Finding the right prospect can be a challenge and always seems to take too much time. Let's face it, prospecting isn't what most of us want to spend our time on, but it is the most important activity required to grow and maintain your business.
For Insurance Professionals in the Employee Benefits space, the go-to source of information has always been Form 5500 filings. Sorting through the mountainous amount of public data to find potential clients, usually turns into an arduous research process and results aren’t always what you want.
What if you could use a system that provides information that is accurate, current and easy to manage?
Mike has been in the Insurance business for over 20 years and specializes in a broad range of employee benefits. He works with a variety of clients, some with just a handful of employees to others with over 7,000. Mr. Loncono works for HUB International, the 10th largest broker in the World.
Mike told us his three greatest challenges to prospecting are;
1) finding qualified leads
2) the right contact person
3) accurate plan information
He has used several different prospecting strategies over the years including; Chamber Directories, Polk, SHRM events, memberships, 5500 prospecting software and driving around in his car to find potential new clients.
Finding the right 5500 prospecting solution has been a key element to Mike’s success!
Mike learned about miEdge from a trusted partner, Wrangle LLC a seasoned Form 5500 preparer. He went to the miEdge website and decided to give it a try by signing up for a single state, thinking if it worked out, he could easily expand into other states. He told us miEdge was reasonably priced and after a time he realized just how incredible it is.
Mike learned that miEdge supplies information from the Form 5500 process, including; the actual 5500 form filed with the Department of Labor, brokers, carriers, lines of coverage, commissions, premiums, fees and plan renewal dates. He has used this information to create mail campaigns that are very targeted and also to identify and warn potential clients about their looming compliance problems with Form 5500 filings.
Mike uses the miEdge Advanced Search feature to find the right information to set the stage for the first contact. Cold calling is not something most of us like to do, but the information Mike finds in miEdge turns a cold call into a warm handshake. Mike uses the miEdge LinkedIn integration to find mutual connections with a prospective client. His LinkedIn subscription has InMail so sending an introductory message is easy and he usually begins the message talking about a mutual colleague or friend. He told us this is great way to start the initial dialogue instead of the traditional sales pitch.
Mike uses LinkedIn 2nd degree connections to create a prospect list, and then searches miEdge to see their current relationship with brokers and carriers and the different lines of coverage they have. Researching their benefits package makes it easy to formulate the most relevant questions to steer the discussion to areas where he knows he can add value. He knows exactly where he can save the client money as well as additional products and services they don’t yet have.
miEdge has become his trusted tool and is now an integral part of finding new clients, developing a value add and closing new business. Mike refers to miEdge as a stump grinder. You need to clear a field to plant seeds that grow into cash crops and miEdge is the stump grinder that comes in and removes the obstacles. The more you use miEdge the more you learn how to search and find the information that is going to make the difference with potential clients. “What an amazing tool. You are right to call it the ultimate unfair advantage-it is terrific!” Mike Loncono, Sr. VP
Mike told us it took no time to learn the basic features and he is still learning about all the information available to him. Training is free, as is unlimited customer support and he recently told us, “Your customer care is even better than your product and that ain’t easy.” Mike describes the miEdge Form 5500 data in one word – Super. We recently asked him if he would refer his colleagues and he told us, “Yes, I’ve told people about it and I’m still surprised how many brokers don’t know about it yet.”