Moderation is a modern virtue. We're taught we don't need to eateverything before us and we don't need to drink until it's allgone. Sometimes, we can just say no.

But for some brokers, any voluntary case is a great one and theyrarely turn their back on that. This is one reason participationrates are slipping and we see so many cases with 3-4 percentparticipation. These are damaged cases.

Damaged cases hurt you, the broker. Obviously, the revenuepotential of the case wasn't realized. When you think of the workthat goes into closing a case, it hurts even more.

Damaged cases hurt the client. A benefit with 2 percentparticipation hardly deserves to be called a benefit. It's morelike a perk for a chosen few and probably doesn't impact theclient's goals of aiding recruiting and retention.

Damaged cases hurt those who need the coverage.

Damaged cases hurt the carrier. A product priced for 20 percentbut yielding only 3 percent is a major problem.

How does a broker avoid damaged cases? Successful producers willtell you there are four steps.

First, have a participation goal that benefits all parties.“Good” participation varies by product and enrollment process. Ifyou need help setting a goal, talk to your partners.

Second, know how to reach that goal. Successful implementationsinvolve a mix of marketing, sales, education, and presentationsteps. Again, they vary by product and process, but they aren'tmysterious and there are hundreds of articles on tips andsuggestions for excellent implementations.

Third, sell it early and often. Those implementation steps areas much a part of your sale as is the product. You are an excellentsalesperson or you wouldn't be reading this. But for voluntary, youmay not have been selling the right things. Make your client a fullpartner in achieving the participation goals.

The fourth (and most difficult) step: if you can't get there,walk away. A successful broker told us he turns down 50 percent ofthe cases for this reason. But he also said that more than half ofthose he turns down ultimately come back and agree to anappropriate implementation plan.

Some brokers consistently average 30 percent or moreparticipation, while others struggle to reach 5 percent. And ifthey are in the same size market, the second broker needs to sellsix times as many cases to reach the same number of new enrollees.Guess which one earns more, does a better job for her clients, andis truly partnering with her carriers? Sometimes, not taking everyopportunity is the right answer. No wonder it's a virtue.