Whether you're new to political advocacy or a grassroots leader, NAIFA's Get Out the Vote is a great resource for everything you need to know about NAIFA's political advocacy. Find information on polling dates and locations, ballot measures, and your elected officials. Brush up on Government 101 or find the text of individual bills—this site has useful information for everyone.

A new survey by NAIFA’s industry partner LIMRA and EY found that about 75% of employers believe they will need to modify their employee benefits packages within the next five years to attract and retain top talent. Among the top benefits employers believe workers will be most interested in are: life insurance, paid family and medical leave, short-term disability, long-term disability, and physical wellness programs. The survey also found that a significant portion of workers place a greater value on workplace insurance benefits – particularly health insurance, life insurance, and disability insurance – than they did prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.

As an insurance advisor for individuals on Medicare, it is critical that you do everything in your power to give your clients access to care through a well-thought-out and comprehensive insurance package. You can help them stay healthy by utilizing Medicare’s preventive health benefits. It can be challenging for your clients to keep up with the preventive services they have received and when they are eligible for another service.

Do you ask your clients for trusted contacts?

Since 2018, brokerage firms have been required by FINRA Rule 4512 to ask their retail customers to provide the name and contact information of a trusted contact person. Although the rule applies only to broker-dealers, it’s still a best practice for all wealth management and financial advisory firms to gather this information from clients. 

Unfortunately, time-strapped advisors too often treat getting trusted contacts as an administrative task versus an opportunity to grow their practice. Trusted contact record-keeping should be thought of as a critical practice infrastructure, contributing far more than a list of emergency numbers. If you’re not already asking clients for trusted contacts, here are two key reasons why you should.

Brian Falconer, LUTCF, is a Managing Partner at Securian Advisors of New England with a heart for serving Main Street USA and mentoring the next generation of financial professionals.

Getting Started

Brian Falconer says that when he was growing up in Portsmouth, NH, financial literacy was non-existent in his family. His grandparents were immigrants from Ireland, Scotland, and Italy, and none of them graduated from high school. When he attended Fordham University, he became the first in his family to attend college. He had always been good at math but found that majoring in accounting wasn’t for him. When he took courses and finance and economics, however, he found his passion and graduated with a major in finance and a minor in economics.

We’re proud to recognize NAIFA member Cheryl Canzanella, CLU, ChSNC, LUTCF, winner of two NAIFA 2022 Q2 awards. Canzanella won the Grand Prize in NAIFA’s Q2 Referral Contest, recruiting 17 new members. She was also honored as NAIFA’s Q2 Membership Hardhat Winner, given to a member who “lays it on the line” for NAIFA membership. 

NAIFA is sad to learn that NAIFA-Indiana Past President George "Andy" Beutter, LUTCF, FSS, LACP, passed away on July 2 in South Bend, IN. Well-loved by his community, Beutter’s passion was protecting families. He treated his clients like family and was known for his kindness, optimism, and passion for life. 

Beutter became a loyal member of NAIFA (then the National Association of Life Underwriters) in 1990. He served in many roles with NAIFA-IN, including as President from 2011-2012, Trustee, Treasurer, and member of the Government Relations Board and Committee and the State Executive Committee.

In 2012, Michael Case was working in sales and looking for a new career. In the process of administering his father’s estate, he was working with several financial service professionals and found their work intriguing. After a few conversations with the managing director at Northwestern Mutual, he decided to join Northwestern Mutual as a financial advisor.

Total U.S. life insurance new annualized premium increased 17% in the first quarter of 2022, representing the fifth consecutive quarter of double-digit premium growth, according to LIMRA’s First Quarter 2022 U.S. Retail Life Insurance Sales Survey.

“Nearly half of life insurers reported premium gains in the first quarter but the majority of the growth came from the top 10 carriers. Nine of the top 10 reported double-digit growth. Combined, their sales increased 32% from last year,” said John Carroll, senior vice president, head of insurance and annuities, LIMRA and LOMA. “While the overall number of policies sold was lower than the record sales set in first quarter 2021, policy sales matched pre-pandemic levels.”

For Nicholas Lamanna, serving his hardworking clients is a passion both inside and outside of the office.

Getting Started

When Nicholas Lamanna graduated from Old Dominion University, he moved just outside of Manhattan to become a standup comic. He was waiting tables during the day and performing at night but knew he needed to make more money. He didn’t know the first thing about finance, but a hiring manager at a Midtown investment bank decided to take a chance on him. After a year as a stockbroker, Lamanna decided to pursue a master’s degree in finance and started his career at Northwestern Mutual not long after.