Insurance Know-How» RRSP

RRSP season? Try UL season

Helena Smeenk Pritchard — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 19:53:32 +0000

In a Canadian Life and Health Insurance Association (CLHIA) survey conducted a little over a year ago 75% of respondents said they look to their financial advisor for estate planning advice and on average it had been five years since they were approached to review their needs, coverage.

Five years? Really?

Read the full article on Advisor.ca

The Best Investment in the World

Helena Smeenk Pritchard — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 14:00:54 +0000

Did you know that Ben Feldman, often called the greatest life insurance salesman in the world, used to say “The best investment in the world is the Investment that is worth the most when it’s needed the most?”

During this busy RRSP season you’ll be talking to your clients about their RRSPs and other investments. Consider asking them “What do you think is the best investment in the world?” And listen to learn, not to respond. Then ask “Tell me more about why you think that.”

Most people won’t equate life insurance to “the best investment in the world,” but Ben Feldman later in his career drove home precisely that message by arriving at client meetings travelling with two body guards because Ben was carrying a satchel filled with $1,000,000 in cash. Then he’d present his prospect with $100 bill and say, “If you give me one of these each year, I’ll give your family one of these satchels.”

Ben was also famous for saying:

“Doing something costs something.
Doing nothing costs something.
And quite often, doing nothing costs a lot more.”

Seeding the insurance sales conversation during RRSP season is “doing something” – you owe it to your clients and yourself!

Cheers, Helena

p.s. Click http://www.insuranceknowhow.ca/life-insurance-training for 2011 new training sessions, dates and locations starting in March!

RRSP Season and the 250% Rule

Helena Smeenk Pritchard — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 14:00:05 +0000

Did you know that RRSP season is a great time to remind your Universal Life (UL) clients of the 250% rule? Because 80% – 90% of all UL sold in Canada has been sold on a minimum funded basis, RRSP season is the ideal time to consider the advantages of “dumping in” money into these minimum funded contracts.

The 250% is worth repeating, and repeating and repeating. People forget and need you to remind them. Years go by quickly and you don’t want your clients being surprised when they find out that at the 10th policy anniversary of their UL contract that their discretionary contributions or “dump ins” are going to be limited to 250% of what their total fund value was in the 7th policy year. In year 11 the 250% deposit limitation will be based on the total fund value in the 8th policy year and so on until the policy owner is age 85.

If we all knew when we are going to die the decision to contribute available funds to an RRSP or to a UL plan would be a lot easier. But as it is, the short term gain of the income tax deduction on the RRSP contribution often looks more attractive than depositing the same money into a life insurance contract where it can grow in a tax sheltered environment and be distributed tax free on death to one or several named beneficiaries.

Cheers, Helena

p.s. If you haven’t done so already, use each customer contact during RRSP season to get express consent to continue to service your clients by phone and e-mail.

p.s.s. Click http://www.insuranceknowhow.ca/life-insurance-training for 2011 new training sessions, dates and locations!

Seeding the Insurance Conversation during RRSP Season

Helena Smeenk Pritchard — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 14:00:10 +0000

Did You Know that the upcoming RRSP season is an ideal time to seed the insurance conversation?

Successful advisors do it all the time, simply, easily and effectively by using each customer contact as an opportunity to say, “By the way we need to set up a meeting to review your wealth protection plan. Let’s find a time right now when we can get together after RRSP season.” And the meeting gets booked.

If you haven’t mentioned insurance to your clients before, consider saying “Oh, by the way I am expanding my practice this year to include wealth protection plan reviews. Let’s find a time now to get back together after RRSP season.”

Clients readily agree to meetings a month or two in the future and advisors have a busy, insurance focused schedule of meetings after a busy RRSP season. In the interim advisors use the time and opportunity to send interesting and relevant information and articles. Some even send their clients a $25 Starbucks gift card with a note inviting them to have a financial planning discussion with the spouse / significant other in advance of the meeting scheduled with the advisor. They also include in that note the documents that should be gathered and brought to the wealth protection review meeting.

It’s simple, non-threatening, focused and productive!

Cheers, Helena

p.s. If you haven’t done so already, use each customer contact during RRSP season to get express consent to continue to service your clients by phone and e-mail.

p.s. Click http://www.insuranceknowhow.ca/adding-insurance-to-your-business-in-2011 for my interview with Investment Executive TV on simple ideas to adding insurance to your 2011 business plan.

p.s.s. Click http://www.insuranceknowhow.ca/life-insurance-training for 2011 new training sessions, dates and locations!

Positioning the Insurance Conversation during RRSP Season

Helena Smeenk Pritchard — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 07:00:57 +0000

Did you know that that 75% of respondents to CLHIA’s most recent survey said that they look to their Financial Advisor for Estate Planning advice, and that on average it has been five years since they were approached to review their needs and coverage? Five years!

Dually licensed advisors have a fiduciary responsibility to work with their clients to help them find the right balance as a percentage of disposable income that should be appropriated to wealth accumulation goals and what percentage needs to be directed to products that can protect and preserve the goals or wealth already accumulated.

When meeting with your clients during RRSP season use the opportunity to set up appointments with them for after RRSP season “so that you can review their other asset class – their insurance coverage.”