When I started as a Sales Consultant at FIG 14 years ago, one of our biggest challenges was differentiating our business model from our competitors. Insurance Marketing Organizations, in general, had to explain what our role was with the carrier and how we could help connect independent advisors with multiple product options at the same time.
You may even remember, that at that time, sales and products were the big push. Both were heavy factors in not only our business model but in our conversations as well.
With so much more to offer, FIG decided it was time to evolve to the needs of our advisors.
I recall asking an advisor I worked with over the course of the year, “What are you doing for prospecting?”
At first, the question sort of hung in the air for a minute, but then he answered simply, “Well Jim, that is a problem area I have and I’m constantly looking for new tactics. Do you have any suggestions you have seen other advisors practice?”
As we continued to ask these types of questions, problem areas were identified throughout advisors’ practices. Our team evolved together to provide authentic business and marketing solutions tailored to the advisor’s needs. We looked outside of products and sales numbers to really invest in our advisors’ practices, providing resources not only to acquire prospects but to ensure the longevity of their businesses.
Over the years, we have taken and developed these solutions turning them into some of our greatest programs and resources available in our industry, such as Elevate and Surge. Each is designed to help our advisors establish themselves as true entrepreneurs.
As I have watched this company and the industry evolve to meet the needs of the advisors, it brings back fond memories of my first years on the phone. I conducted countless conversations just to get to know our advisors’ professional and personal lives. Those conversations helped mold our organization into what it is today. At the end of the day, it is not only about the product, FIG is about our partnerships. Nothing is more important to us than empowering our advisors to assist more families.
As our industry continues to evolve, I am proud that our company is prepared to evolve with our advisors. No matter what the future holds FIG is primed and ready, we can and will adapt to the challenges of the future beside our advisors. We will continue to bring value to our partnerships not only today but in the years to come. That is the Spirit of FIG.