KIRKLAND, Wash. — As the need for long term care insurance grows, agents and allied professionals face the challenge of reaching prospective clients efficiently and with a high level of professionalism. And the public faces the challenge of finding qualified agents in their geographic area. A new organization will aid the pros as well as the public: the Long Term Care Insurance Guild, or LTC Guild for short — found online at www.ltcguild.com. “We applaud the formation of the Guild,” says Jonas Roeser, Senior Vice President of Marketing & Operations for LTC Financial Partners LLC (LTCFP), one of America’s most experienced long term care insurance agencies.

“Our industry has long needed an independent organization such as this,” Roeser says, “one where best practices can be shared by all the professionals, and where the public can locate qualified agents who can help them.”

Adding his commendation is Stephen A. Moses, President of the Center for Long-Term Care Reform, Inc. (www.centerltc.com). “I believe aging Americans need a phalanx of professionals to advise and protect them,” he says. “That’s just what the LTC Guild provides by bringing together attorneys, CPAs, financial planners, long-term care insurance specialists, geriatric care managers and other experts. They learn from each other, exchange referrals between their specialties when appropriate, and therefore represent all of their clients better. By all means, join and support the national LTC Guild and your local LTC Guild.”

The newly formed LTC Guild is billed as “the place where long term care insurance pros meet one another and the public, form local chapters, schedule meetings, and share information.” It is a national / local forum focusing on long term care insurance professionals, but is not limited to them. Also welcome are practitioners in financial and tax planning, estate planning, elder law, and other professions that help protect clients’ long term financial health and quality of life.

National membership is currently free, and after joining, the member can then register with a local chapter or even start a new “local.” Online features make it quick and easy. For example, with a single click one can register to attend a local meeting (to share information, network, and listen to featured speakers over lunch). Or any member can organize a new meeting and quickly post it online.

The site — www.ltcguild.com — is designed as a social network. That means members can post all kinds of information and expand their presence on the Web. Members have their own MyPage area (like MySpace) and can make blog posts, start or contribute to discussions, post events, and post videos relating to LTCI.

Members can also post their contact information: phone number, email address, and web address if them have one, so the public can reach them. “It’s a real bargain for the price, which is zip,” says Roeser.

The member registration page is found at — ltcguild.ning.com/main/authorization/signUp. Already more than 100 professionals have signed up with the Guild. Its Director is Richard W. Samson, who is also Director of the EraNova Institute of New Jersey. “We expect hundreds and eventually thousands to join,” he says, giving three reasons:

* The meetings will help members keep sharp, informed, motivated, and professional.

* Networking with allied professionals will ease the way to new clients.

* Guild membership will serve as a badge of professionalism, helping reassure consumer and business clients.

For the public, Samson gives three reasons for visiting the LTC Guild site. A visitor can –

* Learn a lot about long term care insurance in the venue where the pros share information.

* Browse the membership directory to find an agent one is comfortable with. Agent members list the states in which they are licensed, and provide biographical information.

* Learn about insurance carriers and other organizations. Executives of insurance companies and LTC-related associations have already started to join, and their postings are open for public view.

“With LTC Guild, everyone wins,” Roeser says. “It will help the pros focus their energies in an atmosphere of mutual support, and it will help the public find the independent, knowledgeable expertise they need.”

[tags]LTC Guild[/tags]

ABOUT THE EDITOR: Tabitha Angel Berg is an aspiring author and musician and joined eNewsChannels in Nov. 2006 as an editor and mistress of the content management system. She likes ferrets better than cats and tea better than coffee, and is still waiting on the perfect ebook reading device.
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