“National Tickling Month”, “Correct Posture Month”, “Revise Your Work Schedule Month”, “Impotency Awareness Month”. Not a month goes by that we aren’t encouraged to reflect on one important cause or another.  Make no mistake, each of these and the many more out there are worthy in their own right. Those that have a personal connection with the affliction, phenomenon, impairment or occupation deserve a month of recognition and mindfulness. Many causes recognized by Awareness Months jump demographics and effect people of multiple ages, race, health, sex, generations and geography. None more so than September’s “Life Insurance Awareness Month”.

The question is, what good is having a whole month dedicated to your cause if it’s only for awareness? I’d be willing to bet that most Americans are already aware of Life Insurance. Does devoting a whole month to the institution make more Americans purchase Life Insurance? Based on LIMRAs “Trends in Life Insurance Ownership” study, which found that only 44% of US Households had individual life insurance in 2010 (down from 55% in 1992), I’d say not.

So the real question becomes, how do we take “Life Insurance Awareness Month” and turn it into “Life Insurance Action Month”. With this in mind, our firm, LifePro Financial Services Inc™, has leveraged this amazing campaign and the resources put together by organizations like Life Happens – a nonprofit dedicated to helping Americans take personal financial responsibility through the ownership of life insurance and related products. By putting together a concrete and proven program to turn awareness into action we hope to take the advantage of having a whole month of industry recognition! The following description highlights our Four Point LIAM marketing process which is 100% designed to help our advisors turn Life Insurance Awareness into Life Insurance Action:

I. LIAM  Blog

The best thing about blogs….. they’re not emails.  A blog is a great way to communicate an opinion through a non-oversaturated medium. Unlike emails that are often deleted before opened, blogs get read. Today’s professionals seek out opinion based information from successful sources known to have valuable insight. If an organization has credibility and consistently delivers ideas that generate revenue, save revenue or provide cutting edge strategies, blogging is one of the best ways to communicate. In the case of Life Insurance Awareness Month, waiting until September is too late. Advisors need to be thinking about leveraging the peripheral activity way before the actual month hits. A great source of content for blogs can be found at www.lifehappens.org  or http://blog.lifepro.com/.

II. Real Life Stories… in Real Life

What’s better than a Real Life Stories Video? A Real Life Story delivered in person by the individuals who experienced firsthand the compassion of our industry. We all know why someone should have life insurance. But life insurance isn’t bought based on logic, it’s bought based on emotion. When we, as the life insurance professional, are able to experience the highs, the lows, the blood, sweat and tears of a family traumatized by an untimely death through their very own eyes we become more in tune with what we provide. When we see with our own eyes and hear with our own ears how a family persevered because of our products, we become more effective in serving our community, our clients and our own practices. Each year at the LifePro University, which takes place not unintentionally in September, we feature one of the Life Happens Real Life Story families. From Melissa Wandall and her daughter Madison to Melisa Knolls, very few eyes are left dry by the end of the presentation. Ironically, it is not the Washington Economist, NY Times Best Seller or Million Dollar Sales System Creator that are surrounded 3 people deep at the after reception. It’s the real life civilians that openly and generously shared their story of triumph to inspire us that become the stars of the show.

III. Real Life Stories… Real Time

Unfortunately, space and geographic limitations prevent all who need to experience a live Real Life Story from actually doing so on an annual basis. Fear not, these Stories are made available on a real time basis at www.lifehappens.org. As we approach Life Insurance Awareness Month LifePro increasingly features these videos during our daily On-Line University webinars. Since awareness is the name of the game, it’s important to build the awareness early and ride the momentum right through the end of the year. Though we only have one Life Insurance Awareness Month a year, the reality is that we need to help advisors keep their communities completely aware of Life Insurance all 12 months.

i. Life Insurance Awareness Client Based Video Marketing

This 2 minute cartoon/voice over video is designed for an advisor to email to their database or a purchased email list. After watching the video the prospect, now educated on the importance of life insurance in an engaging, entertaining and thought provoking manner is given the option to request more information. Upon doing so they become a very warm lead for the advisor.

ii. Call Script

Once the client has engaged, it’s time to go to work. The initial conversation can be free flowing but there are key elements that an advisor must touch on. Thus a script is always helpful even if it is not strictly adhered to.

iii. Fact Finder

Weather building the case yourself or allowing your back office support team to do it for you obtaining the most significant information is critical. It also allows for a more in depth client data collection to be used in annual reviews, policy audits or even data mining efforts.

iv. Client Proposal and Supporting Material

Though each element of the LIAM Action Plan is vital, leaving the client with the realization that your proposal is one of, if not the, most crucial elements of their families overall financial health is arguably the most important of all the steps. For that reason we make sure our advisors are armed with highly professional and thorough presentation material supported with graphs, statistics and carrier financials. These are designed with one thing in mind: Action!

It’s been said that the key to getting ahead, is getting started. The difference between a prize winning race horse and the rest of the pack is often times no bigger than a nose. The way to gain that proverbial nose and increase your production and value to prospects and clients alike is to utilize the advantages you have at your fingertips. Life Insurance Awareness Month is a tremendous advantage that’s been afforded to us practicing in this great industry. Don’t waste this advantage. Rather embrace it, harness it and above all, “actionize” it.

Talk to your Field Support Representative (FSR) today and discover all of the resources you have available to capitalize on September’s Life Insurance Awareness Month! Contact us by phone at 888-543-3776 or via email info@lifepro.com.