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🎬 Start Here
Welcome to Holloway Insurance Academy
A message from Alyssa Holloway — watch before you begin
▶ Welcome Video
A Message from Your Agency Owner
Alyssa Holloway · Holloway Insurance Agency
You're Here Because We Chose You
What to Expect From This Program
This is a three-day, eight-module training program built around the C.L.O.S.E. framework — the complete system we use at Holloway Insurance for every call, every customer, every time.
Each module includes instruction, real-world examples, videos, and exercises you complete directly in this portal. Your answers are saved automatically as you type.
3
Training Days
8
Modules
1
Standard
The Holloway Standard
📋
30–40 Apps/Month
Your production target every month.
🔍
FORM on Every Call
All 4 categories. No blank quadrants.
⭐
Review Link Every Time
Sent and clicked on the call.
📊
Log in ECRM Same Day
If it's not logged — it didn't happen.
Before You Continue
Welcome Checklist
✓
I watched the full welcome video from Alyssa
✓
I understand this is a 3-day, 8-module program and I will complete it in order
✓
I know my production standard: 30–40 apps/month, FORM on every call, review link every time
✓
I am ready to work
🏠 Welcome
Your Training Dashboard
Track your progress through the Holloway Sales Training Program
Welcome to the Team, —
You're here because we believe you have what it takes. Work through each module in order, complete the exercises, and bring your best every single day.
🎯
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Modules Completed
8
Remaining
0%
Overall Progress
Training Overview
3 Days. 8 Modules. One Standard.
This program is built around the C.L.O.S.E. sales framework — a complete system for how to open a conversation, discover what matters to the customer, present solutions, and close with confidence.
📌 The Standard
30–40 apps/month. FORM on every call. Review link sent every time. If it's not logged in ECRM — it didn't happen.
📅 Day 1 · Module 1
Your Why — The Foundation
Everything starts here. Without a clear why, the hard days will beat you.
Section 1A — Define Your Why
What Drives You?
Before we teach you a single script or framework, you need to know why you're here. The salespeople who make it aren't necessarily the most talented — they're the ones who have a reason that's bigger than a bad day or a slow week.
▶ Video — Finding Your Why
What drives you to show up and do this well every single day? *
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What do you want people to say about you — your customers, your teammates, your manager? *
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Section 1B — Your Always List
Non-Negotiable Commitments
High performers don't rely on motivation — they rely on commitments. Write your personal Always List. Example: I always complete my FORM before quoting. I always send the review link on every call.
Write your personal Always List (at least 5 commitments): *
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Checklist
✓
I watched the Finding Your Why video
✓
I wrote my authentic Why — not a surface answer
✓
I wrote at least 5 items on my Always List
✓
I understand that commitment is the standard
📅 Day 1 · Module 2
Phone vs. In-Person — The 86% Rule
Most of your work happens on the phone. Understanding what you're up against is step one.
Section 2A — The 86% Rule
What You're Working With
On the phone, 86% of communication is through your voice — pace, pitch, pausing, energy, and warmth. Four things. All trainable.
▶ Video — The 86% Rule & Your Voice
The Four Trainable Components
Pace — slow down on emotional points, match the customer. Pitch — monotone kills calls. Let your voice move. Pause — ask a question, then stop talking. Wait. Energy — customers feel it before they hear it.
Self-Assessment
Rate Yourself Right Now
Pace (1=too fast, 10=just right) — rate and explain: *
Pitch (1=monotone, 10=naturally expressive) — rate and explain: *
Pause (1=fill silence, 10=comfortable waiting) — rate and explain: *
Energy (1=flat, 10=engaged every call) — rate and explain: *
📅 Day 1 · Module 3
The C.L.O.S.E. Framework
This is the system. Every call, every customer, every time.
Section 3A — The Framework
Watch First, Then Fill In
▶ Video — The CLOSE Framework
C
Connect (FORM)
→
L
Listen (Discovery)
→
O
Offer (Coverage)
→
S
Spread (Reviews)
→
E
Engage (Outbound)
In your own words, explain why the sequence matters. Why C before L? Why L before O? *
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Checklist
✓
I can recite CLOSE without looking
✓
I understand why the framework is sequential, not interchangeable
✓
I know what the 86% rule means and how to apply it
✓
I have identified my weakest vocal component
📅 Day 2 · Module 4
C — Connect (Build Rapport · FORM)
Master the four-category rapport framework. Every call. No blank categories.
The FORM Framework
Family · Occupation · Recreation · Money Goals
Non-Negotiable
All 4 FORM categories. Every call. If a category is blank on your Quad Sheet — the conversation was not complete.
▶ Video — FORM in Action
Section 4A — Write YOUR Version
Make These Questions Sound Like You
F — Your Family question: *
O — Your Occupation question: *
R — Your Recreation question: *
M — Your Money Goals question: *
Case Study
What Did Javan Do Right?
Javan asked about family and found out the customer had a granddaughter who drives her car. He covered it in the presentation — without being asked. In Recreation she mentioned bowling and golf. He added equipment protection to her renters. She said: "I did not know that was even possible."
What did Javan do differently? What specifically made Florine trust him? *
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📅 Day 2 · Module 5
L — Listen (Emotional Discovery)
Standard questions get surface answers. Emotional questions unlock the close.
Section 5A — Standard vs. Emotional
The Difference That Closes Deals
▶ Video — Emotional Discovery Questions
Standard Question
"Do you have life insurance?"
Gets: a yes or no.
Emotional Question
"If something happened to you tomorrow, what would that mean for your family financially?"
Gets: the real story.
Section 5B — Practice
Flip the Question
Standard: 'Do you have life insurance?' → Your emotional version: *
Standard: 'What's your current deductible?' → Your emotional version: *
Standard: 'Are you a homeowner?' → Your emotional version: *
Standard: 'Do you have renters insurance?' → Your emotional version: *
📅 Day 3 · Module 6
O — Offer (Exposure & Coverage)
Every customer has exposure in at least two of three areas. Find them. Connect them to what they told you.
Section 6A — The Triangle of Risk
Property · Income · Liability
▶ Video — Coverage & Exposure
The Coverage Framework
"You have [current coverage]. Based on what you told me about [FORM detail], I'm suggesting [recommendation] because [how it connects to their life]."
Practice — Fill in the framework for a real or hypothetical customer: *
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Section 6B — Your Coverage Stories
90 Seconds Max. Ends With a Dollar Amount.
Auto Liability Story: *
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Renters/Homeowners Story: *
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Life Insurance Story: *
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Objection Handling
Handle: "I need to think about it." Write your full response word-for-word: *
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Handle: "I can get it cheaper somewhere else." Write your full response word-for-word: *
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📅 Day 3 · Module 7
S — Spread (Referrals & Reviews)
You earned the right to ask. Asking is professional, not pushy.
The Referral Process
4 Steps — Non-Negotiable Every Time
▶ Video — Referrals & Reviews
1
Required Framing
"Before we wrap up — we grow almost entirely by referrals, so I always ask when I've been able to help."
2
Choose Your Bucket
Use a name they gave you in FORM. "You mentioned your daughter — does she have coverage?"
3
Review Link — Real Time
"I sent it" is not enough. Customer clicks while you're on the call.
4
Log Everything in ECRM
If it's not logged — it didn't happen.
Write your complete referral ask — word for word, in your voice: *
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What's your plan for making sure the review link gets sent on EVERY call? *
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📅 Day 3 · Module 8
E — Engage (Outbound Calling)
The standard opener doesn't work. Here's what does.
Section 8A — Why the Standard Opener Fails
❌ Never Say This
"Hi is this [Name]? This is [Rep] from Holloway Insurance — how are you today?"
They hear that and they're already gone mentally.
▶ Video — The Holloway Outbound Opener
Version 1 — Aged Leads
"Hey — am I speaking with someone at this number? I'm reaching out because information was requested a while back about insurance options in the area — did I catch you at a decent time?"
Version 2 — Known Name
"Hey [Name], this is [Your Name] with Holloway Insurance — did I catch you at a bad time?"
Build your complete word track — opener through FORM transition, in your own voice: *
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Final Always List — refined and complete: *
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Post-Call Checklist — Every Call
✓
All 4 FORM categories completed
✓
At least one emotional discovery question asked
✓
Coverage recommendations tied back to FORM
✓
Referral ask completed with required framing
✓
Review link sent AND clicked on the call
✓
Everything logged in ECRM same day
📊 Live Tool
360 AI BCC — Activity Log (Practice)
Practice logging a sale the way you will in the real system. Your real sales & daily activity live at portal.360aibcc.com.
0
Sales
$0
6-mo Premium
0
New Business
0
Rewrites
$0
Est. Bonus
Log a Sale
Customer name *
Line of business *
Sale type *
Business type *
Written date *
Issue date
6-month premium ($) *
Options
Notes
✓ Sale logged.
Your Logged Sales
0 sales this month
Customer
Line
Type
Written
Issued
Premium
Onboard
📅 Day 3 · Module 9
360 AI BCC & Daily Activity Logging
This is how you get paid. Log it right or lose it.
Why This Module Matters
Your Activity Log = Your Commission Check
360 AI BCC is how we track your performance every single day. It is not optional. It is not a suggestion. Every sale, every activity, every customer interaction must be logged correctly and on time.
There are two reasons this is non-negotiable: First, it is how we verify your production to ensure you receive commissions. Second, it is how we coach you to get better. If it is not in 360 AI BCC, it did not happen as far as your performance record is concerned.
⚠️ Critical Rule
You cannot put an issue date on any sale until the policy is actually issued. No exceptions.
Section 9A
Daily Activity — What You Must Log Every Day
Your daily activity report must be completed every single day. This is how management tracks whether you are on pace to hit your monthly goal. Missing a day of activity logging is a red flag — it means we cannot coach you effectively or catch problems early.
Log every outbound call, every quote, every follow-up, every sale. If you worked it — log it.
In your own words, why is logging your daily activity important — not just for the agency, but for YOU personally? *
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Section 9B
How to Log a Sale Correctly
Every line of business has specific rules for how premium is entered. Get this wrong and your commission may not process correctly.
Line of Business
What to Enter
Notes
Auto
6-month premium
Always enter the full 6-month premium amount
Fire / Home
6-month premium
Enter the 6-month premium amount
Life
6-month premium
Enter the 6-month premium amount
Health
6-month premium
Enter the 6-month premium amount
⚠️ Issue Date Rule
Do NOT enter an issue date until the policy is actually issued. Entering a premature issue date is a logging error and can affect your commission processing.
Section 9C
Rewrites — What Does NOT Count as a New Sale
Pay close attention to customers who were previously with us. Not every returning customer counts as a new sale. Entering a rewrite as a new sale is a logging error that will affect your commission and your production numbers.
Rewrite Rules by Line of Business
🚗 Auto
If a customer comes back to us within 6 months of their cancellation date — it is a rewrite. Do NOT enter it in 360 AI BCC as a new sale.
🏠 Fire · ❤️ Life · 🏥 Health
If an existing customer comes back within 12 months of their cancellation date — it is a rewrite. Do NOT enter it as a new sale.
A customer calls you. They had auto with us and cancelled 4 months ago. They want to come back. Is this a new sale or a rewrite? Explain why: *
A customer had a life policy with us. It cancelled 8 months ago. They want to buy a new life policy. New sale or rewrite? Explain: *
Section 9D
Added Cars — What Counts and What Doesn't
Reps are not paid on added cars — with one important exception.
❌ NOT a New Sale
A customer adds a car to an existing policy after the 6-month inception window has passed. Rep is NOT paid on this.
✅ Counts as a New Sale
A customer adds a car within the 6-month window from the inception date of the original sale. This counts as a new sale — log it.
A customer bought auto from you 3 months ago. They just bought a new car and want to add it. Does this count as a new sale? Why? *
Section 9E — MANDATORY
New Customer Onboarding in ECRM
🚨 This step is MANDATORY on every new sale. No exceptions.
Failure to complete this step is a compliance issue and will be addressed in your performance review.
Every time you sell a brand new customer, you must immediately send the New Customer Onboarding through ECRM. Here is exactly how to do it:
1
Go to the customer's account page in ECRM
Find the account for the customer you just sold.
2
Click the drop-down menu in the upper right corner
This is on the account page — upper right hand corner of the screen.
3
Click "New Customer Onboarding"
Select this option from the drop-down menu.
4
Assign it to yourself
Make sure you assign the onboarding task to yourself — not to the agency or another team member.
📌 Existing Customers
If the customer already has a policy with us, there is no need to send the new customer onboarding. This step is only for brand new customers.
Walk through the 4 steps to send the New Customer Onboarding from memory: *
Final Knowledge Check
360 AI BCC & ECRM Checklist
✓
I understand that daily activity must be logged in 360 AI BCC every single day
✓
I know I cannot enter an issue date until the policy is actually issued
✓
For Auto: customer returning within 6 months = rewrite, not a new sale
✓
For Fire, Life, Health: customer returning within 12 months = rewrite, not a new sale
✓
I am NOT paid on added cars unless the car is added within 6 months of the inception date
✓
On EVERY new sale I will send the New Customer Onboarding through ECRM and assign it to myself
✓
Existing customers do NOT need the new customer onboarding
📅 Day 4 · Module 10
P&C Product Knowledge
Auto + Fire line scripts and coverage knowledge — know these cold before you sell.
Script 1 — Knowledge Video
Auto Coverages — 9 Coverages, Know Them Cold
1. Liability
Foundation of every auto policy. Covers what you are legally responsible for when you cause an accident — the other person's damage and medical bills. Does NOT cover you or your car. Always ask: are the limits enough for what this customer has to lose?
2. Comprehensive & Collision
Collision = they hit something. Comprehensive = something happens that is NOT a collision — theft, weather, deer, fallen tree. If the customer has a loan or lease, lender requires both. No exceptions.
3. Uninsured & Underinsured Motorist
Protects your customer when the person who hits them has no insurance or not enough. There are a significant number of uninsured drivers on the road. This steps in when the other driver cannot pay.
4. Medical Payments (Med Pay)
Covers medical expenses for your customer and their passengers regardless of fault. Pays quickly — does not wait for a liability determination. Low cost add-on that protects everyone in the vehicle.
5. S Coverage — "Seatbelt Coverage"
Pays if your customer loses a limb, loses their sight, or passes away from a car accident. NOT life insurance — specific to a covered auto accident. Always present it. $10K benefit, or $20K if wearing seatbelt.
6. Deductibles
What your customer pays before insurance kicks in. Help them choose a deductible they can actually afford tomorrow. A $2,000 deductible on a policy held by someone with $200 in their account is not protection — it is a problem.
7. Loss of Income
If your customer cannot work because of an accident, this replaces a portion of wages. $250/week up to a certain amount. For self-employed, hourly, or anyone where missing work has immediate financial impact — ask every time.
8. Car Rental
Any accident — at fault or not — car rental pays for a rental while their car is repaired. They do not come out of pocket. Customers appreciate this more than they expect when they need it.
9. Emergency Roadside Service
Flat tire, locked keys, out of gas, needs a tow — one call and State Farm handles it. Feels small until the day they need it.
Script 2 — Discounts
Auto Discounts — Every Eligible Discount on Every Policy
📌 Key Principle
Discounts are a SERVICE tool, not a closing tool. A discount your customer qualified for but never received is a mistake — and mistakes cost retention.
Drive Safe & Save (DSS)
Telematics app monitors driving. Most impactful discount available. Every new auto customer enrolled Day 1. Not enrolled by Day 7 — that is on you.
Steer Clear (SCD)
Drivers under 25 with no at-fault accidents. Driver training through the State Farm app. Ask on EVERY household with a young driver. Every call.
Good Student Discount
Students up to age 25 with 3.0 GPA or higher. Ask on every household with a student. Transcripts or diploma confirm eligibility.
Multi-Car
More than one vehicle = discount on each. If a customer mentions a partner or family member with a separate vehicle — that is your opening.
Defensive Driving (DDD)
Completed an approved course = discount. Available all ages.
Bundling / Multi-Line
Auto + home or auto + renters = discount on both. Present as the complete protection package through Quad Flow.
Script 3 — Word Tracks
Auto Word Tracks — Make Them Your Own
Liability
"Liability is what you pay the other guy if you get into an accident. If they have 25/50/25 — your policy pays 25 thousand per person, 50 thousand total, and 25 thousand for property. Anything over that you pay yourself."
Comp & Collision
"Collision is when you hit another vehicle or get into an at-fault accident. You pay your deductible and State Farm pays the rest. Comp is out of your control — act of God, hit a deer, cracked windshield, theft."
S Coverage
"I like to call it seatbelt coverage. If you get into an accident and lose a limb, lose your sight, or pass away — you get 10 thousand from State Farm, or 20 thousand if you are wearing your seatbelt."
Uninsured Motorist
"This is one of the most important coverages because it protects your family. If someone hits you without insurance — or without enough — this steps in."
Homeowners — Script 1
Homeowners — Four Main Areas
Dwelling Coverage
The structure itself. Limit needs to reflect actual cost to REBUILD — not the market value. These are two very different numbers. Always make sure your customer understands that distinction.
Personal Property
Contents inside the home. Limits on high-value items — jewelry, electronics. If a customer has valuable items those may need a Personal Articles Policy (PAP).
Liability
Someone injured on property or customer responsible for damage elsewhere. Medical bills, legal fees, settlements. Not just a homeowner concern — this is a wealth protection concern.
Loss of Use
If home is temporarily uninhabitable due to a covered loss — pays for hotel, food, temporary housing. Gives them somewhere to go while the home is repaired.
Renters Insurance
Most Underused Policy You Offer
📌 Your Opening Every Time
Most renters have no idea their landlord's insurance does not cover them. That is your opening every time.
Personal Property
Everything inside — clothes, furniture, electronics. Landlord covers nothing inside the unit.
Liability
Someone injured in the apartment or they cause damage to another unit — responds.
Loss of Use
Unit uninhabitable due to covered loss — covers temporary living expenses.
When a customer is renting and has no renters insurance — that is not a maybe conversation. That is a conversation you are having right now.
Condo Insurance
Know the Master Policy Gap
The condo association insures the building. Your customer needs to know where the master policy stops — because that is where their condo policy begins.
Dwelling — Interior
Walls, floors, fixtures, improvements. Master policy covers the building. Condo policy covers everything from the studs in.
Loss Assessment
Unique to condo. If the association has a major loss and bills each unit owner for a share — this coverage protects your customer from that bill.
Script 1 — PLUP Knowledge
Personal Liability Umbrella — Present It Every Time
What the PLUP Does
Sits on top of existing policies and extends liability significantly. Most standard policies have limits of a few hundred thousand. A PLUP adds $1 million or more on top. Coverage ranges from $1M to $10M.
Without PLUP
Judgment exceeds auto liability limits → everything above comes from personal assets. Savings. Home. Future income.
With PLUP
PLUP closes the gap. Also covers situations standard policies may not — certain lawsuits, libel, slander.
Who Needs a PLUP?
Every homeowner. Anyone with savings. A business owner. A parent with a teenage driver. Anyone who has anything to lose. Present it on every homeowner, every household with a teenage driver, every customer with assets.
Script 3 — Real Claim Examples
Word Tracks That Close
Auto Claim
"We had a customer that rear-ended someone and the injuries came to over 500 thousand dollars. Her auto policy paid the 250 thousand limit. Her umbrella paid the remainder. Without the umbrella she would have been paying that out of her own pocket — her home, her savings, everything."
Home Claim
"We had a customer who had a Super Bowl party. His wife's best friend fell down the stairs and punctured her lungs. The initial medical bills came out of the 100 thousand in homeowners liability. The remaining 250 thousand came from the umbrella. Without that umbrella that family would have owed a quarter million out of pocket."
Script 1 — PAP Knowledge
Personal Articles Policy — Fill the High-Value Gap
Standard homeowners and renters policies have limits on high-value items — jewelry, fine art, cameras, musical instruments, sports equipment, electronics, collectibles. The PAP fills that gap with scheduled coverage.
What PAP Provides
✓
Each item listed individually with its own coverage amount
✓
No deductible in most cases
✓
Broader coverage than a standard policy
✓
No question about what is covered or for how much
📌 When to Bring It Up
During FORM in the Recreation category. When a customer mentions expensive camera equipment, golf clubs, a musical instrument, jewelry — that is your opening. Ask about it. Find out what they have. Make sure it is protected. This is a conversation most of your competition is never having.
Script 1 — Rental Dwelling
For Customers Who Own and Rent Out Property
⚠️ Critical Point
A standard homeowners policy does NOT cover a rental property. If your customer rents out a home and still has it on a homeowners policy — there is a coverage gap they may not know about.
Property
Covers the structure against fire, storm, vandalism. Your customer owns it and it needs to be protected.
Liability
If a tenant or guest is injured and the landlord is found responsible — liability pays. Owning rental property creates real liability exposure.
Loss of Income
If a covered loss makes the property uninhabitable and the landlord cannot collect rent — loss of income replaces those rental payments. Your customer still has a mortgage to pay.
This conversation comes from the Money and Occupation categories in FORM. When a customer mentions an investment home or rental property — ask about it.
Backup Sewer & Drain — Goes on Every Policy
This Is a Standard — Not a Conversation
A standard policy does NOT cover sewer backup damage
Every homeowner. Every renter. Every condo owner. Every time. This is a standard — not optional.
What Happens Without It
Sewer backs up after a heavy rain. Raw sewage floods the basement. Floors destroyed. Walls destroyed. Personal property destroyed. Without this coverage — your customer pays ALL of it out of pocket. Does not take a flood. Can happen on a dry day when a municipal sewer gets overloaded.
📌 Word Track
"This is one of the most important coverages on the policy. If a pipe bursts — that is covered. But if a drain backs up — a washer, a toilet, anything that backs up and damages your floors or furniture — without this you get nothing. People assume water damage is water damage. It is not. How the water got there determines whether you are covered. This goes on every policy. Every time."
Knowledge Check
P&C Product Knowledge Checklist
✓
I know all 9 auto coverages and can explain each in one sentence
✓
I know all auto discounts and who qualifies
✓
I know the difference between dwelling limit and market value
✓
I can explain why the landlord's policy does NOT cover a renter's belongings
✓
I know what a PLUP is and can give at least one real claim example
✓
I know when to bring up a PAP (FORM — Recreation category)
✓
I know the difference between homeowners and rental dwelling coverage
✓
Backup Sewer & Drain goes on EVERY policy — I will never skip this
❤️ Product Knowledge · Life
Life Insurance — When It Should Lead
Term vs. permanent, the needs behind the numbers, and when life goes first — not last.
Section LI-A — Why Life Often Leads
Protect the People, Not Just the Stuff
▶ Video — Life — When It Should Lead
Auto and home protect the things. Life protects the people. When FORM surfaces a spouse, kids, a mortgage, or an income the household depends on, life is not an add-on at the end — it is the conversation. The emotional discovery question from Module 5 (“if something happened to you tomorrow, what would that mean for your family?”) is your doorway. When they answer honestly, you have found the need.
Section LI-B — Term vs. Permanent
The Plain-English Version
Term
Coverage for a set period — 10, 20, or 30 years. Lower cost, pure protection, no cash value. Perfect for the years you carry the most risk: raising kids, paying a mortgage, replacing an income. When the term ends, so does the coverage.
Permanent (Whole / Universal)
Lifelong coverage that builds cash value over time. Higher cost, but it never expires as long as it is funded. Fits final-expense needs, lifelong dependents, legacy and estate goals, and clients who want a guarantee that outlives a term.
Simple rule of thumb: term for temporary, high-dollar needs; permanent for lifelong, guaranteed needs. Many households need both — a big term policy for the risk years, a smaller permanent policy that never goes away.
Section LI-C — Needs-Based, Not Number-Based
Size It to Their Life
Don't pull a random face amount out of the air. Add up the real need: income replacement (years of salary the family would lose), mortgage / debt payoff, final expenses, and kids' future (childcare, college). Tie every dollar back to something they told you in FORM Money Goals. That's how a number becomes a decision.
In your own words, explain term vs. permanent to a customer — like you're sitting across from them: *
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Write your 90-second life story that ends in a real dollar need, tied to a FORM detail: *
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Section LI-D — Holloway's Life Lineup
What We Write (State Farm)
Term 10 / Term 20 — level term for 10 or 20 years. Your go-to for the high-risk, high-dollar years: a mortgage, young kids, an income to replace. The most death benefit per dollar. Whole Life — permanent and guaranteed, builds cash value, never expires as long as it's funded. Final expenses, lifelong dependents, legacy. Universal Life — permanent with flexible premium and death benefit. Lifelong coverage with room to adjust as life changes. Instant Answer — simplified-issue, quick-approval coverage (no full underwriting). Perfect when a customer wants protection in place today without the wait.
Rule of thumb: lead with term to solve the big temporary need affordably, then layer a smaller permanent policy (Whole or Universal) that never goes away. Reach for Instant Answer when speed and simplicity matter more than a large face amount.
Checklist
✓
I can explain term vs. permanent in plain English
✓
I know when life should LEAD the conversation (FORM signals)
✓
I size coverage to real needs, not a random number
✓
I can tell a 90-second life story that ends in a dollar amount
🏥 Product Knowledge · Health
Health & Supplemental — Filling the Gaps
The coverage that protects the paycheck when life interrupts it — and who it fits.
Section HS-A — The Gap
Even Good Health Coverage Leaves Holes
▶ Video — Health & Supplemental — The Gap
A major-medical plan pays the hospital. It does not pay the mortgage while someone is off work, cover the deductible, or replace a lost paycheck. Supplemental coverage puts cash in the customer's hand when life interrupts income — so a health event doesn't become a financial one. That's the story: we protect the paycheck, not just the patient.
Section HS-B — The Categories
Know the Building Blocks
Accident — pays cash for injuries, ER visits, fractures. Critical Illness — a lump sum on a major diagnosis (heart attack, stroke, cancer). Hospital Indemnity — a fixed cash benefit per day/admission in the hospital. Disability / Income Protection — replaces a portion of income when they can't work. Final Expense — small whole-life to cover burial and end-of-life costs (overlaps with your Life module).
Section HS-C — Who It Fits
Match the Product to the Household
Listen for it in FORM: high-deductible plans (accident / hospital indemnity fill the gap), single-income households (critical illness / disability protect the one paycheck), physical jobs (accident coverage), and older clients or those without life (final expense). If they'd feel a two-week loss of income, they have a gap worth naming.
In your own words, explain to a customer why they'd want supplemental even with good health insurance: *
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Pick a real customer type from FORM. Which supplemental product fits, and why? *
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Section HS-D — Holloway's Supplemental Lineup
What We Write & Who We Write It To
Short-Term Disability — replaces a portion of a customer's income when illness or injury keeps them from working. This is paycheck protection: the answer to “what happens to the bills if I can't work for a few weeks?” Hospital Income — pays a fixed cash benefit for a covered hospital stay, on top of whatever their health plan does. Cash in their hand for the deductible, the time off, the gas and childcare.
Where it comes from — the pivot: we write supplemental mainly to our existing customer base. You already have the relationship and the FORM, so pivot on a service call, a policy review, or right after an auto/fire sale: “While I've got you — a lot of my customers don't realize their health plan doesn't replace a paycheck. Can I show you two options that put cash in your hand if you're ever off work or in the hospital?” That's the door. Round out the household you already earned.
Checklist
✓
I can explain the cash gap major medical leaves
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I know the five supplemental building blocks
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I can match a product to a household from FORM signals
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I can tell the 'protect the paycheck' story naturally
🛡️ Master Skill · Objection Handling
Objection Handling — Keep the Sale Alive
An objection is not a no. It is a question wearing a frown. Here is how you answer the five you will hear most.
Section OH-A — The Mindset
An Objection Is a Request for Reassurance
▶ Video — The Objection Mindset
The move is always the same: Acknowledge → Ask → Re-anchor.
You never argue. You acknowledge what they said so they feel heard, you ask one question to find the real concern hiding underneath, and you re-anchor back to what they told you in FORM and the coverage story you built. Price is rarely the real objection — it is usually the last thing standing when value has not landed yet.
Section OH-B — The Five You Will Hear Most
Learn the Frame, Then Make It Yours
1. “It’s too expensive.”
Acknowledge, then isolate: “Totally fair — is it the price itself, or that we haven’t shown you it’s worth it yet?” Re-anchor to their risk (Property · Income · Liability) and the coverage story you told. Right-size the coverage together — never just strip it to win.
2. “Let me think about it / I want to shop around.”
Find the hesitation: “Absolutely — what specifically would you want to think through? I’d rather answer it now than have you guess.” Reassure with the fit, then book the next step so it does not go cold.
3. “I’m happy with who I have.”
“That’s great, and I respect that. A lot of my happiest customers came from a company they liked too — they just hadn’t had anyone actually look at their coverage in years. Can I give you a no-pressure second set of eyes?”
4. “I already have some life through work.”
Portability gap: “That’s a good start — the thing to know is that coverage usually stays with the job, not with you, and it’s rarely enough to cover the mortgage and replace your income. If the job changes, does the coverage follow you?”
5. “Just send me a quote.”
“Happy to — and so it actually matches your life instead of a generic number, can I ask you two quick questions first?” That bridges you straight back into FORM instead of a price with no relationship.
Section OH-C — Make Them Yours
Write Each One in Your Own Voice
“It’s too expensive.” — your word-for-word response: *
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“Let me think about it / shop around.” — your response: *
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“I’m happy with who I have.” — your response: *
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“I have life through work.” — your response: *
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“Just send me a quote.” — your bridge back to FORM: *
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Checklist
✓
I understand an objection is a request for information, not a no
✓
I can Acknowledge → Ask → Re-anchor without arguing
✓
I have written all five responses in my own voice
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I always re-anchor price back to risk and the coverage story
🗣️ Master Skill · Power Phrases
The Sales Conversation & Power Phrases
The exact words for the moments that matter — rapport, discovery, value, and the ask. Learn them, then make them yours.
Section PP-A — The Flow
Five Beats of Every Great Call
▶ Video — Power Phrases — The Flow
Every strong conversation moves through five beats — the same shape as CLOSE: Open (warmth) → Connect (FORM) → Listen (emotional discovery) → Offer (value, tied to their life) → Ask (trial close, the business, the review). Power phrases are the bridges between the beats — the words that keep it moving without ever feeling like a pitch.
Section PP-B — First 30 Seconds
Rapport Before Anything Else
You earn the right to ask questions by being warm first. Do not open with price or products. Open with a person.
“Hey [Name], thanks for taking a minute — before we get into any of the insurance stuff, tell me a little about what's going on. Are you shopping because something changed, or just making sure you're not overpaying?”
That one question makes them feel seen and hands you your first FORM thread.
Section PP-C — The Power Phrase Library
Steal These, Then Say Them Your Way
The permission pivot (into discovery)
“Do you mind if I ask you a couple of quick questions? I don't want to just throw a price at you — I want to make sure it actually fits your life.”
The value frame (Offer)
“Based on what you told me about [FORM detail], here's what I'd put in place and why…” — always connect the recommendation to something they said. Coverage tied to their life sells; a number by itself doesn't.
Price → protection bridge
“I hear you on the price — let's make sure we're comparing the same thing. The cheap version protects the car; this version protects you and everyone in it. Which one do you want standing behind you if it's a bad day?”
The trial close (temperature check)
“How does that sound so far?” · “Does that feel like it fits?” — small checks all the way through, not one big ask at the end.
Asking for the business (assumptive)
“I've got everything I need — let's get you protected. I'll just need to confirm a couple of details.” Don't ask if. Assume the yes and move to the next step.
The review & referral ask (Spread)
“Before we wrap up — we grow almost entirely by referrals, so I always ask when I've been able to help. I'm going to send you a quick review link now — would you mind clicking it while we're on the phone?”
Section PP-D — Trial Closes
Check the Temperature, Don't Wait for the End
A trial close is a small question that measures where they are without asking for the final yes. Sprinkle them throughout: after the value frame, after handling a concern, before the ask. If the answer is warm, keep going. If it's cool, you just found the objection early — while there's still time to handle it. The producer who trial-closes never gets surprised by a “let me think about it” at the finish line.
Section PP-E — Make Them Yours
Rewrite in Your Own Voice
Your first-30-seconds opener (warmth + one question): *
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Your value frame — “Based on what you told me about ___, I'd put ___ in place because ___”: *
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Your assumptive ask for the business, word for word: *
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Checklist
✓
I can name the five beats of the conversation
✓
I open with warmth and a question — never price
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I have power phrases for each beat, in my own words
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I trial-close throughout, not just at the end
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I ask for the business assumptively and always send the review link
🧭 Leadership Track · For Team Leads
Leadership & Coaching
For Shauna, Shakira, and the leads who come next. Running a team is a different sport than selling on one.
Section L-A — The Shift
From “My Numbers” to “The Team’s Numbers”
▶ Video — Leadership — The Shift
As a producer your job was addition — your own apps, your own reviews. As a lead your job is multiplication. Your best month is no longer measured by what you sold; it is measured by what your people sold because you coached them. The hardest part is letting your own board slip a little so the team’s board climbs a lot.
What is one thing you did great as a producer that you now have to teach instead of just do? *
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Section L-B — Coach to the Scorecard
Data, Not Vibes
Coach the activity, not just the result.
Open the Scorecard and Leaderboard in the portal before every 1:1. Results (apps, premium) tell you what happened; activity (calls, quotes, FORM completion, review links sent) tells you why. You cannot coach a result — it already happened. You can coach the activity that produces the next one.
Pick one producer. Which activity metric would you coach first, and why? *
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Section L-C — The 1:1 and the Huddle
A Simple Structure You Can Run Every Week
The weekly 1:1 (15 min): 1) Wins — what went right. 2) The numbers — look at the board together. 3) One thing to work on — just one. 4) One commitment — what they’ll do before next week.
The daily huddle (10 min): yesterday’s wins, today’s one target, one skill focus. Short, standing, energizing — not a status meeting.
Draft the four questions you’ll ask in your weekly 1:1s: *
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Section L-D — Hold the Standard
Accountability Without Burning People Out
Praise in public, coach in private. The standard is the standard — same for the top producer and the new hire. People do not burn out from a high bar; they burn out from an unclear or unfair one. Be consistent, be kind, and never let a quiet miss become a habit.
What is one standard you will hold firmly — and how will you hold it with care? *
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Checklist
✓
I understand my job is now multiplication, not addition
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I coach activity from the Scorecard, not gut feel
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I have a repeatable 1:1 and huddle structure
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I praise in public and coach in private
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I hold the same standard for everyone, with care
📈 Owner Track · Leadership
Agency Growth — Build a Business That Runs Without You
The systems that let Holloway scale beyond any one person — including you.
Section G-A — Expense to Asset
Make Every Dollar Earn Its Keep
▶ Video — Agency Growth — Expense to Asset
An expense disappears the moment you spend it. An asset keeps paying you back. The growth question for every dollar is not “can I afford it?” — it is “will this dollar come back with friends?” A lead source, a training platform, a producer’s ramp, a system that saves ten hours a week — those are assets. Rent that produces nothing is an expense.
Name one expense in the agency you could turn into a producing asset — and how. *
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Section G-B — Find the Bottleneck
Fix the Constraint, Not the Symptom
Every agency has exactly one constraint holding growth back at a time — leads, contact rate, close rate, capacity, or retention. Pouring effort anywhere else feels productive but moves nothing. Find the one real bottleneck, fix it, and the whole line speeds up — then the constraint moves somewhere new and you do it again.
What is the single biggest bottleneck in the agency right now — and what is the symptom you keep treating instead? *
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Section G-C — Repeatable Systems
Results Should Not Depend on Heroics
If a result only happens when you personally do it, you do not have a business — you have a job that owns you. The fix: document the play, delegate it to a person, automate the parts a system can do (that is what BCC and 360 AI are for). A good system turns a great month from luck into a recipe.
Pick one thing only you can do today. How would you document, delegate, and automate it? *
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Section G-D — The Scalable Blueprint
People · Process · Platform
Scale stands on three legs: the right people in the right seats, a process they follow the same way every time (CLOSE, FORM, daily logging), and a platform that holds it all together and shows the truth (BCC · 360 AI · this training portal). When all three line up, growth stops depending on your energy and starts depending on your design.
Rate People / Process / Platform at Holloway 1–10 each, and name the weakest one. *
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Checklist
✓
I evaluate spending as expense vs. producing asset
✓
I can name the one true bottleneck right now
✓
I document, delegate, and automate instead of doing it all
✓
I can see the People · Process · Platform blueprint for Holloway
❤️ Life Mastery · 1 of 6
The Five Beats of a Life Conversation
The same five moves, every time — so you stop improvising and start finishing.
Section LM1-A — Why a Shape Beats a Script
Improvising Is Expensive
▶ Video — The Five Beats
Most life conversations do not die because someone said the wrong thing. They die because the conversation had no shape. You bring up life, the customer says something noncommittal, and you have nowhere to go — so you quote a number and hope. A number with no story behind it always sounds expensive.
A shape gives you somewhere to go. Five beats, always in this order. You will run them in ninety seconds on a service call and in twenty minutes at an appointment, but the order does not change.
1 · Open
Earn permission and connect life to whatever they actually called about. You are not changing the subject — you are widening it.
2 · Impact
Get them to say out loud what would actually happen to the people they love. Not you. Them.
3 · Want
Flip it from what they need to what they want. Nobody wants life insurance. They want their kids in the same school.
4 · What's In Place
Find out what they already have and let them evaluate it. Never tell them it is not enough — hand them the math and let them say it.
5 · What It Costs
Frame the budget before you say the number, then tie the number back to the things they told you they wanted.
The rule underneath all five
Nobody moves on a problem they have not admitted, and nobody moves on a solution they do not value. You need both. Beat two builds the admission. Beats three, four and five build the value. Skip either half and you get a polite no.
Section LM1-B — Beat One: Open
Widen the Conversation, Do Not Change It
The open has three jobs: ask permission, tie into what they already came for, and land on one question. That is it. It should take under fifteen seconds.
Permission first: "Can I ask you a quick question while I have you?" — then wait for the yes. The yes is what makes the rest welcome instead of pushy.
Tie in: reference the thing on the screen. The new car, the mortgage, the baby they just added, the address change. "Since we are protecting the house, can I ask one thing to make sure we are looking at the whole picture?"
One question: never stack. Ask one, then be quiet.
Weak vs. strong
Weak: "Do you want life insurance?" That is a yes/no, and the default answer to a yes/no from a salesperson is no. Strong: "Who depends on your income right now?" That one has no wrong answer, and every answer opens a door.
You already know how to do this — it is Connect from C.L.O.S.E. and it runs on F.O.R.M. Family, Occupation, Recreation, Money Goals. If you ran FORM properly, you already have the doorway. The open is just walking through it.
Write your own open for a customer adding a newly financed vehicle. Permission, tie-in, one question: *
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Section LM1-C — Beat Two: Impact
Make It Real Without Making It Scary
Impact is the beat everyone rushes. Do not. This is where a policy stops being a product and starts being a decision. Ask one question, then let it sit. The silence is doing your job for you — do not rescue them from it.
Four angles that work
Who — "Who would feel it first?" What — "What is the first thing they would have to figure out?" How long — "How long could things stay normal?" This is the one that turns someday into a number of months. Instead — "If you could choose, what would you want for them instead?" End here. It gives them back some control and it sets up beat three.
Tone matters more than words here. Calm, curious, no drama, and do not apologize for asking. The second you say "sorry to bring this up," you have told them the question was inappropriate. It is not. It is the most important question anyone will ask them this year.
Then reflect it back in their words: "So the part that worries you most is the kids staying in the same school — did I get that right?" People trust you when they hear themselves.
Write three impact questions in your own words — one Who, one How long, one Instead: *
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Section LM1-D — Beats Three and Four
Want, Then What Is In Place
1 · Want
"If something did happen, what would you want to make sure your family could still do?" Ask it, get an answer, then ask "anything else?" twice. You are building a short list in their words. That list is what you will close on later.
2 · What's In Place
"Can I ask what your current plan looks like to make that happen?" Say plan, not coverage — plan invites a real answer. If they have coverage through work, praise it, then ask the two questions that matter: "Do you know how much?" and — the sharp one — "How did you decide that amount was enough?" Most people guessed. That question shows them gently, without you telling them anything.
Group coverage, handled right
Ask two things and let the answers do the work: "Do you know how much it is?" and "Does it follow you if you leave?" If they do not know, that is worth finding out — do not guess at it for them. You never have to say it is bad. You say it is a start, then test the real number against their own list: "Would that let them stay in the house and cover the kids?" Let them do the subtraction. If you do it, they defend. If they do it, they own it.
Practice the sharp question. Write how you would respond if a customer says "I have $100,000 through work and I think that is plenty": *
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Section LM1-E — Beat Five: What It Costs
Frame Before You Name
Never say a number cold. Frame it first, then the number lands inside a range the customer already agreed to.
Frame the range before the number
Ask what they had in mind, or offer a range and check it: "A lot of people think about this as a small percentage of income — somewhere in the two to four percent neighborhood. Does that sound about right to you?" Get the yes. Now the premium lands inside a range they named instead of arriving cold. Then reduce it: monthly, then daily.
Two to four percent is our rule of thumb for starting the conversation, not a statistic. Say it that way.
Close by reading their own list back to them. "You told me the two things that mattered were the house and the kids being able to finish school. This does both, for $__ a month. Is there anything you would like to change, add, or update before we get it started?" That is an assumptive close, and it is fair to use once they have actually agreed to the recommendation — not before.
A standing rule for this whole track
We do not invent statistics and we do not quote figures we cannot source. If you want a number in the conversation, make it their number — their mortgage balance, their income, their years to retirement. It is more persuasive than any industry average anyway, and you will never have to defend it.
THE ONE THING
If you only fix one thing this week, fix the pause after your impact question. Ask it, close your mouth, and count to three. More deals are lost by filling that silence than by any objection you will ever hear.
Checklist
✓
I can name all five beats in order without looking
✓
I have my own open written for at least three trigger situations
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I ask one impact question and then stay silent
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I ask "how did you decide that amount was enough?" every time
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I frame the budget before I say the premium
❤️ Life Mastery · 2 of 6
Discovery Before the Quote
Five questions that turn a guess into a recommendation.
Section LM2-A — Why We Do Not Blind Quote
A Number Without Context Always Sounds Expensive
A doctor does not write a prescription before the exam. The exam is the diagnosis. When you quote before you understand, you are guessing — and you have just manufactured a price shopper, because price is the only thing left for them to compare.
Discovery is not a delay. It is the thing that makes you the professional in the conversation. Five questions. Ninety seconds. Then you can quote something real.
Section LM2-B — The Five Questions
Permission, People, Money, Time, In Place
1 · Permission
"Before we look at options, I want to make sure we are not guessing. Can I ask you a few quick questions?" — Every real recommendation starts with a yes.
2 · People
"Who depends on your income right now?" Follow with: "What would you want the money to help cover for them?"
3 · Money
"What debts would still be there if your income stopped?" Mortgage, cars, cards, student loans. Get the number if they know it.
4 · Time
"If your paycheck stopped, how long would things be okay?" Then: "How long would they need that help to last?" Time is what converts a vague worry into a coverage amount.
5 · What's In Place
"What do you have now — work and personal?" Then the sharp one: "How did you decide that amount was enough?"
Never skip the last one
It is the single best question in this module. It is not a trap and it is not rude. Most people inherited their number from a benefits enrollment screen five years ago. Asking it lets them notice that on their own, which is the only way it ever sticks.
Section LM2-C — When They Push for a Price
Three Deflections That Keep You Credible
“Just give me a price.”▾
"Happy to. I just do not want to hand you a number that is wrong for your family. Two quick questions and I will get you one that actually fits. Fair?" — Almost nobody says no to fair.
“Why so many questions?”▾
"The difference between a guess and a real recommendation is about four answers. Do you want the guess, or do you want it right?"
“I'm in a hurry.”▾
"This is ninety seconds, not a meeting." Then actually keep it to ninety seconds. Credibility is built by doing what you said.
Section LM2-D — Language Swaps
Same Meaning, Completely Different Result
Swap these on purpose
"You need life insurance" → "Who depends on your income today?" "You do not have enough coverage" → "Do you feel confident that amount still fits your life today?" "Let me quote you" → "Would it make sense to look at a couple of options side by side?" "You should do this now" → "Is this something you feel is worth handling now?"
Notice what every strong version has in common: it ends in a question and it hands the judgment to the customer. You are not softening the message. You are letting them reach it themselves, which is the only version they will defend to their spouse tonight.
Take a line you actually say that sounds like a pitch. Rewrite it as a question: *
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Checklist
✓
I never quote life before running the five questions
✓
I can run all five in under two minutes
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I use "how did you decide that amount was enough?" every time
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I have a deflection ready for "just give me a price"
❤️ Life Mastery · 3 of 6
Make the Risk Real — Without Pressure
Three ways to help someone feel a number they have only ever thought about.
Section LM3-A — Turn the Policy Around
The Fastest Pivot We Have
▶ Video — Make the Risk Real
You are already on the phone reviewing their auto liability limits. They just agreed that $250,000 of bodily injury coverage feels about right. Turn it around.
1 · Set it
"So if the worst happened and you were at fault, that coverage is what would be there for the other family — up to $250,000." Never describe a claim as automatic. Coverage responds to a covered loss; that is always the phrasing.
2 · Flip it
"Which means we have made sure a stranger’s family is taken care of." Pause. Let it land.
3 · Ask it
"What is protecting yours?"
It works because it is not a pitch — it is arithmetic they already agreed to. Nobody argues with their own coverage. And it lands as unfair, which is exactly the feeling that makes someone say "huh, why have I not done this?"
Section LM3-B — The One-Check Test
Exposing the Lump-Sum Illusion
Most people hear a six-figure death benefit and think that is a lot of money. It is — until it has to do a job for twenty years. Here is how to show that in sixty seconds without a spreadsheet.
1 · Agree it is a lot
"If I handed you a check for $100,000 today, that would be a great day, right?" They will agree.
2 · Add the condition
"Now say that is all the money that is ever coming in again. No more paychecks. Ever." Then stop and let them sit with it. This is the moment it stops being an abstraction — do not rush past it and do not point it out.
3 · Ask why
"Why does that feel different?" Let them explain it. They will say something like because it has to last.
4 · Bring it home
"That is exactly the job your current policy would have. Would you agree that puts them in a tough spot?"
Then bridge
"Would you be opposed to looking at what it would take to actually cover the job?" Negative-consent asks like would you be opposed are easier to say yes to than do you want, because agreeing costs them nothing.
Section LM3-C — Aggravation vs. Devastation
One Sentence That Reframes the Whole Portfolio
Aggravation ruins your day. You back into the mailbox, you pay the deductible, you are annoyed for a week.
Devastation ruins your family’s life. You do not make it home, and everything they were counting on has to be rebuilt from nothing.
Most people insure aggravation carefully and leave devastation to chance. Said plainly and without drama, it reframes their whole portfolio in about ten seconds.
This one is a scalpel, not a hammer. Use it early — before you quote, right after they say "I think I am covered." Then get out of the way and ask one question.
Section LM3-D — What Not To Do
Fear Closes Doors
Never use "what if you died tomorrow?" It is a bludgeon and it makes people defensive, not thoughtful.
Do not pivot during an open claim, an active grief, or a fresh injury. Handle the feeling first. Always.
Do not stack impact questions. One, then silence.
Do not say "exactly" or "right" after someone tells you something painful. Just let it be quiet for a beat.
Do not promise the family will "be all set." Say what the policy does and what it costs. Nothing more.
Do not dramatize. The facts are heavy enough on their own — your job is to be calm while they are not.
THE STANDARD
Create clarity, not pressure. If the customer feels helped, you did it right. If they feel handled, you did not — no matter what they signed.
Pick one of the three tools above and write it out the way you would actually say it on the phone: *
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Checklist
✓
I can run the turn-around from memory at the point of sale
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I can run the one-check test in under a minute
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I know the three moments when I do NOT pivot
✓
I never apologize for asking a protection question
❤️ Life Mastery · 4 of 6
Find the Gap — Build the Number With Them
Protect and Provide: how a coverage amount becomes their idea instead of your quote.
Section LM4-A — The Two Halves
Protect and Provide
Every real coverage number answers two different questions. Split them out loud — it makes a big number feel logical instead of arbitrary.
PROTECT — what would fall apart
Mortgage and housing. Auto loans and credit cards. Student loans. Final expenses. A few months of immediate bills so nobody is making decisions in week one.
PROVIDE — what still needs to happen
Income replacement for the years it matters. Keeping the household running the way it runs today. Childcare. College or trade school. A spouse who gets to grieve before going back to work.
Add both halves and you have the Total Family Need. Subtract what they already have — including the work policy, do not dismiss it — and what is left is the Gap. That is the only number you ever quote against.
Section LM4-B — Build It With Them, Not For Them
Say the Numbers Out Loud
Write it down while you talk. On paper at an appointment, on a shared screen on a call. The physical act of listing it is half the work.
1 · Ask, do not assume
"What would you want handled first?" Let them lead. Their order tells you what to close on.
2 · Make them say the numbers
"Roughly what is left on the mortgage?" When the customer says the number out loud, it becomes their number. When you say it, it is a sales figure.
3 · Give every dollar a face
Never leave a line as "education." Make it "so Camille can finish school without a loan." Money with a name attached does not get negotiated away.
4 · Subtract honestly
Put the work policy on the page and subtract it. Praising it and counting it makes you trustworthy. Pretending it does not exist makes you a salesperson.
5 · Two sentences, then stop
If you cannot explain the gap in two sentences, it is too complicated. Say it, then ask "when you look at that, how do you feel about it?"
Run the math on a real household from your book. Write the Protect total, the Provide total, what they have, and the gap: *
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Section LM4-C — Rules of Thumb We Use
Starting Points, Not Answers
Use these to start a conversation, never to end one
Income replacement — think in years, not multiples. Ask how long they would need help, then multiply. A number they chose beats a formula you imposed. Debt — everything that survives them. It does not disappear; it moves to the person left behind. Final expenses — a real, specific cost most families have never priced out. Ask if they have. Group coverage — ask them to look up the actual amount and whether it follows them out the door. Do not estimate it for them.
We do not invent statistics and we do not quote figures we cannot source. If you want to use a number with a customer, it should be their number — their mortgage balance, their income, their years to retirement. That is always more persuasive than an industry average anyway.
Section LM4-D — Weak vs. Strong
The Difference Is Who Did the Math
Weak
"You need $500,000." Where did that come from? They have no idea, so their only move is to argue with it.
Strong
"Based on what you just told me — the $250,000 left on the house, seven years of income while the kids are still home, and about $200,000 for school — you are looking at right around $950,000 of need against the $100,000 you have at work. So the gap is roughly $850,000." Same number. Completely different conversation, because they built it.
THE ONE THING
Never ask "how much coverage do you want?" That is guessing with extra steps. Build the number from their answers and then show it to them.
Checklist
✓
I can explain Protect vs. Provide in plain words
✓
I make the customer say their own numbers out loud
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I attach a name or a purpose to every line item
✓
I count and subtract their group coverage honestly
✓
I can state the gap in two sentences
❤️ Life Mastery · 5 of 6
Present Three Options
Confusion kills decisions. Three clear choices, built from their words.
Section LM5-A — The Standard
Every Presentation, Every Time
Built from their words — you should be able to point at each option and name the thing they said it solves.
Sized to the gap you found together, not to a round number.
Three options. Not one, not seven. One feels like a demand; seven feels like homework.
Every difference explainable back to you in one sentence. If you cannot, simplify it.
Ends with a choice question, not a yes/no.
Open with confidence. "I have good news — I was able to cover what you told me mattered and keep it inside the range we talked about." Then walk it. You earned this moment in the last four modules; do not shrink at the finish line.
Section LM5-B — The Four-Part Value Beat
Use It On Every Line You Present
1 · The event
"If something happened and the household lost your income…"
2 · The cost
"…here is what would still have to be paid." Use their numbers.
3 · The benefit
"This pays your family $__, directly." How a death benefit is taxed depends on their situation — point them to their tax advisor and do not answer it yourself.
4 · Why it matters
"Which means the house stays, and Camille finishes school." Land on the person, not the product.
Order is not optional
Cost before benefit. If you lead with the benefit they hear a feature; if you lead with the cost they hear a solution. Same words, different sequence, different outcome.
Section LM5-C — Term, Permanent, and Both
The Plain-English Version
Term
Coverage for a set stretch of years. The most protection per dollar. Perfect for the years the risk is highest — young kids, a mortgage, an income the household is built around. When the term ends, the coverage ends.
Permanent
Coverage that does not expire as long as it is funded, and it builds cash value. Costs more. Fits final expenses, a lifelong dependent, and anything meant to outlive a term.
Many households end up with both — term for the years the risk is highest, permanent for what needs to outlive it. Whether that fits comes out of the gap you built together, not out of this page. Never walk in having already decided the recommendation.
See the Life Insurance module under Product Knowledge for what we actually write and when each product fits.
Section LM5-D — Closing Language
Ask For It Like a Professional
Retire these
"How does that sound?" · "What do you think?" · "Did you want to get that started?" · "Let me know." All four invite a stall.
Use these instead
"Which of these feels like the best fit?" "Is there anything you would like to change, add, or update before we get this started?" "How would you like to handle the first payment — added to your monthly, or paid annually?"
An assumptive close is only honest if they actually said yes to the recommendation. If you have not heard a clear yes, you have not earned it — ask "is this the one you want?" and wait for the answer. Once they have said yes, these three lines just handle the paperwork on a decision they already made.
Write your closing line — the exact words you will use — and commit to using it on your next three presentations: *
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Checklist
✓
I present exactly three options, built from their stated wants
✓
I run event, cost, benefit, why-it-matters on every line
✓
I can explain term vs. permanent in one minute with no jargon
✓
I have retired "how does that sound?" for good
❤️ Life Mastery · 6 of 6
Handle Hesitation
Agree, ask, re-anchor. Never argue — and never accept the first answer.
Section LM6-A — Two Rules
Learn These Before Any Script
Rule one — always agree
Agree with the feeling, never with the conclusion. You are not agreeing that it is too expensive. You are agreeing that it feels like a lot. Those are different sentences and the customer can tell.
Rule two — make them validate it twice
The first objection is almost never the real one. It is a reflex. Accept it, ask one clarifying question, and respond to the second answer. That is the actual objection. Answering the first one is why conversations go in circles.
You already know the shape from the Objection Handling module: Acknowledge → Ask → Re-anchor. Acknowledge lowers the guard. Ask finds the truth. Re-anchor brings it back to what they told you they wanted. Then close on a question, so the objection is never the last thing said.
Section LM6-B — The Bank
Open Each One and Practice It Out Loud
“I have it through work.”▾
Praise it first — never correct. "That is great, a lot of people do not have anything." Then: "Do you know how much it is?" If they do not know, that is the finding — do not fill in a number for them. "Can you pull that up, or check with HR before we finish this?" We never build a gap on a number nobody has. Once they have the real figure, hand them the arithmetic: "Would that let them stay in the house and cover school?" Then the portability question: "Does it follow you if you leave?"
“I have it somewhere else.”▾
Same spine, plus the sharp one: "How did you decide on that amount?" It surfaces that the number came from a benefits screen, not a plan. Then test it against the list they gave you in beat three.
“I don't have any.”▾
"A lot of people have not started — why do you think that is for you?" Then handle the real reason: too expensive, never got around to it, did not know who to ask, young and healthy, not planning on dying soon. Each one has a different answer. Guessing which one it is loses the deal.
“I don't need it.”▾
"What is the main reason you feel that way?" Three usual buckets. Young → "That is exactly why now — it is the cheapest it will ever be." Healthy → "That is exactly the time to apply — health is what underwriting looks at, and none of us controls what it does next. I cannot promise an outcome, but this is your best shot at the best rate." No kids → "Would anyone be affected financially — a spouse, a parent, a co-signed loan?"
“My family would figure it out.”▾
Quote them back to themselves. "Earlier you said they could not cover the mortgage past about four months. So could they really figure it out?" Said gently, this is the most effective sentence in the module — because it is their sentence.
“It's too expensive.”▾
Split it first: "Do you mean it would not fit the budget at all, or that it is not worth $__ to you yet?" Those need opposite responses. If it is budget, do not drop your price — hand them the pen: "How much could you comfortably set aside to make sure they are okay?" Build to their number. Some protection beats none.
“I still cannot afford it.”▾
"That is okay — a lot of people cannot do the full amount right away. What number would feel comfortable?" Then build to it and say plainly that we can revisit it when things change. Write the case you can write.
“I need to think about it.”▾
Never let this stay vague and never say "okay, let me know." Say: "That makes sense. What part are you wanting to think through — the amount, the cost, or whether now is the right time?" Then handle whichever one they name. And add the honest reframe: "The one thing thinking about it does not pause is your health, and health is what underwriting looks at. Applying while you feel good gives you the best shot at the best rate — the company still makes the final call."
“I need to talk to my spouse.”▾
"Of course. What do you think their first question will be — the cost, the coverage, or how it works?" Handle that question now so your customer is not re-explaining your plan badly at the kitchen table. Then offer the three-way: "Would it help if we got them on a quick call together?"
“Just email me something.”▾
"Happy to — so I do not send you a bunch of things that do not apply, what specifically would you want to see?" That question either gets you back into the conversation or tells you exactly what to send. Either is a win.
“I'm happy with who I have.”▾
Respect it fully. "Good — that is how it should be." Then offer the second set of eyes, not a replacement: "Would you be opposed to me just confirming the amount still lines up with what you told me you wanted? No charge, no pressure."
Section LM6-C — Drills
Fifteen Minutes a Week Beats an Hour a Quarter
Rapid fire. Team lead calls out an objection, you answer in thirty seconds or less. Six of them, five minutes total. Concise beats clever.
The draw. Number the eleven objections above. Someone picks a number at random and you run it live, cold.
Two-minute reps. Lead plays the customer, you run one section only. One thing done well, one thing to fix, run it again. Short sections, not whole calls.
Bring a real one. Every week, one person brings a conversation that stalled. The team rebuilds the moment it went sideways.
THE ONE THING
Ban "okay, let me know" from this office. Every hesitation gets one empathy line, one clarifying question, and one specific next step. A day and a time, or an application. Not a floating maybe.
Which objection do you handle worst? Write it, then write your new answer using Acknowledge, Ask, Re-anchor: *
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Checklist
✓
I agree with the feeling and never with the conclusion
✓
I make the customer validate the concern twice before I answer
✓
I can run all eleven objections from memory
✓
Every hesitation I handle ends with a specific next step
💰 Income Protection · 1 of 3
Income Is the Asset
Everything they own was bought with a paycheck. Almost nobody insures the paycheck.
Section DI-A — The Argument in One Minute
Insure the Machine, Not Just What It Bought
▶ Video — Income Is the Asset
Walk a customer through their own file and you will see the same thing every time: the car is insured, the house is insured, the boat is insured. The thing that pays for all three is not. Every asset on that page was purchased with income — and income is the one asset with no policy on it.
That is the whole argument. You do not need statistics to make it. You need their file open and one question.
The opening question
"Everything on this page — the house, the cars — all of it gets paid for by your paycheck showing up. What happens to the page if the paycheck does not?"
Section DI-B — The Bill Stack
Five Bills That Do Not Stop
This is our tool for turning a vague worry into a monthly number. Do not hand them a total — walk the categories and make them say each amount out loud.
1 · Housing
Rent or mortgage. Start here — it is the biggest and the most emotionally loaded. Everything after it feels smaller.
2 · Utilities
Power, water, gas, internet, phones. The small ones that add up faster than people expect.
3 · Transportation
Car payments, gas, insurance. If you cannot work, you still have to get to treatment.
4 · Food
Groceries for however many people are in that house.
5 · Insurance
Health, auto, home, life. The premiums that keep everything else in force.
Why they have to say it
When you total it, it is a sales number. When they total it, it is their light bill. Ask each one, write it down, then read the total back: "So about $__ a month keeps going out no matter what. Does that sound right?" Then be quiet.
That total is your benefit target. You are no longer selling a percentage of income — you are covering a list the customer wrote.
Run the bill stack on yourself. Write your five numbers and your total. You will sell this better once you have felt it: *
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Section DI-C — "I Have It At Work"
The Most Common Answer, and the Easiest One
This is not an objection. It is a place to start auditing. Compliment it, then ask three questions they almost certainly cannot answer.
"Do you know what percentage of your income it replaces?" Most people have no idea. Do not supply a number — ask them to look it up.
"Do you know whether the benefit would be taxed?" Most people have never asked. That is a question for their HR or their tax advisor — not one for you to answer.
"How long before it starts, and how long does it last?" — Waiting periods and benefit periods are where group plans are thinnest.
"Does it follow you if you change jobs?" — Usually not.
Then the test question
Once they have the real numbers: "So if it replaced that much, after that waiting period — could the household run on it?" Compare it to the bill stack they just built. The gap does the arguing for you, and every figure in it came from them.
Do not say their work plan is bad. Say it is a floor, and ask whether the floor is high enough. Nobody defends a floor. Everybody defends a plan you called wrong.
Checklist
✓
I can make the income-is-the-asset argument in under a minute
✓
I can run the bill stack from memory, in order, starting with housing
✓
I make the customer say each dollar amount out loud
✓
I audit group coverage with the four questions instead of dismissing it
💰 Income Protection · 2 of 3
Triggers and Pivots
The moments in a normal service call where income protection belongs.
Section DI-D — Listen For These
The Trigger Is Not the Opportunity — the Meaning Behind It Is
New vehicle loan. A fixed payment just entered their life for the next five to seven years.
New mortgage or a move. Same logic, bigger number, longer term.
New job or a benefits change. Whatever they had may have just ended.
Self-employed, contractor, commission, gig. Often no group coverage at all.
Physical work. Trades, healthcare, delivery, warehouse — the body is the income.
A new baby or a growing household. More people depending on one paycheck.
"Money has been tight lately." They have told you there is no cushion.
Someone close to them went through it. The most receptive customer you will ever get. Be gentle.
Single income household. No second paycheck to absorb the hit.
A recent injury, surgery, or health scare. Handle the feeling first. Pivot later, if at all.
Section DI-E — The Seven-Step Pivot
Same Shape Every Time
1 · Hear it
Catch the trigger. Say it back so they know you were listening.
2 · Acknowledge
"Congratulations" or "that is a lot going on" — react like a person before you react like an agent.
3 · Ask a curious question
"Out of curiosity, has anyone helped you look at what happens to that payment if you could not work for a few months?"
4 · Find the possible gap
Use the hedge on purpose: "I am not sure there is a gap here — it may be worth a quick check."
5 · Connect it to real life
Name the specific bill. Not "your income." The truck payment. The rent.
6 · Offer the look
"Would it make sense to see what that would cost?"
7 · Ask permission
Get an explicit yes before you go further. Every time.
The auto-loan pivot, word for word
"While I have you — one thing I have been asking everyone with a newer loan. Most people insure the truck itself, but not the payment. If you were out of work for a few months, would you want help making that payment so you keep the vehicle?"
The rent or mortgage pivot
"Your renters policy covers everything inside the apartment — furniture, clothes, electronics. What it does not cover is the rent itself. Would you want help paying the rent if you could not work for a while?"
Section DI-F — Words That Work, Words That Do Not
Neutral Beats Urgent
Use
"I am curious…" · "Has anyone helped you look at…" · "I am not sure if there is a gap, but…" · "That may be worth checking." · "Would it make sense to…" · "Would you be opposed to…"
Never use
"You need disability insurance." · "You are underinsured." · "You would lose everything." · "This is a no-brainer." · "You cannot afford not to."
The second list all share a defect: they tell the customer what to conclude. People do not adopt conclusions handed to them by someone earning a commission. They adopt conclusions they reached out loud. Every phrase in the first list is engineered to let them do that.
Pick the two triggers you hear most in your seat. Write your own pivot for each, in your words: *
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Checklist
✓
I can name at least six triggers without looking
✓
I have my own pivot written for the two I hear most
✓
I use the "I am not sure if there is a gap" hedge on purpose
✓
I have retired every phrase on the never-use list
💰 Income Protection · 3 of 3
Sizing It, Presenting It, Answering It
From the bill stack to a benefit amount to a signed application.
Section DI-H — The Three Numbers
What Every Quote Turns On
1 · Benefit amount
What they receive each month. Anchor it to the bill stack total, not to a percentage they did not choose.
2 · Elimination period
How long before benefits begin. Ask directly: "How many months of savings could you actually live on?" Their honest answer picks this number.
3 · Benefit period
How long it pays. Short-term covers the recovery. Long-term covers the version nobody wants to think about.
Do not lecture on riders. Pick the three numbers that fit their life, explain each in one sentence, and move. Every extra feature you explain is a reason to postpone the decision.
Section DI-I — Stacking It With Supplemental Health
Two Problems, One Event
A health event does two things at once: income stops and expenses jump. Those are different problems and they need different tools.
The one-liner
Disability protects the paycheck. Supplemental health protects the pocketbook. Same event, two holes.
The bridge question
"If both happened at the same time — the income dropped and the bills went up — which one would put pressure on the household first?" Whatever they answer, you present both.
Present it as a choice, never a yes/no: "Income protection alone is $__, or income protection plus the supplemental piece is $__. Which makes more sense for you?" Two prices is a decision. One price is a verdict.
Section DI-G — Objections
Same Three Beats: Acknowledge, Ask, Re-anchor
“I have it through work.”▾
Compliment, then audit with the four questions from module DI-1: how much, taxed or not, how long until it starts and how long it lasts, and does it follow you. Compare the answer to their bill stack.
“Workers comp covers me.”▾
"It would, if you got hurt on the job. What about the version where you get sick, or hurt on a Saturday?" A lot of what takes people out of work never happens at work at all — let them think through their own week.
“I'm healthy.”▾
Validate it completely, then flip the frame: healthy is not an exemption, it is an eligibility window. "Being healthy is exactly what makes you insurable right now, and that is the one thing none of us controls."
“It's too expensive.”▾
Compare the right two things. "If your paycheck stopped, which would be harder to manage — this premium, or the bill stack with no income behind it?" Then reduce it to a daily number and stop talking.
“I have savings.”▾
"Good — that is exactly what the waiting period is for. The question is whether you want savings to cover the first sixty days, or the next two years." Position DI as what protects the savings, not what replaces it.
“I need to think about it.”▾
"Fair. Is it the need, the amount, or the monthly cost?" Then handle the one they name. Vague hesitation stays vague until you make it specific.
“Just send me a quote.”▾
"I can — but before I put numbers on paper, what would you want the coverage to actually do? Otherwise I am quoting a random amount." Then run the bill stack.
Section DI-J — The Daily Standard
This Line Dies From Neglect, Not Objections
Every trigger you hear gets a pivot. Not most. Every one.
Every pivot gets one impact question.
Every real opportunity gets a quote.
Every quote gets a follow-up you scheduled before you hung up.
THE ONE THING
Mention income protection on one call a day. One. That single habit will produce more disability business than any campaign we could run, because the conversation almost never happens unless somebody starts it.
Write the two-price close in your own words, for a customer you actually have this week: *
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Checklist
✓
I can explain benefit amount, elimination period, and benefit period in one sentence each
✓
I anchor the benefit amount to the bill stack, not a percentage
✓
I present DI and supplemental as a two-price choice
✓
I mention income protection on at least one call every day
🏥 Supplemental · 1 of 2
The Gap Major Medical Leaves
Health insurance pays the doctor. Supplemental pays the customer.
Section SH-A — The Whole Idea in One Sentence
Say This Before You Say Anything Else
▶ Video — The Gap Major Medical Leaves
THE POSITIONING LINE
Health insurance pays the doctor. Supplemental health pays you.
That is the entire product in nine words. Everything else is detail. Lead with it, then explain what it means.
What major medical handles
Hospital bills, surgeon fees, prescriptions, diagnostic tests. It does its job well.
What it leaves on the customer
The deductible and the out-of-pocket maximum. Missed work and lost income. Childcare while a parent is in the hospital. Gas and hotels for travel to treatment. And every ordinary bill at home that never pauses.
Never position supplemental as a replacement for major medical. The moment a customer thinks you are suggesting that, you have lost them and they are right to be confused. It works with their plan, filling the space around the event.
Section SH-B — Why Customers Choose It
Four Things That Make It Different
1 · The money goes to them
Not to a hospital billing department. Direct to the customer, to use however they need.
2 · It usually pays regardless of the health plan
Most of these plans pay a set benefit whether or not the health plan pays — no coordination, no waiting on a primary carrier. Confirm it on the current sheet before you say it, and say it about the specific plan you are quoting, not about the category.
3 · They decide what it pays for
Rent, groceries, childcare, gas, the deductible. Their choice, not a claims adjuster’s.
4 · It is affordable relative to the exposure
A predictable monthly premium against an unpredictable bill. That is the whole trade, and it is an easy one to explain.
Section SH-C — Who It Fits Best
Point It at the Right Households
Anyone on a high-deductible plan — the deductible is the exposure and they already know the number.
Parents of young or active kids. One urgent-care visit, one broken arm, one bad weekend.
Self-employed and small business owners, where a hospital stay hits the household and the business.
Households with thin savings, where a single bill becomes a credit card balance that lasts two years.
Anyone who has already been through it once. They do not need convincing — they need someone to bring it up.
Product specifics — benefit schedules, what each plan pays, current rates — live in our carrier materials, not on this site. Those change and they are state-specific. Pull the current sheet before you quote, every time. What you learn here is the conversation; the numbers come from the current filing.
Pull three households from your book that fit one of the profiles above. Write who and why: *
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Checklist
✓
I can say the positioning line from memory
✓
I can name four things major medical does not cover
✓
I never position supplemental as a replacement for health insurance
✓
I pull current carrier rates before quoting instead of quoting from memory
🏥 Supplemental · 2 of 2
Raising It Naturally
Triggers, the thirty-second explanation, and the four objections you will actually hear.
Section SH-D — Listen For These Words
The Trigger Is What They Say, Not What You Planned
"My deductible is insane." / "I hate surprise medical bills."
A recent ER visit, surgery, or hospital stay — theirs or a family member’s.
"Insurance did not cover as much as I thought."
New baby, growing family, kids in sports.
New job, benefits change, open enrollment coming up.
"Things have been tight lately."
Self-employed, or benefits they describe as thin.
A cancer, heart, or stroke scare in the family.
Fixed income or retired.
Medical debt they are still paying on.
The bridge from auto
You are already reviewing their medical payments coverage. "While we are here — would you want us to help cover the out-of-pocket side too? Copays, the deductible, the part your health plan hands back to you?" It is a natural extension of a coverage they already have, which is why it works.
Section SH-E — The Thirty-Second Version
Say It Simply or Do Not Say It
1 · The condition
"If you ever end up in the hospital…"
2 · The mechanism
"…this pays you cash, directly."
3 · The use
"Deductible, lost income, groceries — whatever you need it for."
4 · The clarifier
"And it works with your health insurance, not instead of it."
Translate the jargon
"Hospital admission benefit" → "If you get admitted, this pays you up front, no waiting." "Daily confinement benefit" → "You get paid for every day you are in there." "Intensive care rider" → "If it is serious enough for ICU, the benefit goes up."
Two or three benefits, maximum. Listing everything the plan does makes you sound like a brochure and gives the customer four new things to think about. Pick the two that match what they told you they were worried about.
Section SH-F — The Four Objections
And the Move That Answers Each
“I already have health insurance.”▾
This is a misunderstanding, not a no. Agree immediately: "Most people do — and you should." Then split the concept: "Your health plan pays the medical bill. This one pays the costs around it — the deductible, the days you cannot work." Then ask permission: "Would it be okay if I showed you the difference?"
“It seems expensive.”▾
Fork it first: "Is that about the monthly budget, or about whether the coverage is worth it?" Then reframe the comparison. A premium is predictable, budgetable, and your choice. A hospital bill is none of those. Anchor to their real number: "If a $3,000 bill hit next month, where would that money come from?" Never say "it is only $__." What feels small to you may not to them.
“I'm healthy.”▾
Validate, then reframe health as eligibility rather than exemption. "Does being healthy make you less likely to need it — or is it just the time when you still have the choice?" Urgency through logic, never through fear, and never a promise about what underwriting will do.
“I need to think about it.”▾
"Sure — is it the cost, the coverage, or the timing?" Whichever they name, handle that one. Then isolate: "Besides that, is there anything else that would keep you from moving forward if we solved it?"
Section SH-G — What Loses This Conversation
Almost Never the Explanation
Bringing it up before the customer sees a reason to care. That is the real killer — not a bad explanation.
Leading with the product name instead of the problem.
Talking features before you have agreement that a gap exists.
Quoting before context. A quote with no story attached feels like a pitch.
Not using a number. Anchor to a real cost or a real payout, or it stays abstract.
Making it scary. Fear closes doors — it does not open them.
Rescuing the silence after a good question.
Finishing a good conversation without asking for a next step.
THE ONE THING
Solve the reason they called first. Completely. Then, and only then, ask permission to widen it. You have not earned the second conversation until you have finished the first.
Write your thirty-second explanation in your own words. Time yourself saying it out loud: *
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Checklist
✓
I can deliver the thirty-second explanation in under thirty seconds
✓
I name two or three benefits, never the whole list
✓
I fork the price objection before answering it
✓
I never say "it is only $__"
✓
I solve the reason they called before I widen the conversation
🤝 Referrals & Reviews · 1 of 3
The Referral Ask
Ask every time, ask for a number, and ask for people they care about.
Section RR-A — When to Ask
Five Moments, Not One
▶ Video — The Referral Ask
Right after you write a new household. Trust and relief are both at their peak.
Right after any compliment — a thank-you, a good survey, an offhand "you have been great."
At a policy anniversary. Long tenure is a statement about you.
Right after you fixed a problem. A well-handled issue converts better than a smooth one ever did.
At the end of any good service call. Which is most of them.
The producer who asks every time will out-produce the one who asks when it feels comfortable. It will never feel comfortable. It becomes normal, which is different and better.
Section RR-B — The Two-Beat Ask
Get Them Talking First
1 · Beat one — make them say something good
Sales: "How do you feel like I have been able to help you most?" Service: "What do you appreciate most about working with our office?" You are not fishing for a compliment. You are getting them to state their own positive experience out loud, which is what makes the next sentence land.
2 · Beat two — the ask itself
"That means a lot. Honestly, we try to give that to every customer, and I know that is not everyone’s experience out there. We would rather grow with people like you. Who are the two or three people you care about who would benefit from me helping them too?"
Three things make that ask work
It asks who, not if — if invites a no. It asks for a number — two or three is small enough to feel doable and specific enough to require thinking. It says people you care about, not "anyone who needs insurance" — which reframes the referral as a favor to their friend instead of a favor to you.
Write the two-beat ask in your own words. Say it out loud five times before your next call: *
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Section RR-C — The Introduction
What You Do After They Give You a Name
Do not just take the phone number and hang up. The handoff is where referrals get warm or get wasted.
1 · Frame it
"I want to do this the right way — I would rather they hear from you first than get a cold call from a stranger."
2 · Ask for the text
"Would you be open to sending them a quick text letting them know I will reach out?"
3 · Promise the limit
"I will make one or two attempts — I am not going to hound anybody."
4 · Promise the exit
"And if they are not interested, I will honor that completely."
That last pair is the whole thing. The unspoken objection behind almost every "I cannot think of anyone" is I do not want to put my friend on a sales list. Answer that objection before it is spoken and the names come easier.
Checklist
✓
I ask on every closed sale and every good service call
✓
I open with a feedback question before I ask
✓
I ask for a specific number of people they care about
✓
I always ask the customer to text the referral first
✓
I promise one to two attempts and mean it
🤝 Referrals & Reviews · 2 of 3
When They Cannot Think of Anyone
The most common answer in the office — and the easiest one to solve.
Section RR-D — Why It Happens
It Is a Memory Problem, Not a Willingness Problem
"I cannot think of anyone" almost never means "I would not refer you." It means you asked a wide-open question and they came up blank. That is normal — nobody can search their own memory on command. Narrow the question and the names show up.
The move is to go from the wide question — "who do you know?" — to a specific one: "who just bought a house?" Same person, same memory, completely different result.
Section RR-E — The Three-Beat Answer
Slow It Down, Open It Up, Ask Again
1 · Slow it down
Take the pressure off first. "That is totally fair — it is hard to think of people on the spot." You just told them they are not failing a test.
2 · Open it up
Offer a different way in. "One thing that helps is if I describe the kind of situations we usually help with."
3 · Ask again — together
Make it collaborative, not extractive. "Would you be open to brainstorming for a second?" Then feed them the list.
The prompt list — say it slowly
Who do you know who… just bought a car? Just bought a house? Just got married? Just went through a divorce? Just had a baby? Just changed jobs? Just added a teenager to their policy? Just retired?
Say them one at a time with a beat in between. Names surface on the specific one, not the general question.
Section RR-F — The Other Four Answers
Each Needs a Different Move
“If I think of someone, I'll let you know.”▾
Thank them sincerely, then keep going anyway: "I appreciate that. It usually jogs the memory to think through specific situations though — can I run a few by you?" Then the prompt list. This is the same objection as "cannot think of anyone," just politer.
“I'll pass your info along if it comes up.”▾
Same treatment, plus one reframe: "That works. Honestly, the introduction lands better coming from you than my card does — would you be open to texting one or two people?"
“I don't give referrals.”▾
This one is different — do not run the prompt list. Excavate first. "I totally get that. Just curious — is there a reason?" Almost always there is a story: someone got hounded once. Listen to it. Then leave it there: "Then I will not push it — I appreciate you telling me straight. If that ever changes, you know where I am." Do not re-ask. Somebody already burned this person once; being the second one is not a strategy.
“Silence, or a clear no.”▾
Let it go warmly. "No problem at all — and if someone ever comes to mind, I would appreciate it." Then move on cleanly. A referral ask that ends graciously leaves the door open. One that ends awkwardly closes it for good.
Section RR-G — Practice
Get Comfortable Being Told No
The no drill. Set a target for how many referral nos you can collect today. Chasing nos removes the fear of getting one, and you will accidentally collect yeses along the way.
Two-minute reps. Team lead plays the customer and gives you one of the five answers above. You run it. One thing done well, one thing to fix, run it again.
Track the ask, not the outcome. Log asks per day. The number of asks is the only part you control, and it is the only number that predicts the result.
THE ONE THING
"I cannot think of anyone" is not the end of the conversation. It is the beginning of the second half of it. Never let it be the last thing said.
Write your own prompt list — the eight situations you will actually say out loud: *
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Checklist
✓
I never accept "I cannot think of anyone" as final
✓
I have a prompt list of at least eight situations memorized
✓
I ask why before I re-ask on "I do not give referrals"
✓
I track asks per day, not referrals per day
🤝 Referrals & Reviews · 3 of 3
Google Reviews
Ask at the peak, make it easy, follow up twice, and respond to every single one.
Section RR-H — Timing Is Most of It
Ask While the Goodwill Is Warm
Right after a policy is written.
Right after a claim is settled well.
Right after a coverage review where they learned something.
At the end of any service call that went well.
The ask, with a reason attached
"I am really glad we got that sorted out. Would you be open to leaving us a quick Google review? It genuinely helps us reach more customers like you." Give a reason. An ask with a reason attached is easier to say yes to than a bare ask, and it takes four extra words.
Practice until it sounds natural, not needy. The difference is entirely in whether you pause after asking. Ask, then be quiet. If you keep talking, you sound like you are apologizing for asking.
Section RR-I — Make It Frictionless
Convenience Is the Whole Game
1 · Send the link while you are still on the phone
Not later. Now. "I am texting you the link right now — it takes about thirty seconds."
2 · Put it everywhere
Email signatures, text templates, the website, follow-up emails. Every barrier you remove is a review you get.
3 · Follow up at fifteen minutes
"Just circling back on that link in case it got buried — no pressure either way." Honest, short, and it gives them an easy out.
4 · Follow up again at three days
"I know you are busy and probably just have not gotten to it — did not want our message to get buried." Resend the link. Then stop.
Do not offer anything in exchange
No gift cards, no discounts, no drawings tied to leaving a review. It violates Google’s policies, it creates disclosure problems, and in insurance it can run into rebating rules. Ask for honesty and nothing else. Thank them warmly and leave it there.
Section RR-J — Responding
Every Review, Within Twenty-Four Hours
Negative reviews — four moves
Fast. Speed signals that you care. Professional. Your feelings are not the audience. Future readers are. Acknowledge and apologize for the experience, without accepting blame you do not own. Offer a path. A resolution, or contact information to take it offline.
Write the response to the next person who reads it, not to the reviewer. Future customers read the reply more carefully than they read the review. A calm, specific answer to an unfair one is worth more than arguing back, every time.
Positive reviews
Reply to those too, within a day, and make it specific — name what you actually helped with. Then use them: the website, social, newsletters. A review you never resurface is a review that worked once.
And mine them. If three reviews mention the same friction, that is not a review problem — that is a process problem, and it is the cheapest business intelligence you will ever get.
Section RR-K — The Environment
Make the Office a Place Reviews Come From
Keep the Google Business Profile current: hours, phone, photos of the actual office and actual people.
One person owns review responses. Set alerts so nothing sits for two days.
Mention reviews at the end of good interactions until it stops feeling like an event.
Role-play the ask in a huddle. Fifteen seconds of practice removes most of the awkwardness.
THE ONE THING
The ask is one sentence. The follow-up is two texts. The only reason we do not have more reviews is that we forget to ask — so put it at the end of the call, every time, until it stops feeling like an event.
Write your review ask, including the reason. Then write the fifteen-minute follow-up text: *
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Checklist
✓
I ask at the peak of a positive interaction, not later
✓
I send the link while still on the phone
✓
I follow up at fifteen minutes and again at three days
✓
I never offer anything in exchange for a review
✓
Every review gets a response within twenty-four hours
⚡ Point of Sale · 1 of 3
Speed to Lead, Then Keep Calling
The two habits that decide whether a lead ever becomes a conversation.
Section POS-A — Speed
The First Attempt Is the Whole Ballgame
▶ Video — Speed to Lead
A lead that just came in is a person who is thinking about insurance right now. An hour from now they are back at work, and by tonight somebody else has probably called them. That window closes fast, and nothing else about the lead matters if you miss it.
So the standard is simple: first attempt in under five minutes. Not "as soon as I finish this." Under five.
The second attempt
On a lead who submitted a form minutes ago, a second attempt a few minutes later is reasonable — people miss the first ring. Two attempts, then leave a voicemail and move on. Do not do this on aged leads or in-book lists, and never more than twice in a sitting.
Before you text anything
Check the record for consent. If the lead form did not capture permission to text, do not text — call and leave a voicemail until they reply. This is not a preference, it is the rule.
Section POS-B — Persistence
Most Leads Die of Neglect, Not Rejection
The other half of the problem is that we stop too early. Two unanswered calls is not information. It is two unanswered calls.
New lead — work it hard and work it long. Multiple attempts a day for the first few days, then taper across several weeks.
Not now — capture the renewal date and pend it. A "not now" with an X-date on it is a future sale, not a loss.
Ex-customer — a separate cadence entirely. They already know us, and something changed.
Close the sale — quoted but not signed. This is the most valuable list in the CRM and the most abandoned.
Vary the time of day
Calling the same person at 10:15 every morning four days in a row is one attempt repeated four times. Move it: early morning, lunch, after five. Different hour, different person answers.
Two rules, and they are not optional. One: before any outbound attempt, check the do-not-call and do-not-market flags in the CRM. If it is flagged, do not call, do not text, do not email — no exceptions and no judgment calls. Prior express written consent is the only thing that changes that, and it has to already be on file. Two: no texting without captured consent. If you are unsure, ask your team lead before you dial. The answer is free; the alternative is not.
Section POS-C — The Opener
Lower the Pressure in the First Seven Seconds
1 · Confirm the person
"Hi, is this [first name]?" — short, human, no announcement voice.
2 · Name yourself and disarm
"This is [you] with Holloway. I know I am catching you out of the blue, so I will be quick."
3 · Give the reason without the pitch
"We have been helping folks around [town] take a fresh look at their auto coverage — most policies get set up once and then life keeps moving."
4 · Hedge, then invite
"I am not sure it makes sense for you, but would you be open to a quick look?"
5 · Give them an out
"Is now bad, or do you have a couple minutes?" — Offering the exit is what keeps them on the line.
What kills an opener
Leading with a savings percentage. Stacking three verification questions with no pause. Sounding polished. Sounding excited. Asking "how are you today?" — they know exactly what that means and they are already gone.
You are booking a quick look, not a commitment. Ask for a quick look and you get a look. Ask for a full quote and you get objections. Ask for the smaller thing.
Write your opener. Five beats, under fifteen seconds. Then time yourself saying it: *
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Section POS-D — Brush-Offs
Two Attempts, Then a Clean Exit
“I'm busy.”▾
"Totally fair — that is why I said I would be quick. Is there a better time this afternoon, or would tomorrow morning be easier?" Give two options, not an open question.
“Not interested.”▾
Use the binary disarm: "Usually when someone says that it is either because they are already set, or because they just do not want the calls. Which is it for me?" Both answers give you somewhere to go.
“I'm happy where I am.”▾
"Good — that is how it should be. When was the last time somebody actually went over the policy with you, or has it been on autopilot?" Almost nobody has an answer to that.
“Just send me something.”▾
"I can — what would you want to see? I would rather send you the one thing that matters than a packet you have to dig through."
“Not ever. Take me off your list.”▾
Honor it immediately and completely. Note it in the CRM, mark it, and move on. A clean exit is part of the job.
THE ONE THING
Pull your last five sold policies and count how many attempts it took to reach each one. Then compare that to where you personally give up. That gap is your whole opportunity.
Checklist
✓
My first attempt on a new lead is under five minutes
✓
I make a second attempt on a fresh no-answer, and stop at two
✓
I vary the time of day across attempts
✓
I can run my opener in under fifteen seconds
✓
I know the compliance rules before I text anyone
⚡ Point of Sale · 2 of 3
The Full Household Review
One conversation that walks all three sides of the Triangle of Risk.
Section POS-E — The Up-Front Contract
Set the Shape Before You Start
Before any fact-finding, tell them what is about to happen and get a yes. Two small yeses at the top make the entire rest of the call feel collaborative instead of interrogative.
1 · Thank them for the time
And say how long it will take. Then keep to it.
2 · Name the problem you solve
"Most policies get set up once and then life keeps moving — new car, new job, kids driving. I just want to make sure yours still matches where you are now." Make it about time passing, never about whoever wrote it.
3 · Get the first yes
"Is that fair?"
4 · State the agenda
"So what I would like to do is walk through the three ways a household actually gets hurt financially, and make sure you are covered on all three."
5 · Get the second yes
"Sound good?"
Then breathe
While the system loads, run F.O.R.M. — Family, Occupation, Recreation, Money Goals. This is not filler. Every recommendation you make in the next fifteen minutes will be built from what you learn in these ninety seconds.
Section POS-F — Walk the Triangle
Property, Income, Liability — In That Order
Side one — Property
What if you wreck your own car, or something happens to the house? Confirm what "full coverage" means to them — most people do not know. Check the deductible and ask the honest question: "Is $1,000 out of pocket a strain or manageable right now?" Cover rental and roadside with a real scenario, not a feature list: "How would three weeks without a car affect your job?"
Side two — Liability
What if you hurt someone else? Get their current limits, then ask: "Would that be enough to protect everything you have worked for?" Then inventory the assets — home, vehicles, savings, retirement — and add income, because depending on the state a judgment can reach more than what is sitting in the bank. Do not go further than that; we are not giving legal advice. This is where umbrella coverage stops being a product and starts being obvious.
Side three — Income
What if you or your spouse are hurt, sick, or gone? Start with the medical side they already have — health plan, deductible, medical payments coverage — then widen: "How long could things run smoothly if you could not work?" That question opens both income protection and life, and it opens them naturally, because you got there in order.
Order matters. Property is easy and factual — it warms them up. Liability introduces the idea that a policy limit can be exceeded. Income is the heaviest, and by the time you arrive they have already agreed twice that gaps exist. Jumping straight to income is why that conversation feels abrupt.
Section POS-G — Set Up the Callback
Never Present Cold
1 · Signal you have what you need
"I have everything I need to go to work on this for you."
2 · Ask for the specific window
"Can I get ten or fifteen minutes with you at 2:00 to walk you through it?"
3 · Lock it
"Any reason you would not be available then?" — the single most useful sentence for reducing no-shows.
4 · Confirm the channel
Phone, video, or in person. And confirm the number.
Open the callback with confidence
"I have good news." Then present what you built, tie every line back to something they said, give one total monthly number, and close with "is there anything you would like to change, add, or update before we get this started?"
Write your one-sentence transition into each side of the triangle. Three sentences total: *
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Checklist
✓
I get two yeses before I start fact-finding
✓
I run F.O.R.M. on every household review
✓
I walk the triangle in order: property, liability, income
✓
I lock the callback with "any reason you would not be available?"
⚡ Point of Sale · 3 of 3
Round Out the Household
The book you already have is the best list in the building.
Section POS-H — The Lists That Are Already Yours
Nobody Has to Generate These
Auto with no home or renters. And home or renters with no auto.
Single-line auto customers of a year or more.
Households with a mortgage and no life coverage on file.
Anyone with a newly financed vehicle in the last thirty days.
Customers at basic liability limits with real assets behind them.
Households with valuables that would not be covered — rings, instruments, collections, equipment.
Term policyholders approaching a conversion window.
Recent life events on file: new address, new driver, new baby, new job.
Every one of those people already picked us once. The hardest part of the sale — trust — is already done. All that is left is a reason to call.
Section POS-I — Working a List Properly
Four Ds
1 · Designated person
One name owns the list. Shared ownership is no ownership.
2 · Designated time
A block on the calendar, same time daily. Not "when things slow down." Things do not slow down.
3 · Designated activity
Calls only during the block. No email, no service, no CRM cleanup.
4 · Designated outcome
What does done look like? A number of contacts, a number of quotes. Name it before you start.
The cadence that works
Day one: call and voicemail. Day three: same, different angle and a different hour. Day five: call, voicemail, plus an email with two or three actual options. Day seven: close the loop — "I completely understand if now is not the right time" — and pend it forward. Four touches, seven days, then it goes back in the pipeline instead of into a hole.
Add a text at any of those touches only where consent is on file. These are existing customers, so it usually is — check anyway.
Build two or three options before you dial. Calling with nothing prepared turns a warm list into a cold call.
Trigger words: an engagement, a gift, a hobby, travel, a past theft. Pivot: "I am curious — has anyone gone over whether that is actually covered under your homeowners? A lot of people assume it is, and there are limits most people do not know about. I am not sure there is a gap here, but it may be worth a quick check."
“Umbrella — teen drivers, assets, pools, dogs, rentals”▾
Trigger words: a new teen driver, a home purchase, a rental property, a raise, a boat or ATV, "I just want the minimum." Pivot: "Do you know where your current liability limits actually stop? An umbrella sits above them — would it be okay if I showed you what that looks like?"
“Auto to home, home to auto”▾
Trigger: it is on the screen. Pivot: "Are you handling your homeowners through us too, or is that somewhere else?" If separate, ask why they kept it separate. The answer tells you exactly what to solve.
“Account review”▾
Trigger words: "my rate went up," "I have not looked at this in years," a life change, a claim. Pivot: "Would it be okay if we scheduled a simple account review? No obligation — just a second set of eyes."
Words to avoid on every one of these
"You need…" · "That is not covered." · "You are underinsured." · "You would be out of luck." · "You could lose everything." · "This is a no-brainer." Every one of them tells the customer what to think, which is the fastest way to get them to think something else.
THE ONE THING
Pick two triggers this week — just two — and use them every single time you hear them. Track attempts, not sales. The win in week one is that the conversation happened at all.
Name the list you will work this week, your time block, and your target number of conversations: *
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Checklist
✓
I know which in-book list I am working this week
✓
I have a calendar block for it at the same time every day
✓
I prepare two or three options before I dial
✓
I run a four-touch, seven-day cadence and then pend forward
✓
I have two trigger pivots I use every time I hear them
🌱 Onboarding · 1 of 3
Your First Thirty Days
What happens, in what order, and what you should be able to do by the end of it.
Section OB-A — Before Day One
What We Owe You Before You Walk In
▶ Video — Welcome to Holloway
Your workstation is set up, logged in, and working. Email, phone, CRM, quoting, texting, everything.
Introductions are already on the calendar — you should not have to find people.
Your handbook, your role description, and this portal are waiting for you.
Someone owns your first week. You will know their name before you arrive.
If any of that is missing on your first morning, say so. It is our failure, not yours, and we would rather fix it on day one than have you quietly work around it for a month.
Section OB-B — The Shape of Month One
Four Weeks, Four Jobs
1 · Week one — get oriented and get a win
Paperwork, systems, security, calendar. Learn to navigate the CRM, the billing system, and the phones. Shadow both sales and service. Start this portal — twenty minutes minimum, up to forty-five during onboarding, protected on the calendar. Goal: finish something real by Friday.
2 · Week two — start touching customers
Take inbound calls or make outbound ones. Notes, payments, ID cards, transfers. Build your first list of people you already know. Start role-playing daily. The training is no longer theoretical this week.
3 · Week three — get fluent on coverage
Auto, renters, homeowners. Read a policy screen and explain it in plain words. Learn the privacy and verification rules cold. Start logging your activity every day.
4 · Week four — start the real conversation
The household review. Basic auto changes. Setting appointments. Practicing word tracks out loud. By Friday of week four you sit down for your thirty-day review.
Licensing runs alongside this, not instead of it
Study time is real time and it goes on the calendar like everything else — your team lead will set the study plan and the exam date with you. Do not let training crowd out licensing or licensing crowd out training. Both get a block.
Section OB-C — What You Should Be Able to Do
Demonstrated Out Loud, Not on a Quiz
Every checkpoint here is a live demonstration to your team lead. Not a test, not a completion percentage. You say it out loud, from memory, and they tell you what to sharpen.
End of week one — your greeting from memory, and three power phrases.
End of week two — explain core coverages in plain words, and take a real customer call start to finish with your lead listening.
End of week three — your greeting and your power phrases cold, and the referral ask with no notes.
End of week four — walk the household review in order, state your daily activity number, make the Google review ask, and handle two objections your lead throws at you cold.
Rough is fine. Complete is the goal.
On the first pass, we are not listening for smooth — we are listening for whether you got all the way through it. Smooth comes from reps, and reps come after complete.
Section OB-D — If You Have Done This Before
Veterans Get a Different Path
If you have industry experience, this is not onboarding and we will not treat it like it is. Day one, your team lead will ask you to deliver the core scripts from memory. You will both score it, pick the two weakest skills, and those get extra reps for the whole phase. The plan is the map — the diagnostic sets the route.
The other difference is honesty about drift. Even strong producers develop shortcuts — a greeting that lost its up-front contract, a life pivot that quietly stopped happening. The point of a veteran path is not to teach you the job. It is to find the two places where the shortcuts crept in.
Write your own thirty-day goal — one thing you want to be able to do cold by day thirty: *
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Checklist
✓
I know who owns my first week and what my week-one goal is
✓
I have training time and licensing time both blocked on my calendar
✓
I know the four demonstration checkpoints for month one
✓
I have delivered at least one script out loud from memory
🌱 Onboarding · 2 of 3
The Daily Rhythm and the Weekly Gate
How training actually turns into skill — and why we do not move on until it does.
Section OB-E — Six Steps, Every Day
Twenty Minutes That Compound
1 · Train
Twenty minutes minimum, up to forty-five during onboarding. Same time every day, on the calendar, protected.
2 · Take notes
By hand or typed, but written. You will bring them to your check-in.
3 · Recite something older
Two minutes. Pick a script from an earlier week and say it out loud from memory. This is the step everyone skips and it is the one that makes the rest stick.
4 · Practice the gap
Name the one thing you are weakest at today and say it out loud until it is less bad. Not everything. One thing.
5 · Check in with your lead
Five to fifteen minutes. Not a status report — a coaching conversation.
6 · Apply it live
Use one thing from today on a real customer, today. Training you do not apply within twenty-four hours mostly evaporates.
The check-in questions
What did you learn today? What stood out? What do you feel more confident doing now? What are you applying today? What were your numbers? What do you need help with? What should we practice together?
Section OB-F — The Weekly Gate
Fifteen Minutes, and It Is Not a Formality
Every week ends with a review. Your lead checks five things: what was completed, what improved, whether you can still deliver an older script cold, what your numbers say, and what to practice next.
If you cannot pass the inspection, we repeat the weakest days. That is not a punishment and it is not a mark against you. Days are the plan. Mastery is the goal. Repeating a week is coaching — moving someone forward who is not ready is how you end up with a producer who has finished the whole path and cannot run a conversation.
Leads: bring a real example
Every weekly review should include one actual call, quote, save, or pivot from that week. Abstract coaching produces abstract improvement.
Section OB-G — How We Practice
Short Sections, Not Whole Calls
1 · Pick one section
Not the whole call. The greeting. Or the impact question. Or the close. One.
2 · Lead plays the customer
Two minutes maximum. Two minutes is genuinely enough.
3 · One thing well, one thing to fix
Exactly one of each. Three pieces of feedback is zero pieces of feedback.
4 · Run it again
Immediately. The second rep is where the correction lands.
Two rules for leads
New team members need wins — start with easy reps and praise progress out loud. Veterans do not need a babysitter — pick one specific moment, sharpen it, and move on. Coaching a veteran like a rookie is the fastest way to lose one.
Section OB-H — The Failure Modes
What Actually Goes Wrong
Skipping the check-in. This is where training becomes skill. Everything else is watching videos.
Inspecting completion instead of comprehension. A finished module means nothing. Can they say it out loud?
Watching instead of doing. Watching training is not the same as doing it.
Overloading. If a day runs long, split it. If a skill is weak, repeat the day.
Letting live work eat the training block. It will, every time, unless somebody protects it.
Sounding memorized. The goal is natural, not word-perfect. Internalize the structure, not the sentence.
Reteaching the whole course in the check-in. The check-in is inspect, coach, apply. Not lecture two.
THE ONE THING
Same time, every day, on the calendar, protected. Twenty minutes daily beats three hours on a Friday, and it is not close.
Write your training time and your check-in time. Put them on your calendar before you leave the page: *
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Checklist
✓
My training block and check-in are on the calendar at the same time daily
✓
I recite an older script from memory every day
✓
I apply one thing from training to a real customer the same day
✓
I understand the weekly gate and why repeating a week is not a failure
🌱 Onboarding · 3 of 3
Hiring and Interviewing
For team leads: the same process, the same questions, every candidate.
Section OB-I — The Funnel
You Are Not Deciding to Hire — Only Whether to Continue
1 · Resume and prescreen
Three to five targeted questions. Confirm the minimum requirements. The only question at this stage: do I want to learn more?
2 · Assessment
If we use one, decide the acceptable score before you see anyone’s result, and record every score the same way.
3 · Phone screen
Ten to fifteen minutes. Short on purpose.
4 · Interview
Thirty to forty-five minutes, structured, with a live role-play.
5 · Verify
References, background, and confirm what the resume claims. Ask references specifically about teamwork, attitude, and coachability.
6 · Offer
In writing. Walk through compensation, benefits, licensing requirements, and what the first ninety days look like.
Use the same questions, the same role-play, and the same scoring for every candidate. Not because it is fair — though it is — but because it is the only way to compare two people honestly. The process is your protection against a hire you made because you liked someone on a Tuesday.
Section OB-J — The Phone Screen
Ten Minutes, Two Signals
Let them ask first
Open with "what questions do you have for me?" What a candidate asks unprompted tells you more than any answer they give. Curiosity about the work is a green light. Only asking about pay, hours, and time off on the first call is a data point — not disqualifying, but note it.
Ask what their day actually looks like in their current role. Listen for ownership versus passivity.
Ask what they are looking for and why now.
Confirm they understand what this role actually is. Half of early turnover is a role that was oversold.
The gut check, written down immediately after: did this person give me energy or take it?
Section OB-K — The Interview
Four Traits, One Question and One Test Each
Optimism
"Tell me about a tough situation at work and how you handled it." Follow up: what kept you going, what did you learn. Green: solution-focused, reframes, energizing. Red: blames, complains, fixates without acting.
Grit
"What is the hardest you have ever worked toward something? How did it turn out?" And: "Tell me about a time you owned a mistake." Green: persistence, accountability, finishes things. Red: excuses, quitting, vague answers.
Coachability
"What is the most helpful feedback you have gotten, and what did you do with it?" Then the real test: give them a small piece of feedback during the interview — "here is another way you could have answered that" — and watch. Defensive, curious, or adaptable? You just learned more than any answer could tell you.
Communication
"Tell me about a time you had to explain something complicated." Then run a short role-play: you are the customer, they sell you something they know. Score clarity, confidence, listening, and how they handle one piece of pushback.
Debrief immediately, before you talk to anyone else. Four questions: Did they energize me or drain me? Would I trust them with my best customer? Can I see them thriving here? If I had to make this decision again tomorrow, would I make the same one?
Section OB-L — Red Flags and Closing
What to Notice, and How to End It
Asks nothing at all, or asks only about pay, hours, and time off.
Has done no homework on the agency.
Blames every past outcome on someone else.
Dwells on a failure with no lesson attached.
Cynicism about customers, about sales, or about their last employer.
For sales roles: worries only about base pay, or asks whether cold outreach is required.
Closing scripts
Moving forward: "We will be in touch with next steps by [date]." And then actually do it by that date. Not a fit: "Thank you for coming in today. I appreciate your time and I wish you the best in your search." Short, warm, and final.
THE ONE THING
Honor the process. It exists to keep you from making an emotional hire on a day you are short-staffed and tired — which is exactly the day you will be tempted to skip it.
Write the one interview question you will add to every interview from now on, and what a great answer sounds like: *
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Checklist
✓
I use the same questions and the same role-play for every candidate
✓
I let the candidate ask questions first on the phone screen
✓
I give live feedback during the interview to test coachability
✓
I debrief with the four questions before talking to anyone else
✓
I close every candidate, including the ones we decline
🧭 Agency Operations · 1 of 3
The Agency Operating Rhythm
Huddles, one-on-ones, and the weekly review that holds it all together.
Section LO-A — Three Touchpoints a Day
Pull People Out of the Day-to-Day
▶ Video — The Operating Rhythm
1 · Morning huddle
Fifteen to twenty minutes. Start the day pointed in the same direction.
2 · Midday check
Five minutes. Where are we against the number, and who needs help before lunch?
3 · Afternoon reset
Five minutes. What is still winnable today?
If you only do one, do the morning. A team that starts the day together makes different decisions at 2:00 than a team that does not.
Section LO-B — The Morning Huddle
A Real Agenda, Not a Standup
1 · Celebrate yesterday — 3 to 5 minutes
Who had a win? Any shout-outs? Name people. This is not filler; it is the reason people show up on time.
2 · Set today — 5 to 7 minutes
Post the number. Team activity goals. Then go around: "What is your number one focus today?" Everybody answers out loud.
3 · Coach or role-play — 5 to 8 minutes
One word track, one objection, one pivot. Two-minute reps. This is the highest-value block in the day.
4 · End with energy — 1 minute
A quote, a challenge, a word of the day. Something. End it on purpose instead of letting it dribble out.
If your team resists huddles
Start with five minutes and lead with wins only. Add the coaching block once it feels normal. Resistance to huddles is almost always resistance to being called out — so do not call anyone out in the huddle. Praise in public, coach in private.
Section LO-C — One-on-Ones
Thirty-Five Minutes, Five Parts
1 · Check in — 5 min
How are you actually doing? Ask like you mean it and then be quiet.
2 · Recognize — 5 min
Something specific from the last two weeks. Specific, or it does not count.
3 · Explore challenges — 10 min
"Where are you stuck?" Their agenda, not yours.
4 · Set goals together — 10 min
Two, maybe three. Written down. With a date.
5 · End positively — 5 min
What is next, and what support are they getting from you.
The most common way a one-on-one dies is that it becomes a status update. If you are reviewing tasks, that is a different meeting. This one is about the person — where they are stuck, where they are growing, and what you are going to do about it.
Section LO-D — The Weekly and Monthly Layer
Where the Rhythm Becomes a System
Weekly planning, one hour. Sunday night or Monday morning. Block breaks first, then work. Name the specific task in each block — never "make calls."
Weekly team review, fifteen minutes. What did the numbers say, what improved, what do we practice next week.
Monthly review. Celebrate, reset targets, and run the performance conversation.
Monthly financial review, forty-five minutes. Revenue and profit against last month and last year. Actual against forecast, with a reason for every variance. Expenses as a share of revenue. Cash position. Then decisions, with names and dates attached.
Color-code the calendar
Recurring meetings, admin, one-off meetings, focused work, meals, personal. Anyone should be able to look at your week and see where the time actually goes. You cannot fix what you cannot see.
THE ONE THING
Goals are what you want. The rhythm is what you actually get. Everything else is intention.
Write your huddle time, your one-on-one cadence, and your weekly planning block. Put all three on the calendar: *
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Checklist
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The morning huddle happens at the same time every day
✓
My huddle has a real agenda with a coaching block in it
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One-on-ones are on a set cadence and are not status meetings
✓
I plan the week before the week starts
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I run a monthly financial review with decisions and owners
🧭 Agency Operations · 2 of 3
Scorecard and Standards
Lead with activity, review with results, and hold the line the same way for everyone.
Section LO-E — Two Kinds of Numbers
Coach One, Report the Other
Leading indicators — the ones you coach
Training completed. Outbound conversations. Quotes discussed. Life and health opportunities created. Referral and review asks. Appointments set. These are controllable. A producer can change every one of them tomorrow.
Lagging indicators — the ones you report
Policies written. Premium. Applications issued. Referrals and reviews actually received. Appointments kept. These are outcomes. Coaching them directly is like yelling at a scoreboard.
If the results are down, the answer is almost never in the results. Go up one level: which leading number stopped? Conversations high but discovery low means the opening is not landing. Discovery high but no gaps found means the impact questions are weak. Presentations high but applications low means hesitation is winning and you should be drilling objections. Friday’s scoreboard decides Wednesday’s role-play.
Section LO-F — Make It Visible
The Checker Gets What the Checker Checks
Simple. If it takes explaining, nobody looks at it.
Visible. On a board, on a screen, somewhere people pass. A number in a spreadsheet nobody opens is not tracking.
Daily. Reviewed in the huddle, not at month end.
Consistent. The same metrics for a whole quarter. Changing what you measure resets everyone to zero.
Where tracking usually fails
Not that nobody tracks — that nobody looks. If you are collecting numbers you never discuss, you have created paperwork, not accountability. Either put it in the huddle or stop collecting it.
Section LO-G — The Monthly Performance Review
A Structure That Works for Both Sides
1 · Scorecard
Leading and lagging, each with target, actual, and percent to goal. No commentary yet — just the numbers.
2 · Wins
Top three from the month. Start here. Always.
3 · Development plan
One or two goals for the next thirty days, with actions, support needed, and a date.
4 · Their feedback
What is working for you? Where do you feel stuck or unclear? What would you change about how we operate?
5 · Keep, start, stop
One each. Both directions — you should be receiving these, not just giving them.
6 · Sign it
Both of you. It makes it real and it makes it referenceable.
Section LO-H — Holding the Standard
Kind, Consistent, and Immediate
Address it the same day. Not at month end. A missed daily expectation discussed in November about October is a lecture, not coaching.
Use the data, not the personality. "You had two life conversations last week against a standard of ten" is a fact. "You are not trying" is an opinion, and it starts an argument.
Be specific. "Do better" is not a standard. Name the number and the behavior.
Do not rescue. Taking the work back feels like help and teaches nothing.
Do not reward effort without results forever. Effort earns coaching and patience. It does not earn an indefinite pass.
Same standard for everyone. The moment there are two standards, you have no standard.
Accountability is not punishment. It is the thing that lets someone succeed here. Most people who fail in this business fail slowly and privately, while everyone politely avoids the conversation. Having the conversation early is the kindest thing on this page. Coach them up — and if it does not move, coach them out, with respect and without surprise.
THE ONE THING
The standard is what you enforce, not what you announce. Whatever you tolerate this week becomes the standard next week.
Name the three leading indicators you will coach to this quarter, and where the team will see them daily: *
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Checklist
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I coach leading indicators and report lagging ones
✓
My scoreboard is visible and reviewed in the huddle daily
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Monthly reviews start with wins and end with keep/start/stop
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I address a missed standard the same day, using data
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The standard is the same for everyone, including me
🧭 Agency Operations · 3 of 3
Time, Delegation, and Bottlenecks
The three things that decide whether the agency can grow past you.
Section LO-I — Time Management Is Not a Tool Problem
Name the Real Thing
No calendar app has ever fixed anybody’s time problem, because the question people are actually asking is: what tool will help me do the things I do not want to do, when I do not want to do them? There is no such tool. What we are managing is not time. It is avoidance.
Three things account for most of it, in my experience — and each one has a different fix:
1 · Anxiety
The task threatens how you see yourself. This is why the life conversation gets skipped, why the hard call does not get made, why the correction does not get given. Fix: shrink the task until it is not threatening. One call. One question. One pivot.
2 · Boredom
The task is below your stimulation threshold. Fix: time-box it and make it a game with a number attached.
3 · Rebellion
You resist it because it feels imposed. Fix: choose it out loud. Say why you decided it matters. Ownership beats obligation every time.
The uncomfortable truth
None of us feel like it. The tasks that grow you are, almost by definition, the ones you least feel like doing. Planning ahead and making it non-negotiable is not a productivity hack — it is the whole strategy.
Section LO-J — The Time Study
Five Days of Honesty
Log what you are doing every fifteen minutes, waking to bedtime, for five days. Be specific — "email" is useless, "responding to a billing question I could have routed" is data.
Tactical — working in the business. Customers, calls, servicing, team questions.
Strategic — working on the business. Planning, recruiting, marketing, building a process.
Admin — necessary, mostly delegable.
Development — training, reading, practicing.
Personal and self-care — this counts, and leaving it off is how people burn out.
Trivial — the honest category. Scrolling, complaining, browsing. Everyone has some. Write it down.
At the end of five days, ask three questions
What was repetitive? What was low-impact? What could someone else have done at eighty percent of my quality? Those three answers are your delegation list.
Section LO-K — Delegation
Do, Delegate, Delete
1 · DO
Only the things that genuinely require you. Leadership, strategy, the conversations only you can have.
2 · DELEGATE
The eighty percent rule — if someone can do it eighty percent as well as you, hand it off. Then document it and develop them. Waiting for someone to be able to do it perfectly is how owners stay stuck.
3 · DELETE
Low value, outdated, or a habit nobody ever questioned. This category is always bigger than people expect.
Run the sort every Monday
It is not a one-time exercise. New work arrives every week and it defaults to whoever is best at it, which is usually you. If it is not a high-value task, ask why you are still doing it.
If you are doing everything in the agency, you are the bottleneck. That is not an insult — it is the most common constraint in a growing agency, and it is completely fixable. But it will not fix itself, because being needed feels like being valuable.
Section LO-L — Find the One Bottleneck
Fix the Constraint, Not Everything
Growth stalls at one place at a time. Fixing five things at once spreads you thin and produces five band-aids. Find the one constraint, fix it properly, then find the next one.
Diagnose in order
Sales — not enough leads, not converting, not rounding out households. Profit — margin, cash flow, costs growing faster than revenue. Operations — inconsistent process, no documentation, everything routing through one person. Impact — weak retention, inconsistent customer experience, nothing that makes us different. Legacy — the agency cannot run without the owner, no one is being developed to lead.
1 · Name it
One sentence. If you cannot say it in one sentence you have not found it yet.
2 · Rate it
Urgency and impact, high/medium/low. Work the high-high.
3 · Set a real goal
With a number and a date. "Improve retention" is a wish; "raise retention two points by December 31" is a goal.
4 · List the actions
Three, with owners.
5 · Pick the metric
One number that tells you it is working.
6 · Set the review date
On the calendar now, not "we will check in."
THE ONE THING
Before you spend a dollar or hire a person, ask what the constraint actually is. More volume through a broken process does not produce more revenue — it produces more of the problem, faster.
Name the single biggest bottleneck in your area right now, and the one metric that would tell you it is fixed: *
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Checklist
✓
I can name whether my avoidance is anxiety, boredom, or rebellion
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I have run a five-day time study at least once
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I run the do/delegate/delete sort weekly
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I have named one bottleneck, one metric, and one review date
🛡️ Week 1 · IAO Module 4 · REQUIRED
Compliance, Ethics & Privacy
The rules that protect the customer, the agency, and your license. Not optional, and not a formality.
Read this first
Every other module in this portal teaches you how to sell. This one teaches you how to not lose what you sell. A single willful texting violation can cost more than a producer earns in a month.
Nobody in this agency has ever been in trouble for asking a compliance question. People do get fired for guessing.
Section 4A — Why This Exists
Three Regulators, One License
Insurance is a licensed profession operating inside consumer-protection law. You handle three legally sensitive things at once: other people's money, other people's private information, and unsolicited contact with the public. Each has its own regulator and its own penalties.
Most compliance failures are not committed by bad people. They are committed by good producers moving fast, being helpful, and not knowing where the line was. This module shows you the line before you are standing on it with a headset on.
Regulator
What it governs
Why you care
FCC / federal courts (TCPA)
How you may call and text
Consumers can sue you directly
FTC (TSR, GLBA Safeguards)
Do Not Call, and protecting customer data
Agency-level enforcement
State Dept. of Insurance
Your license, conduct, replacement, rebating
They can take your license
Scope note
The federal rules below are accurate as written. State-specific items are marked [STATE] and must be confirmed with your state department of insurance and, for anything material, agency counsel. This module is training, not legal advice.
Section 4B — TCPA
How You Are Allowed to Call and Text
The TCPA does not ban calling people. It bans calling and texting them in certain ways without the right level of consent. Two variables decide whether you are safe: how you are contacting them and what they agreed to.
How you are contacting
Consent required
Manually dialed call to a landline
Lowest bar — but Do Not Call rules still apply
Manually dialed call to a cell
Subject to DNC; safest with prior express consent
Autodialed or prerecorded call to a cell
Prior express consent
Any marketing text or SMS
Prior express WRITTEN consent
Prerecorded marketing call to a residence
Prior express written consent
"Prior express written consent" is a defined legal term, not a vibe. To count it must: be in writing (e-signature or web checkbox is fine); clearly authorize marketing messages, not just "contact"; name the specific seller; include the phone number being consented; state that consent is not a condition of purchase; and be conspicuous.
Purchased leads — read this twice
When we buy leads, the consent lives on the vendor's form, not ours. Two obligations are yours personally:
1. You are responsible for the consent you rely on. "The vendor said it was opt-in" has not historically protected agencies. If a lead is challenged we need the actual record — form language, timestamp, IP address, and the number consented.
2. Consent runs to a named seller. A form listing a hundred "marketing partners" is far weaker than one naming us.
If a lead looks stale, stripped of source detail, or the consumer says "I never filled anything out" — stop, log it, and tell your team lead. Do not keep dialing to see what happens.
Timing. Telemarketing calls only between 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. in the called party's local time — theirs, not yours. Check the area code, and remember area codes lie; people move and keep numbers.
Revocation — the rule people break by being nice. A consumer may revoke consent at any time, by any reasonable means. Verbally counts. "Take me off your list" counts. "Stop texting me" counts. When it happens: stop — do not rebut, do not "just quickly," do not pass it to another producer; acknowledge politely and end the call; log it to the internal DNC list the same day; and understand it applies across the whole agency and across channels.
Penalties
$500 per violation, trebled to $1,500 if willful or knowing. Per call. Per text. One afternoon on a scrubbed-but-not-really list becomes a five-figure problem, and these are frequently filed as class actions.
Section 4C — Do Not Call
Two Lists, Both Binding
The National Do Not Call Registry — scrub at least every 31 days, and retain proof. "We scrub regularly" is not a defense without records.
Our internal Do Not Call list — anyone who asks us not to contact them, regardless of source. Permanent, ours to maintain, honored immediately and never later than 30 days.
[STATE] Some states run their own registry with stricter rules. Confirm yours.
The Established Business Relationship exemption lets you call a number on the National Registry — but it is narrower than people assume: 18 months after the last purchase or payment, and only 3 months after an inquiry or application. An EBR does not override a direct request to stop calling, and it does not permit marketing texts.
Outbound and vendor-dialed calling
If any calling on our behalf is done by a third party or offshore vendor, we carry the liability for their conduct. Sellers are generally held responsible for calls made on their behalf.
If you coordinate with or take transfers from any outbound operation, you need to know four things: what list they are calling; when it was last scrubbed; what consent language sits behind it; and whether opt-outs flow back into our internal DNC list.
If you cannot answer all four, raise it. That is a legitimate escalation, not a nuisance.
Section 4D — Privacy
GLBA and the Safeguards Rule
Under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, insurance agencies are financial institutions. What customers give us is nonpublic personal information (NPI), and we have an affirmative legal duty to protect it.
What counts as NPI: name plus any of — Social Security number, driver's license, date of birth, address, phone, email, policy or account numbers, card or bank details, medical or health information, claims history, credit or insurance score, income.
The rules, in practice:
• Least access. Open a file when you have a business reason. Curiosity about a neighbor, relative, ex, or public figure is a terminable offense, and access is logged. • Never move NPI to personal channels — personal email, personal phone, personal cloud, notes apps, consumer messaging. Ever. • No NPI in AI chat tools unless explicitly approved. Pasting a dec page into an unapproved chatbot is a data disclosure. • Verify before you disclose. Pretext calls — someone posing as the insured, a spouse, a body shop, a lienholder — are real and common. • Spouses and adult children are not automatically authorized. Check for listed insureds or written authorization. • Lock your screen every time you stand up. Customers physically sit in both offices. • Shred paper. Nothing with NPI goes in a regular trash can. • No passwords, keys, tokens, or logins in shared docs, notes, or chat transcripts. Store the location and username, never the secret.
If something goes wrong
Suspected exposure — a misdirected email, a lost device, a phishing link you clicked, a file sent to the wrong customer — gets reported to the agency owner the same day. Breach notification clocks start at discovery, not at confession. Self-reporting promptly is doing your job correctly. Concealing is not.
Section 4E — Ethics
Your License Is the Asset
• Never sign a customer's name. Not to be helpful, not with verbal permission, not to beat a deadline. This ends careers. • Never misrepresent coverage. Do not say "you're fully covered." Describe what the policy does and does not do. • Never alter an application after signature. • Never guess at underwriting or claims outcomes. "I don't know, let me find out" is a professional answer. • Rebating — offering commission or anything of value as an inducement — is prohibited in most states. [STATE] • Do not quote or bind outside your license. Know your lines and your states. • Replacement. Replacing existing life or health coverage triggers disclosure and comparison requirements. Never let a customer cancel existing coverage before the new policy is confirmed in force. [STATE]
Suitability
Recommending a product a customer cannot afford, does not need, or does not understand is a compliance problem even when they say yes. The test is not "did they agree" — it is "was this appropriate, and can we show why."
Section 4F — E&O
Document Like You'll Be Asked to Prove It
E&O claims are rarely about a policy that failed. They are about a conversation nobody wrote down. The customer remembers being told they were covered. You remember explaining the limit. Two years later, the only thing that exists is the file.
Four things that must be in every file: what you recommended; what they chose; what they declined; and when, through what channel, attributable to you.
Document the decline
When a customer turns down umbrella, takes lower liability than you advised, declines UM/UIM, or skips the life policy — write it down that day, in their words:
"Recommended $500K/$500K liability and $1M umbrella. Customer elected state minimum liability and declined umbrella, citing budget. Explained the exposure. 8/19/26."
That sentence is what stands between the agency and a claim later.
Log the note during or right after the call, not at the end of the week. Confirm material changes in writing. Never promise an effective date you have not confirmed. If you told a customer something you later learn was wrong, correct it in writing promptly. Write every note assuming a plaintiff's attorney will read it aloud — factual, professional, no editorializing about the customer.
Section 4G — Escalation
When to Stop and Ask
Stop and go to your team lead or the agency owner when:
• A prospect says they never requested contact, or asks how you got their number • You are unsure whether a lead carries valid consent • Someone asks to be removed from any list • A caller wants policy information and you cannot verify who they are • A customer asks you to backdate, adjust, or omit something • You may have sent information to the wrong person • You are asked to quote a line or state you are not appointed for • Anything about the request simply feels off
Escalating costs a few minutes. Not escalating has cost agencies their appointment.
Self-Assessment
Answer in Your Own Words — Reviewed Before You Are Cleared for Outbound Contact
A purchased-lead prospect says they never filled out a form. Your next three actions, in order: *
A customer texts "stop." What exactly does that revoke, and how far does it extend? *
Prospect called us last week and verbally said "sure, text me." May you send a marketing text? Why? *
A customer declines the umbrella you recommended. Write the file note, verbatim: *
A caller says he is the insured's husband and wants policy limits. He is not listed. What do you do? *
You emailed a dec page to the wrong customer 20 minutes ago. What now? *
Acknowledgement
Completing this module records that you have read and understood these standards and agree to escalate rather than guess. Completion is dated and retained.
📄 Week 1 · IAO Module 5 · REQUIRED
Insurance Literacy — Reading a Policy
Before you can sell coverage or service it, you have to be able to read it.
Why this comes before product training
Most new producers learn to recite coverages without ever learning to read a declarations page. Then a customer emails their current policy and asks "am I covered?" and they freeze. Forty-five minutes here removes that permanently.
Section 5A — Anatomy
The Five Parts of Every Policy
Every P&C policy from every carrier is built from the same five parts. Learn the parts and you can read any policy from any company.
Part
What it does
What to look for
Declarations
The personalized page — who, what, how much, how long, what it costs
Named insured, dates, limits, deductibles, listed property
Insuring Agreement
The carrier's promise — what they agree to pay for
The trigger: what must happen before coverage responds
Definitions
Words with specific legal meaning, not everyday meaning
"Insured," "occurrence," "auto," "residence premises" — these decide claims
Exclusions
What is carved out
Where most claim disputes actually live
Conditions
Duties both sides owe
Notice requirements, cooperation, proof of loss, cancellation
Endorsements sit on top and modify any of the above. An endorsement always beats the base form where they conflict.
Section 5B — The Dec Page
Read It in This Order, Every Time
The dec page is the most useful document in the business. When a prospect sends their current policy, this is the page you want.
1. Named insured — exactly who is covered, and who is missing. An unlisted spouse or adult child is both a coverage gap and a service authorization problem. 2. Policy period — when they can move and when they cannot. 3. Covered property or vehicles — VINs, addresses, scheduled items. 4. Coverages and limits — line by line. This is where the gaps are. 5. Deductibles — including separate ones. Wind/hail, hurricane, and percentage deductibles are easy to miss. 6. Endorsements list — a column of form numbers people skip. Read it. 7. Discounts applied — shows what they have and what they are missing. 8. Premium — last, not first.
The discipline that matters
Read the limits before you read the price. If you look at premium first, you will unconsciously build a quote to beat a number instead of a quote that protects a household. That habit produces cheap policies, bad claims experiences, and E&O exposure.
Section 5C — Limits
How the Numbers Actually Work
Split limits — written as three numbers, 25/50/25, meaning $25,000 bodily injury per person; $50,000 bodily injury per accident for everyone combined; $25,000 property damage per accident.
Say it in dollars, not jargon
A customer hearing "twenty-five fifty twenty-five" learns nothing. A customer hearing "if you hurt two people, there's fifty thousand total to split between them — and one hospital stay burns that in a day" learns something.
Combined single limit — one pool for bodily injury and property damage together. More flexible, because it does not strand money in the wrong bucket.
Per occurrence vs. aggregate — per occurrence caps a single event; aggregate caps the total for the policy term. Once the aggregate is exhausted the policy is done for the year, even with months left.
Section 5D — Deductibles
Flat, Percentage, and the One That Surprises People
• Flat dollar — a fixed amount per claim. • Percentage — a percent of the dwelling limit, not of the loss. On a $400,000 home, a 2% wind deductible is $8,000. That is not what the customer thinks it is. Explain it every time. • Separate peril deductibles — wind/hail, hurricane, and earthquake often carry their own, higher deductible.
Raising a deductible lowers premium and transfers risk onto a household that may not have the cash. Ask directly: "If this happened tomorrow, could you write that check?"
Section 5E — Valuation
The Difference That Decides Claims
Basis
Pays
Customer impact
Replacement Cost (RCV)
Cost to replace with like kind and quality, no depreciation
What most people assume they have
Actual Cash Value (ACV)
Replacement cost minus depreciation
A 15-year-old roof may pay pennies on the dollar
Agreed / Stated Value
A pre-agreed amount
Collectibles and specialty items
The ACV roof conversation
A customer with an ACV roof endorsement and a 20-year-old roof is functionally uninsured for the most likely large claim they will ever file. Find it on the dec page. Say it plainly. Document their decision either way.
Section 5F — Vocabulary
Terms You Need on Day One
• Peril — the cause of loss (fire, wind, theft). • Named peril vs. open peril — named peril covers only what is listed; open peril covers everything except what is excluded. Open peril is broader. • Occurrence — the triggering event. Its definition decides how many deductibles apply. • Subrogation — the carrier's right to recover from the at-fault party after paying. • Coinsurance — a penalty for underinsuring; carry less than required and the carrier pays less than the loss. • Loss of use / ALE — pays to live elsewhere while a home is uninhabitable. • Binder — temporary proof of coverage before the policy issues. • Lienholder / mortgagee / loss payee — third parties with a financial interest who must be listed. • Underwriting — the carrier's decision to accept, price, or decline. Not yours to promise.
Self-Assessment
Work These Out Loud With Your Team Lead
25/50/25, three people injured, $180,000 in total medical bills. What pays, and what is the customer exposed to? *
$450,000 dwelling, 2% wind deductible, $12,000 roof damage. What does the customer receive? *
Explain ACV vs. RCV to a customer with an 18-year-old roof, under 60 words: *
A prospect sends a dec page. First five things you check, and why: *
Named peril vs. open peril — which would you rather have on a home, and why? *
🚗 Week 2 · IAO Module 6 · REQUIRED
Auto Coverage Deep Dive
Every coverage on an auto policy, what it does, and the conversation that goes with it.
Section 6A — The Six Coverages
What Each One Actually Does
An auto policy is six separate coverages sold together. Customers routinely misunderstand which one pays for what.
1. Bodily Injury Liability (BI) — pays for injuries you cause to other people: their medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, plus your legal defense. This is the coverage that protects everything the customer owns. Minimum limits exist to satisfy the state, not to protect a household.
2. Property Damage Liability (PD) — damage you cause to other people's property. New vehicles routinely exceed $50,000, so low PD limits are a real exposure now, not a theoretical one.
3. Medical Payments / PIP — medical expenses for you and your passengers, regardless of fault. Small limits, fast payment, no deductible.
4. Uninsured / Underinsured Motorist (UM/UIM) — pays your injuries when the at-fault driver has nothing or not enough.
The most under-explained coverage in the industry
A meaningful share of drivers carry no insurance, and a much larger share carry state minimums. If a customer buys high BI limits to protect others but low UM limits, they have protected everyone except their own family. Say that out loud. Document their choice.
5. Comprehensive — damage to their vehicle from non-collision causes: theft, fire, vandalism, hail, flood, falling objects, animal strikes. Deductible applies.
6. Collision — damage to their vehicle from impact or rollover, regardless of fault. Deductible applies.
Comp and collision together are what a lienholder requires. When a loan is paid off customers sometimes drop them — their right, but they are then self-insuring the vehicle.
Section 6B — The Forgotten Coverages
Small Premium, Large Goodwill
• Rental reimbursement — inexpensive, and its absence is the single most common source of post-claim frustration. • Roadside / towing — small premium, frequent use, high goodwill. • Gap coverage — pays the difference between what is owed and what the car is worth when totaled. Critical for long loans and low down payments. Without it, a customer owes money on a car they no longer have. • Rideshare / delivery endorsement — a personal auto policy generally excludes driving for hire. If a customer drives for any app and has not told you, they have a gap during the exact hours they are earning. Ask every customer directly. • Custom equipment — wheels, lift kits, sound systems, wraps. Base policies limit or exclude these.
Section 6C — Who Is Covered
And Who Is Not
• Resident relatives are generally covered — which is why an unlisted teenage driver is both an underwriting and a coverage problem. • Permissive users — someone borrowing with permission is usually covered at the owner's limits, and the owner's policy pays first. • Excluded drivers — if a driver is named-excluded there is no coverage when they drive. Confirm the customer fully understands this. • Business use — commuting is personal; hauling, delivering, or transporting for a business is not. Business use on a personal policy is a denial waiting to happen.
Section 6D — Discovery
Eight Questions That Prevent Gaps
Ask these on every auto quote. They surface exposures a customer will never volunteer.
1. Who else lives in the household, and does anyone else ever drive these vehicles? 2. Any drivers with a permit or about to be licensed? 3. Does anyone drive for rideshare, delivery, or app-based work? 4. Is any vehicle used for business at all? 5. Are any of these financed or leased? How much is owed versus what it is worth? 6. If someone hit you and had no insurance, what would that do to your family financially? 7. If your car were in the shop two weeks, how would you get to work? 8. Any aftermarket equipment on any of these?
Section 6E — Language
Two Framings That Work
The asset frame
"Liability isn't there to fix your car — it's there so that if you seriously hurt someone, they get taken care of and nobody comes after your house or your paycheck. So the real question is: what are we protecting?"
The other-driver frame
"Here's the part most people don't think about. You can buy all the coverage in the world to protect other people, but if the person who hits you has nothing, your own policy is what takes care of your family. That's this line right here."
Practice both out loud until they are yours, not recited.
Self-Assessment
Practice These Before You Take Live Calls
"Just give me the state minimum, I'm a good driver." Respond in three sentences without arguing: *
Car totaled, owes $28,000, worth $21,000, no gap coverage. What happens, and what should have been offered? *
Explain comprehensive vs. collision to someone who has never bought insurance: *
A customer mentions driving "a little for DoorDash on weekends." What do you do? *
Why is 250/500 BI with 25/50 UM badly protected? Explain it to the customer: *
🏠 Week 2 · IAO Module 7 · REQUIRED
Home & Property Deep Dive
The six coverage parts, the exclusions behind every hard claim conversation, and how to spot underinsurance on sight.
Section 7A — The Six Parts
How a Homeowners Policy Is Built
Part
Covers
Typical basis
Coverage A — Dwelling
The house and attached structures
% of replacement cost; drives most other limits
Coverage B — Other Structures
Detached garage, fence, shed, pool
Often ~10% of A
Coverage C — Personal Property
Contents
Often ~50–70% of A
Coverage D — Loss of Use
Living expenses while displaced
Often ~20% of A
Coverage E — Personal Liability
Injury or damage you are liable for, anywhere
Per occurrence limit
Coverage F — Medical Payments
Guest medical, no fault needed
Small flat limit
Coverage A is the anchor. Move it and B, C, and D usually move with it — which is why setting the dwelling limit correctly matters more than any other single decision on the policy.
Section 7B — Coverage A
It Is Not the Purchase Price
The most common objection, and the correct answer
"I paid $310,000 for this house — why are you insuring it for $390,000?"
Because the policy rebuilds the structure; it does not buy the property. Purchase price includes land, location, and market conditions. Rebuild cost includes demolition, debris removal, current material and labor prices, and current building code. Those numbers move independently — and in a hot construction market, rebuild cost can exceed market value substantially.
Related traps:
• Coinsurance / insurance-to-value. Underinsuring can reduce payment on partial losses, not just total ones. Customers assume small claims are safe. They are not. • Ordinance or law. Base policies often do not pay the extra cost to rebuild to current code. On an older home this gap is enormous — wiring, plumbing, and structural requirements all have to come up to code, and the base policy may only restore what was there. • Extended or guaranteed replacement cost endorsements add a cushion above Coverage A. Worth offering on every home.
Section 7C — Personal Property
The Sub-Limits Nobody Reads
Coverage C looks generous until you read the special limits. These categories are typically capped far below real value — jewelry, watches and furs (especially for theft), firearms, silverware, cash and precious metals, business property in the home, and electronics used for business.
Scheduling an item removes the sub-limit, usually removes the deductible, and broadens covered perils — including mysterious disappearance.
The question that finds it
"Is there anything in the house that would genuinely hurt to lose and isn't easily replaced?"
Wedding rings and inherited jewelry are the answers you will hear most.
Also confirm whether contents are ACV or replacement cost. ACV contents on a fully furnished home is a bad surprise at the worst possible moment.
Section 7D — Exclusions
Where Every Hard Claim Conversation Comes From
• Flood. Excluded on virtually every homeowners policy — requires a separate flood policy. Being outside a mapped flood zone does not mean water cannot enter; a large share of flood claims occur outside high-risk zones. Offer it, and document the decline. • Earth movement. Earthquake, sinkhole, landslide — typically excluded, sometimes available by endorsement. • Wear, tear, and maintenance. Insurance covers sudden and accidental events, not deterioration. An aging roof that finally leaks is maintenance. • Seepage over time. A slow leak over weeks is usually excluded; a pipe that bursts is usually covered. Sudden versus gradual. • Sewer and drain backup. Commonly excluded, cheaply endorsed, frequently claimed. Offer it every time. • Mold. Heavily limited. • Business activity in the home. Even a small home business usually needs its own coverage.
Section 7E — Liability
The Household Risk Audit
Coverage E follows the family, not the house — it responds if the dog bites someone at the park. Ask about:
• Dogs — breed and bite history. Some breeds are restricted or excluded. • Pools, hot tubs, trampolines — attractive nuisances that drive both underwriting and limits. • Recreational vehicles — ATVs, golf carts, boats, and their use on and off premises. • Rental or roommate situations — changes the policy form entirely. • Teen drivers and social hosting — a real exposure in most households.
Section 7F — Other Property Forms
Renters, Condo, Landlord, Vacant
• Renters — contents, liability, loss of use. Inexpensive, badly under-sold, and the natural cross-sell on every auto-only young household. • Condo — interior finishes, contents, liability, loss assessment. The association master policy decides where their responsibility starts. Always ask which master policy type applies. • Landlord / dwelling fire — different form, includes loss of rents, excludes tenant contents. • Vacant or seasonal — vacancy triggers exclusions on a standard form. If a customer mentions a house sitting empty, escalate.
Self-Assessment
Practice These Before You Quote Property
Customer insists on insuring for the $290,000 they paid. Estimator says $365,000. Handle it in four sentences: *
Basement floods after heavy rain. Which causes are covered, which are not, and why? *
Customer inherited a $14,000 ring. What happens without scheduling, and what changes with it? *
What is ordinance or law coverage, and which customer needs it most? *
Five household questions that surface liability exposure, and what each looks for: *
☂️ Week 2 · IAO Module 8 · REQUIRED
Umbrella, Specialty & the Odd Lines
The coverages that sit on top of everything else, and the ones customers own but never mention.
Section 8A — Personal Umbrella
Liability Above Everything Else
An umbrella provides liability coverage above the limits of the underlying auto and home policies, and in some cases broader than them.
• Requires underlying limits — the carrier specifies minimum auto and home liability before an umbrella attaches. If the customer lowers underlying limits later, the umbrella can be compromised. • Sold in millions. The first million is inexpensive relative to what it does; each additional million typically costs less than the first. • Covers bodily injury, property damage, and often personal injury offenses the underlying policies exclude — libel, slander, false arrest, invasion of privacy. • Follows the family worldwide, not just the house or the car.
Who needs one — far more people than buy one
Anyone with meaningful assets or meaningful future income. But also: households with teen drivers, dog owners, pool owners, landlords, coaches and volunteers, people who host, people who serve on a nonprofit board, and anyone with a social media presence.
A judgment is collected from assets and future wages. A young household with no savings and forty working years left has a great deal to lose.
Framing it without fear-selling
"Your auto liability stops at $500,000. If something happens that costs more than that, the rest comes out of your savings and your paycheck for as long as it takes. An umbrella picks up where that stops. It's usually a couple hundred dollars a year for a million dollars of protection — the cheapest coverage on your whole account per dollar of protection."
Then let them decide, and document the decline if they pass. Per Module 4, that note is one of the most valuable things in the file.
Section 8B — Watercraft
Where the Homeowners Policy Stops
Homeowners policies cover only small, low-horsepower boats — usually far less than customers assume. A separate boat or yacht policy covers hull, liability, medical, uninsured boater, wreck removal, and fuel spill liability.
The sleeper exposure
Fuel spill and wreck removal. Cleanup liability can dwarf the value of the boat itself.
Ask about length, horsepower, value, where it is used, where it is stored, and whether it is ever chartered or lent out.
Section 8C — Recreational Vehicles
Motorhomes, Trailers, ATVs, Motorcycles
• Motorhomes need coverage for both the vehicle and its use as a residence — contents, liability at the campsite, and emergency expense when it breaks down far from home. • Travel trailers — liability while towing generally follows the tow vehicle, but the trailer and its contents need their own coverage. • ATVs, UTVs, golf carts, dirt bikes — usually excluded off-premises by a homeowners policy. Very commonly uninsured, and increasingly involved in serious injury claims. • Motorcycles — separate policy. Watch custom parts and passenger liability, both limited by default.
Section 8D — Other Lines Worth Asking About
The Ones Customers Never Mention
• Flood — separate policy, always. There is typically a waiting period before coverage takes effect, so this cannot be handled the week a storm is forecast. • Earthquake — endorsement or standalone, with a percentage deductible. • Scheduled personal articles — jewelry, firearms, instruments, cameras, collectibles, fine art. • Identity restoration — inexpensive, and the claim is a service the customer genuinely cannot perform alone. • Small business / BOP — the moment a customer mentions a side business run from home, their personal policies stop responding. • Landlord policies — for any customer who owns rental property.
Section 8E — The One Question
That Finds All of It
Ask this at the end of every household review
"Besides the cars and the house, is there anything else you own that has a title, a motor, or real value? Boat, camper, four-wheeler, side business, rental property, anything like that?"
That single question surfaces more uninsured exposure than any other in this curriculum. Ask it every time, and write down the answer even when the answer is "no."
Self-Assessment
Practice These Out Loud
A 29-year-old renter with $6,000 saved asks why she would ever need an umbrella. Answer honestly: *
Customer lowers auto liability to save money and has an existing umbrella. What is the risk? *
Customer mentions a four-wheeler the kids ride at home and at a friend's. What do you ask and recommend? *
Why can't a customer buy flood coverage the day before a forecasted storm? *
Write the "anything else you own" question in your own voice: *
📚 Reference
Resource Library
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