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How do you play the wholesale rep game?

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Mar 31, 2007 2:20 pm

[quote=AllREIT][quote=vbrainy]And I love to ask the annuity sales men the tough questions they can't answer (ie: explain the tax treatment at death with an annuity vs. mutual funds)[/quote]

The annuity sales people are good to learn from since the scare tactics used to push annuities can also be used to promote more sound investment schemes.

For example, I use elements of the Prudential Retirement Red Zone pitch to get people to tighten up thier portfolio's around age 55 or so.

In general though, wholesalers are a waste of time, since their job is to sell you on funds. This is useless unless you are selling funds which you are not doing while meeting with wholesalers.
[/quote]

People make financial decisions with two emotions, fear and greed. That's what you have to sell to. Greed tactics work pretty well, too, but fear is stronger than greed.

I hope you rookies realize that I just gave away the keys to the treasury.

Apr 1, 2007 12:13 am

[quote=anonymous]

You are 100% wrong.  You better start having a business owner's mentality instead of an employee's mentality.   

[/quote]

Anonymous it really amazes me that you are in this business.  You really sound like the type of advisor that has his 75 year old and 35 year old clients in identical portfolios.  As I said in my original post I am a rookie and don't have any clients yet.  I am in pre-production and am not allowed to meet or obtain clients for at least 30 days.  So, my situation is different from most of you. 

Either you have no reading comprehension skills, or you really are the advisor who thinks everyone is the same and sticks them all in the same investments.  Being in the situation that I am in I really could use a free meal and some insight to these different funds.  I am spending my pre-production time learning products and selling skills so why not learn about the different funds??  If I was in a situation where I was in production and needing to get to 50 prospects a day I would agree with you that the wholesaler lunch would be a waste of my time.  You really need to learn to listen/read and look at other peoples situation before you blurt out your 2 cents.  Isn't that what a financial advisors role is??  Oh, and don't try and judge me on the thickness of my skin you have no clue what I have gone through to get to this point. 

Apr 1, 2007 12:33 am

[quote=BullBroker][quote=anonymous]

You are 100% wrong.  You better start having a business owner's mentality instead of an employee's mentality.   

[/quote]

Anonymous it really amazes me that you are in this business.  You really sound like the type of advisor that has his 75 year old and 35 year old clients in identical portfolios.  As I said in my original post I am a rookie and don't have any clients yet.  I am in pre-production and am not allowed to meet or obtain clients for at least 30 days.  So, my situation is different from most of you. 

Either you have no reading comprehension skills, or you really are the advisor who thinks everyone is the same and sticks them all in the same investments.  Being in the situation that I am in I really could use a free meal and some insight to these different funds.  I am spending my pre-production time learning products and selling skills so why not learn about the different funds??  If I was in a situation where I was in production and needing to get to 50 prospects a day I would agree with you that the wholesaler lunch would be a waste of my time.  You really need to learn to listen/read and look at other peoples situation before you blurt out your 2 cents.  Isn't that what a financial advisors role is??  Oh, and don't try and judge me on the thickness of my skin you have no clue what I have gone through to get to this point. 

[/quote]

If you're not a broker, why do you call yourself one?

Apr 1, 2007 4:29 am

[quote=BullBroker]As I said in my original post I am a rookie and don’t
have any clients yet.  I am in pre-production and am not allowed
to meet or obtain clients for at least 30 days.  So, my situation
is different from most of you.[/quote]



That was not obvious from your original post. On the whole, the general
gist of this thread still stands; wholesalers are low value. If you
want to see what all the whole salers can offer you as training, get
Tony Fadool’s book. He’s the chief sales coach for Federated.



If I had to pick one thing to do during training, it would be to take a
Dale Carnegie course. I’d also get a copy of spin selling/spin selling
work book and work on developing my questioning process so it was very
natural.




Apr 1, 2007 4:48 am

Tony Fadool is the funniest MFer I have ever met.  I have about 20
of his quotes in my bag all the time.  Like when he orders a
drink…“Kettle one on the rocks, extra kettle One and easy on the
rocks…you got that? Good!” (as he adjusts his tie like Rodney
Dangerfield).  Does anyone remember the video they made abotu 10
yaears ago where he ahd the 1970’s afro?



I have played golf with him a few times and OH MY GOD!!! ON THE TEE
BOX??!!  I will never forget we were playing at Oakmont one year
and he asked the caddy on the green to pick up his ball and drop it in
the hole because  "moses spoke to him…and he preferred not to go
to Hell…the broker can have the game…but really…moses gave it up."
Anyone else hung out with him? I did not know he had a book, but I
willl be looking for it tomorrow!

Apr 1, 2007 7:36 am

[quote=rightway]
Anyone else hung out with him? I did not know he had a book, but I
willl be looking for it tomorrow!
[/quote]



Here’s the link to his book (on Amazon.com)



The Grass is Always Greener When You Water It



It’s pretty light, but yet if you think and apply the idea’s, you’ll
get a good amount out of it. I’d sure like to meet the author in
person.








Apr 1, 2007 2:29 pm

[quote=rightway]Tony Fadool is the funniest MFer I have ever met.  I have about 20 of his quotes in my bag all the time.  Like when he orders a drink..."Kettle one on the rocks, extra kettle One and easy on the rocks...you got that? Good!" (as he adjusts his tie like Rodney Dangerfield).  Does anyone remember the video they made abotu 10 yaears ago where he ahd the 1970's afro?

I have played golf with him a few times and OH MY GOD!!! ON THE TEE BOX??!!  I will never forget we were playing at Oakmont one year and he asked the caddy on the green to pick up his ball and drop it in the hole because  "moses spoke to him...and he preferred not to go to Hell..the broker can have the game...but really...moses gave it up." Anyone else hung out with him? I did not know he had a book, but I willl be looking for it tomorrow! [/quote]

I've hung out with him. We went up on the space shuttle together after playing 36 at Oakmont.

Apr 1, 2007 7:25 pm

Cool Amazon link. If you just scan the table of contents there and follow your intuition, you have plenty to work on.

Wow, Bobby, no wonder you seem so relaxed and have so much perspective.

Apr 2, 2007 9:01 pm

[quote=rightway]Tony Fadool is the funniest MFer I have ever met.  I have about 20 of his quotes in my bag all the time.  Like when he orders a drink..."Kettle one on the rocks, extra kettle One and easy on the rocks...you got that? Good!" (as he adjusts his tie like Rodney Dangerfield).  Does anyone remember the video they made abotu 10 yaears ago where he ahd the 1970's afro?

I have played golf with him a few times and OH MY GOD!!! ON THE TEE BOX??!!  I will never forget we were playing at Oakmont one year and he asked the caddy on the green to pick up his ball and drop it in the hole because  "moses spoke to him...and he preferred not to go to Hell..the broker can have the game...but really...moses gave it up." Anyone else hung out with him? I did not know he had a book, but I willl be looking for it tomorrow! [/quote]

Sounds a lot like Tom Bartow. 

Only not "give you nightmares" scary.

Apr 2, 2007 10:45 pm

[quote=Bobby Hull]

[/quote]

If you're not a broker, why do you call yourself one?

[/quote]

Well I am fully licensed and am employeed as a FA for one of the largest "broker"age firms in the world, what would you have me call myself???  Oh, and I do have clients they are just parked under another FA's number til I get through assesments. 

Apr 3, 2007 5:09 pm

Hey, BullBroker, I think that the proper title for yourself at this point is "secretary".

At sounds like you would just prefer for us to tell you what you want to hear.  "It's definitely a worthwhile use of time to go to lunch with wholesalers...especially if they take you someplace expensive.   Clients don't have time to meet with you during lunch.  The older brokers in your office don't have a clue.  They would have more clients if they'd spend more time with wholesalers."

Apr 3, 2007 5:32 pm

Look if you’re not even in production yet maybe you can pick up a few ideas and learn a few new concepts. 

Having said that:
1.)  Make sure that the wholesaler understands where you are at in your career.  You don’t want to burn prospective sources of seminar support by having them spend their budget on taking you out for an expensive lunch(es) and them have them ticked off when they find out you’re not in a position to give them any love in return.

2.)  Learn what you can, but understand that once you get in production you need to keep your business simple and focus on a few ideas and themes because you will be busy raising assets.

3.)  Don’t get used to it.  Once you are in production you really are wasting your time if you go out and meet over a meal with more than one wholesaler a month.  Trust me on this.

Apr 3, 2007 6:52 pm

[quote=joedabrkr]Look if you’re not even in production yet maybe you
can pick up a few ideas and learn a few new concepts. 

Having said that:
1.) 
Make sure that the wholesaler understands where you are at in your
career.  You don’t want to burn prospective sources of seminar
support by having them spend their budget on taking you out for an
expensive lunch(es) and them have them ticked off when they find out
you’re not in a position to give them any love in return.

2.) 
Learn what you can, but understand that once you get in production you
need to keep your business simple and focus on a few ideas and themes
because you will be busy raising assets.

3.)  Don’t get
used to it.  Once you are in production you really are wasting
your time if you go out and meet over a meal with more than one
wholesaler a month.  Trust me on this.

[/quote]



At the risk of continuing this silly topic. Here’s a strike list.


Attend a muni fund presentation. You want to really develop your pitch on munibonds.
Attend prudential’s retirement red zone presentation.
Learn to give an asset allocation talk cold. And I do mean cold.

3.5) Attend a target date presentation.
Read your firms macro outlook and learn to how to be topical about it. You may learn something.
Same thing with fund conference calls. These people are mostly smart and you should learn from them.
Apr 4, 2007 4:42 am

Wow, Joe and AllReit productive comments I am impressed.  Anonymous just continue being the piker that we all now know you are.  The whole, “let’s make the newbies feel like complete idiots for asking questions and trying to learn the biz” thing is getting really old.  I realize we do ask some stupid questions, but we are new and at one time I am willing to bet you were new too.  If you are not willing to contribute to the success of this industry keep your post to yourself.  Registered Rep needs to add a category to this forum called “Old and Useless” just so anonymous can post all he wants. 

Apr 4, 2007 5:11 am

[quote=BullBroker]Wow, Joe and AllReit productive comments I am impressed.  Anonymous just continue being the piker that we all now know you are.  The whole, “let’s make the newbies feel like complete idiots for asking questions and trying to learn the biz” thing is getting really old.  I realize we do ask some stupid questions, but we are new and at one time I am willing to bet you were new too.  If you are not willing to contribute to the success of this industry keep your post to yourself.  Registered Rep needs to add a category to this forum called “Old and Useless” just so anonymous can post all he wants.  [/quote]

Yes we’ve all asked stupid questions in our days.  But many of us have a low tolerance for newbs with a crappy attitude, and whiners who complain when they don’t get the answer they wanted.  Didn’t you say you weren’t even in production yet?

We don’t need to try to make you sound like an idiot; you do a fine job of that on your own most of the time you post.

How about if instead they add a thread just for YOU called: “New and Knows it ALL”?

Good luck.

Apr 4, 2007 6:29 am

[quote=joedabrkr]

How about if instead they add a thread just for YOU called: “New and Knows it ALL”?

[/quote]

For you we’ll add a thread called, “I have no friends and that’s why I insult people on Registered Rep all day” or “I have a small penis.”

Apr 4, 2007 1:56 pm

I realize we do ask some stupid questions, but we are new and at one time I am willing to bet you were new too. 

The difference is that when I was young and stupid, I was smart enough to listen to the veterans in the office instead of fellow newbys.  I'm sorry that you have trouble hearing things that you don't want to hear.  It does not bode well for your future in this business.

Apr 4, 2007 4:53 pm

Yes, there is latitude that we should give new guys in the business.<?:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

BUT!

1. If you are new, do not waste time on website forums! We were all new once and the fact is, we worked ourselves stupid to get a grub stake in this business. Therefore, when we see some rookie in here, we feel like the best advice we can give is "Get back to work!" That new guy interpret that as "Go away kid, you stink of bubble gum and lollipops!" is their personal problem.

2. There is new and there is "I fell off the turnip truck last night!" new. There are questions about the industry that are specific to the industry and there are questions that are basic human intelligence questions. "How should I go about pitching my money managers to the local hospital foundation?" is a specific industry question. "Whom should I believe, the guys in my office that have made it or the young guys who haven't quite made it yet?" is a mouth breather question.

Should you go out to wholesaler lunches? Yes and no. Go sometimes and don't go most times. To look at it as the last meal I might have in a nice restaurant is a defeatist attitude which will kill you faster than the flesh eating virus! If you believe in yourself so little that you can't even make up your mind in this area... why should a client listen to your advice?

Believe me, you will spend plenty of time pondering that unfathomable anyway, and you really don't want to feed that insecurity by doing things that cripple your performance.  This isn't about being a newgro in this business; this is something that you should already know about being a grownup.

I think that Anonymous was giving you quality advice, and you should be thanking him for the spanking he is giving you! "Thank you sir, can I have another!"

Apr 4, 2007 9:16 pm

[quote=Whomitmayconcer]


<o:p></o:p>

2. There is new and there is "I fell off the turnip truck last night!" new.

[/quote]

Classic!


Apr 4, 2007 11:16 pm

For all of you who have yet to understand the concept of reading comprehension I will say it for the last time then I am done with this topic.  My original question was “What do you do when the wholesaler comes to take you to lunch?”  I NEVER asked “do I listen to the new guys or the vets?”  It is laughably ironic that you insinuate that I am an idiot when you obviously didn’t comprehend the original question.  I didn’t ask for advice on the subject or for comments on my intelligence.  I asked a very simple question about what you do, and because of the quality of people that responded it turned into a bash session on newbies.  I will leave it at that because obviously everyone on this post is a certified genius and has made ka-billions in this industry.