Table 1. Open in new tab Summary of...

Theme	Definition
Major Theme 1: Indoctrination of trainees using incentives and neutralization techniques
Establish legitimacy	Attempts to establish the credibility of Alliance and its financial products by emphasizing the company’s growing size, prestige, and profits. Objective is to make the trainee a coconspirator in the scam by building a sense of ownership in Alliance and its products.
Instill a sense of moral authority	Instilling the belief that sales agents are doing clients a favor by using any means necessary to sell them living trusts as a tool to protect them from probate costs, thereby helping build a legacy for their heirs.
Reinforce ageist stereotypes	Statements that describe how the company depicts their typical older client—for example, unsophisticated, forgetful, lonely, patriotic, conservative, fearful of technology, loving, and proud of their children/grandchildren.
Offer incentives	Emphasizing the financial and travel benefits awarded for reaching sales quota or for new client referrals. Includes flexibility in work schedule, opportunities for promotion, all-expense paid vacations, and health coverage.
Encourage conformity	Pressure to adhere to the sales protocol and company policies. Expectations for dress, behavior, and for using Alliance’s scripted persuasion messages to optimize sales.
Major Theme 2: Persuasion tools and tactics for selling to older adults
Scapegoating	Generating an “us versus them” mentality by scapegoating probate lawyers and estate taxes while presenting Alliance as a legitimate provider of estate planning products.
Emotional arousal	Manipulating the clients’ fears about losing control over financial assets and personal autonomy. Playing on their desire to pass on a legacy to their family members. Use of emotionally laden narratives to generate anxiety, build a sense of urgency, and convince clients to divulge private information.
Build rapport	Building rapport to earn clients’ trust and confidence—for example, empathizing with and flattering clients to convince them that Alliance and its sales agents have their best interests in mind.
Illusion of control	Giving clients a false sense of control over the sales negotiation by asking them leading questions and pretending that a living trust may not apply to their particular circumstances to put them falsely at ease.
Reciprocity	Creating a debt by offering small favors (like price reduction) to convince clients to agree to a larger request later on. Also, making small requests to get clients accustomed to saying yes to the sales agent (early commitment).
Persistence	Establishing a sense of urgency to close the deal without providing time for clients to think over the offer. Use of aggressive, high-pressure tactics to persuade clients to sign documents and disclose their financial information.
Diversion	Diverting clients’ attention away from the cost and consequences of buying a living trust by asking them unrelated or personal questions.

Theme

Definition

Major Theme 1: Indoctrination of trainees using incentives and neutralization techniques

Establish legitimacy

Attempts to establish the credibility of Alliance and its financial products by emphasizing the company’s growing size, prestige, and profits. Objective is to make the trainee a coconspirator in the scam by building a sense of ownership in Alliance and its products.

Instill a sense of moral authority

Instilling the belief that sales agents are doing clients a favor by using any means necessary to sell them living trusts as a tool to protect them from probate costs, thereby helping build a legacy for their heirs.

Reinforce ageist stereotypes

Statements that describe how the company depicts their typical older client—for example, unsophisticated, forgetful, lonely, patriotic, conservative, fearful of technology, loving, and proud of their children/grandchildren.

Offer incentives

Emphasizing the financial and travel benefits awarded for reaching sales quota or for new client referrals. Includes flexibility in work schedule, opportunities for promotion, all-expense paid vacations, and health coverage.

Encourage conformity

Pressure to adhere to the sales protocol and company policies. Expectations for dress, behavior, and for using Alliance’s scripted persuasion messages to optimize sales.

Major Theme 2: Persuasion tools and tactics for selling to older adults

Scapegoating

Generating an “us versus them” mentality by scapegoating probate lawyers and estate taxes while presenting Alliance as a legitimate provider of estate planning products.

Emotional arousal

Manipulating the clients’ fears about losing control over financial assets and personal autonomy. Playing on their desire to pass on a legacy to their family members. Use of emotionally laden narratives to generate anxiety, build a sense of urgency, and convince clients to divulge private information.

Build rapport

Building rapport to earn clients’ trust and confidence—for example, empathizing with and flattering clients to convince them that Alliance and its sales agents have their best interests in mind.

Illusion of control

Giving clients a false sense of control over the sales negotiation by asking them leading questions and pretending that a living trust may not apply to their particular circumstances to put them falsely at ease.

Reciprocity

Creating a debt by offering small favors (like price reduction) to convince clients to agree to a larger request later on. Also, making small requests to get clients accustomed to saying yes to the sales agent (early commitment).

Persistence

Establishing a sense of urgency to close the deal without providing time for clients to think over the offer. Use of aggressive, high-pressure tactics to persuade clients to sign documents and disclose their financial information.

Diversion

Diverting clients’ attention away from the cost and consequences of buying a living trust by asking them unrelated or personal questions.

Theme	Definition
Major Theme 1: Indoctrination of trainees using incentives and neutralization techniques
Establish legitimacy	Attempts to establish the credibility of Alliance and its financial products by emphasizing the company’s growing size, prestige, and profits. Objective is to make the trainee a coconspirator in the scam by building a sense of ownership in Alliance and its products.
Instill a sense of moral authority	Instilling the belief that sales agents are doing clients a favor by using any means necessary to sell them living trusts as a tool to protect them from probate costs, thereby helping build a legacy for their heirs.
Reinforce ageist stereotypes	Statements that describe how the company depicts their typical older client—for example, unsophisticated, forgetful, lonely, patriotic, conservative, fearful of technology, loving, and proud of their children/grandchildren.
Offer incentives	Emphasizing the financial and travel benefits awarded for reaching sales quota or for new client referrals. Includes flexibility in work schedule, opportunities for promotion, all-expense paid vacations, and health coverage.
Encourage conformity	Pressure to adhere to the sales protocol and company policies. Expectations for dress, behavior, and for using Alliance’s scripted persuasion messages to optimize sales.
Major Theme 2: Persuasion tools and tactics for selling to older adults
Scapegoating	Generating an “us versus them” mentality by scapegoating probate lawyers and estate taxes while presenting Alliance as a legitimate provider of estate planning products.
Emotional arousal	Manipulating the clients’ fears about losing control over financial assets and personal autonomy. Playing on their desire to pass on a legacy to their family members. Use of emotionally laden narratives to generate anxiety, build a sense of urgency, and convince clients to divulge private information.
Build rapport	Building rapport to earn clients’ trust and confidence—for example, empathizing with and flattering clients to convince them that Alliance and its sales agents have their best interests in mind.
Illusion of control	Giving clients a false sense of control over the sales negotiation by asking them leading questions and pretending that a living trust may not apply to their particular circumstances to put them falsely at ease.
Reciprocity	Creating a debt by offering small favors (like price reduction) to convince clients to agree to a larger request later on. Also, making small requests to get clients accustomed to saying yes to the sales agent (early commitment).
Persistence	Establishing a sense of urgency to close the deal without providing time for clients to think over the offer. Use of aggressive, high-pressure tactics to persuade clients to sign documents and disclose their financial information.
Diversion	Diverting clients’ attention away from the cost and consequences of buying a living trust by asking them unrelated or personal questions.