Episode 17 - The Ultimate Not-So-Secret Sales Weapons with Matt Van Buren

What’s up and welcome back to Call the Damn Leads, the show by sales professionals, for sales professionals.  Today, I’ve got my friend, owner of MVB Luxury, Mr. Matt Van Buren. We’re kicking things off with an absolute wild sales story involving guns, cops, and handcuffs.  Not all necessarily in that order either.  I’m talking a full-blown hostage situation, reminding us all that the unpredictable nature of sales can sometimes, well, get a little dangerous.

But it's not all close calls and drama; there's a lesson in every challenge. We focus on the value of mentorship, the strategy of success replication, and the relentless determination required to excel. This tale isn't just mine; it's an invitation to all the sales warriors out there to join in and share their own incredible stories. Now, go Call the Damn Leads!

Key Moments:

-Matt’s beyond-crazy sales story from when a deal heads south in Alabama.

-Why Matt HAD to make sales work.

-The actual secret weapon in sales?  Consistency.

-Don’t ever quit.

-You can be coachable even if you have a “don’t tell me what to do” mentality.

  

TRANSCRIPT:



Drewbie Wilson (00:02:85):
What's up everybody. Welcome back to Call the Damn Leads, the show by sales professionals for sales professionals. I'm your host, Drewbie Wilson. With more than two decades in the sales industry, I've heard it, lived it, seen it. And now I'm bringing it to you. My favorite people on the planet, the sales community, because let's be honest, sales is the greatest job on earth. It literally gives us the opportunity to go out and create a life that makes us happy and allows us to do all of the things that we love and provide for the people we care about most. It also gives us a ton of crazy stories, and today's guest is someone I'm very excited to have on. I know he's got some amazing stories. Not only is he a former professional UFC fighter, but he is now the owner of MVB Luxury and he works with finding the finest luxury timepieces on the planet, sometimes the ones you can't even get your hands on in the stores.

He's my friend, Mr. Matt Van Buren. What's up, bro?

Matt Van Buren (01:10:11):
Thanks for having me on, sir. It's a pleasure and an honor.

Drewbie Wilson (01:13:68):
I'm excited for you to be here. One of the things I know about you, man, is you've been fighting and grinding your whole life and getting into sales is certainly no different. So I wanna know, man, let's go in with a bang. What's your best sales story for us today?

Matt Van Buren (01:30:07):
Right into the story, huh? Okay. So I was living in South Florida at the time. This is probably the craziest story and definitely, like I've talked to some OGs in the insurance business and I've told them this story and they're like, I ain't never heard some shit like that. So this is a good one. So I was living in South Florida, Fort Lauderdale at the time. And the agency I was working for, they had a bunch of leads in Alabama, right? And you know, Southern hospitality, face to face, we were selling mortgage protection insurance, which is essentially a term life insurance product with living benefits.

So if you have a heart attack, cancer, stroke, anything like that, any major critical chronic terminal illness, the policy allows you to accelerate the death benefit so that you can pay your bills, pay your mortgage and not lose your house, right? Because 80% of people that lose their house due to foreclosure is due to an injury or an illness being out of work or something. So that's what these policies are designed for. And if you die, it acts as a life insurance policy. It'll pay your mortgage off. So your wife's not mourning your death and three months later, she's trying to figure out how to pay the bills.

So I go to Birmingham, Alabama. I drive up there from Fort Lauderdale. Got an Airbnb, went to Birmingham. I was up there for like 10 days.

Drewbie Wilson (02:43:11):
Mm-hmm.

Matt Van Buren (02:54:43):
And so I'm booked, I got my leads, I got my fresh direct mail leads, I get to the Airbnb, call the damn leads, right? So I'm hitting the phone, bro. I'm booking the appointments, you know what I'm saying? And so like my script, this is, I think, well, I know, this is where this guy got kind of taken back. So my script, like on the lead, it'll say your name, right?

It'll say like, Drewbie Wilson, 123 Main Street, and then it'll say you have a $220,000 mortgage with Chase Bank or something, right? And so I'll call you and say, hey, Drewbie, this is Matt Van Buren with the Mortgage Protection Center. I just got your direct mail lead back from about the request for the mortgage protection information. I'm the guy who goes over that with you. Blah, blah.

So I confirm all the information. I said, you know, this is in regards to your loan with Chase Bank. That's what I say. I said, this is in regards to your loan with wherever the bank is. And so I think this guy took that as me saying that I work for the bank, right? Which that's not what I said. I said, I'm with the mortgage protection center calling in regards to your loan with the bank. Right?

So I go to this dude's house, and it's a pretty hood neighborhood actually. I'm the only white guy around, probably not the most Caucasian friendly neighborhood, but I'm in Alabama, and I gotta make money. So, you know, Southern hospitality, everybody, aside from this guy, was super cool.

So I booked the appointment, right? And what he did was after I booked the appointment, he calls the bank because he assumes that I work for the bank.

Drewbie Wilson (04:30:44):
Hahaha

Matt Van Buren (04:43:78):
And he's like, hey, do you guys know who Matt Van Buren is? And they're like, no, we don't know him. So he automatically thinks I'm trying to scam him, right? So I go to his house. He's like, yeah, come on in, come on in, right? Let's meet in the house. I get in, I sit down at the kitchen table, I pull my laptop out. His brother, so like I'm sitting here, he's immediately sitting to my left and his brother's sitting directly across the table from me, right? And these guys are probably mid-50s, close to 60-year-old black guys, right?

So I'm like, all right, cool. And I just start immediately building rapport with them. You know what I mean? How long you been in Birmingham? So, you know, cause you know, I don't know if you ever sold face to face like that. I think, I don't know what you did in insurance, but I don't know if you were a phone guy or what, but I cut my teeth all face to face. So like my process, I started building rapport immediately face to face. And I tried to read them and see how you're going to engage with me in building rapport. Like, are you going to like New York style me and just get down to it or are you actually going to, cause those people are tougher and I'll just pitch them. But if you're nice and you're smiling and you're talking, I'm like, all right, this, you know, then you know kind of where you're going with it, right? Who you're dealing with.

So within probably a minute of me talking to this guy, trying to build rapport, he's cutting me off right away. And he's like, I don't even know who you are. I'm like, I get it, man. I get it. So I pull out my license with the state of Alabama.

Drewbie Wilson (06:05:42):
Mm-hmm.

Matt Van Buren (06:24:42):
And I put it on the table and I show it to him. I pull out my driver's license from the state of Florida and I show it to him. I said, look, I'm licensed in the state of Alabama. I said, here's my license with the state, here's my driver's license, my name's Matt Van Buren. I said, my company sent me up here to help you guys because they're so behind, we don't have enough licensed agents in the area. That's why I'm here. And so right away he's got his guard up. His brother doesn't say a word the whole time.

So then he's like, I called the bank and blah, blah. You don't work for the bank. I said, I never told you I work for the bank. The bank is not an insurance company. The bank cannot sell you a mortgage on your house and then sell you an insurance policy to protect that mortgage. That's a conflict of interest. Number one, the bank's a bank. They can't compete with Mutual of Omaha and Foresters and these billion-dollar insurance companies. So what are you talking about? I'm an insurance broker. I never said I worked for the bank. It doesn't even make sense. So he's like, yeah, motherfucker, you trying to scam me, right? And he pulls out this six-shooter revolver, like some sketchy-ass pistol, right? And he's sitting back.

I'm always packing, right? I got my gun on me too, but I'm like, I can't do shit, right? You don't expect. So I can't get to my gun. I'm not in a position to get to my gun. And across the table from me is his brother. And I didn't see it for sure, but I'm like 99% sure that homeboy had a gun underneath the table and was pointing it at me.

Drewbie Wilson (08:03:21):
Yeah.

Matt Van Buren (08:22:38):
So I'm like, holy shit, dude, I'm in the hood in Birmingham, Alabama, and this motherfucker's like, so I got my hands on the table. He's like, put your hands on the table. So I got my hands on the table. And so immediately this dude just starts popping off at the mouth talking shit. He's like, yeah, motherfucker, you trying to scam me and all this shit. And he's got two big-ass 120-pound pit bulls. Right behind his brother and tables, like the glass door right there in the backyard, these pit bulls are jumping up and scratching at the glass. And I was like, God damn. He's like, yeah, you're lucky my fucking brother's here. He's like, cause we were going to do it my way. I was going to let them fucking dogs get you. I was going to fucking tie you up and all this shit. I'm like, what in the fuck is about to happen here? So I'm like, what am I going to do? So I'm just riding it out. So I listened to this guy talk shit to me for like five minutes. I'm just sitting there with my hands on the table, just listening because I can't do shit else. And then he's like, well, you're lucky. We're gonna do it my brother's way. We're not gonna do it my way. You're going to jail. I'm like, oh, thank God. I'm thinking like, thank God, dude. Call the cops, please. Get them over here right now. So he did. Well, right before he calls the cops, I forgot this part. He pulls out a set of handcuffs, bro. And he's like, put the handcuffs on. And I look at him and I'm like, bro, I ain't putting no handcuffs on. Like, what are you talking about?

Drewbie Wilson (09:00:34):
What are you gonna do?

Matt Van Buren (09:45:84):
He's like, these are gonna keep you from getting hurt, right? So then I'm like, I ain't putting handcuffs on. So he points the gun at me like real close. And he's like, put the handcuffs on. And I'm like, all right, give them to me. So I put the handcuffs on. So I'm sitting at homeboy's table handcuffed at this point while he's pointing the pistol at me talking shit. And I'm like, I said, I'm pretty sure his brother is pointing the pistol at me underneath the table. So he calls the cops. And like 10 minutes go by, they're not there yet. He's just kind of running his mouth the whole time, just saying stupid shit. And then he's like, you know what? He's like, you're white. Why don't you call the cops? He's like, they'll come faster if you call them. And I'm like, yep, you're right. Give me the phone. So he calls the cops and I'm handcuffed sitting at his table. And I'm like, hey, look, we got a situation over here at 123 Main Street in Birmingham and you guys need to get over here right now. This is an emergency. So hurry up. So like a couple minutes later, the cops show up. And right before the cops come, he sees them pull up. He sees them pull up out front because he had the window open. He's sitting back in his chair and he can look out his window and see the cops pull up. So as soon as the cops pull up, he takes the handcuffs off me and puts them up and then he's holding me at gunpoint until they knock on the door and then he puts his gun away. So he lets the cops in. It's not that it matters, but I think it was two black cops and a white cop.

Drewbie Wilson (11:02:32):
Oh, I can't wait.

Matt Van Buren (11:37:44):
They come in the house and they're like, what's the situation? I said, look, I'm a licensed insurance agent in the state of Alabama. I said, this guy filled out a form for me to come over here and help get him mortgage protection insurance. And that's what I'm trying to do. And I said, he thinks I'm trying to scam him. And I was like, here's the lead that he filled out with his own handwriting. I said, here's my license with the state of Alabama. Here's my ID with the state of Florida. And so the cops start looking at everything and he's looking at my license with the state of Alabama, my ID, everything, the lead. And he's like, well, it looks like he's here to sell you the insurance that you requested. So if you didn't want it, why didn't you just tell him to leave? And I'm like, thank God, dude, thank you. People got some common sense. It gets worse. So, you know what? All, all your moral of the story you're gonna learn is you don't wanna fuck around in Alabama. That's all I can tell you. But so anyway, after he says that, I'm like, thank you. So, and then guys like, cops like, hey, you wanna go, you can go. So I started leaving and I should have probably said something in the house, but he like, it kinda happened, I was probably a little shook up too. And so just like, I wasn't really thinking, but we got out in the driveway. And I was like, hey, look, man, I didn't say anything in front of the house, but I said, dude, this guy just fucking kidnapped me, dude, like with a gun, like against my own will. This guy just held me hostage at his fucking table and handcuffed me with a fucking pistol. I was like, it's in his coat pocket, go in there and talk to him right now. Bro, the fucking cops didn't even do shit. They didn't even go ask him about it. Nothing, they didn't even take a report. I'm like, are you fucking kidding me? So like my brother's a cop. And I'm not like a lawyer, but I know the law and I know you can't legally kidnap somebody in your house with a gun, especially when they're a licensed agent, right? If you thought I was trying to scam you, you told me to leave, I would have left. All you had to say was leave, I would have left. So I'm pissed, right? So I go to downtown Birmingham to the police station and get a hold of an internal affairs officer. Told him the whole story, I was pissed. And he's like, oh, I want to apologize. I said, dude, this is my first time in Alabama and all this shit. And I'm pissed. I'm like, this is how, you know, this is the kind of shit that goes on. I was like, your officers don't even go in there and question the guy. They didn't take a report, nothing. And so the guy, he's all like super apologetic. Like, I'm so sorry, Mr. Van Buren. That's not how we do things in Alabama. And that's not how the law works in this country. And I'm like, all right, so do something about it. So later on that night, he sends an officer over to my Airbnb to take a police report from me, right? So I take my, give them the report. And they're like, all right, well, we're gonna look into this. So a couple of days later, I'm driving back to Florida and they give me case number and all this shit. And I get back to Florida and I call the internal affairs guy again. I'm like, hey, what's going on with this, man? Just checking on you. I just got back to Florida. And he's like, yeah, you don't have a case. I'm like, what do you mean I don't have a case? I said, homeboy kidnapped me in his house and handcuffed me and threatened me and talked shit for 10 minutes while pointing a gun at me. And you're telling me I don't have a case. And he's like, well, I can't remember exactly what he said, but it was some bullshit. He just like, you know, it's he said, she said, you know, whatever type of thing. And I'm like, so there's nothing we can do about it. So yeah, that's how that story went. And this was like my first three months in the business, bro. Like when I just got licensed and I was green, I was super green, just started selling, this shit happened to me. And most people probably would have quit and went and found something else. But when all you've ever done is teach fitness and martial arts your whole life and you haven't built your social media and you weren't really active with it and you're getting hurt all the time. You're making a whole lot of money teaching fitness and martial arts. So I didn't have any, I'm not a mechanic. I don't have anything to fall back on. So I knew high commission sales is what I had to figure out to make some money. So I kept on keeping on. Kept on keeping on.

Drewbie Wilson (16:59:47):
I have done a lot of insurance sales. I've had to go and sit face to face in some situations. I'll never forget one time I was sitting with a lady and her dog was literally shitting on the floor in the other room and she was just yelling at it to stop shitting on the floor. And I was just going, what the fuck is going on? Insurance is a crazy game. And anyone that's had to do face-to-face insurance has some crazy stories like this. If you're listening to this and you're in insurance and you have a crazy story, go to calledadamleads.com/podcast. I'd love to bring you in and share something else crazy. Cause that's what's great about this industry, man. And something you said though, is also very cool. You came up fighting, doing fitness training. I know one of the stories that you had posted about was literally loading up everything you own in a car, driving to California, living in a dorm room with a bunch of dudes to have a shot. And so for you to come out of that and know, hey, sales is going to give me an opportunity to build a life. I want to know, cause you're very successful. I mean, you're one of the top agents in your business, in your company. You also have your own luxury timepiece business. You built a couple of businesses at this point. What would you say is your secret superpower when it comes to sales or like your secret sales weapon? If you had one.

Matt Van Buren (18:34:33):
I don't know that I have a secret weapon or superpower, but it's just like anything, life is consistency, right? So I'll tell you, when I first started, after I did the mortgage protection thing for like eight months, the agency I was with, they lied to me about how much money I was gonna make and all this bullshit. And so I started, I didn't know anything about life insurance at the time. I don't think I'm going on a tangent here, not answering your questions. So the biggest thing is consistency, being coachable. I'm always coachable as much as I hate anybody. It's such a weird thing, right? I hate being told what to do. I don't want anybody telling me what to do, but I'm very coachable because I'm an athlete. In the sense of like, if I'm asking you something to help me because I know you can make me better, because that's what you're, like I'm coachable. I just don't like being told what to do, which I know they're kind of the same thing, if that makes any sense. But I'm coachable and I work hard and I'm consistent and I don't quit. And I think you can probably attest to this. You've probably seen it doing sales at Apex, sales and insurance. People quit right when they're about to get over that learning curve and start killing it, they quit. They shell up, they run back to their job. And luckily for me, I was too stubborn and stupid to quit. I just didn't have a choice, right? But if I were to have come from an $80,000 a year job, and then I try straight commission sales for a couple of months and it doesn't work out, I'd go run back to my job. That's what most people do, right? Out of fear. But for me, I didn't have, what am I gonna run back to the gym and make a couple grand a month, rebuild my personal training clients and shit from scratch? So I just, I didn't quit bro. And I did everything I could to get better. I found a good mentor who was really making money. The guy was a shark. He was an elite salesman. I flew up to Delaware. We were running final expense leads, burial policies. So I met this guy in the hood in Delaware, like Wilmington, Delaware in the hood. And we're running final expense leads. I recorded every presentation this dude did. For like three days I was with him in the field all day watching him sell. I recorded every presentation he did, I listened to it, and he was like don't reinvent the wheel. Don't reinvent the wheel. He's like this isn't rocket science, this is a copycat system. And I tried to memorize, like his name was Josh, I literally tried to become Josh. I literally tried to do his whole presentation word for word, the way he does it. He gave me his jokes that make the old people laugh. I repeat all of his jokes. I was Josh. That's what I was in the house. I tried to be an expert copycat and that's what I did.

Drewbie Wilson (21:57:13):
Yeah, there's a couple things I want to unpack from that because that's so, so good. That balance between not wanting to be told what to do and also being coachable, there's so much to that, Matt. There's so much we could really dig in on because I know that a lot of sales professionals that I've worked with over the years and that I know we've mentored with and that we've talked to over the years, like nobody wants to be told what to do. And this applies in sales too, right? If you're trying to tell someone, hey, you need to do this and this is the thing you need to buy, they don't feel good about it. But when you're coaching someone and you're helping them get the thing that they want by offering the feedback or the advice that can get them there, that emotional switch, that's when sales is really great. That's when you're like, dude, I'm not selling you, I'm literally serving you at this point. I'm just helping you get the thing that you want by showing you exactly how to get it. Whether it's coaching you in the gym and showing you how to get your fitness up, coaching you in your business, showing you how to create a sales and follow-up system, or coaching you on what your options are to protect your assets in life, whether it's a mortgage protection policy or a burial policy or just regular old homeowner's insurance, right? Having that ability to coach someone by understanding where they're at and what they're going through. That's what makes you such a savage, bro. That's why I love watching you move because I know that it's that genuine care and authenticity of like, hey man, I'm not here to tell you what to do. I'm here to coach you and being someone that's been coached their whole life, I think you have an amazing perspective to be able to bring that to your sales conversations. And so if anyone's listening and you know, you've been in fitness or martial arts or sports. Use that, use that ability to be coachable and learn from everything that you're doing. I mean, that's why you're here listening to this show, because you want to learn and grow and share some crazy stories. Matt, we've had a great time. Time has absolutely flown by today. And I'm sure we could hang out forever. So I'll have to have you back for another episode. Let's say they enjoyed your story.

Drewbie Wilson (24:13:18):
They want to know what, you know, because you're always putting out great content. You're sharing the MVB luxury. You're one of the guys that has access to some of the nicest watches on the world. And if you're in sales and you appreciate the finer things in life, why not work with someone who's built a small business and truly cares about people by reaching out to my man, Matt? So Matt, what's the best way for them to find you if they want to learn about MVB luxury or kind of the stuff that you're doing in the insurance field? How can they come and find you?

Matt Van Buren (24:45:31):
So you guys can follow me on Facebook or connect with me on Facebook Matt Van Buren easy to find my Instagram handle is MVB luxury and My website is MVBl.com is my website. The easiest way to get a hold of me probably is just add me on Facebook and shoot me a DM.

Drewbie Wilson (25:20:69):
I love that, man. I'll make sure we put all that down in the show notes too. That way people can come and find you easily. I know one of the things I look forward to in the future is getting to work with you on a nice time piece when the time is right. And more than anything, Matt, I really just wanna tell you how much I appreciate you taking time out of your day to be here, to share that crazy story, man. I know that could not have been an easy thing to go through and to come out the other side and still be willing to show up. Cause I know you didn't just leave the next day, you probably went and ran another dozen or so appointments in Alabama like, come on, we gotta get at it.

Matt Van Buren (25:53:48):
Oh, yeah, bro. I had another three or four full days like it never happened.

Drewbie Wilson (26:02:79):
Absolute savage, man. That's why I love watching your move. That's why I love seeing what you have going on. More than anything, grateful to call you a friend and see, you know, the business that you're building and for you to take time to be here with us. I always like to ask one last question before we leave though. You know, there's new people coming into sales every single day. This is the greatest industry on the planet because it's literally an opportunity for anyone from any background to be successful.

Drewbie Wilson (26:23:81):
If they're new and they're here and you can give them one piece of advice, what would it be?

Matt Van Buren (26:36:32):
Biggest piece of advice I can give you in sales is you gotta be coachable. And ideally you wanna find a good mentor, which can be difficult to do, to separate the real from the fake, but you gotta be coachable. And you gotta, you know what I mean, don't try to reinvent the wheel. Somebody's telling you to do something a certain way or say something a certain way and they have a proven track record of that, even if you don't think it's right, there's a reason they're telling you that and you may not understand it till six months or a year into the game. But you need to just do what they say, put your ego aside, be coachable. And that's the biggest thing with anything in life. If you're trying to learn something from somebody, you have to be coachable.

Drewbie Wilson (27:17:47):
Matt, you absolutely nailed it, brother. I'm so grateful for that wisdom. And I know anyone who's new, who's listening, that takes that to heart and is listening and goes and takes action on it, they're gonna win, bro. So thank you for that. If you're here and you enjoyed the show, share it out on social media, tag us @callthedamnleads & @MVBluxury, let people know you got some value, some entertainment. And if you have a crazy sales story and you want to share it on this show, I'd love to bring you on and invite you to share that story. Head over to calledadamleads.com/podcast. Send us your information. Let's see what we can talk about and get you scheduled to bring you on because literally this show has been some of the most fun that I've had in a long time getting to share these stories, getting to share some value and know that so many of you are going to take this and absolutely dominate this year and every year going forward. So as always, I leave you with the one reminder, go call the damn leads. We'll see you guys on the next one.

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Connect with Matt:

I spent most of my adult life competing in mixed martial arts. After a run in Bellator, The Ultimate Fighter reality show and the UFC, I was forced to turn the page on my fight career after running into a string of injuries. I got started in high commission sales as I had no other options. As I started having success in life insurance, I started the luxury watch market and started putting my commissions into high end timepieces to resale for profit. I currently have a watch business called MVB Luxury and am focused on medicare sales and building my agency. 

Website and Social Media Links:

Website:mvbluxury.phonesites.com

Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/matt.vanburen.98

Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/mattvb757/

If you're looking for a new watch, MVB Luxury is your go to specializing in gaining access to watches that are extremely difficult to get.

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