Whether you are an individual life insurance agent or a life insurance agency owner, ideas on how to sell life insurance can be challenging to come by, but they can also be gratifying and financially rewarding.
The life insurance sales industry is highly competitive, with 409,950 life insurance sales agents expected in the United States in 2020, equating to one life insurance agent for every 1,234 people.
To be successful in this industry, you must have the proper strategy and approach.
If you’ve been selling life insurance for a while, you’ve probably developed a strategy that works for you. Even the most experienced insurance sales agents require a refresher course from time to time in order to stay on top of their game.
Going back to basics can also help life insurance agencies with agent recruitment and retention. Continue reading for tips on how you and your team can increase productivity.
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Why Sell Life Insurance?
Life insurance sales are not for everyone! However, if you are willing to face the challenges that this profession entails, you should pursue it.
The median wage for life insurance agents in 2020 was $52,180, while top salespeople with exceptional selling abilities earned more than $127,840 during the same period.
According to these statistics, life insurance marketing is a rewarding career with a high earning potential. The low barrier to entry in the life insurance industry makes it particularly appealing to millennials.
You do not need a degree to become a certified life insurance professional. Furthermore, you can take advantage of a variety of benefits that may entice you to continue your career in the insurance industry.
The advantages are:
- High Commissions
- Substantial career growth opportunities
- Relaxed schedules
- Constant income with renewals
How to Sell Life Insurance Successfully
The first step in becoming a successful life insurance agent is to learn the fundamental rules and regulations. Learn about state-specific insurance licensing requirements and work hard to get your life insurance license.
Visit the website of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) to learn more about the pass rates for state-specific insurance exams.
Lean on Referrals
Your insurance company will provide you with leads; however, your commissions may be lower. That is why referrals are such an excellent choice.
Request referrals from your clients. If you already have satisfied customers, ask them to recommend your company to their friends, family, and coworkers.
With the right knowledge, skills, and expertise, you can generate life insurance leads and nurture them over time.
Keep Up With Changes
You will have to find new leads on your own as an independent agent. Cold calling can be an effective sales strategy for generating leads.
Remember that your current client’s needs will change as their life progresses. Marriage, divorce, and having children can all change a person’s life insurance needs.
Many of your clients may have started with term life insurance, so don’t forget to contact them again after the first year to discuss the advantages of purchasing a whole life insurance plan.
Assist your clients in understanding the various types of life insurance policies available, such as term life, whole life, and universal life insurance.
Understand Your Target Audience
Once you’ve entered the insurance industry with a specific skill set, it’s time to research and comprehend your market.
Learn about your audience’s goals, challenges, and key expectations, and how your product can help them. Knowing your target audience allows you to tailor your marketing strategies.
Buyers between the ages of 25 and 45, for example, are the primary demographic for term insurance. This is the age group in which major life events such as marriage, home ownership, and family formation take place.
With a higher debt-to-income ratio, this age group has a lower net worth than older buyers.
Learning these facts as a life insurance agent will allow you to fully comprehend market demographics and trends.
This will assist you in better understanding your buyers, such as what they are looking for and how you can serve them with the best life insurance policy that meets their needs.
Consider Specializing
Before you sell your product to a customer, thoroughly research all of its features, benefits, and other aspects. Rather than investigating all of the company’s products, opt for specialization.
Consider specializing in one product to gain a more in-depth understanding of the product, competitors, and pain points in the target market.
When insurance representatives specialize in a few niche products, they are more likely to sell confidently. Before purchasing a policy, master a product and be prepared to answer any questions your client may have.
With a thorough understanding of a product, you can better assist and persuade buyers to buy it right away.
Your client may inquire about the distinction between term and permanent life insurance policies.
So, before they move on to the next question, you’ll be able to explain that while the former may appear to be less expensive, the advantage of purchasing permanent life insurance is that you earn cash value and other benefits — all because you choose to specialize.
Try Cold Calling
Cold calling is a common sales technique in which a sales agent contacts a potential buyer to determine their interest in purchasing a life insurance policy.
Create an efficient insurance script to use during calls in order to engage potential clients from the start and keep the conversation moving. Creating insurance scripts is time-consuming, but the results are rewarding.
As you progress through the outbound call, establish credibility and try to build rapport. To pique interest, understand your prospects’ pain points and align your offerings with their expectations.
You shouldn’t expect your lead to convert during your first call, so you’ll need to nurture the lead continuously to reach the conversion.
Build trust by discussing your client’s personal life insurance objectives, as this is essential for a positive agent-client relationship.
Building relationships with your clients will lead to more upselling and cross-selling opportunities because they will most likely come to you for all of their insurance policy purchases.
Invest in Continuous Learning
Life insurance is a dynamic industry that evolves quickly in response to changing lifestyles and industry trends.
Maintain your knowledge of the industry and continue to expand your knowledge to become a trusted source for your clients. Real-life examples are more important than the theoretical knowledge of various insurance products.
Reading books, attending seminars, exploring training material, building links on LinkedIn, or learning social media sales tips can help you gain a deeper understanding of various life insurance policies, and hands-on experience will help you generate more leads.
As you gain experience as a life insurance agent, you will learn things that no books or tutorials can teach you.
Learn useful tools as well to stay current and set yourself up for success. Learn how some of the most popular life insurance CRM platforms can help you keep track of customers while also managing your book of business.
Learning insurance quoting tools like iLife will assist you in growing your business while generating qualified leads that will speed up the sales process.
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The Bottom Line
If you want to be your own boss, there are plenty of opportunities in insurance sales. However, it will be difficult, especially at first.
Agents must have thick skin and be able to handle rejection. After all, they’re mostly selling the same products. So, if customer service and relationship building aren’t your thing, you might want to pass on this position.
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