Why the Current IMO Model Doesn’t Work
“Annuity commissions paid in one day. Client-facing annual reviews done for you in one click. The first end-to-end platform designed to manage every part of an annuity advisor’s business.”
That was some of the gossip Robert Smith, an accomplished financial advisor based in the Denver metropolitan area, heard surrounding a new Detroit-based insurance marketing organization. A company, if word proved true, that could help increase his production and streamline his business.
Skeptical after over a decade of false promises by other marketing organizations, the industry veteran had to see for himself how this firm — Signal Advisors — was different. Armed with a single case, a plane ticket and a little hope, he flew to their headquarters.
Robert had no idea that the rumors he heard about this firm were just the tip of the iceberg.
An IMO With NO Marketers
One of the first things you’ll hear from Signal Advisors’ co-founder, Patrick Kelly, is that his firm doesn’t use marketers. “We simply asked ourselves: How do we invest less in marketers and more in our advisors?” Patrick continues, “Marketers are the single largest expense for an IMO, sometimes upward of 50% of revenue. If you’re going to truly reinvent the IMO, you need to follow the money.
“This is how we can afford to do things other IMOs can’t, like pay commissions in one day, offer one-click annual reviews, and build out the first end-to-end technology platform for annuity advisors.
“Almost any producer can see the current IMO model doesn’t work,” Patrick reveals. “The more successful a marketer is, the more advisors they have on their team and the less time they have for you and your business.”
He would know. Patrick spent a decade as a financial advisor, built industry-leading annuity software and has partnered with nearly every top IMO in the country.
“How do we invest less in marketers and more in our advisors?”
— Patrick Kelly, Co-founder and CEO, Signal Advisors
An End-To-End Platform To End Other Platforms
While some IMOs offer customer relationship management systems, quoting engines and other tools, none keep everything an advisor would need under a single platform. “We’re a tech-enabled IMO that puts advisors first. We know the frustrations they have. So we completely invented our own platform to make it easier for them to run their business,” Patrick explains.
It seems Signal Advisors has the right team to pull this off. “We’ve been advisors, and we’ve built successful technology companies. No other IMO has that DNA. If you’re building an IMO today, in 2021, that’s the DNA you need.”
The result is the first end-to-end platform that simplifies every part of an advisor’s practice, from new business and case design to marketing and commissions. But perhaps the real icing on the cake is this...
Advisors Are Paid In 24 Hours
Often in the life and annuity world, commissions take time, sometimes months, to pay out. At Signal Advisors, all commissions are paid within 24 hours of an application being submitted in good order.
Paying annuity commissions in one day was what got Robert’s attention. But it was the end-to-end platform that would have a broader impact on his day-to-day business.
He had a case in hand when he arrived in Detroit to meet the team at Signal Advisors — and he was paid before his plane left for home.
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