowledge, creativity, sales tools, and conIidence in yourselI, your product, and
your company must all come together in overcoming sales objections and closing the sale. You
must combine technique with honesty and conviction to get the prospect to resolve any lingering
doubt or conIlict.
Things not to do when overcoming sales objections
1. ever argue.
2. ever insult the prospect
3. ever avoid the issue
4. Don`t shiIt responsibility
5. ever contradict the prospect
6. Don`t dwell too long on an objection

O IS FOLLOW-UP SERVICE IPORTANT?
ollowing up with your customer, once you've made a sale, is an important part oI providing
good customer service. ot only is it an important part oI developing a good relationship with
your customer, but it will also enable you to introduce your new products.
Although sending out a personal message to each oI your customers may not be possible, you
can provide your customers with the illusion that your message was personally sent. By using
autoresponders, you can eliminate the need to manually respond each time you make a sale.
In order to develop a good relationship with your customers, you must provide them with quality
customer service. Let them know that, should they have any questions or problems, they are Iree
to contact you. Provide them with all oI your contact inIormation to make the process simple.
Even iI you can't personally assist them, make sure that you have a good customer support group
ready to help. #eply to their support requests as quickly as possible and assist them until the
problem is resolved. Your customer service is one oI the most important Iactors in determining
your customer's satisIaction. Even iI you have a great product or service, iI your customer
support isn't good, your sales will suIIer.