The job profile of an Insurance Agent requires strong self-organization and time management skills. A typical day starts with checking emails and prioritizing tasks, including reports for the boss and client inquiries. Spare time is dedicated to client services and self-education, as Insurance Agents serve as the main point of contact for clients.
Preparation is crucial for appointments, as Insurance Agents often earn money through commissions. Assessing the client’s situation beforehand, such as considering their age and circumstances, helps in providing tailored advice. Feedback from clients is valuable for self-improvement and growth.
Keeping track of appointments for the current and following week is essential, and proactive efforts like making sales calls are necessary to ensure a steady stream of appointments. Attention to detail and maintaining relationships with clients contribute to sales and overall success.
Key skills for Insurance Agents include communication, negotiation, problem-solving, analytical abilities, customer service, client relationship management, self-organization, time management, attention to detail, flexibility, and continuous learning. Persuasiveness on sales calls is crucial, and staying knowledgeable about insurance products, changes, and industry regulations builds expertise and trust.
In terms of emerging skills, understanding personal pension plans involving ETFs (Exchange-Traded Funds) and the stock market can be advantageous for Insurance Agents. Additionally, integrating AI into their work could be beneficial as it becomes increasingly prevalent in the insurance industry.
Overall, the job of an Insurance Agent is dynamic and requires adaptability. Success in the role is dependent on continuous learning and staying up-to-date with industry trends and regulations.
A Day as an Insurance Agent
Whether you’re bound to a nine to five or you can decide your working hours yourself, you will need a schedule. A frame you might say, that keeps you on track. Because the number one skill you need to have is self-organisation.
First Things First
This schedule should look similar to the following. First things first, check your mails and make a priority list of what has to be done immediately and what could wait until tomorrow. This might go from reports for your boss to inquiries from clients. You have to use your spare time wisely, mainly for client services or self-education. Afterall, you are the main point of contact for your clients.
Priority List
If your priority list is set and you’ve done the most urgent things, you shouldn’t forget about the appointments you have. As an Insurance Agent you’ll most likely earn your money with commissions. So, preparation is key. Take a look at your client and get an overview about the situation he might be in. There is a difference between a 20-year-old who starts working and a 45-year-old parent with a house.
Feedback
Get used to get feedback after your appointments, your clients might not be the hardest critics, but they are the most important ones. Afterwards review the whole thing yourself. Identifying the bits you can improve on, together with the clients feedback, it will be your easiest way to growth.
Reviewing
Reviewing also allows you to remember leads and other important information about the client. Every kind of information will either generate the chance of a new sale or it will improve your relationship with clients.
Think Ahead
Keep track of the number of appointments you have already set for the current and the following week. As an Insurance Agent you always have to think ahead. If you don’t have enough appointments to fill your days the following week, it is crucial to make sales calls and get additional ones. Sure, the quality of your consultation is what determines if you sell something but if you don’t have the chance to show your class, it doesn’t matter.
At The End Of A Workday
At the end of a workday I would always take another look at my priority list to make sure I didn’t forget about anything and everything that’s left undone can wait for the next day.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the job as an Insurance Agent is a very versatile one. Besides the key skills and perks there is one more thing you have to be: flexible. There will be days that aren’t as productive but there will also be some which extend normal work days.
Key Skills For Insurance
- Communication & negotiation skills
- Problem solving & analytical skills
- Customer Service & Client Relationships
- Self-organisation & time management
- Attention to detail
- Flexibility
Continuous Learning
You’ll never know enough about sales call and communication. As mentioned earlier, the quality of your consultation determines a sale, but you need the clients first. Already being persuasive on the phone is half the rent.
Depending on the kind of insurance you sell, you might think about getting into health and life insurance as well as they are the most profitable products for commission. No matter which direction you decide for, make sure you have a deep knowledge about your topic and keep up to date with changes. After all, expertise sows trust and trust is your biggest asset.
Last and kind of self-explanatory, keep up to date with the laws and regulations. It is a necessity to be a professional and there could be changes that put one product ahead of the other.
Emerging Skill
ETF’s are the new thing for personal pension plans. Well, it is not as new anymore, but people still aren’t very well informed about it. In order to compete you’ll have to gain knowledge about how such products work and the stock market in general.
Integrating AI into businesses is a more recent phenomenon. You can’t exactly say how it will affect the Insurance branch but it will in some way. So getting an understanding of the basics and maybe already including it into your work could turn out beneficial in the near future.