Fact Finders: An Essential Tool for Senior Market Agents

What if there were a form that gave structure to your appointments? And what if that form also helped you cross-sell with minimal effort? 

There is, and that form is called by many as a fact finder.

Here’s everything you need to know about fact finders in the senior market, from fact finders you can download right now to best practices on using them effectively.

What is a Fact Finder?

An insurance fact finder is a questionnaire you use with prospects and clients to understand their needs and make personalized coverage recommendations.

Because we’re in the senior market, our fact finders are heavily focused on topics that include Medicare, retirement savings, and long-term care.

But a fact finder can be whatever you want it to be – you can add your own questions or remove them. You can also rewrite questions so they better fit your style and personality.

If there’s a need you want to uncover with your client, you can add a question that addresses it to your fact finder.

Client Review Form

Over the years, we’ve developed and fine-tuned what we call the Client Review Form.

It’s specifically for a well-rounded agent in the senior market who is prepared to help a client with the following needs:

• Medicare (whether it’s a supplement or Advantage plan)
• Cancer insurance
• Long-term care insurance (or short-term care)
• Life insurance, including final expense
• Annuities
• Part D (Drug Questionnaire)

We also ask some health questions within this form. This way, if that client would never qualify for a cancer policy as an example, you skip over that question.

If this sounds like a good fit for you, you can download it for free here: Client Review Form

Other Questions You Can Add to Your Fact Finder

Not seeing the questions you’d really like to ask? Here’s a list of other questions you can copy and add to your own, unique fact finder.

Medicare health plan questions:

• Do you travel often? If you do, where do you go?
• What funds do you have reserved to cover unexpected hospital bills?
• If I could find a plan that was exactly what you’re looking for, how would you describe it?
• How much did you spend on healthcare last year?
• Is it important that you keep your current doctors?
• When was the last rate increase on your Medicare Supplement plan, and how much was it?

Hospital indemnity plan questions:

• Does your Medicare Advantage plan cover an inpatient hospital stay for days 1-5?
• What’s your out of pocket cost for an inpatient hospital stay for 5 days?

Life insurance questions:

• How much have you set aside for funeral costs?
• If you were to pass away tomorrow, how much debt would you want to pay off for your family?
• If you were to pass away tomorrow, how much of your income would you want to replace for your spouse/family?
• Can your spouse live on one Social Security check if you pass away?
• When was the last time someone did a life insurance review for you?

Annuity questions:

• Which is the most important to you: earning interest, protecting your principal, or not outliving your savings?
• Out of the following three options, which one would you eliminate if you could: my nest egg grew, my nest egg stayed the same, my nest egg lost money?
• If your nest egg is in the stock market, would you accept a slightly lower interest rate in exchange for safety and no risk of losing your principal?

Long-term care questions:

• If you need long-term care, who do you plan on caring for you?
• If you needed long-term care, would you rather be in a nursing home or stay at home?
• If you need long-term care, which one of your assets would you intend to use first?

Best Practices for Using Fact Finders

When using a fact finder, there are a few tips to make sure you get the most out of it.

First, don’t fill out your fact finder digitally, if you can help it. Fill it out by hand in front of your client. This lets them know you’re catering your service to their needs, and you’re not just doing some standardized pitch to every client.

Second, go through the entire fact finder and ask all of your questions before going into sales presentations. Stopping halfway through to talk about the need for long-term care insurance will disrupt your entire flow and derail the appointment.

Ask all of your questions and give a summary of recommendations at the end.

If there are several needs, start with the most pressing so you don’t overwhelm your client. Here’s what Michael Sams, a high-volume producer, says in this situation:

Lastly, scan your finished fact finder into your CRM or other management system. You want to be able to reference your client’s answers in the future. Using a fact finder is great way to guide your appointment, get the essential information you need about your clients, and cross-sell to fill their needs.

Whatever fact finder you use, the important thing is that you’re asking the questions and understanding your client’s big picture. That’ll allow you to make the best recommendations for your client’s life, health, and wealth.

The bottom line? You don’t know if you don’t ask.