Starting from absolute zero - no license, no network, no family in finance. How did you actually break into business owners / buy-sells ?
Hey all, need some real-world advice from people who've actually done it.
I'm starting from below zero. No license yet, almost no family, no friends in business or finance, no one to get referrals from. I'm in the Pittsburgh area.
I got interested in the business owner market, specifically buy-sell agreements, and eventually I want to work with medical professionals. But I can't find any clear roadmap on how to get there.
Everywhere I look I get conflicting advice:
On one hand I hear "go get a list from CPAs and sit down with their clients." But no CPA will even talk to me if I haven't managed clients before, let alone give me a list, which I get.
On the other hand I see advice like "look up who funded their buy-sell and walk in cold and ask - if you died tomorrow, how would your partner pay off your wife?" Then the next person says "never do that, you'll get kicked out because you sound like a salesperson."
So I'm stuck. Is door-to-door with business owners really how it's done? Is there actual source material for this side of the business that I'm missing? It feels like no one talks about the how.
My I’m fully committed to be in the 10% that survives no matter what, because that’s my ninja way, and I'm dead serious about putting in the work. Not expecting any shortcuts. I just need to know the real path.
For those of you who made it to business owners and doctors:
Did you have to start by selling simple life insurance to individuals first?
How did you get your first business owner meetings with zero credibility?
How did you get a CPA or attorney to actually take you seriously at the beginning?
What got you your first 5-10 meetings? Walk-ins? BNI? Chamber? LinkedIn?
How did you get past the gatekeeper / owner not giving you the time of day?
What did your daily prospecting actually look like in year 1?
Any books, routines, or mentors that changed it for you?
TL;DR: No license yet, no network, starting from scratch. Want to get to business owners / buy-sell and eventually medical pros. Conflicting advice on cold pitching vs. relationships. What route actually worked for you when you started at zero?