V. AIL's core market is waning
W. Extremely limited product offering
X. You will work 70-80 hours per week
Y. Several hours wasted per week in "rah-rah" cheerleader meetings
Z. Torchmark (AIL's parent company), and AIL itself, are baby gazelles among a pride of lions
A. In my opinion, the training program is the best in the industry, for what AIL does.
B. You work hard in a structured, scheduled environment, and you will develop good habits that will help you down the road.
C. The referral system works well and you will get off to a fast start. Also, it circumvents the needs to sell to friends and family, and this is a plus for some people. My office zealously promoted how great it is that you don't have to sell to friends and family, and used that to attract new hires. However, you will find that the most successful agents are happy and excited to sell to family because 1. they believe in their product and want to help people with it, and 2. have that outgoing personality. If you have qualms about selling to friends & fam, I invite you to reconsider your profession/company.
D. At AIL, there are only two reasons you will not make money. 1. You don't go to work (you don't set appointments), and 2. you don't know what you're saying (you deviate from the videos/script).
E. The commission structure is okay, but as I state in the title - there is better out there.
V. AIL's niche market is unions and union members, and low-income, working-class families that are referred. Unions are not only falling apart on their own, but Right-to-Work legislation will continue to be passed and diminish the core market.
W. You will offer only very limited low face value life insurance products (that the vast majority of your clientele cannot afford) and hospital and cancer plans that 99% of the time are not needed. Also, the potential good you can do for families and the money that is "left on the table" because you can't/don't sell retirement, savings, or debt solution products is simply staggering.
X. Because of V. and W., you will work - alot. Your market can afford only small policies, and small policies means low commissions, even though the commission structure is decent. This means you need to make many, many more sales and work MANY more hours here to make the same money you would with less hours somewhere better. This is not necessarily all bad, as it will put you in good work habits. But, you will eat, sleep, and breathe AIL. Beware: you cannot have a healthy family life and be an AIL agent.
Y. Admittedly, this is my opinion. Cheesy motivational meetings are unnecessary for me. But, they are necessary for the management to keep you involved and engaged, because, after time, you will begin to see that again, as has been said earlier, there is better out there when you get some experience.
Z. Torchmark and AIL are among the smallest entities in the national and international financial services/life insurance industry, both in dollar figures and in offices/personnel.
Sales is an amazing field! Truly, the income potential is nearly unlimited. You can achieve a dream life, its all about how excited you are. My recommendation to you: if you're new to sales, get in with AIL and spend 3, 6, maybe 12 months there. The experience will be invaluable, But, don't stick around - there is much better out there. Work hard, learn, and move forward. After you get experience, or if you are experienced, I would invite you to check out PRI. And, incidentally, if you're in the state of Missouri, call the local office and we'll get in touch; I'd love to have you on my team and take us both to the top.
I hope I was able to help you!
