Denmark Coronel, a two-year MDRT from Baliuag, Philippines, learned the value of customer service from his previous jobs as a fast-food chain manager and flight attendant. During the pandemic, a cabin crew colleague who was also a financial advisor encouraged him to try financial advising as a side hustle. Since there were limited flights during that time, Coronel quickly accepted the offer. He started as a part-time advisor and decided to do it full-time when he recognized how the career could give him time, freedom, and a better income. Initially, he feared his lack of sales experience would be a significant disadvantage. However, his servicing skills, enthusiasm for human interaction, and passion for educating others led him to discover an essential aspect of financial advising that became a key element of his success and helped him reach his goal of qualifying for MDRT. “I always treat client interactions as an opportunity to learn new things about myself and my profession.”  

Coronel started building his client base by tapping the pandemic front liners, including doctors, nurses, and teachers from his warm market. When this market got exhausted, he switched to targeting business owners, recognizing the economic impact of the pandemic and responding to the growing number of Filipinos opening small businesses during the time. Currently, he services around 165 clients and handles 13 advisors under his team. Most of his clients are business people who had long been insurance believers and had existing policies before their meetings.

One of Coronel’s biggest clients, the owner of a gasoline station and trucking business, made him realize the importance of policy review and became his center of influence. “I waited patiently for two years before this client finally got a policy from me.” He discovered the client had six insurance policies and thought this was why she hesitated to get a new one. She pays 17,000 pesos monthly (about US$301.30) for one of her policies with a death benefit coverage of 4 million pesos (about US$70,893.72). After a careful policy review, he found that the client only had a total critical illness coverage of 800,000 pesos (about US$14,177.74), which shocked the client as the amount is insufficient to cover medical expenses if she becomes critically ill. Coronel pointed out there are policies within the same budget range that offer more coverage benefits.  

The client had undergone six policy presentations without realizing this gap. “That’s when it dawned on me that policy review is crucial to financial advising. Even if our clients have existing policies, reviewing them addresses gaps, if any.”  

Ninety-nine percent of the time, Coronel uncovered gaps mainly in critical illness coverage after conducting policy reviews. In the Philippines, treating critical illnesses such as cancer may cost over 1 million pesos (about US$17,718.87), according to the Philippine Institute for Development Studies. “I observed that most Filipinos are content with having only one insurance policy because they feel it already provides enough coverage. However, with the increasing healthcare costs, they ideally must have a critical illness coverage of at least 5 million pesos (about US$88,588.87), and more than one insurance policy may be necessary to cover it.” 

Coronel believes the need for eye-level communication between clients and financial advisors is one of the factors behind coverage gaps in their policies. “I avoid using jargon when communicating with clients. As much as possible, I use stories instead to help them have a clearer and more thorough understanding of the crucial details of their policies.” Business owners usually do not have enough time to examine their policies since they are busy managing their ventures.  “There are instances when clients make hasty financial decisions such as when a client had been persuaded to purchase an insurance policy impulsively while processing a car loan at a bank.” He believes financial advising is crucial to educating and ensuring clients understand their policies. 

“Offering policy reviews is one of the strategies I use to strengthen and expand my client base. I can establish my credibility and showcase my expertise since this process involves a detailed examination of client’s coverage and providing well-informed solutions and recommendations.” Coronel believes engaging with clients who have existing policies initiates deeper discussions and creates meaningful connections. “There is less friction since they already appreciate the importance of insurance. My role is to amplify their knowledge and understanding of it.” 

He shares the following advice for MDRT members in doing policy reviews: 

 1. Don’t be afraid to ask clients for essential details but assure them of confidentiality. Explain that more information, such as their net worth and properties, will determine if their existing policies have enough coverage.