Matt Trapnell Has Found a Second Career with Healthcare Practice

Golf and private medical insurance are seldom linked. But for Healthcare Practice Partner Matt Trapnell there are striking similarities between the two, which have led to a fulfilling second career.

Matt became the local face of Healthcare Practice in Buckinghamshire in July 2012 and is now a senior Partner. But he started out on a very different path. A keen sportsman, Matt left school at 18 and, being one of the UK’s leading junior squash players, took a first job at Trent Bridge cricket ground, close to where he grew up.

He then moved into golf sales arranging membership and events before entering the blue-chip end of the hospitality industry. However the world of private jets started to pall and Matt wanted a new challenge: but one that used the personal and professional skills he already had. The answer was to invest in a Healthcare Practice Practice becoming a Partner.

Matt, who lives in Farnborough, Hampshire, explained:
"A lot of people have said to me that golf and private medical insurance have little in common.

I didn’t agree: in my experience they can be quite similar. Medical insurance is about helping customers fund their healthcare – sport and health are complementary. With both you have to make your customers feel valued: to make sure they have bought the right service or product and that they are happy. If they are, when it comes to renewal time, they will carry on their membership. This is true whether you are selling golf club memberships or advising on private medical insurance. Your business is knowing your customers and ensuring their needs are met: do so and you will retain their business and they will recommend you to others – a key driver of the growth of my business at Healthcare Practice".

Many of Matt’s clients come from personal recommendations, others from leads garnered from business contacts and forums.

Matt emphasises that being a successful Healthcare Practice Partner involves hard work:
"The first three years were sometimes tough but after that, you can see just how the business model works. You get out all that you put in and more".

He works full time, often starting with breakfast meetings. Most of his time is spent meeting people – and it’s this face to face contact that he particularly enjoys. The work fits in well with his busy family life – Matt and his wife have five children.

And while private medical insurance can be complex, Matt adds:
"Healthcare Practice offers fantastic products: there is a plan to suit everyone. I don’t see myself as a salesman but as a local healthcare expert: I am here to advise people on the best way to protect their family’s or their business’ health".

Matt adds that he finds Healthcare Practice "massively supportive" and says the administration for partners is "not onerous at all".  So what kind of person does he think would suit becoming a Healthcare Practice Partner?
"You have to be a self-starter.  You have to generate your own customers and nurture them; and you need to keep in touch with leads. I’ve just picked up business from someone I first met when I started four years ago – showing that the long game can pay off".

Matt's advice to anyone thinking of becoming a Healthcare Practice Partner:
"It takes time to build your business, put the hard work in and it can give you great rewards and great satisfaction of helping people with their healthcare. Every client is so different. The flexibility for the family and being your own boss gives great satisfaction too."

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