Do you know the difference between alfalfa hay and Timothy hay? What about Hereford vs. Angus cows?
Or a Ford vs. John Deere tractor?

You better, says Robert Mearle Martin, CLU, if you want to include farmers on your list of clients.

“Farmers are funny critters,” said the 13-year MDRT member. “I’m not saying you have to smear cow manure on your shoes when you walk into their house, but if you don’t have the skills and ability of knowing what farm life is all about, most farmers would be kind to you and smile but not do business with you.”

Martin should know; not only did he grow up on a farm — yes, he can ace the above questions — but more than half of his business comes from farmers and the related companies they work with. But don’t mistake the rural setting or small community (the population is less than 7,000, and the high school’s mascot is the Grape Pickers) for small potatoes. Martin recalls a “Jeopardy!” TV game show question years ago about where the most millionaires per capita at the time could be found in the U.S. None of the contestants knew it was North East, Pennsylvania, USA, where he now works and called home for 32 years.

Yet thriving in this market, where thousands upon thousands of acres of grapes are used for wineries and for Welch’s grape juice, jams and jellies, isn’t just about having the right background. These are the keys Martin sees to his success in this niche.

Tapping in to an overlooked community

During the first 11 years with his carrier, Martin was involved in helping middle managers and agents build their locations. Wanting to more directly impact a rural community like where he was raised, Martin identified a market for its quantity of established, second- and third-generation farms. Upon taking over a branch from an agent who had been around for nearly 40 years, he immediately endeared himself to the community by hiring locals in his office. When he eventually broadened his offerings beyond life insurance and property and casualty to financial planning, he received countless calls from locals, who said they never thought they would need his advice but were now eager to get help. His two offices handle 4,000 households with Martin managing financial planning and investments along with a life specialist who has been with him for 22 years and a P&C specialist who has been around for 21.

Building relationships

“My style is we’re going to visit and talk, and when the time is right and you can see where you need to go, that’s when we’re going to move,” Martin said. “If you want to sit and talk about how your business is going and get a second set of eyes and ears on it, I’m your huckleberry.”

To wit: Last fall, a woman walked in with a note left by her recently deceased husband that said, “If I die before you, you take all our stuff to Bob Martin; he’s the only guy I trust.” Martin had met the couple 10 years before when he sold them a condo and used the man’s remodeling company to redo his office kitchen. Martin handled his home and auto insurance, but he had no idea about the $1.9 million that now needed to be managed for his widow and three sons.

“Farm folks don’t run into your office saying, ‘I got a million dollars; can you help me with this?’” said Martin, adding that one man just became a client 32 years after Martin bought a truck from his used car dealership. “No one wants to tell you how much they have, and you never really talk about money; you talk about what money can do.”

Diagnosing problems

Passing down hundreds of acres of grapes worth millions doesn’t happen on its own. Beyond building relationships with CPAs and attorneys to provide tax and legal assistance, including wills and trusts for clients, Martin talks clients through short- and long-term protection, using key person insurance and business continuity planning for core clients and hundreds of area small businesses. Numerous life insurance clients, like a former sheep farmer who bought a manufacturing company, also worked with Martin for tax assistance and for transitioning the business. With many farmers and some businesses being asset rich and cash poor, and sometimes needing life insurance to cover tax bills (Martin cites a local ladder manufacturer that needed to be sold when the owner’s sons couldn’t afford the tax to inherit the company), this is especially relevant as estate tax sunset rules arrive at the end of 2025 in the U.S.

Distinguishing competitor from enemy

Many years ago, another agent, Ralph, bought two practices and combined them. However, Ralph’s building was behind a large recreational vehicle dealership that obscured his signage and made his office hard to find. So, people would stop at Martin’s nearby office and ask for directions to Ralph’s practice, which did compete with Martin through a line of insurance products for manufacturers. When Ralph couldn’t afford to move to a more visible location, Martin helped to secure a loan so Ralph could remodel a house and open his office right across the street from Martin’s office, where he thrived until the business was sold. Now, Ralph’s in-laws, who run a sewing machine sales and repair business, are Martin’s next-door neighbors, as well as clients for their retirement and life insurance accounts. Nearly every time Martin talks with Ralph’s family, they bring up what Martin did for Ralph. “It’s not about trying to beat out the other advisor, or being overly aggressive,” Martin said. “In a rural farming community, that’s not going to fly.

“It’s all about relationships.”