Can anyone tell me the honest truth about SHC?

Posted: Thu Feb 05, 2009 05:11 am Post Subject:

Brad, I've not come across anyone yet who would complain about the supplementary health product sold by SHC, but I'm afraid that the stories about the long hours are true. Also, I've read some comments over the net that Senior Health Care Consultants often fails to meet the promises made to their agents. However, since you are not shy of hard works, it might not become an issue for you. Regarding meeting your kids in the weekends, I guess you would be able to set the appointments accordingly. Also, you may have to work out a method with immediate senior so that things run smoothly for both.

Posted: Thu Feb 05, 2009 07:06 am Post Subject:

There are tons of insurance products and insurance-related products that are over sold. I'm not familiar with this one, but it is up to you to make sure that your clients are aware of the significant limitations of the plan.

The broker has responsibilities to both the insurance carrier and the client. Make sure you have a product that allows you to be fair to both parties. If not, find a product that will help you meet your legal and moral obligations.

Posted: Sun Mar 15, 2009 12:16 am Post Subject:

SHC does not have one individual plan that they market. Senior Healthcare Consultants sells mostly Medicare Advantage plans, Medicare Supps, with occasional life insurance policies or long term care policies. They have offices in many different states and your experience is going to vary.

The office in SC, for example, works their agents from Tuesday - Friday with the option to work appointments on Saturdays. They normally set their agents 3-5 preset appointments on a daily basis...so it would be very difficult to drag a day from 7:30am to 11:00pm. Most of the applications of the products they sell are completed inside the home, and are very brief. (so not a whole lot of paperwork to do every evening!) I do not doubt that you could push yourself to the point of working crazy hours if you were so inclined to do so, but normally this would be during the 6 weeks of AEP (can explain if you're not familiar). During these 6 weeks, many agents make 1/4 or more of their annual income if they deal primarily with Medicare programs.

I'm sure that at this point you've been able to make up your own mind about SHC...and we'd love to hear about your experience.

Posted: Sun Mar 15, 2009 01:49 pm Post Subject: insurance

CHRIS.............I work with the Elderly, on a daily basis. I've heard of SHC, however......I'm unfamiliar on the products they sell. Is it products that the Elderly need day to day?is it Life Insurance policies?

Posted: Sun Mar 15, 2009 10:42 pm Post Subject:

SHC, while they do offer some life insurance and long term care insurance, primarily focuses on Medicare Advantage Plans and Medicare Supplements. If you need additional information on what these are, send me a message!

Posted: Mon Mar 16, 2009 12:48 am Post Subject: insurance

YEAH....I WOULD like some more information on it. Alot of my 'Clients' are curious about products that are available to the. Thanks.

Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 01:27 am Post Subject: SHC

I have been through the webinar by Fritz Simonson and have had a phone interview with him. Don't know if they are going to "select" me, but let me give you my thoughts about the company so far.
1. The management team is very young. Most are in their early 30s. I am always concerned when the people running a company are this young.
2. They are concerned with money and perks. They have a hunting lodge and they give away Range Rovers. I am always concerned with a "high roller" mentality. It is easy for people with this attitude lose site of the big picture.
3. Their CFO is not a CPA and apparently has never held any significant CFO or Controller position in the past. In fact, he used to be a salesman for SHC. This shows they are more concerned about sales experience than financial accounting experience. They won't be able to grow without real financial leadership.
4. They don't want to show you any financial information on the financial strength of the company. Let me ask you, if you are going to spend 60 to 70 hours a week building a commission stream, wouldn't you want to know how financially sound they are? Wouldn't it really suck if you worked for a couple years and then had the company go out of business and see your commissions go away? Of course you would. SHC won't do business with an insurance company if they aren't financially sound, why would you want to do business with a company that can't prove to you they are financially sound. Fritz got a little testy with me when I asked him for audited financial statements. Wonder why? If you are financially sound, you shouldn't have a problem showing financials.
5. Most of the testimonials on their website are officers or senior managers. Not much from the rank and file. Wonder why?
6. A new agent’s day will start at 6 am with a conference call with your manager. This was not disclosed until the phone interview. With this schedule it is conceivable you will be working 70 to 80 hours. The early literature says you will not have Saturday appointments, as you get further into the interview process, that becomes less clear. Additionally, they say you won't have appointments on Sunday or Monday, again given the "don't quit until you meet your quota" mentality, I don't believe it.
7. I would assume their sales have been taken a hit with the bad economy. Baby boomers are delaying retirement because their investments took a 30% to 50% hit last year. Since they are continuing to work, they are still receiving medical insurance from their company plans.
8. They like to send "new" salespeople to small towns. Apparently small town people are easier sells. So expect to log some serious out of town travel in your first year.
9. You do it their way or the highway. GEt used to that answer.
10. I asked him what happens when you go to an appointment and the person acts like they don't know about it or refuse to let you in. His response was you tell them you are going to call back to the "office" and listen to the recording of all the calls setting up the appointment. He said they will usually feel guilty and let you in. That is the type of attitude you have to have to succeed. I also asked him how he would handle an irate son or daughter that was upset you had their retired parent sign something without consulting the son or daughter. He said you ask them if the son or daughter is an expert in Medicare? Will it work? Probably. But that is the type of attitude you have to have. But the bottom line is you will pay $18 for each appointment, whether you get in the door or not. Translation, you are wrong, SHC is right. Get used to that answer.
11. They never talk about customer service. It is all about making your quota and doing it the SHC way. If you don't make a sale, it is your fault for not following the SHC way. They believe their approach is bulletproof if followed to the letter.
12. You have to pay for your own training. It is $599 plus travel, food and lodging in Dallas. The problem with paying for the training is they don't really have anything invested in making good selections for new agents. If an agent doesn't work out, SHC isn't out anything. No harm to the company. In fact, they just made money. A little bit of a conflict of interest here if you ask me.
13. Go watch the testimonials. Look at the senior executives eyes. Do you see any real empathy? Do you see any real excitement? Do they look exceptionally smart? Do you see anyone with gray hair? You be the judge.
14. They are very upfront about how hard the job is. They tell you what the costs will be and they tell you it is all about making money. I give them props for that. I am sure there are some people make a lot of money. I am also sure there are people who are barely making any money. I would say the people making a lot of money are few and far between, and that the executives are making a killing.
It really comes down to me that I don't know if they are financially stable and I question how young the management team is. I also see warning signs in the "high roller" personalities I see. I do think helping seniors make a decision on their healthcare is very important and I have no doubt that if you apply the SHC process you will be successful. But does that translate into actually helping the senior? Tough call.

Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 01:28 am Post Subject: SHC things to know

I have been through the webinar by Fritz Simonson and have had a phone interview with him. Don't know if they are going to "select" me, but let me give you my thoughts about the company so far.
1. The management team is very young. Most are in their early 30s. I am always concerned when the people running a company are this young.
2. They are concerned with money and perks. They have a hunting lodge and they give away Range Rovers. I am always concerned with a "high roller" mentality. It is easy for people with this attitude lose site of the big picture.
3. Their CFO is not a CPA and apparently has never held any significant CFO or Controller position in the past. In fact, he used to be a salesman for SHC. This shows they are more concerned about sales experience than financial accounting experience. They won't be able to grow without real financial leadership.
4. They don't want to show you any financial information on the financial strength of the company. Let me ask you, if you are going to spend 60 to 70 hours a week building a commission stream, wouldn't you want to know how financially sound they are? Wouldn't it really suck if you worked for a couple years and then had the company go out of business and see your commissions go away? Of course you would. SHC won't do business with an insurance company if they aren't financially sound, why would you want to do business with a company that can't prove to you they are financially sound. Fritz got a little testy with me when I asked him for audited financial statements. Wonder why? If you are financially sound, you shouldn't have a problem showing financials.
5. Most of the testimonials on their website are officers or senior managers. Not much from the rank and file. Wonder why?
6. A new agent’s day will start at 6 am with a conference call with your manager. This was not disclosed until the phone interview. With this schedule it is conceivable you will be working 70 to 80 hours. The early literature says you will not have Saturday appointments, as you get further into the interview process, that becomes less clear. Additionally, they say you won't have appointments on Sunday or Monday, again given the "don't quit until you meet your quota" mentality, I don't believe it.
7. I would assume their sales have been taken a hit with the bad economy. Baby boomers are delaying retirement because their investments took a 30% to 50% hit last year. Since they are continuing to work, they are still receiving medical insurance from their company plans.
8. They like to send "new" salespeople to small towns. Apparently small town people are easier sells. So expect to log some serious out of town travel in your first year.
9. You do it their way or the highway. GEt used to that answer.
10. I asked him what happens when you go to an appointment and the person acts like they don't know about it or refuse to let you in. His response was you tell them you are going to call back to the "office" and listen to the recording of all the calls setting up the appointment. He said they will usually feel guilty and let you in. That is the type of attitude you have to have to succeed. I also asked him how he would handle an irate son or daughter that was upset you had their retired parent sign something without consulting the son or daughter. He said you ask them if the son or daughter is an expert in Medicare? Will it work? Probably. But that is the type of attitude you have to have. But the bottom line is you will pay $18 for each appointment, whether you get in the door or not. Translation, you are wrong, SHC is right. Get used to that answer.
11. They never talk about customer service. It is all about making your quota and doing it the SHC way. If you don't make a sale, it is your fault for not following the SHC way. They believe their approach is bulletproof if followed to the letter.
12. You have to pay for your own training. It is $599 plus travel, food and lodging in Dallas. The problem with paying for the training is they don't really have anything invested in making good selections for new agents. If an agent doesn't work out, SHC isn't out anything. No harm to the company. In fact, they just made money. A little bit of a conflict of interest here if you ask me.
13. Go watch the testimonials. Look at the senior executives eyes. Do you see any real empathy? Do you see any real excitement? Do they look exceptionally smart? Do you see anyone with gray hair? You be the judge.
14. They are very upfront about how hard the job is. They tell you what the costs will be and they tell you it is all about making money. I give them props for that. I am sure there are some people make a lot of money. I am also sure there are people who are barely making any money. I would say the people making a lot of money are few and far between, and that the executives are making a killing.
It really comes down to me that I don't know if they are financially stable and I question how young the management team is. I also see warning signs in the "high roller" personalities I see. I do think helping seniors make a decision on their healthcare is very important and I have no doubt that if you apply the SHC process you will be successful. But does that translate into actually helping the senior? Tough call.

Posted: Fri Sep 25, 2009 01:53 am Post Subject: SCH

I went to the Fritz seminar online tonight. I have to say I was very impressed with the presentation. Then they forward you an email of plz pay $599. for training and then $18. for each appointment whether your sell anything or not. So basically you start out with -$600.00 in your pocket and more if you want appointments. But also if you do look at it like a business as they say you should then really that's not alot of out of pocket money to invest in any business. I do believe that they will weed out more , quicker, if they were just upfront and honest in the presentation to start with! I personaly like the idea but financialy in this economy with a family cannot take the chance as of yet or I would!

Posted: Fri Oct 09, 2009 06:47 pm Post Subject: SHC

Thanks for all the comments, especially from saintknowitall . I believe in helping fellow seniors and in working hard, but
The CFO thing and the testimonials by mostly youngsters did get my attention, and the fees.
I was just ready to call to interview for the job, but now - NO THANKS.