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With many baby boomers losing their jobs or being forced to retire early, many are turning to Medicare to fill the gap created by the loss of their primary health insurance.  As experts in the field, we know that Medicare itself is insufficient to meet the needs of the long life expectancies of baby boomers and seniors.  With two Medicare solutions available – Medicare Supplement and Medicare Advantage – how is a client to choose which is the best for them?

In our experience, Medicare Supplement has proven to be a more stable product and suitable for the vast majority of clients.  Medicare Advantage can be a great option for the right client; however there are several inherent attributes that make it a riskier investment.  Here are some key risk points to discuss with your clients if you are considering selling Medicare Advantage:

• It may not be cheaper – Medicare Advantage may not cover the same benefits as traditional Medicare, leaving your clients to pay the full price for non-covered issues and for out-of-network services

• The rules change every year – Your clients’ plans may undergo changes to what they cover, or they may be combined with other plans. Either way, what your clients see in the beginning is not what they may get when they use it.

• Fraudulent marketing remains a problem – It is up to you to inform your existing and new clients of what is true and what isn’t.  Don’t let them be tempted by scams.

• Doctors and hospitals are increasingly refusing it – With doctors and hospitals receiving fewer reimbursements, many are no longer accepting Medicare Advantage.  Your clients must ensure that the medical facilities and physicians they go to accept it to be covered.

• Pre-certification may be required – Many Medicare Advantage plans require clients to meet certain criteria to be covered for certain types of care.  Failure to follow these rules can result in expensive penalties. This doesn’t apply to traditional Medicare or Medicare Supplements.

Proactively call your clients to alleviate their fears and concerns
The current recession is worsening everyday and is affecting the vast majority of people and businesses in some way.  One of the segments of society that has been hit hardest is the senior market.  Investments made by many seniors have seen huge losses, causing them to question the security of their retirements.  The doom and gloom stories of mass media are only fueling the concerns of seniors, with many articles spreading FUD.

As an expert, now is the perfect time to call your clients and answer questions, as well as correct any misinformation they may have come across.  Providing answers to their questions will alleviate their fears and concerns and further strengthen your advisor-client relationship.  If you don’t have the answers, work with them to find a solution – an excellent opportunity to cross sell a new product.

Quality in business is all about exceeding customer expectations.  “Exciters” are product and service benefits that excite customers because they don’t expect them.  Exciters are vital to increasing customer loyalty, recommendations, and brand image.  Proactively calling your clients, recession or no recession, is an exciter that is a sure way to grow your business over the long term.  Remember, retaining a current client costs five times less than gaining a new one.

In addition to your own Web site, you will also want to sign up for popular networking sites such as LinkedIn and Facebook.  These free sites allow you to post information about yourself and your business, and can act as a communications hub among you, your colleagues, and your clients.

Lastly, explore Web site forums and blogs related to your business and answer questions or comment on current issues. Slowly but surely you can establish yourself as an expert among those audiences leading to referrals and leads.  Don’t forget to plug your business by adding your professional contact information in your forum signature or after a comment you post on a blog.

Visit our blog each week for more tips. Also, if you have any brilliant ideas to contribute to this series please contact us to possibly have your own entry posted right here.