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October 31, 2011 at 06:46 AM
Fixed annuities have always paid less compensation per premium dollar when compared with other carrier offerings, and those commission percentages keep getting lower. To increase revenues in these challenging times perhaps annuity agents could consider adding some high-margin sideline businesses. With tongue firmly in cheek, my research has uncovered several that appear to be highly profitable:
Watches. I haven’t worn a watch since I got my first cellphone, but it appears expensive watches are doing very well. In the last issue of Esquire there were nine full-page ads for watches that cost more than my first car. Obviously, annuity producers need to take the laptop out of the briefcase and instead bring a selection of Rolex or Seiko watches to the client’s home along with that annuity brochure.
Home-delivered catheters. I wasn’t aware that so many people needed cheap catheters until I started watching some of the non-network TV channels. Every fifth commercial told me how much money I could save by ordering mail order catheters. With the millions of dollars spent on TV advertising this has to be a high-margin business. The agent can offer the personal touch by delivering these catheters right to the consumer’s door along with the annuity contract.
Agent calling. A natural cosmetics site says by using vegetables from your backyard garden that you can make a decent living offering natural cosmetics. The message is you can retail these cosmetics for $8 to $15 and your actual per-unit cost is as low as 10 cents. How to get the word out? Get a booth at your town’s farmers market and display both your homemade cosmetics and top annuities.
