Insurance Sales/companies

[Jaymz]

Does anyone here sell insurance, or know someone who does ?

 

I've been taking classes, and studying hard for my P&C, 6 and 66 certs. I'm starting to get gun shy though. I still haven't taken the tests and really don't want to fail at $155 a test.

 

Can you really survive in todays ecnonomy with 100% commision ?

 

This gentlemen with Farmers insurance whom got me started, has promised me 100,000+ in 3-5 years with renewals and 40 PPC policies per month. Can I really make this happen ?

 

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

 

Thanks,

 

 

Derek

[superchevything]

Well my friends dad used to work for farmers insurance until he left them. They told him that he had to sale 40 insurance polices in one month or they were going to lay him off so he was like screw that and he left. All i got to say is good luck.

[Jaymz]

Well my friends dad used to work for farmers insurance until he left them. They told him that he had to sale 40 insurance polices in one month or they were going to lay him off so he was like screw that and he left. All i got to say is good luck.

 

 

thats basically what they told me in order to be "careerd" You have to sell xyz amount of insurance per month.

 

So basically perform well, or you'll never be full time...

[superchevything]

I know it sounds top dog in that kind of work but if its something you want to do go for it man. Just hook us up with some Kick A$$ rates lol

[billsws6]

plan on working 7 days a week and a lot of evenings. 40 policies per month sounds unrealistic in this economy. you should check other insurance companies, starting with aflac.

[Black2003SS]

When I get home later tonight, I will post my thoughts on this career path. Like anythign else, there are pros and cons. I have 7yrs experience working on 100% commission to salary plus commission and I can provide some valuable insight into the ins and outs of the sales industry related to insurance. I'm at work right now though and don't have the time required to get into specifics. I will say this much though, I'm done and out, I work for straight salary now, which I will explain later.

[Black2003SS]

I apologize for not responding last night. Here is my take (opinion) on sales.

 

Sales is the highest paid profession in the world. Many Vice Presidents and CEO's started their careers in sales or marketing departments. Sales can be very rewarding. In many cases, you are your own boss, even though you might be paid by a corporation, you are basically running your own business and that is the mind set you need to have. In many cases, especially outside sales and business to business sales, you can dictate your own hours after establishing your business, usually within 2-3yrs. The sky is the limit as far as income is concerned. You can make as much as you could imagine at most sales positions, then again, you could earn nothing.

 

Now here comes the truth about sales. Since sales is so rewarding, why don't more people do it? Well, millions have tried sales, but its not for everybody and far too many don't succeed. Sales takes a special individual and it is an art form, not an exact science. In many cases, like mentioned above, you will work 60-70hours per week starting out and even though you might be doing everything they teach you through their internal sales training program, you might not see results.

 

It is the hiring managers job to sell you. Everything is a sale, including the hiring process. He is selling you your dream and the job to get you your dream. Just remember, he isn't really promising you anything except a chance. His job is to ensure that you are committed to the sales process, company values, and "drink the cool aid". If you are not sure what that means, it means you buy into the cult like atmosphere. This is very important, if you dont buy in, you will most definetly fail.

 

The six figure promise. Is it attainable, yes. Will you hit it? I can't say as I don't know you personally, but the odds are against you.

 

Let me describe my personal experiences with you to explain what I mean. I have worked three sales jobs for a length of time. At each of them, I was promised the sun, moon, and stars. I hit it at two of them.

 

I started out my sales career on the ground floor entry level at a timeshare company. I took the job because it promised decent pay for little hours while I was going to college full time. I was basically an OPC aka Off Property Contact. I would approach people that were in the Bass Pro Shops retail stores and convince them to buy a steal of a package with a catch. They could get a 3day/2night package for $59 including a complimentary entertainment package that ranged from a $100 dinner cert to two rounds of golf to two lift tickets to the local ski resort. The only catch was that they had to sit through an hour long timeshare presentation. A little harder than you think. Some people didnt care about the tour, others, couldn't stand it and wouldn't do it. I know, I heard them all "it's never an hour" "It's too high pressure", etc. I did my research and the company I worked for was less pressure than most and it truly was only an hour unless they bought into the timeshare. Keep in mind at the time I was doing this, unemployment was around 3-4% nationwide. Everyone had money...err...credit anyways (a whole different can of worms).

 

I ended up setting 3 store records within the first six months I was there, most sales in a day, week, and month. I was tracking $30-35/hr working only part time. Overall though, the store was only hitting 80% of budget because the manager there was lazy and hardly ever worked (like maybe 15hours per week), which is a shame because he was a good saleman. So they fired him and gave me my shot, after only 8 months of on the floor experience. Rapid promotion. I quit school and focused on that job. I worked and turned around the store from 80% of budget to over 154% of annual budget (or sales goals). We broke national records and I only worked 35hours per week. Played golf all the time, went skiing all the time, won cruises, trips to Miami, Key West, etc. I was making dam good money, not six figures, but for what it was, dam good money, especially at 23yrs old.

 

I told you all of that to tell you this. It was my job to hire, train, manage, and fire everyone. Anyone who has been a manager knows these roles/responsibilities and I know you have held this role yourself in your current business. The distinct difference is the revolving door and the fact that I was a sales manager, not a business manager. What I didn't tell you earlier is that when I started at the company, I was one of about 15 people who were hired that month, and I was only one of two who were left 9 months later. When I took over, I was forced to clean house, letting go of the entire sales staff except for one super star. I then began hiring, training, and firing, every month. Now I was selling the job. I had to entice people to want to work there. There arent many people who wanted to work there. Finding people who could and would do the job was harder than selling the dam packages. It was almost to the point of a lie, but not directly. I told every prospective hire that sat in front of me, my success story, how much money they could make, and how quickly they could advance. In reality, only about 1 in 10 would last longer than 3 months and 1 in 20 would last longer than 6 months or more. They wouldnt hit their quotas or they had poor work ethics. Typically, it was the former, they just couldnt hit their quota no matter how hard they worked. Out the door they went and in came the next young gun thinking he/she could cut it with the same pie in the sky enticements I gave their predecessors. I promoted two to other stores out of probably 100 new hires in a little over two years.

 

I liked the company and the job, but it was not something I pictured doing for the rest of my life. I was approached my someone else I knew who said I was wasting my time there and needed to think "big". They told me mortgages were where the money was. So I bought into the cool aid and I was of to Quicken Loans. Yes, that Quicken Loans.

 

I thought I was a bada$$ sales person. No, I was still a novice as I soon found out. Quicken has a sales training program that is unlike anything in this country. The training program is to sales as boot camp is to Marines, the hardest, the best.

 

I started in 8/05 and there were two hundred people in my training class. I was in the top ten the first 3 months. We lost 50 of those 200 by the six month mark. By our one year anniversary, we had lost about 150. At the two year mark, there were merely 12 of us left out of 200. And they ran training programs of that magnitude almost every month for 3-4 years during the mortgage boom. They've slowed down a lot in recent years.

 

At Quicken I was promised six figures, and I would hit it. There was a girl who was 21yrs old with GED and she made over $200k her second year. Sick money to be made. It didnt matter you were before, it only mattered what you did that month. But for every one making six figures, there were at least 30-50 people who were shown the door for not meeting quota after a couple of months. We were required to make 100+ dials (calls) per day and leave 40-50 messages per day. Even the ones shown the door made their dials and left messages, but they lacked the art of the sale to close the deal.

 

I eventually left Quicken in 2008 because the market had switched radically, sales were down 50% and I was working 60hours per week to earn half of what I was when I first started. Even the big shooters were only making half. I also started to realize what was really going and grew a conscience. The fact is, most mortgage companies were selling not so great products and we were hurting just as many, if not more, people than we were helping. It almost came down to flat out lying and I would not do it to get a sale. Many would lie all day long.

 

Eventually, I decided I wanted to do some good and stop hurting people. Mortgages were a rip off. We were making $10k/month paychecks at times for the pure ability to convince people to go through our company for a loan. Most of the sales staff were not financial experts, they had a knack to talk people into doing business (thats what sales is). The problem was, I no longer was drinking the cool aid. I wanted to go back to school, and make a steady salary. The income fluctuated wildly the last year. One month I might have got a $7-8k check and the next, maybe $2k. I wanted something more stable and knew I was capable of more. So I left and went back to school, finishing my degree at 28 yrs old.

 

I would give sales one more try. I went to Xerox and tried business to business sales. I could do it, I just realized after a few months that I no longer had the desire to. B2B sales people are viewed almost as bad as telemarketers. The secretaries at these businesses I was calling on saw 50-100 guys pedalling everything from office equipment to toilet cleaning supplies. It sucked.

 

I ended up landing a job at the non-profit agency I work at currently. I get a modest salary with full benefits, a pension plan, and 3 weeks vacation per year. I dont make six figures, but I dont have the stress, the pressure, the dirty feeling I used to get. I actually help people now. I never hurt anyone at the timeshare sales place, but I wonder about some of the clients in the mortgage industry, if they still have a home, etc. Even though I technically never violated any RESPA laws or did anything illegal, some of the practices still were not right. When analysts say the mortgage industry ruined our economy, they are right. Banks and sales people (loan officers and real estate agents mostly) drove our economy right off a cliff.

 

My mother works for a nationally recognized financial advisors firm. She has been there 15 years. She has her series 6, 7, 66 and other various licenses. She has also seen many people come and go. One year, they hired 100 people/interns to study for the series 7. By the end of the year, they had kept just one person.

 

I see Farmers Insurance advertise all the time. They are constantly hiring. And when I say this, take it with a grain of salt. They do not give a rats a$$ about you. They told the guy before you and will the guy interviewing after you the same song and dance, probably verbatim.

 

With all that being said, I probably have detracted you from wanting to try. Perhaps not. I just want you to know the ugly truth about sales. There are even movies that are sometimes strangely worshipped in the sales culture.

 

Three movies to watch:

Wallstreet (1987) Michael Douglas and Charlie Sheen

Boiler Room (2000) Giovanni Ribisi, Vin Diesel, Ben Affleck

Glengarry Glen Ross (1992) Al Pacino, Jack Lemmon, Alec Baldwin

 

Watch those movies if you havent already and you will get a hollywood sensationalized version of sales, albeit with some dishonesty, however earily close to the underlying reality of sales. I would suspect Farmers to not be too different from any other financial product. You will be calling people who dont want to talk to you. You WILL get the door slammed in your face. You better have thick skin. People will swear at you, call you names, and maybe even make death threats against you. Be prepared to take blame for things that are out of your control and not your fault. I still know some good sales professionals that are overall decent people, but for every decent hearted sale person, there are probably 20 sharks that would sell their soul to satan.

 

As I stated at the beginning, this is my opinion. I'm sure I might even get bashed for some of my views or experiences. I could probably write a book on my sales experiences. However, so could thousands more people. If you decide to do it, you MUST have a positive attitude.

[misterp]

Wow very insightful; thanks for sharing.

 

Mr. P.

[kcsilveradoss]

I apologize for not responding last night. Here is my take (opinion) on sales.

 

Sales is the highest paid profession in the world. Many Vice Presidents and CEO's started their careers in sales or marketing departments. Sales can be very rewarding. In many cases, you are your own boss, even though you might be paid by a corporation, you are basically running your own business and that is the mind set you need to have. In many cases, especially outside sales and business to business sales, you can dictate your own hours after establishing your business, usually within 2-3yrs. The sky is the limit as far as income is concerned. You can make as much as you could imagine at most sales positions, then again, you could earn nothing.

 

Now here comes the truth about sales. Since sales is so rewarding, why don't more people do it? Well, millions have tried sales, but its not for everybody and far too many don't succeed. Sales takes a special individual and it is an art form, not an exact science. In many cases, like mentioned above, you will work 60-70hours per week starting out and even though you might be doing everything they teach you through their internal sales training program, you might not see results.

 

It is the hiring managers job to sell you. Everything is a sale, including the hiring process. He is selling you your dream and the job to get you your dream. Just remember, he isn't really promising you anything except a chance. His job is to ensure that you are committed to the sales process, company values, and "drink the cool aid". If you are not sure what that means, it means you buy into the cult like atmosphere. This is very important, if you dont buy in, you will most definetly fail.

 

The six figure promise. Is it attainable, yes. Will you hit it? I can't say as I don't know you personally, but the odds are against you.

 

Let me describe my personal experiences with you to explain what I mean. I have worked three sales jobs for a length of time. At each of them, I was promised the sun, moon, and stars. I hit it at two of them.

 

I started out my sales career on the ground floor entry level at a timeshare company. I took the job because it promised decent pay for little hours while I was going to college full time. I was basically an OPC aka Off Property Contact. I would approach people that were in the Bass Pro Shops retail stores and convince them to buy a steal of a package with a catch. They could get a 3day/2night package for $59 including a complimentary entertainment package that ranged from a $100 dinner cert to two rounds of golf to two lift tickets to the local ski resort. The only catch was that they had to sit through an hour long timeshare presentation. A little harder than you think. Some people didnt care about the tour, others, couldn't stand it and wouldn't do it. I know, I heard them all "it's never an hour" "It's too high pressure", etc. I did my research and the company I worked for was less pressure than most and it truly was only an hour unless they bought into the timeshare. Keep in mind at the time I was doing this, unemployment was around 3-4% nationwide. Everyone had money...err...credit anyways (a whole different can of worms).

 

I ended up setting 3 store records within the first six months I was there, most sales in a day, week, and month. I was tracking $30-35/hr working only part time. Overall though, the store was only hitting 80% of budget because the manager there was lazy and hardly ever worked (like maybe 15hours per week), which is a shame because he was a good saleman. So they fired him and gave me my shot, after only 8 months of on the floor experience. Rapid promotion. I quit school and focused on that job. I worked and turned around the store from 80% of budget to over 154% of annual budget (or sales goals). We broke national records and I only worked 35hours per week. Played golf all the time, went skiing all the time, won cruises, trips to Miami, Key West, etc. I was making dam good money, not six figures, but for what it was, dam good money, especially at 23yrs old.

 

I told you all of that to tell you this. It was my job to hire, train, manage, and fire everyone. Anyone who has been a manager knows these roles/responsibilities and I know you have held this role yourself in your current business. The distinct difference is the revolving door and the fact that I was a sales manager, not a business manager. What I didn't tell you earlier is that when I started at the company, I was one of about 15 people who were hired that month, and I was only one of two who were left 9 months later. When I took over, I was forced to clean house, letting go of the entire sales staff except for one super star. I then began hiring, training, and firing, every month. Now I was selling the job. I had to entice people to want to work there. There arent many people who wanted to work there. Finding people who could and would do the job was harder than selling the dam packages. It was almost to the point of a lie, but not directly. I told every prospective hire that sat in front of me, my success story, how much money they could make, and how quickly they could advance. In reality, only about 1 in 10 would last longer than 3 months and 1 in 20 would last longer than 6 months or more. They wouldnt hit their quotas or they had poor work ethics. Typically, it was the former, they just couldnt hit their quota no matter how hard they worked. Out the door they went and in came the next young gun thinking he/she could cut it with the same pie in the sky enticements I gave their predecessors. I promoted two to other stores out of probably 100 new hires in a little over two years.

 

I liked the company and the job, but it was not something I pictured doing for the rest of my life. I was approached my someone else I knew who said I was wasting my time there and needed to think "big". They told me mortgages were where the money was. So I bought into the cool aid and I was of to Quicken Loans. Yes, that Quicken Loans.

 

I thought I was a bada$$ sales person. No, I was still a novice as I soon found out. Quicken has a sales training program that is unlike anything in this country. The training program is to sales as boot camp is to Marines, the hardest, the best.

 

I started in 8/05 and there were two hundred people in my training class. I was in the top ten the first 3 months. We lost 50 of those 200 by the six month mark. By our one year anniversary, we had lost about 150. At the two year mark, there were merely 12 of us left out of 200. And they ran training programs of that magnitude almost every month for 3-4 years during the mortgage boom. They've slowed down a lot in recent years.

 

At Quicken I was promised six figures, and I would hit it. There was a girl who was 21yrs old with GED and she made over $200k her second year. Sick money to be made. It didnt matter you were before, it only mattered what you did that month. But for every one making six figures, there were at least 30-50 people who were shown the door for not meeting quota after a couple of months. We were required to make 100+ dials (calls) per day and leave 40-50 messages per day. Even the ones shown the door made their dials and left messages, but they lacked the art of the sale to close the deal.

 

I eventually left Quicken in 2008 because the market had switched radically, sales were down 50% and I was working 60hours per week to earn half of what I was when I first started. Even the big shooters were only making half. I also started to realize what was really going and grew a conscience. The fact is, most mortgage companies were selling not so great products and we were hurting just as many, if not more, people than we were helping. It almost came down to flat out lying and I would not do it to get a sale. Many would lie all day long.

 

Eventually, I decided I wanted to do some good and stop hurting people. Mortgages were a rip off. We were making $10k/month paychecks at times for the pure ability to convince people to go through our company for a loan. Most of the sales staff were not financial experts, they had a knack to talk people into doing business (thats what sales is). The problem was, I no longer was drinking the cool aid. I wanted to go back to school, and make a steady salary. The income fluctuated wildly the last year. One month I might have got a $7-8k check and the next, maybe $2k. I wanted something more stable and knew I was capable of more. So I left and went back to school, finishing my degree at 28 yrs old.

 

I would give sales one more try. I went to Xerox and tried business to business sales. I could do it, I just realized after a few months that I no longer had the desire to. B2B sales people are viewed almost as bad as telemarketers. The secretaries at these businesses I was calling on saw 50-100 guys pedalling everything from office equipment to toilet cleaning supplies. It sucked.

 

I ended up landing a job at the non-profit agency I work at currently. I get a modest salary with full benefits, a pension plan, and 3 weeks vacation per year. I dont make six figures, but I dont have the stress, the pressure, the dirty feeling I used to get. I actually help people now. I never hurt anyone at the timeshare sales place, but I wonder about some of the clients in the mortgage industry, if they still have a home, etc. Even though I technically never violated any RESPA laws or did anything illegal, some of the practices still were not right. When analysts say the mortgage industry ruined our economy, they are right. Banks and sales people (loan officers and real estate agents mostly) drove our economy right off a cliff.

 

My mother works for a nationally recognized financial advisors firm. She has been there 15 years. She has her series 6, 7, 66 and other various licenses. She has also seen many people come and go. One year, they hired 100 people/interns to study for the series 7. By the end of the year, they had kept just one person.

 

I see Farmers Insurance advertise all the time. They are constantly hiring. And when I say this, take it with a grain of salt. They do not give a rats a$$ about you. They told the guy before you and will the guy interviewing after you the same song and dance, probably verbatim.

 

With all that being said, I probably have detracted you from wanting to try. Perhaps not. I just want you to know the ugly truth about sales. There are even movies that are sometimes strangely worshipped in the sales culture.

 

Three movies to watch:

Wallstreet (1987) Michael Douglas and Charlie Sheen

Boiler Room (2000) Giovanni Ribisi, Vin Diesel, Ben Affleck

Glengarry Glen Ross (1992) Al Pacino, Jack Lemmon, Alec Baldwin

 

Watch those movies if you havent already and you will get a hollywood sensationalized version of sales, albeit with some dishonesty, however earily close to the underlying reality of sales. I would suspect Farmers to not be too different from any other financial product. You will be calling people who dont want to talk to you. You WILL get the door slammed in your face. You better have thick skin. People will swear at you, call you names, and maybe even make death threats against you. Be prepared to take blame for things that are out of your control and not your fault. I still know some good sales professionals that are overall decent people, but for every decent hearted sale person, there are probably 20 sharks that would sell their soul to satan.

 

As I stated at the beginning, this is my opinion. I'm sure I might even get bashed for some of my views or experiences. I could probably write a book on my sales experiences. However, so could thousands more people. If you decide to do it, you MUST have a positive attitude.

 

Geez Mr. P, when did you change your screen name?

[Jaymz]

I apologize for not responding last night. Here is my take (opinion) on sales.

 

Sales is the highest paid profession in the world. Many Vice Presidents and CEO's started their careers in sales or marketing departments. Sales can be very rewarding. In many cases, you are your own boss, even though you might be paid by a corporation, you are basically running your own business and that is the mind set you need to have. In many cases, especially outside sales and business to business sales, you can dictate your own hours after establishing your business, usually within 2-3yrs. The sky is the limit as far as income is concerned. You can make as much as you could imagine at most sales positions, then again, you could earn nothing.

 

Now here comes the truth about sales. Since sales is so rewarding, why don't more people do it? Well, millions have tried sales, but its not for everybody and far too many don't succeed. Sales takes a special individual and it is an art form, not an exact science. In many cases, like mentioned above, you will work 60-70hours per week starting out and even though you might be doing everything they teach you through their internal sales training program, you might not see results.

 

It is the hiring managers job to sell you. Everything is a sale, including the hiring process. He is selling you your dream and the job to get you your dream. Just remember, he isn't really promising you anything except a chance. His job is to ensure that you are committed to the sales process, company values, and "drink the cool aid". If you are not sure what that means, it means you buy into the cult like atmosphere. This is very important, if you dont buy in, you will most definetly fail.

 

The six figure promise. Is it attainable, yes. Will you hit it? I can't say as I don't know you personally, but the odds are against you.

 

Let me describe my personal experiences with you to explain what I mean. I have worked three sales jobs for a length of time. At each of them, I was promised the sun, moon, and stars. I hit it at two of them.

 

I started out my sales career on the ground floor entry level at a timeshare company. I took the job because it promised decent pay for little hours while I was going to college full time. I was basically an OPC aka Off Property Contact. I would approach people that were in the Bass Pro Shops retail stores and convince them to buy a steal of a package with a catch. They could get a 3day/2night package for $59 including a complimentary entertainment package that ranged from a $100 dinner cert to two rounds of golf to two lift tickets to the local ski resort. The only catch was that they had to sit through an hour long timeshare presentation. A little harder than you think. Some people didnt care about the tour, others, couldn't stand it and wouldn't do it. I know, I heard them all "it's never an hour" "It's too high pressure", etc. I did my research and the company I worked for was less pressure than most and it truly was only an hour unless they bought into the timeshare. Keep in mind at the time I was doing this, unemployment was around 3-4% nationwide. Everyone had money...err...credit anyways (a whole different can of worms).

 

I ended up setting 3 store records within the first six months I was there, most sales in a day, week, and month. I was tracking $30-35/hr working only part time. Overall though, the store was only hitting 80% of budget because the manager there was lazy and hardly ever worked (like maybe 15hours per week), which is a shame because he was a good saleman. So they fired him and gave me my shot, after only 8 months of on the floor experience. Rapid promotion. I quit school and focused on that job. I worked and turned around the store from 80% of budget to over 154% of annual budget (or sales goals). We broke national records and I only worked 35hours per week. Played golf all the time, went skiing all the time, won cruises, trips to Miami, Key West, etc. I was making dam good money, not six figures, but for what it was, dam good money, especially at 23yrs old.

 

I told you all of that to tell you this. It was my job to hire, train, manage, and fire everyone. Anyone who has been a manager knows these roles/responsibilities and I know you have held this role yourself in your current business. The distinct difference is the revolving door and the fact that I was a sales manager, not a business manager. What I didn't tell you earlier is that when I started at the company, I was one of about 15 people who were hired that month, and I was only one of two who were left 9 months later. When I took over, I was forced to clean house, letting go of the entire sales staff except for one super star. I then began hiring, training, and firing, every month. Now I was selling the job. I had to entice people to want to work there. There arent many people who wanted to work there. Finding people who could and would do the job was harder than selling the dam packages. It was almost to the point of a lie, but not directly. I told every prospective hire that sat in front of me, my success story, how much money they could make, and how quickly they could advance. In reality, only about 1 in 10 would last longer than 3 months and 1 in 20 would last longer than 6 months or more. They wouldnt hit their quotas or they had poor work ethics. Typically, it was the former, they just couldnt hit their quota no matter how hard they worked. Out the door they went and in came the next young gun thinking he/she could cut it with the same pie in the sky enticements I gave their predecessors. I promoted two to other stores out of probably 100 new hires in a little over two years.

 

I liked the company and the job, but it was not something I pictured doing for the rest of my life. I was approached my someone else I knew who said I was wasting my time there and needed to think "big". They told me mortgages were where the money was. So I bought into the cool aid and I was of to Quicken Loans. Yes, that Quicken Loans.

 

I thought I was a bada$$ sales person. No, I was still a novice as I soon found out. Quicken has a sales training program that is unlike anything in this country. The training program is to sales as boot camp is to Marines, the hardest, the best.

 

I started in 8/05 and there were two hundred people in my training class. I was in the top ten the first 3 months. We lost 50 of those 200 by the six month mark. By our one year anniversary, we had lost about 150. At the two year mark, there were merely 12 of us left out of 200. And they ran training programs of that magnitude almost every month for 3-4 years during the mortgage boom. They've slowed down a lot in recent years.

 

At Quicken I was promised six figures, and I would hit it. There was a girl who was 21yrs old with GED and she made over $200k her second year. Sick money to be made. It didnt matter you were before, it only mattered what you did that month. But for every one making six figures, there were at least 30-50 people who were shown the door for not meeting quota after a couple of months. We were required to make 100+ dials (calls) per day and leave 40-50 messages per day. Even the ones shown the door made their dials and left messages, but they lacked the art of the sale to close the deal.

 

I eventually left Quicken in 2008 because the market had switched radically, sales were down 50% and I was working 60hours per week to earn half of what I was when I first started. Even the big shooters were only making half. I also started to realize what was really going and grew a conscience. The fact is, most mortgage companies were selling not so great products and we were hurting just as many, if not more, people than we were helping. It almost came down to flat out lying and I would not do it to get a sale. Many would lie all day long.

 

Eventually, I decided I wanted to do some good and stop hurting people. Mortgages were a rip off. We were making $10k/month paychecks at times for the pure ability to convince people to go through our company for a loan. Most of the sales staff were not financial experts, they had a knack to talk people into doing business (thats what sales is). The problem was, I no longer was drinking the cool aid. I wanted to go back to school, and make a steady salary. The income fluctuated wildly the last year. One month I might have got a $7-8k check and the next, maybe $2k. I wanted something more stable and knew I was capable of more. So I left and went back to school, finishing my degree at 28 yrs old.

 

I would give sales one more try. I went to Xerox and tried business to business sales. I could do it, I just realized after a few months that I no longer had the desire to. B2B sales people are viewed almost as bad as telemarketers. The secretaries at these businesses I was calling on saw 50-100 guys pedalling everything from office equipment to toilet cleaning supplies. It sucked.

 

I ended up landing a job at the non-profit agency I work at currently. I get a modest salary with full benefits, a pension plan, and 3 weeks vacation per year. I dont make six figures, but I dont have the stress, the pressure, the dirty feeling I used to get. I actually help people now. I never hurt anyone at the timeshare sales place, but I wonder about some of the clients in the mortgage industry, if they still have a home, etc. Even though I technically never violated any RESPA laws or did anything illegal, some of the practices still were not right. When analysts say the mortgage industry ruined our economy, they are right. Banks and sales people (loan officers and real estate agents mostly) drove our economy right off a cliff.

 

My mother works for a nationally recognized financial advisors firm. She has been there 15 years. She has her series 6, 7, 66 and other various licenses. She has also seen many people come and go. One year, they hired 100 people/interns to study for the series 7. By the end of the year, they had kept just one person.

 

I see Farmers Insurance advertise all the time. They are constantly hiring. And when I say this, take it with a grain of salt. They do not give a rats a$$ about you. They told the guy before you and will the guy interviewing after you the same song and dance, probably verbatim.

 

With all that being said, I probably have detracted you from wanting to try. Perhaps not. I just want you to know the ugly truth about sales. There are even movies that are sometimes strangely worshipped in the sales culture.

 

Three movies to watch:

Wallstreet (1987) Michael Douglas and Charlie Sheen

Boiler Room (2000) Giovanni Ribisi, Vin Diesel, Ben Affleck

Glengarry Glen Ross (1992) Al Pacino, Jack Lemmon, Alec Baldwin

 

Watch those movies if you havent already and you will get a hollywood sensationalized version of sales, albeit with some dishonesty, however earily close to the underlying reality of sales. I would suspect Farmers to not be too different from any other financial product. You will be calling people who dont want to talk to you. You WILL get the door slammed in your face. You better have thick skin. People will swear at you, call you names, and maybe even make death threats against you. Be prepared to take blame for things that are out of your control and not your fault. I still know some good sales professionals that are overall decent people, but for every decent hearted sale person, there are probably 20 sharks that would sell their soul to satan.

 

As I stated at the beginning, this is my opinion. I'm sure I might even get bashed for some of my views or experiences. I could probably write a book on my sales experiences. However, so could thousands more people. If you decide to do it, you MUST have a positive attitude.

 

 

I really appreciate the input- What a great read !

 

my wife and I have put a lot of thought into it, and with two new born children I can't take this chance.

 

I went from being a owner/operator of my own business for 5 years to nothing. I guess I'm scared about starting all over again.

 

 

 

 

P.S. if anyone is looking for Slightly used P&C, H&L, 6 and 66 Books I'll give you a hell of a deal

[Black2003SS]

Although being unemployed is painful, I think you made the right choice to be honest with you. I also interviewed with American Express Financial Services which spun off and is their own company. I know several who went through the same thing, very similar to Farmers. I also interviewed with NorthWestern Mutual, same rickroll. They turn em and burn em. I hope you find something soon.

[Hankg42]

VERY interesting information, great of you to share it.

 

"You better have thick skin. People will swear at you, call you names, and maybe even make death threats against you. Be prepared to take blame for things that are out of your control and not your fault."

 

Sounds like working in IT.