Being positive is the way of life for preneed counselor Angie Maras. Her job in college — selling books door to door — laid the foundation. 

“Our bosses told us if something bad happens, you think of three reasons why it’s good,” Angie explains. 

This mindset and the skills she gained over five summers working that job prepared her for a successful sales career, now 25 years and counting. She has spent the last six years in her current role with Mark Fraser Agency. It was a position previously held by her mom, who encouraged Angie to take over after she retired.

“I didn’t know if I would like talking to people about funerals, but I absolutely love it,” she says. “It’s so rewarding because you’re just helping people to have peace of mind for themselves and their families.”

Angie is a South Dakota native and serves funeral homes in her home state and in Iowa. When she’s not working, she’s spending time with her husband and three sons. Together, they golfed and hiked in Hawaii last year on the trip she earned selling preneed plans. 

Ahead of her family is her faith, and she listens to Christian radio on her way to every appointment for inspiration. In turn, Angie likes to inspire other people and believes everyone gets to choose what kind of attitude to have each day. 

“Since you’re going to share your attitude with people, choose a good one,” she encourages.

Angie’s tips for success

• Be persistent in setting appointments. If a lead can’t meet during the current week, Angie tries to schedule them for the next week in the same call. “If you get the appointment, your chance of selling is really high because the product sells itself,” she says.
• Research your leads. Angie says to learn all you can, such as a spouse’s name, before you make the call. “I want to make sure I do each lead right because you only get one shot,” she explains. 
• Have a script and practice it. Angie also suggests speaking slowly to give people time to process your words. She says to smile, even over the phone, because they will hear it in your voice.
• Record your goals. Angie believes it is important to know what you want to achieve and to write it down, which she says is a common practice among top performers. 
• Work smart. For Angie, this means being organized, using specific days for specific tasks. It also means using other sources to generate leads, such as Wellabe’s My Careletter program, agency resources, and third-party marketers.
• Keep it light when building rapport. Angie makes it a practice to laugh during appointments. When possible, she likes to meet people at their homes to visit and learn about their families.