NAILBA Perspectives - September/October 2014 - (Page 26)

life happens Help Agents Leverage the Power of Storytelling Life Happens' Real Life Stories allow your agents to reach out to clients and prospects in a unique and engaging way. CINDY V. GENTRY, CLU, CHFC, LUTCF I read a great article from Fast Company called "Why Our Brains Crave Storytelling." It highlighted a recent Nielsen study that says people increasingly want to gather information in a more personal, connected way, and storytelling ﬁts that bill. The article goes on to say that something happens to our brains when we read a story, with "little distinction between an experience we are reading about and one that is actually happening." Perhaps that's why Life Happens' Real Life Stories are such a powerful tool for our agents to use when they reach out to prospects and clients. These stories-of real families and businesses that have been helped by the power of life, disability or longterm care insurance-allow people to really understand what insurance does, not just what it is. But these stories aren't just about how families or businesses beneﬁted from insurance planning, they also highlight the important role that an agent plays in helping clients get and keep the proper coverage. Take Ron Franco's story, for example. When his wife died when she was only 46, it was life insurance that kept Ron and his two sons in their home and ﬁnancially stable. The Role of the Agent What the story also tells is that their agent Steve Edmondson is responsible for that coverage still being in place. When times got tight ﬁnancially for the Francos, Ron wanted to cut out the couple's life insurance. Steve sat down and showed them not only why they should keep their coverage, but why they actually needed more. Then he helped them examine their budget to ﬁnd a way to do that. You can watch their story here: www.lifehappens.org/franco. These are stories that the agents we work with not only need to share with their clients, but need to hear themselves. In a workday or workweek ﬁlled with "nos," it's reafﬁrm- Pass the Word On Life Happens celebrates agents and the role they've played in their clients' lives with its Real Life Stories Client Service Recognition Program, which is accepting applications for its 2015 program from September 1, 2014 through January 2, 2015. Agents can submit their stories through an online application at www.lifehappens.org/reallife. The categories of stories that will be accepted are: ■ Life Insurance-death beneﬁt (individual and/or workplace) ■ Life Insurance-cash values and/or living beneﬁts ■ Disability insurance or long-term care insurance (individual and/ or workplace) Recipients of the Real Life Stories Client Service Recognition Program will receive an all-expense-paid trip to the NAIFA Career Conference and Annual Meeting in New Orleans from October 3-5, 2015. The stories, in the form of videos, ﬂyers, and ads, will also be part of Life Happens' national awareness campaigns. 26 perspectives SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2014 Ron Franco (left) and his agent Steve Edmondson. ©2014 Peter Vidor ing to see just how powerful and far reaching the work they do really is. Life Happens has dozens of these Real Life Stories, which are available for your agents to use in video or ﬂyer form, and they can ﬁt just about any prospect's situation that agents may ﬁnd: young couples needing life insurance, small-business owners needing a buy-sell agreement funded with insurance, empty-nesters needing long-term care. People crave these stories. They want to see people just like themselves reﬂected in those stories-and that's what these Real Life Stories do. Having access to and being able to share these stories from Life Happens is a NAILBA member beneﬁt that I encourage you to use. The videos are accessible through the industry-only site at www.lifehappens.org/industry with a video selector that can narrow the search by insurance type and 17 different types of client situations. (Agents are also able to access them through the consumer site at www. lifehappens.org, but there is not an industry selector tool there.) And the ﬂyers are available through the online store, which is also accessible through the industry site. Keep in mind that you will need to create a log in (if you haven't already) to access these and all the other Life Happens resources. Call for 2015 Stories I'd also encourage you to have your agents participate in the call for new stories for 2015 through the Real Life Stories Client Service Recognition Program. Agents have the opportunity to share the work they do and how they've helped their clients with insurance planning. If their story is chosen, it will be turned into one of these very moving Real Life Stories videos, along with a companion ﬂyer. Share the details of the program that are in the box, or pass on this link that has the information as well: www. lifehappens.org/reallife. Please share these Real Life Stories with your agents, so they in turn can use the power of storytelling with their clients, and also encourage them to submit one of their own. Cindy V. Gentry, CLU, ChFC, LUTCF, is the current chair of the nonprofit organization Life Happens. She is president of BBA Life Brokerage, based in Corpus Christi, Texas, and served as the chair of NAILBA in 2004. http://www.lifehappens.org/franco http://www.lifehappens.org/reallife http://www.lifehappens.org/reallife http://www.lifehappens.org/industry http://www.lifehappens.org/reallife http://www.lifehappens.org/industry http://www.lifehappens.org http://www.lifehappens.org

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NAILBA Perspectives - September/October 2014

NAILBA Perspectives - September/October 2014
Contents
Chairman’s Corner
CEO Insights
Servicing Orphan Policy Holders: The BGA’s Role
NAILBA 33 Preview
Life Happens
Future of the Independent Marketing Organization
NAILBA Charitable Foundation
Member Profiles
Agency Successor Networking Group
Agency Resources
A Path Forward: Part 1 of 2
Reading Ahead
Calendar of Events
Index of Advertisers

NAILBA Perspectives - September/October 2014