Top of the table

Fresh out of the University of South Florida in 1985, David Jones dreamed of being a stockbroker.

But with no experience in the industry, Jones was counseled to get some sales experience in the insurance business. So he moved back to Naples to work for Prudential Insurance.

Five years later, in 1990, Jones became the top agent of Prudential's 18,000-strong army of insurance salesmen, a feat he would repeat three years in a row. His sales prowess led him to start his own insurance brokerage firm, David M. Jones & Associates.

For the 20th year in a row, Jones is about to be a Top of the Table member of the industry's Million Dollar Round Table. Already an exclusive club, the Million Dollar Round Table is a group of 38,000 of the top insurance agents in the world. Of that, just 1,800 were considered Top of the Table, the crème de la crème of the organization.

With a staff of just four people in Naples, Jones generates $25 million in life insurance premiums annually. He has been able to do this by being focused on a specific niche: Helping wealthy retirees manage their estate-tax burdens using life insurance.

When he started working for Prudential, Jones sold every kind of insurance from auto to health and life. He even sold mutual funds. Early on, he spent evenings meeting with clients. The formula was simple: “Activity equals appointments, appointments equals sales,” he says.

But fortunately, Jones worked in Naples. “I figured out there were lots of retirees here and they were happy to meet in the daytime,” says Jones, who was eager to be home with his family in the evenings.

Working with retirees also helped Jones realize they needed life insurance for estate-tax planning purposes. In the 1980s, the federal estate-tax exemption was just $600,000. To help defray the costs, retirees bought large life insurance policies to cover those liabilities for heirs. For example, the estate of retirees with $3 million in those days might owe as much as $1 million in estate taxes.

“I just wanted to focus on life insurance and estate planning,” Jones says. “I didn't want to see anyone under 60.”

Jones says this reinforced his belief that it was essential to have products you could sell that were designed for niches in the market. “I took it to the next level and geared it for retirees,” he says.

Fewer customers are better because you can communicate with each one personally, he says. “Every time you contact them, you're deepening your relationship with them,” says Jones, who will travel out of state to meet with customers.

Besides referrals from customers and estate-planning attorneys, Jones says informational seminars have been a good way to get new clients. “Most life-insurance agents don't do seminars,” he says.

Generally, Jones presents six seminars a year and about 10 to 15 people attend. “We try not to offer food,” he says. “You get a higher quality of person that's interested. I want to be the star of the show.”

One of the most important aspects of selling life insurance is to make it simple. “I don't find it beneficial to slap down a 30-page proposal,” says Jones, who lays out the plan on a single page. “One of my claims to fame is to make something complicated simple.”

This is especially important now that the estate-tax exemption has increased. Only those with estates of more than $10 million really need to worry about estate taxes, Jones says.

But many people who acquired policies under the old tax regime can benefit from exchanging for better policies. Jones says he can shop for such clients and, in about 70% of cases, he can find them deals that are at least 15% better than what they have now. “It gives me a sense of accomplishment,” he says.

Sales Tips
Keep it simple: David Jones distills complex estate-planning information into a single page for clients.

Focus on a niche: Jones focused on life insurance for estate planning, a lucrative area with fewer competitors.

More customers aren't necessarily better: Give your best customers more individual attention.