TOT Q&A: Leelee Stone, MM, a six-year MDRT member from Hamilton, New Zealand

What were the biggest challenges preventing you from moving from Court of the Table to Top of the Table?

Handing objections and managing my sales process.

What are the most significant changes you made to overcome those difficulties, and how could you tell that the changes were working? What should others know about how to follow your example?

I have learned some really useful techniques from MDRT conferences and from other top advisors attending the conference. For example, one year an advisor shared how he asks for referrals upon signing the clients. He asks the clients who just signed all the documents and decided to proceed with the application to provide him with three names as their emergency contacts. He explains to the clients, “In case something happens to both you and your wife, those are the people I should be in contact with regarding your life insurance policies.” Then he asks the clients to let those three people know that he would give them a call. So, when he actually calls those people, they would naturally ask about insurance. I thought that was really smart, so I started using that technique too. It helped with my sales process instantly.

What roadblocks did you encounter during this process? What else had to be adjusted that you didn’t expect?

I found that some techniques don’t apply to the client segment I am working with. So, I adopted the techniques I learned from MDRT and modified it to my own way. I attended the small session at the MDRT Global Conference and found I can learn lots of useful tips from those small sessions. Some speakers shared their success stories of selling whole life and term life policies. But in New Zealand, we don’t have life policies with cash values, so it’s always hard to sell life policies to very young people. I work with lots of young people who have no liabilities, but I applied the technique I learned from other advisors and changed my storytelling approach to paint a picture of happiness for the clients to secure their future income for their families. Even though they are young, they still have someone they want to look after, and everyone wants a happy ending. So, I convince them to make arrangements and provisions early for their life insurance.

How did you utilize MDRT to help move to the next level?

Continue learning to instantly improve myself.

How long did it take between when you first became a member and when you first reached Top of the Table? How long did it take to go from Court of the Table to Top of the Table?

One year. In fact, I qualified for Top of the Table in my first year of membership, but the insurance company who did my certificate made a mistake on my application certificate. I only found out about the mistake after attending the conference. When I got back to New Zealand, I contacted the insurance company who provided me with the certificate, and they amended it for me after speaking to the MDRT New Zealand Chair. But I didn’t submit a request to MDRT to alter my membership status, as I didn’t see a need to do that.

How else have you grown and changed to get to where you are now, and how do you track these changes to measure your performance? What specifically would you advise to other members looking to make the same progress?

I have completely changed my sales process since COVID. First, I moved my whole sales process online. I have an e-version of my sales kit (pictures and materials I use for sales) so I can easily share them with clients. Then, I did some recordings about different products to send to potential clients. Since I do all my appointments over the phone now, I can’t waste too much time going through product details; instead, I want to focus on the concept and advice. Additionally, I get my PAs to help me follow up after my phone conversation with clients to ensure all paperwork is done in time. I also worked on how to talk to people over the phone to keep them focused on what I have said and not drift off after 10 minutes.  
I like my current sales process better, as it allows me to be more productive and more flexible. I am able to balance my life and work much better. I highly recommend that others review their processes and change it to fit the new way of dealing with clients.

How have you engaged with MDRT during your membership?

I have attended MDRT conferences every year and checked the MDRT resources online. I also spoke to other top MDRT advisors. I found that to be very helpful.

How can MDRT help support members once they reach Top of the Table?

Have a chat group of Top of the Table advisors so we can share ideas with each other and ask questions about areas we need help with. Also, sharing short videos or articles about insurance-selling tips from the success stories of our peers.