On February 15, 2018 LifePro presented their annual Summit event to a packed house of nearly 300 attendees - made up of financial advisors, insurance carrier representatives, and other industry experts.  Hosted in sunny San Diego, CA, Summit 2018 featured a jam-packed lineup of speakers specializing in life insurance and annuity selling, seminar marketing, investment advisory, and CPA partnerships.

The day kicked off at 9:00am with a salute to our nation’s flag during the National Anthem. Shortly after, LifePro President and Summit 2018 host, Ben Nevejans, took the stage to review the speaker lineup before transitioning into his own segment of the show.  

Looking Back to Jump Ahead

Ben Nevejans
President, LifePro

Ben’s presentation, “Looking Back to Jump Ahead,” focused on how to plan for a successful 2018 in our industry. "It's crucial to reflect on where we are now, what helped us get here, and what tools and resources we currently have that can help us get to the next level."  

Ben spoke about a few specific tools that LifePro has developed that will not only propel an advisor’s business but position them as a true hero to the clients and prospects they work with.  These included the two different reports that advisors can request from LifePro and leverage on their client appointments: Your Personal Wealth Report? and the Annual Policy Performance Review Report?. In addition, Ben talked about the success many advisors have had when using LifePro’s turnkey life insurance policy audit system, ReProject?. 

Ben reminded the crowd that the Summit event “is only as valuable as you make it.”  Attendees were encouraged to use the “Action List” included in the event’s program to more effectively organize all of the ideas they would be given over the course of the day. This allowed them to prioritize the different concepts, while also identifying what the first step would be to implement each of them. 

Use the "LASER" Fund to Grow, Protect, and Transfer Wealth

Doug Andrew
President, Live Abundant

Following Ben’s presentation, best-selling author and Wealth Architect,  Doug Andrew , took the stage to discuss his soon-to-be-released book, The LASER Fund.  While explaining how to diversify and create the foundation for a tax-free retirement, The LASER Fund was uniquely written with two different types of thinkers in mind.  Half of the book is written for right-brained thinkers and includes more stories and creative examples. When you flip the book over, the same concepts are presented for more left-brained thinkers, with more statistics and numbers being shown. 

Each member of the audience was given a galley edition of the book. Doug encouraged attendees to submit feedback and share client stories after reading it over, that would possibly be used when completing the final version of the book.   

Doug’s 90-minute presentation also focused on the “10 Keys to Dramatically Enhance Your Practice and Establish a Profitable Career,” including finding your unique niche, establishing your priorities, and the importance of using the best tools available. A score card sheet was given out to each attendee to allow them to rate how they were currently falling within each of the 10 key principles. Doug is holding business transformation workshops in Salt Lake City on March 7th and 8th and San Diego on April 4th and 5th.

Top Producer Panel - Question & Answer

VIP & Elite Panel
LifePro Advisors

Rounding out the morning, LifePro brought 4 of their  Elite Advisors  to the stage to answer a series of questions about their business and their most successful client acquisition strategies.  This portion of the day’s lineup was an audience-favorite because of the insight that was provided from some of the industry’s most successful financial advisors.  The panel was made up of a group of advisors working out of completely different cities/markets, with a variety of experience levels.  

Amanda McLean and her dad, Brian Gibbs, both based out of San Diego, talked about the obstacles they have had to overcome in the financial services industry, including industry regulation changes. Francesco Vaccarella, who resides in Miami, FL, talked about his unique target market of ultra high-net-worth clients and the need for Premium Finance strategies for them. Ron Caruthers rounded out the panel by providing insight into the college planning space and how he effectively integrates life insurance into these client conversations.

The LifePro Advantage

Heather Ulz
CEO, LifePro

Following the 45-minute lunch break, LifePro’s CEO,  Heather Ulz  discussed “The LifePro Advantage.” She focused on the importance of delivering world-class support to each and every one of LifePro’s advisors. 

More specifically, she reviewed each of the teams within LifePro that serve as back-office support, including field support coaching, securities, marketing, case design, case management, impaired risk, licensing, accounting, and operations.  Heather also reviewed the company’s 12 core values that make LifePro “the greatest company of its kind in the world.”

Where the Premium Finance Cases Are and How to Get Them

Ken Buckley
President, The Buckley Group

Ken Buckley, president of The Buckley Group, took the stage to educate the audience about a unique partnership opportunity that many financial advisors are not taking advantage of. He described the value that partnering with a CPA firm (who often have a number of clients who desperately need large case premium financed life insurance policies) can have on an independent financial advisor’s business. 

Ken brought humor and relatability to the stage by discussing some of the most common objections when talking to clients about retirement and life insurance. “Everybody wants insurance, but no one wants to pay for it!”

Economic Update

Robert Reaburn
Vice President, LifePro Asset Management

In light of recent volatility in the market,  Rob Reaburn, the Vice President of LifePro Asset Management, gave an “Economic Update,” including a capital markets outlook, what it means for asset allocation, and how LPAM is tactically positioning client portfolios. Robert highlighted key indicators that LifePro Asset Management uses to spot when the market is going to peak or plummet. 

His other key takeaways included:

• Deploying a tactical, tailored, and transparent investment approach can optimize your practice.
• The LPAM approach is designed to help advisors complement and strengthen their fixed business.
• Equity market fundamentals remain attractive.

Robert reminded attendees about the 3 ways they could get started with LPAM:

• Affiliate with LPAM as an IAR
• Sign up as a LPAM solicitor
• Invest client assets in the LPAM strategies via a joint code

How the New Tax Bill Will Affect You and Your Clients

Andrew R. Davidson
CPA, Aldrich

Next on the day’s agenda was self-proclaimed blue collar CPA,  Andrew Davidson of Aldrich. He highlighted his passion for taxes and focused on the new Tax Cuts and Jobs Act legislation that was passed by Congress and how it will affect advisors and their clients.
 
Andrew explained that for anyone with taxable income under $315,000, only $80,000 is taxable. In other words, to qualify for the full 20% deduction, your taxable income must be below $157,500 if you're single or $315,000 if you're married and file jointly. Andrew’s key takeaway: if you have a passthrough business, you need to make sure to remain under a $315,000 taxable income level to take advantage of the 20% deduction. For clarity, Andrew explained that the number that needs to be lower than $315,000 is the amount on your 1040 after you include all your income and all of your deductions.
 
Andrew continued his presentation by highlighting changes that will affect independent advisors:

• Child tax credit: Increased to $2,000 from $1,000, up to 400k income!
• Alternative Minimum Tax: Was NOT repealed, won’t affect too many people.
• If you have a trust, make sure it is not a taxpaying entity.
• As a business, you can deduct up to $500,000 of losses, but nothing over that.
• Entertainment and Meal Expenses are now NOT deductible. Work with your accounting team to determine if there was any promotion or advertising involved, then it may be deductible. Meals for employees will become 50% deductible instead of 100%.

KEYNOTE: Don't Worry, Retire Happy! Seven Steps to Retirement Security

Tom Hegna
THE Retirement Income Expert

LifePro Summit keynote speaker,  Tom Hegna, then took the stage to wrap up the day! Known as The Retirement Income Expert, Tom gave an exciting 90-minute presentation, based on his popular Public Television Special, “Don’t Worry, Retire Happy! Seven Steps to Retirement Security.”

Tom urged the advisors in the audience to engage their clients with this blueprint that will make every day of retirement “feel like a Saturday”!

1. Have a plan - Two Key questions to cover with your clients: What do you need your retirement income to do and what do you want your retirement income to do? Your clients will be fearful of touching their money! You need to explain to them how they can avoid living a “just in case” retirement by planning for income and not for assets.
2. Maximize Social Security - Tom noted the words and language to use to get your clients to maximize their Social Security Income. Tom explained that by taking SSI benefits at 62 they may be effectively cutting their SS Income in half. The right answer is, typically, to wait until age 70. In general, the breadwinner should wait until age 70 to take their benefit.
3. Hybrid Retirements - Tom then urged the crowd to increase their client’s retirement income by urging them to consider working in retirement. It can both supplement their income and their well-being!
4. Protect against Inflation - Clients can effectively protect against inflation by purchasing multiple annuity contracts in set increments of time that pay higher levels of income.
5. Guarantee More Lifetime Income - At a minimum, clients must cover basic living expenses with guaranteed income. Whatever pensions and social security leaves you short, find an insurance company to cover the difference with an annuity or insurance product! You will find a lot of clients and media outlets are against annuities, but you can highlight the similarities between annuities and SSI to combat any objections.
6. Plan for Long Term Care - Tom highlighted that in the latter years of retirement clients need what he likes to call “Stay at Home Insurance”. He noted the common objection of LTC insurance is that it is “too expensive”. He urged the advisors in the room to counter it with how expensive the latter years of their retirement will be without it.
7. Use Home Equity wisely - Clients can further increase their security in retirement by selling their home and downsizing, and, in some cases, taking a loan against the equity or utilizing a reverse mortgage.

Moving beyond his seven points, Tom urged the advisors in the room to keep it simple and speak their clients’ language when meeting with them. He offered a way to utilize the information gained in the day’s session by taking advantage of the resources he offers! LifePro Summit attendees were offered a special bundle of his “On Demand Video Library,” and the rest of his event products for only $150 that would otherwise cost more than $400!  

The day concluded with a final send-off from Summit 2018 host, Ben Nevejans, thanking the attendees for coming and reviewing the list of other upcoming live events that they could attend in the future.  Guests were then invited to a cocktail reception following the event.  

LifePro Wealth Builder: IUL Sales Academy  - March 14-15, 2018

COW (Circle of Wealth) Super Session - March 28, 2018

Doug Andrew Follow-Up Training -April 4-5, 2018

Allianz Life Pro+ Elite University - April 12-13, 2018