We're hearing and reading a lot these days about the annuity market and how 2011 sales were a big improvement over 2010. We're also hearing a lot about how annuities seem almost perfectly designed for today's economic environment, especially in a society full of people who are living longer and growing concerned about outliving their savings.
In this roundtable, we look beyond the statistics and talk to the top producers who are generating those numbers.
To get the producer's perspective on today's annuity trends and how to capitalize on them, we turned to the following panel of top producers for their viewpoints: Ryan Pinney, Alan Schuh, and Kirk Wilkerson.
Ryan Pinney serves as the vice president of brokerage sales for Pinney Insurance Center, a national brokerage general agency that provides insurance, investment and financial planning advice combined with proprietary tools to assist agents and financial advisors. Ryan is a three-time MDRT Top of the Table qualifier. He currently serves as the local president of NAIFA Northern California, as a member of the MDRT Member Communications Committee and as a member of NAIFA California's Social Media Task Force.
Alan Schuh of Alan Schuh & Associates LLC, in Weston, Fla., has been helping individuals and business owners preserve their assets, increase their income and reduce income taxes for more than 23 years. As host of Safe Money Radio, he helps people protect their retirement money. His firm's mission is to teach clients safe-money strategies, with a focus on IRA/401(k) rollovers, retirement/income planning and capital transfer strategies.
Kirk Wilkerson of Forest City, N.C., is a registered representative and investment advisor representative who offers securities and investment advisory services through AXA Advisors LLC. Kirk is a nine-year Million Dollar Round Table member with six Court of the Table and one Top of the Table distinctions. His practice is dedicated to helping individuals and businesses build their financial futures.
Previously, the panel predicted even higher sales of annuities in 2012 and discussed variable and indexed annuities. This week, they look ahead at what's in store for the industry, innovations and the boomer market.
Major opportunities in aging boomers, volatile economy
Charles K. Hirsch: As you look at the trends in the annuity market, where do you see the biggest opportunities, and what are you doing to position yourself to take advantage of those opportunities?
Alan Schuh: Based on my daily interaction with clients and prospects, the greatest opportunities for life agents are in working with the boomers ages 50 to 65. These people have seen most of their assets decline in value during the past decade, and most of them are not adequately prepared financially to retire. In addition, other than government employees, most people will retire without a traditional pension to rely on. All they will have are their 401(k)s, IRAs and personal savings, and as we all know, many people have not saved enough money.
