Anybody got experience selling financial services?

[Ice House]

If you do would you recommend it? or is it a tough sale?

[VegasInsider]

I worked in the industry after college until fairly recently. I would suggest the industry if you can get hired by a firm that will give you a decent salary so most of your earnings aren't tied to performance. Right now, everyone is hiring BUT you have to be willing to have a very high percentage of your income come from commissions (and by a lot, I mean inwards of 80%). Simply put, if you don't have that great of a product and/or you aren't 150% committed to making it work...you won't last long.

I left my company for this reason. They had an average product that wasn't an easy sell and most of my income was generated from my sales performance. I was able to supplement my income by obtaining my Life, Health and Accident Insurance licenses and freelancing as an insurance producer.

PM me if you have any other questions, I'd be happy to help.

[itchypickle]

have you taken any Series exams yet? If not, don't even think about applying or contacting a recruiter yet....gone are the days where the stable ones will sponsor your 7 or the 60's combo they have now.

[VegasInsider]

have you taken any Series exams yet? If not, don't even think about applying or contacting a recruiter yet....gone are the days where the stable ones will sponsor your 7 or the 60's combo they have now.

Exactly. Companies have the luxury now of picking the best from the pool. That usually includes those already with their Series 7 and Series 60's (different jobs/companies require different licenses). I was fortunate enough to get sponsored through my company before the major meltdown in the industry.

[itchypickle]

Exactly. Companies have the luxury now of picking the best from the pool. That usually includes those already with their Series 7 and Series 60's (different jobs/companies require different licenses). I was fortunate enough to get sponsored through my company before the major meltdown in the industry.

Remember these 'fun' reads while prepping for the certs

[itchypickle]

Ice - good luck if you do pursue it....it's a pretty dull job but it's a job right?

[VegasInsider]

Remember these 'fun' reads while prepping for the certs

I remember beating my head against the wall trying to memorize this bullshit. I never used half of what was inside this book!

[VegasInsider]

Here's another gem of my youth

[itchypickle]

I remember beating my head against the wall trying to memorize this bullshit. I never used half of what was inside this book!

Yep.

And honestly you don't really have to have a working knowledge of technical analysis in depth or anything else since you basically just sell preformatted funds for the bank that has partnered with other companies to adjust the names of their own holdings etc and then try and add annuities or loans to the sale...1x fee for service by giving them a road map to success and sending them along or taking the managed route and call in the CFP from down the hall to do the hard work.

[itchypickle]

ICE- my best advice would be to have a good marketing plan....you'll get a monthly amount of $$ to use for it so it's best to know people looking already or be prepared to advertise and cold call or pay for leads from a listing company that will break down the local population by income etc and email you the info to target who you want.

[VegasInsider]

You're EXACTLY right, pickle. Selling the financial services means you're nothing more than a middle man for the company to the potential client. All the computer nuts either down the hall or at the home office handle all the adjustments and such. Literally, just know your product and SELL SELL SELL. I used my marketing money well and took advantage of everything the company offered. I had client lists of EVERY demographic within 50 miles of my home base. It's a lot of "nose to the ground" work and grinding it out.

[d2bets]

Get a CFP cert and do fee-based planning.