From Homeless to Sales Manager: The Unbelievable Transformation in Bill Sparks' Team

Freddy D: 00:00:00

William Sparks, or as he prefers being called Bill.

Freddy D: 00:00:03

Has been happily married to his wife, Brenda Sparks for 19 years.

Freddy D: 00:00:07

And they have a son named Will, who is starting his first year

Freddy D: 00:00:10

at the university of Memphis.

Freddy D: 00:00:13

He and his family enjoy traveling, hiking and trying out new restaurants

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all over the United States.

Freddy D: 00:00:19

After working as an executive in a chemical industry for 34 years,

Freddy D: 00:00:23

he retired and evaluated various entrepreneur opportunities.

Freddy D: 00:00:27

Ultimately, he decided to start a health insurance business, which has now been

Freddy D: 00:00:32

running for five years and he has grown.

Freddy D: 00:00:35

And to becoming the largest in the Southeast division for USHEALTH advisors.

Freddy D: 00:00:40

It's a very fulfilling business.

Freddy D: 00:00:42

As we help others attain quality and affordable health benefits.

Freddy D: 00:00:45

Bill states.

Freddy D: 00:00:46

Welcome Bill Sparks to the Business Superfan Podcast Show.

Freddy D: 00:00:49

How are you, Bill?

Bill Sparks: 00:00:50

Oh, man, for a Saturday morning, I'm pumped up.

Bill Sparks: 00:00:53

Good to see you again, my friend.

Bill Sparks: 00:00:54

It's been a long time.

Freddy D: 00:00:55

Yeah, it's been.

Freddy D: 00:00:56

We've known each other several decades, at least.

Bill Sparks: 00:00:58

Yeah, like you said, it's been a minute, that's for sure.

Freddy D: 00:01:01

It's been a minute, yes.

Freddy D: 00:01:02

So, tell us, how did you get started?

Freddy D: 00:01:05

I remember back in the day you were selling, chemicals

Freddy D: 00:01:08

sales and stuff like that.

Freddy D: 00:01:09

So, tell us a little bit about your background, how you got

Freddy D: 00:01:12

started into chemical sales and your story a little bit.

Bill Sparks: 00:01:16

All right, absolutely.

Bill Sparks: 00:01:17

Yes.

Bill Sparks: 00:01:17

So, when I came out of graduate school, I was at Georgia Tech with

Bill Sparks: 00:01:22

a major in polymer chemistry at the time finishing up my master's and.

Bill Sparks: 00:01:26

On my way to get my PhD and a real good advisor my counselor through that

Bill Sparks: 00:01:32

program and said, you know what, you've got a lot of natural sales ability and

Bill Sparks: 00:01:37

I think you would be better served going into the business aspect of this of this

Bill Sparks: 00:01:42

competency versus went into, academia.

Bill Sparks: 00:01:46

It was good advice, and so I from that point the chemical industry

Bill Sparks: 00:01:50

was booming back in the early 80s.

Bill Sparks: 00:01:52

That's when I was in grad school.

Bill Sparks: 00:01:55

so I took some interviews and at that time it was called Union Oil or UNICAL.

Bill Sparks: 00:02:00

I was looking for bringing in some, chemical engineers, some polymer engineers

Bill Sparks: 00:02:05

through a new sales training program.

Bill Sparks: 00:02:08

I think it started and they offered me the opportunity so.

Bill Sparks: 00:02:12

Wrapped up my master's program, graduated and took that opportunity.

Bill Sparks: 00:02:16

And that's really how I got into sales that opened the door for me.

Bill Sparks: 00:02:20

Training was excellent that, that platform that the stage for my future not only was

Bill Sparks: 00:02:27

that, that technical training, but also the Dell skills and the competencies.

Bill Sparks: 00:02:31

And as a result of that I met four or five mentors in that company.

Bill Sparks: 00:02:36

That helped me all the way through the 34 years, that I was in the chemical

Bill Sparks: 00:02:41

industry, and they, gave me good advice.

Bill Sparks: 00:02:43

They would affirm me, they pull me up, and open a lot of doors.

Bill Sparks: 00:02:46

So, there's a lot, to be said about that is networking and.

Bill Sparks: 00:02:51

Connecting with the right people and being loyal to them and, it can really help.

Bill Sparks: 00:02:56

So with that that launched my sales career I'm the goal setter.

Bill Sparks: 00:03:01

And at that point, I came out and I said, ago that I wanted to be in

Bill Sparks: 00:03:04

the president and CEO of a chemical company and not because of the

Bill Sparks: 00:03:10

position, but what I would become going down that path on that journey.

Bill Sparks: 00:03:15

What I would learn.

Bill Sparks: 00:03:17

And I knew if I ever made there, you made it there, then I accomplished

Bill Sparks: 00:03:20

a lot, learned a lot, and had, and certainly would have had the

Bill Sparks: 00:03:25

support of many people to get there.

Freddy D: 00:03:27

How did you get that support?

Freddy D: 00:03:28

Because that's really key is, okay you might have the skill set but if

Freddy D: 00:03:33

you don't have people backing you and believing in you, it doesn't work.

Bill Sparks: 00:03:38

Yeah, being young like that I was very enthusiastic was eager to

Bill Sparks: 00:03:42

learn, worked hard, and they saw that, they saw the effort, I supported them,

Bill Sparks: 00:03:47

in their efforts, I gave them 110%.

Bill Sparks: 00:03:49

So I built their loyalty.

Bill Sparks: 00:03:51

We work together.

Bill Sparks: 00:03:53

We accomplished a lot together.

Bill Sparks: 00:03:54

That helped a lot been successful helping them being successful.

Bill Sparks: 00:03:59

Really?

Bill Sparks: 00:03:59

That's how I built the their loyalty, their trust in me.

Bill Sparks: 00:04:03

And as you are now if you reach down and help and, pull someone up, you

Bill Sparks: 00:04:08

look for those people that, that are hungry, that, that want that help,

Bill Sparks: 00:04:12

that are really working hard, that would use your your expertise and

Bill Sparks: 00:04:16

wisdom and and they're committed to it, somebody that you can trust and

Bill Sparks: 00:04:21

that's naturally, that's why I developed not knowing that's what I was doing.

Bill Sparks: 00:04:25

But it was just being loyal to them, being trustworthy, working hard.

Bill Sparks: 00:04:30

And that's, it really solidified those relationships.

Freddy D: 00:04:33

So you built superfan relationships with those people because

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they believed in you and they knew that you had their loyalty and their trust.

Freddy D: 00:04:44

And so they were superfans of you.

Freddy D: 00:04:47

And because of the relationships that you built.

Freddy D: 00:04:50

They knew that, okay, Bill can get it done, and you were recommended

Freddy D: 00:04:54

for promotions and everything else because your mentors were

Freddy D: 00:04:57

superfans of, Bill Sparks.

Bill Sparks: 00:05:00

Correct.

Bill Sparks: 00:05:01

Yeah and you're right.

Bill Sparks: 00:05:02

I mean, they knew they could count on me.

Bill Sparks: 00:05:04

I would get it done.

Bill Sparks: 00:05:06

and I, there was no, waste of time.

Bill Sparks: 00:05:07

I went at it, completed it always exceeded what was expected and

Bill Sparks: 00:05:12

wanted more and more responsibility.

Bill Sparks: 00:05:14

And as I earned that trust and that success, they gave

Bill Sparks: 00:05:17

me more and, it pulled me up.

Bill Sparks: 00:05:18

I advanced pretty rapidly through the organization.

Bill Sparks: 00:05:22

It's a corporate world, it can be tough politically.

Bill Sparks: 00:05:25

So, it does help to have those superfans mentors, that'll watch your back,

Bill Sparks: 00:05:31

that'll help you, give you good advice.

Freddy D: 00:05:33

Well, that's the difference right there.

Freddy D: 00:05:34

That's completely the difference is having people believe in

Freddy D: 00:05:38

you and see your potential.

Freddy D: 00:05:40

And they talk you up as a super fan, they talk you up to the higher ups and

Freddy D: 00:05:46

that's the secret that a lot of people don't realize it's about building

Freddy D: 00:05:49

relationships and those relationships open up opportunities for other relationships

Freddy D: 00:05:55

that can change people's lives.

Bill Sparks: 00:05:58

Right and I wish I'd have been more aware of that, more conscious

Bill Sparks: 00:06:01

of it, what was really happening.

Bill Sparks: 00:06:03

I would have done more of it.

Bill Sparks: 00:06:05

We're not working.

Bill Sparks: 00:06:07

I did, and now I try to teach that to my son and as he builds his

Bill Sparks: 00:06:11

career and my agents, network, build those in actions and those

Bill Sparks: 00:06:15

superfans, they're gonna help you.

Bill Sparks: 00:06:17

and it started early and networking is key to anything in life.

Bill Sparks: 00:06:22

Your family your family relationships your business relationships,

Bill Sparks: 00:06:26

your church relationships.

Bill Sparks: 00:06:27

It's absolutely key.

Freddy D: 00:06:29

Oh, absolutely.

Freddy D: 00:06:30

It's all about relationships.

Freddy D: 00:06:31

And, the transactional mindset is good for a moment, but it's not a long term aspect.

Freddy D: 00:06:38

It's really long term is building those relationships and getting those

Freddy D: 00:06:43

people to become, brand advocates.

Freddy D: 00:06:45

I in turn call them business superfans, but basically they're advocates of not

Freddy D: 00:06:51

only the business, but the individuals that are involved in that business.

Freddy D: 00:06:57

So, tell us how did you transition, out of the chemical industry and get

Freddy D: 00:07:03

yourself going into working with the U.

Freddy D: 00:07:05

S.

Freddy D: 00:07:06

health advisors and providing, health care insurances for small businesses.

Bill Sparks: 00:07:11

Well, good question.

Bill Sparks: 00:07:13

So I reside in Memphis.

Bill Sparks: 00:07:14

I moved here several rows and one of those led to my ultimate goal.

Bill Sparks: 00:07:19

And that was to be, became president and CEO of a company in town, and had

Bill Sparks: 00:07:24

a contract with them that we did some good there changed a business from

Bill Sparks: 00:07:29

being non profitable to profitable and set it on the right path to growth.

Bill Sparks: 00:07:33

So I finished out my contract and was on to the next opportunity.

Bill Sparks: 00:07:37

We liked the area it was going to take me out of this area here.

Bill Sparks: 00:07:42

I've been traveling a lot, and you come to the crosswords and I've always wanted

Bill Sparks: 00:07:46

my own business, so I knew I'd had to make a decision that if I was going to do, go

Bill Sparks: 00:07:52

out on my own, that it was time to do it.

Bill Sparks: 00:07:55

And I had the resources that would give me time to to do that, to find

Bill Sparks: 00:07:58

something, and make the right decision.

Bill Sparks: 00:08:00

So that's what I did.

Bill Sparks: 00:08:01

I evaluated all types of opportunities, went through about 30 and then

Bill Sparks: 00:08:06

I really stumbled across U.

Bill Sparks: 00:08:08

S.

Bill Sparks: 00:08:08

Health by mistake because I was looking for health insurance.

Bill Sparks: 00:08:11

I was on, of course, the COBRA plan, which was very expensive, so.

Bill Sparks: 00:08:16

I was looking at the Obamacare plans, which were very expensive, and I

Bill Sparks: 00:08:20

knew there had to be a better way.

Bill Sparks: 00:08:21

And like my clients and like I was at that point at that time, I knew

Bill Sparks: 00:08:25

nothing about health insurance or private health insurance.

Bill Sparks: 00:08:28

so I met the division leader at a networking event and primarily we're

Bill Sparks: 00:08:33

just talking to him about his business and to share with him my challenges.

Bill Sparks: 00:08:38

So he invited me to come over to talk about 2 things.

Bill Sparks: 00:08:41

1 is he wanted me to consult for him to help build his business.

Bill Sparks: 00:08:44

Number 2 he wanted me to show what they offered for my personal use.

Bill Sparks: 00:08:49

I loved it.

Bill Sparks: 00:08:50

I couldn't believe the plans they had, the value that they, they offered.

Bill Sparks: 00:08:55

We talked a lot about the corporate structure, their strategy.

Bill Sparks: 00:08:59

Really bought into it.

Bill Sparks: 00:09:00

Got to meet some of their senior leaders.

Bill Sparks: 00:09:02

So I consulted for him for about 3 months and really saw the potential

Bill Sparks: 00:09:06

in this business and decided, this is something I want to do.

Bill Sparks: 00:09:10

and the reason was there's people out there to just, and

Bill Sparks: 00:09:13

especially small business owners that just don't know where to go.

Bill Sparks: 00:09:16

I saw an opportunity, I can speak their language being an executive

Bill Sparks: 00:09:21

coming from that background.

Bill Sparks: 00:09:23

And help them and guide them in the right way, and just point them, lay out

Bill Sparks: 00:09:27

their options and allow them to, and coach them to make the right decision.

Bill Sparks: 00:09:31

So, I saw that as something that would be rewarding to me.

Bill Sparks: 00:09:35

And that's how I got involved with it.

Bill Sparks: 00:09:36

Basically took that leap of faith.

Bill Sparks: 00:09:39

Walked away from.

Bill Sparks: 00:09:40

Chemical industry that have been in for 34 years took on a totally different right

Bill Sparks: 00:09:46

side, different side of my brain something new to me, but but everything I've learned

Bill Sparks: 00:09:50

in my sales experience and my management experience and the chemical industry

Bill Sparks: 00:09:56

transferred very nicely into this.

Bill Sparks: 00:09:59

So I yeah, I took that opportunity grew to be the largest

Bill Sparks: 00:10:02

producing agent in the region.

Bill Sparks: 00:10:05

I was rewarded for that given a lot of promotion opportunities.

Bill Sparks: 00:10:09

Last year I was what we call a field sales leader and had 40

Bill Sparks: 00:10:12

agents, working under my tutelage.

Bill Sparks: 00:10:15

So, that's really how I got into it.

Bill Sparks: 00:10:16

Have a look back.

Bill Sparks: 00:10:18

I've really enjoyed it and very excited about the future.

Bill Sparks: 00:10:20

I was telling my wife, she asked me when I'm going to slow down.

Bill Sparks: 00:10:23

I said, why?

Bill Sparks: 00:10:25

Enjoy what I do.

Freddy D: 00:10:26

That's the secret right there is enjoying what you do.

Freddy D: 00:10:28

So let's go back and say, okay, so you've got about 40 agents.

Freddy D: 00:10:32

How did you build those agents?

Freddy D: 00:10:34

And then how did you turn those agents into superfans of you,

Freddy D: 00:10:38

because they have to believe in you and help grow your business.

Bill Sparks: 00:10:43

In this kind of business, it's you gotta watch the walk.

Bill Sparks: 00:10:47

And 1, 1 aspect.

Bill Sparks: 00:10:49

So, the fact that I had been very successful as an agent, they were aware

Bill Sparks: 00:10:54

of and, so I also was able to develop a very good model that was transferable.

Bill Sparks: 00:11:00

sO it's a plug in system.

Bill Sparks: 00:11:03

I provide them a lot of on hands training.

Bill Sparks: 00:11:06

aNd then just on the way.

Bill Sparks: 00:11:08

Basically, if they're they buy into it and put the effort into it and learn

Bill Sparks: 00:11:13

the system that we've rolled out.

Bill Sparks: 00:11:16

Then they have a really good chance of being successful.

Bill Sparks: 00:11:18

So that, that really helps a lot is that trust in me and that trust in the

Bill Sparks: 00:11:23

system, trust in me based on my, my my personal success, trust in seeing

Bill Sparks: 00:11:29

other agents come in and plugging in the system and they are being

Bill Sparks: 00:11:33

successful, that carries a lot of weight.

Bill Sparks: 00:11:36

aNd then when we're there to help them, it's we're 24, seven

Bill Sparks: 00:11:40

and after about four weeks.

Bill Sparks: 00:11:42

If they're really committed to it they'll start to see success.

Bill Sparks: 00:11:46

They'll grow, those start to build momentum and start believing in it.

Freddy D: 00:11:50

So what do you do and how do you recognize them?

Freddy D: 00:11:53

Do you have any kind of recognition system in place?

Bill Sparks: 00:11:57

Well, we do, we set little milestones for them.

Bill Sparks: 00:12:00

The first four weeks that they have the opportunity to hit so many, hit.

Bill Sparks: 00:12:04

So many revenue dollars, we have 3 different milestones and it

Bill Sparks: 00:12:07

tells us how they're coming along.

Bill Sparks: 00:12:09

There's a low tier middle tier and high tier and that really shows us

Bill Sparks: 00:12:15

who has the commitment who can do this and it shows them and, they can do it.

Bill Sparks: 00:12:21

So there's monetary rewards for their recognition as a result of that.

Bill Sparks: 00:12:27

We're really big in recognizing our agents on a weekly basis.

Bill Sparks: 00:12:32

We have a sales meeting.

Bill Sparks: 00:12:33

It's very consistent, every Friday where we take time to recognize

Bill Sparks: 00:12:38

the success of the agents and they and there's that, the monetary

Bill Sparks: 00:12:42

rewards that come with it as well.

Bill Sparks: 00:12:44

sO that's encouraging and these folks that are successful in this

Bill Sparks: 00:12:47

business, they're very hungry and then most of them are very.

Bill Sparks: 00:12:50

Well, warranted, so having those milestones and having that monetary

Bill Sparks: 00:12:54

reward for them really helps them.

Freddy D: 00:12:56

Yeah, because if you remember my book, people will crawl through broken

Freddy D: 00:13:01

glass for appreciation and recognition.

Freddy D: 00:13:03

So recognition is very important.

Freddy D: 00:13:06

The monetary is nice, but that personal recognition, and especially

Freddy D: 00:13:10

if you're doing it in front of others, because it's one thing to say,

Freddy D: 00:13:13

Hey, Bill, thanks a lot.

Freddy D: 00:13:14

Really appreciate for all your great efforts.

Freddy D: 00:13:17

And it's another thing to say, Hey, everybody, I want to take a

Freddy D: 00:13:19

moment to recognize Bill Cooks.

Freddy D: 00:13:22

For his efforts in growing his area and everything else in front of an audience.

Freddy D: 00:13:28

That's a completely different level of recognition.

Bill Sparks: 00:13:31

Yeah.

Bill Sparks: 00:13:32

And it, and some people come into this kind of business that are, it

Bill Sparks: 00:13:37

changes their life, financially.

Bill Sparks: 00:13:38

I mean, some folks just, this is their last, last opportunity they're broke.

Bill Sparks: 00:13:43

And they have nothing to lose.

Bill Sparks: 00:13:45

And then you see those.

Bill Sparks: 00:13:46

Those individuals transform their whole life through this opportunity, making an

Bill Sparks: 00:13:52

income that they never thought was ever possible taking care of the families.

Bill Sparks: 00:13:57

It's, it's tremendous.

Freddy D: 00:14:00

And it's going to make you feel proud and good and giving

Freddy D: 00:14:03

you the energy to saying, wow, look I've brought, a team together and

Freddy D: 00:14:08

I've transformed people's lives.

Freddy D: 00:14:10

I mean, that's huge.

Bill Sparks: 00:14:12

And those are my superfans, ones that they transform their life.

Freddy D: 00:14:18

They look at you as, as, you're right there.

Freddy D: 00:14:21

They're your super fans.

Bill Sparks: 00:14:23

Yeah, and so from that point, once you get develop a couple layers of

Bill Sparks: 00:14:28

that success, then the recruiting and then the success and the energy in the office

Bill Sparks: 00:14:33

is, it's, you have a lot of momentum.

Freddy D: 00:14:36

Right.

Bill Sparks: 00:14:36

And it's, it's just a perpetual.

Bill Sparks: 00:14:39

So that's really how we, we get it started and you start 1 step at a time

Bill Sparks: 00:14:43

and you build that momentum and success builds on success and you get superfans

Bill Sparks: 00:14:48

and they believe in the system and then.

Freddy D: 00:14:50

It automatically tracks others.

Freddy D: 00:14:51

I remember watching years ago, a YouTube video and it, has nothing

Freddy D: 00:14:56

to do with business, but it has everything to do with business.

Freddy D: 00:14:59

It was like a rock concert and there was a guy dancing on the hill by himself.

Freddy D: 00:15:03

And someone's videotaping it looking like, look at this idiot, he's dancing

Freddy D: 00:15:06

by himself, all by himself, dancing and partying and having a good time.

Freddy D: 00:15:10

Next thing there's a second guy that comes in there and the two of

Freddy D: 00:15:13

them are starting to dance, and, he's got someone that believes in

Freddy D: 00:15:17

them and hanging out with them.

Freddy D: 00:15:19

Next thing you know, you got four people that come down, and the next thing

Freddy D: 00:15:23

you know is all of a sudden you get 20 people that run down and then the

Freddy D: 00:15:27

people that are filming, they get up.

Freddy D: 00:15:29

And they run into it that now there's a huge crowd partying and it was all because

Freddy D: 00:15:34

one guy believed in himself and did it.

Freddy D: 00:15:38

So you're doing the same thing as you started out by yourself.

Freddy D: 00:15:42

You attracted other people into the business.

Freddy D: 00:15:45

You've created an energized environment of a bunch of superfans and they're

Freddy D: 00:15:51

attracting other people, which is what what my whole, creating business

Freddy D: 00:15:55

superfans is all about, is you build that energy and those that team, you

Freddy D: 00:16:01

can't buy that kind of marketing because they're out there propelling it and their

Freddy D: 00:16:05

friends and their family members and everybody else they're telling everybody.

Bill Sparks: 00:16:09

And you're right.

Freddy D: 00:16:10

That's the cool part.

Bill Sparks: 00:16:11

Yeah.

Bill Sparks: 00:16:12

And you can't buy that.

Bill Sparks: 00:16:13

It's just, you got to believe in what you're doing and that radiates and

Bill Sparks: 00:16:18

people it will tell if you believe in it or not as a leader, and once, and

Bill Sparks: 00:16:22

they see that belief and confidence you have, and then they latch onto it.

Freddy D: 00:16:25

Absolutely.

Bill Sparks: 00:16:25

Absolutely.

Bill Sparks: 00:16:26

Yeah.

Freddy D: 00:16:27

So let's talk about customers.

Freddy D: 00:16:29

What do you guys do to really energize your customers to become superfans?

Freddy D: 00:16:34

So they're in turn telling other potential customers or their friends

Freddy D: 00:16:39

or their business partners to attract.

Freddy D: 00:16:43

Create that momentum from a customer base.

Bill Sparks: 00:16:46

This line of work on this business trust is very key.

Bill Sparks: 00:16:49

You're dealing with people's lives, their health.

Bill Sparks: 00:16:52

So you've got to establish that and earn that trust.

Bill Sparks: 00:16:55

And you do that in a number of different ways.

Bill Sparks: 00:16:57

And that's really where it starts.

Bill Sparks: 00:16:58

It's at the agent level.

Bill Sparks: 00:17:00

So we're through the competency that we offer.

Bill Sparks: 00:17:03

Laying out options being very consistent, the plans do deliver what we say.

Bill Sparks: 00:17:09

And as an agent or an advisor to your customer, we don't go away.

Bill Sparks: 00:17:12

Yeah, we're with them from what I call cradle to grave.

Bill Sparks: 00:17:16

So, the entire life of that customer relationship.

Bill Sparks: 00:17:19

So, we establish, we really work on building trust, being

Bill Sparks: 00:17:22

trustworthy, delivering value, through the plan performance.

Bill Sparks: 00:17:27

Being very competitive that's the, and that starts at the grassroot level.

Bill Sparks: 00:17:31

And then from that, they share, they refer their network to us.

Bill Sparks: 00:17:36

And that's really how we build our business is one customer at a time.

Bill Sparks: 00:17:40

And then we encourage them, to share.

Bill Sparks: 00:17:42

and we do offer them incentives if, they do want some business in our

Bill Sparks: 00:17:47

way and we're able to help them.

Bill Sparks: 00:17:49

Not that's a driver, but it's a little something that they can look forward to.

Bill Sparks: 00:17:53

But it is just in this business it's earning trust and being

Bill Sparks: 00:17:57

trustworthy and delivering on your promises and solving problems.

Bill Sparks: 00:18:01

There's not the perfect situation in anything.

Bill Sparks: 00:18:04

There was never the perfect product in the chemical industry and there's

Bill Sparks: 00:18:06

not the perfect health insurance plan.

Bill Sparks: 00:18:09

But we can't solve problems and we, we can put them in the

Bill Sparks: 00:18:12

best situation it's possible.

Freddy D: 00:18:15

Do you have a story that you can share of how you had handled the

Freddy D: 00:18:19

problem and got it solved for a customer?

Bill Sparks: 00:18:23

Well, a lot of those through just misinterpretation on not

Bill Sparks: 00:18:26

knowing how the plan works coaching them how to get full utilization

Bill Sparks: 00:18:32

and maximize their benefits.

Bill Sparks: 00:18:35

That's really how we do it.

Bill Sparks: 00:18:36

For instance, I did have a customer that that had leukemia and, we were

Bill Sparks: 00:18:42

looking at $800, 000 in medical bills.

Bill Sparks: 00:18:46

Well, he had a plan that we offer that allows you to customize the options

Bill Sparks: 00:18:52

and you can start at a low level and that allows you to meet a certain

Bill Sparks: 00:18:56

budget, but it had an upgrade to it.

Bill Sparks: 00:18:58

In the situation, if you were diagnosed with cancer, they would pay 100

Bill Sparks: 00:19:03

percent of it after you were able to satisfy, a threshold or a deductible.

Bill Sparks: 00:19:09

He didn't, he wasn't aware of it.

Bill Sparks: 00:19:10

He just thought about it, found me all stressed out and I said, hey, don't

Bill Sparks: 00:19:14

worry, we're, we put you in good shape.

Bill Sparks: 00:19:17

I said, let's go back and revisit, where you are.

Bill Sparks: 00:19:20

This is your plan.

Bill Sparks: 00:19:22

It's upgradable.

Bill Sparks: 00:19:23

It's affordable and all you're looking at is the $3, 000 out of pocket costs and

Bill Sparks: 00:19:27

then it's going to take care of the rest.

Bill Sparks: 00:19:29

And I mean, it was just like, so much relief.

Freddy D: 00:19:32

Life changing

Bill Sparks: 00:19:32

Right.

Bill Sparks: 00:19:33

And that's really where we come in and, Just like anything,

Bill Sparks: 00:19:38

it's like me with a computer.

Bill Sparks: 00:19:39

I don't know exactly how to use all the technology that

Bill Sparks: 00:19:42

my computer has to offer me.

Bill Sparks: 00:19:44

That's where we step in and that's where we save the day.

Bill Sparks: 00:19:47

aNd we're consultants and we keep that line of communication open.

Bill Sparks: 00:19:51

So, customers aren't afraid to pick up the phone and call us, and we can help

Bill Sparks: 00:19:56

them, navigate, and the other is just self employed people just don't realize

Bill Sparks: 00:20:01

that there's an opportunity here with us for them to be a part of a large

Bill Sparks: 00:20:05

association of small business owners, as a self employed 1099 and achieve

Bill Sparks: 00:20:12

tremendous savings and their premiums.

Bill Sparks: 00:20:14

So, it's our job to define them.

Bill Sparks: 00:20:17

And through our marketing efforts and make them aware of the choices they have.

Bill Sparks: 00:20:23

And that's always rewarding to, when you can help somebody in that

Bill Sparks: 00:20:26

situation, who's, working week to week and just barely scraping by and then,

Bill Sparks: 00:20:31

they're 1 of their top 3 expenses and we can let that, 35, 40 per ton.

Bill Sparks: 00:20:35

tHat's tremendous value to them.

Bill Sparks: 00:20:37

Yeah.

Bill Sparks: 00:20:37

That's huge.

Freddy D: 00:20:38

Do you have a story that you can share, Bill, about, one

Freddy D: 00:20:41

of your agents and how, we talked about transforming their lives.

Freddy D: 00:20:45

Do you have a story of, somebody you don't have, don't use any names, but of

Freddy D: 00:20:49

how someone was in that bad situation and their life is completely different today?

Bill Sparks: 00:20:55

Yeah, I did have an agent.

Bill Sparks: 00:20:56

But he was one of my reports came in pretty much homeless.

Bill Sparks: 00:21:01

I don't know, I didn't really understand exactly how he got

Bill Sparks: 00:21:05

himself in that situation.

Bill Sparks: 00:21:06

He was in the military He was a teacher had a great background, his relationship

Bill Sparks: 00:21:12

with his wife didn't go right.

Bill Sparks: 00:21:14

Lost, his wife, lost his child.

Bill Sparks: 00:21:16

He was living in his car basically and I didn't really know that until a bit later,

Bill Sparks: 00:21:23

until we, brought him on, but this was it for him, he was living day to day and

Bill Sparks: 00:21:28

plugged him in the system we developed a relationship with him, poached him up.

Bill Sparks: 00:21:33

And it might learn more about his personal situation.

Bill Sparks: 00:21:36

I really, took put in some extra effort to help out.

Bill Sparks: 00:21:40

We do have some programs where financially, I can

Bill Sparks: 00:21:43

help him get on his feet.

Bill Sparks: 00:21:45

In a stable situation, moved him out of a car.

Bill Sparks: 00:21:48

We funded an apartment for him.

Bill Sparks: 00:21:51

So he was, living in an apartment close to the office.

Bill Sparks: 00:21:54

He's working.

Bill Sparks: 00:21:55

14,15 hours a day is trying to, learn the system, learn how to be successful.

Bill Sparks: 00:22:01

and we helped him financially.

Bill Sparks: 00:22:03

For 3 months until he got on his feet and he did, and it grew to be very successful.

Bill Sparks: 00:22:09

It became one of my my sales managers.

Bill Sparks: 00:22:11

And today he's thriving, totally changed his life, he's got a nice

Bill Sparks: 00:22:15

house now he has a relationship back with his son, so it's tremendous.

Freddy D: 00:22:21

That's, wow, that's big, and so he's definitely a superfan of you.

Bill Sparks: 00:22:26

Oh yeah.

Bill Sparks: 00:22:26

Yeah.

Freddy D: 00:22:27

That's the rewarding part is being able to transform somebody's

Freddy D: 00:22:30

life like you just did and shared that.

Freddy D: 00:22:32

And I'm glad that you shared that because that's inspirational for other

Freddy D: 00:22:36

people we're on this planet for a short time and there's nothing better than

Freddy D: 00:22:41

to be able to say, I transformed some people's lives, there's no money on that.

Bill Sparks: 00:22:46

Right, and that's, my goal to be financially independent

Bill Sparks: 00:22:50

so I can do more of that.

Bill Sparks: 00:22:51

There's a lot of, people that down on their luck, and for whatever reason,

Bill Sparks: 00:22:56

and, I don't know, just a helping hand.

Bill Sparks: 00:22:59

A little lift up, makes a big difference.

Bill Sparks: 00:23:01

Believing in them.

Bill Sparks: 00:23:02

That's really it is believing in them and give them the opportunity.

Bill Sparks: 00:23:06

Sometimes it's just that they need that opportunity, that's not given to them.

Bill Sparks: 00:23:10

And, giving that opportunity can, like you said, like you

Bill Sparks: 00:23:14

did, change that person's life.

Bill Sparks: 00:23:16

Yeah, I don't know where he probably wouldn't be on this earth if it

Bill Sparks: 00:23:19

hadn't been for this opportunity.

Bill Sparks: 00:23:20

So, and you're right.

Bill Sparks: 00:23:21

I mean, he is a superfan of mine.

Bill Sparks: 00:23:23

But I was glad to do it.

Freddy D: 00:23:25

Sure.

Bill Sparks: 00:23:25

And I would do it for someone else too in that situation.

Bill Sparks: 00:23:29

Luckily, it just, it worked out good for, both of us.

Freddy D: 00:23:32

So, you've been very successful in your career.

Freddy D: 00:23:35

What advice can you give an entrepreneur or a small business owner of, build the

Freddy D: 00:23:42

importance of building those relationships and creating those superfans that in turn.

Freddy D: 00:23:48

Propels their growth as you've done, for example, with this insurance

Freddy D: 00:23:51

agency that you've got right now.

Freddy D: 00:23:53

I mean, you've got a team of superfans that are propelling

Freddy D: 00:23:56

the growth of the agency.

Bill Sparks: 00:23:59

RIght.

Bill Sparks: 00:23:59

Well, it just you want to build, as a leader, you want to be

Bill Sparks: 00:24:02

consistent and be trustworthy.

Bill Sparks: 00:24:04

One thing that we focus on and this kind of business is,

Bill Sparks: 00:24:09

it's really three components.

Bill Sparks: 00:24:10

one is your mind developing a very strong mindset.

Bill Sparks: 00:24:15

We work on that constantly and very positive proactive.

Bill Sparks: 00:24:19

And we spend time every day working on that setting goals and

Bill Sparks: 00:24:24

developing a positive attitude.

Bill Sparks: 00:24:26

And then work ethic plays a large role in this type of industry.

Bill Sparks: 00:24:30

This work, you gotta put in the effort and set the goals,

Bill Sparks: 00:24:34

and then skill set development.

Bill Sparks: 00:24:35

We work a lot every day, developing our product knowledge and competitive

Bill Sparks: 00:24:41

industry knowledge and, friends and being good advisors to our for our customers.

Bill Sparks: 00:24:46

I have a lot of presentations to various organizations business networking group,

Bill Sparks: 00:24:52

BNI realtor groups toast masters, just sharing with them different trends.

Bill Sparks: 00:24:58

And not really specific about, our product line, but what's happening

Bill Sparks: 00:25:02

in the public industry, what's happening in the private industry

Bill Sparks: 00:25:06

as it pertains to health insurance.

Bill Sparks: 00:25:09

I would say in building a good nucleus is what we talked about previously is

Bill Sparks: 00:25:13

you start with 1 agent at a time help them be successful and teach them, how to

Bill Sparks: 00:25:19

transfer that success to the next agent.

Bill Sparks: 00:25:21

And then they pass the torch.

Bill Sparks: 00:25:23

And that's really it.

Bill Sparks: 00:25:25

You've got to have a good system, a system that works, people that stay with

Bill Sparks: 00:25:29

you, and, you, you're loyal to them, you're committed to them and vice versa.

Freddy D: 00:25:33

No, it's important.

Freddy D: 00:25:34

It's very important because, it's team building.

Freddy D: 00:25:37

You built a team which have now become superfans and they're out

Freddy D: 00:25:42

there promoting and they're attracting more, superfan team members.

Freddy D: 00:25:47

And it just perpetually grows because of the momentum that you've created all

Freddy D: 00:25:54

because of the fact that you take time to.

Freddy D: 00:25:57

Put things in place to ensure their success.

Freddy D: 00:26:01

So, that's really important because there's a lot of times, well, they're

Freddy D: 00:26:04

an independent agent, not my problem.

Freddy D: 00:26:07

It's up to them to do it, and if they don't make it, too bad.

Freddy D: 00:26:11

Where you guys have got something in place, you put something in

Freddy D: 00:26:14

place to ensure that if they follow this protocol, success is there.

Freddy D: 00:26:19

But they have to put in the effort to achieve that success.

Bill Sparks: 00:26:22

Yeah, absolutely.

Bill Sparks: 00:26:23

And it makes recruiting, I wouldn't say easier, but we don't

Bill Sparks: 00:26:27

really have to recruit anymore.

Bill Sparks: 00:26:28

The word gets out and, people waiting for an opportunity for an interview.

Bill Sparks: 00:26:34

So that comes with it as well.

Freddy D: 00:26:36

And that's the superfan effect, that's exactly the superfan effect.

Freddy D: 00:26:39

That's what it is.

Freddy D: 00:26:40

It's the superfan effect that, you've created energy.

Freddy D: 00:26:45

I'll call it energy that's out there that, wow, this is the

Freddy D: 00:26:49

people I want to be part of.

Freddy D: 00:26:52

And now they're in line to come in.

Freddy D: 00:26:55

You're no longer, like you said, you're no longer recruiting.

Freddy D: 00:26:58

People are lining up and raising their hands.

Freddy D: 00:26:59

Says, Hey, I want to be part of this.

Freddy D: 00:27:01

And it just goes back to what I was saying about the guy

Freddy D: 00:27:04

dancing on the hill by himself.

Freddy D: 00:27:06

Now all of a sudden you're the party and everybody wants to

Freddy D: 00:27:09

be part of, go to the party.

Freddy D: 00:27:11

It's like when you go to a restaurant, you can have two restaurants and

Freddy D: 00:27:14

they both serve excellent food.

Freddy D: 00:27:16

But one place is busy and there's a line and the other place is empty.

Freddy D: 00:27:20

That's what I'm saying.

Freddy D: 00:27:21

And the food is exactly the same in quality, but guess what?

Freddy D: 00:27:24

Which one would you go to?

Bill Sparks: 00:27:26

Everybody's going.

Bill Sparks: 00:27:27

That's right.

Bill Sparks: 00:27:28

What are they doing?

Freddy D: 00:27:30

Exactly.

Freddy D: 00:27:31

And so it's the same thing.

Freddy D: 00:27:32

That's you've got, you've created that same momentum, which is

Freddy D: 00:27:36

really cool because now you're in a whole different mindset.

Freddy D: 00:27:40

And your people feel that different mindset and now you've got a confidence,

Freddy D: 00:27:46

you're like when we were back in the Chicago days, you're like the

Freddy D: 00:27:49

Chicago bears, you had an attitude.

Freddy D: 00:27:51

There's the Chicago bulls, Michael Jordan had attitude, and once they

Freddy D: 00:27:56

had attitude, they were unbeatable.

Bill Sparks: 00:27:57

That's it.

Bill Sparks: 00:27:58

Yeah.

Bill Sparks: 00:27:59

That plays a large role in it.

Bill Sparks: 00:28:01

If there's nothing better, I'll, we'll take the team out and

Bill Sparks: 00:28:04

celebrate and we will build a really nice steakhouse in town.

Bill Sparks: 00:28:08

And and they see our guys come in and they're dressed nice

Bill Sparks: 00:28:11

and they're driving nice cars.

Bill Sparks: 00:28:13

And what do they, who do you guys what do you do?

Bill Sparks: 00:28:16

Everybody's that.

Bill Sparks: 00:28:16

What do you do?

Bill Sparks: 00:28:17

What do you do?

Bill Sparks: 00:28:17

What do you guys do?

Bill Sparks: 00:28:19

And that's fun, yeah, that's fun.

Bill Sparks: 00:28:20

I mean, just that, like you said, it's like the bears back, in our day, that

Bill Sparks: 00:28:25

attitude, that swagger that they have.

Freddy D: 00:28:27

That's it.

Freddy D: 00:28:27

The swagger.

Freddy D: 00:28:28

That's it.

Freddy D: 00:28:29

That's it.

Freddy D: 00:28:30

But that's, that attracts more.

Freddy D: 00:28:32

It just attracts more, but you got, and that's a superfan mindset, that you're

Freddy D: 00:28:36

now you're confident you're good and you got the swagger and people want to know

Freddy D: 00:28:39

what's going on what's with that group.

Freddy D: 00:28:41

Look at these guys.

Freddy D: 00:28:42

And.

Freddy D: 00:28:42

And.

Freddy D: 00:28:43

And.

Freddy D: 00:28:43

And the magic happens

Bill Sparks: 00:28:45

Exactly.

Bill Sparks: 00:28:46

And that's where you want to get to, it takes a lot of effort.

Bill Sparks: 00:28:48

It takes a little I don't believe in luck.

Bill Sparks: 00:28:49

I believe in opportunity preparing and when right opportunity

Bill Sparks: 00:28:52

comes along, you're ready.

Bill Sparks: 00:28:55

bUt I guess everybody could use a little luck too, but being successful

Bill Sparks: 00:28:58

and keeping committed to your system and not been afraid to make

Bill Sparks: 00:29:02

changes when necessary to adapt.

Freddy D: 00:29:04

And that's a big statement right there because a lot of people,

Freddy D: 00:29:07

well, if it's not broken, don't fix it.

Freddy D: 00:29:10

Well, sometimes you need to, it may not be broken, but you know, a couple

Freddy D: 00:29:13

of tweaks makes it so much better.

Freddy D: 00:29:14

And you need to, people need to take that moment to revisit their systems

Freddy D: 00:29:19

and say, you know what, that worked five years ago, but, we need to make an

Freddy D: 00:29:23

adjustment today and do that adjustment.

Bill Sparks: 00:29:27

Right.

Bill Sparks: 00:29:27

It's like sailing, the wind, you got the good wind and you're going

Bill Sparks: 00:29:30

along and all of a sudden it changes.

Bill Sparks: 00:29:32

So you gotta, make a few adjustments and pick it back up and let's go.

Bill Sparks: 00:29:36

Yeah, I changed the course.

Bill Sparks: 00:29:37

So, yeah you've got to do that.

Bill Sparks: 00:29:39

Got to keep growing.

Bill Sparks: 00:29:40

Never can keep growing.

Bill Sparks: 00:29:41

Our goal is to grow 1 percent every day, and then our personal

Bill Sparks: 00:29:44

lives or our business lives, physical lives or spiritual lives.

Bill Sparks: 00:29:49

So that's our model.

Bill Sparks: 00:29:50

What'd you do today to grow 1%.

Bill Sparks: 00:29:53

What are you doing right there?

Freddy D: 00:29:54

I'm going to have to borrow that statement because I

Freddy D: 00:29:58

like that, grow by 1 percent a day.

Freddy D: 00:30:00

That's very achievable.

Freddy D: 00:30:03

And that's something to really take into thought.

Bill Sparks: 00:30:08

Right, that's 365%.

Bill Sparks: 00:30:10

Yeah, that's where when we look at things, break it all down,

Bill Sparks: 00:30:13

it's visible, it's achievable.

Bill Sparks: 00:30:15

I think that's where people get lost.

Bill Sparks: 00:30:16

They want to go from A to Z and they rush and doing that instead

Bill Sparks: 00:30:21

of going from A to B to C., And that eliminates a lot of fear.

Bill Sparks: 00:30:24

There's a lot of anxiety when you're an entrepreneur.

Bill Sparks: 00:30:27

I had to break it down one step at a time, do that one

Bill Sparks: 00:30:31

percent you'll get there.

Bill Sparks: 00:30:32

Trust me, we've all been there and you can do it.

Bill Sparks: 00:30:35

We're examples of that.

Bill Sparks: 00:30:37

So, same with you, you've known you through all your career to like that,

Bill Sparks: 00:30:40

you're always evolving changing, zigzagging and you got that important mind

Bill Sparks: 00:30:45

and thing with us is, we never reach it.

Bill Sparks: 00:30:48

Once we get close to it, we raise it up a little more.

Freddy D: 00:30:50

Unfortunately, yes, we do, yes, we do.

Freddy D: 00:30:53

Cool, so Bill, how can people find you?

Bill Sparks: 00:30:55

It's real easy right now.

Bill Sparks: 00:30:56

What I like to offer is if it's only, this is the season.

Bill Sparks: 00:30:59

A lot of people are making those decisions.

Bill Sparks: 00:31:02

By next year about their health insurance, we're really focused on helping

Bill Sparks: 00:31:07

self employed small business owners.

Bill Sparks: 00:31:09

We do help individuals and families too.

Bill Sparks: 00:31:11

But give me a call.

Bill Sparks: 00:31:12

I'd be happy to do a policy review.

Bill Sparks: 00:31:14

No charge my phone number is 9 0 1 4 6 8 8 , 9, 3.

Bill Sparks: 00:31:21

You can send me an email at sparks412@gmail.

Bill Sparks: 00:31:27

Com.

Bill Sparks: 00:31:28

Or you can go to my website https://ushagent.com/WilliamSparks . So

Bill Sparks: 00:31:34

those are the places you can find.

Bill Sparks: 00:31:36

Don't feel reluctant to send me a text or an email and we'll certainly schedule

Bill Sparks: 00:31:41

a time to, so I can at least listen to your situation and see if I can help.

Freddy D: 00:31:44

Perfect, well, Bill, it's been a pleasure having you on the

Freddy D: 00:31:47

business super fan podcast show.

Freddy D: 00:31:49

I think we shared a lot of great nuggets for everybody and look forward to having

Freddy D: 00:31:54

you on the show again in the future.

Bill Sparks: 00:31:56

My pleasure.

Bill Sparks: 00:31:57

As always we've been good friends for a long time.

Bill Sparks: 00:32:01

Appreciate the invitation to be part of Your success and support it and thank you

Bill Sparks: 00:32:05

for giving me the opportunity to share some nuggets with the fan base here.

Freddy D: 00:32:10

Yeah, appreciate it, buddy.

Bill Sparks: 00:32:12

All right, man.

Bill Sparks: 00:32:13

Take care of yourself.

Freddy D: 00:32:14

Yep, you too!

Freddy D: 00:32:14

Thank you everyone for tuning into episode 18 of the Business Superfan Podcast Show.

Freddy D: 00:32:19

We hope you enjoyed it and gained valuable insights.

Freddy D: 00:32:22

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Freddy D: 00:32:25

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Freddy D: 00:32:33

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Freddy D: 00:32:37

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Freddy D: 00:32:39

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