10 Gamechanger Insurance Sales Tips for New Insurance Agents

Newly-minted insurance agents often feel like they’ve been thrown to the wolves, even when they’ve been properly trained on the products they sell. It’s understandable. Sales positions in general are stressful. They involve pushing out of your comfort zone and getting personal with other people.

Thankfully there are some strategies and insurance sales tips you can use to help ease yourself into your new position. This list is by no means definitive, but it can help get you started. 

It seems counterintuitive to say that sales isn’t about selling, but effective salespeople build relationships first and sell second. It’s the difference between a hard sell and a soft sell.

Hard sells, using aggressive tactics don’t work. They make your prospect feel uncomfortable. Instead, you simply want to listen to what your customer is looking for, be there with helpful advice when they need it, and build trust between you. If you can become a trusted advisor for people, the sales will come naturally.  

When you’re a new insurance agent it’s easy to feel like you’re out there on your own, but in fact, you have an industry full of people ready to offer advice, support, and camaraderie. There are industry groups you can join. You can also take advantage of training and networking opportunities available through your agency if you work with one, or through the insurance company that you represent.

Two leading industry groups you can join are the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors (NAIFA) and the National Association of Professional Insurance Agents.  

No one would reject an insurance proposal because of a typo, right?

Don’t be so sure. When people are insurance shopping, they’re looking for reasons to trust one agent over another. If you have typos or other grammatical errors in your proposal, or if there are glaring mathematical mistakes, that might be all someone needs to push you down the list. 

Insurance sales is challenging enough as it is. Don’t give people silly reasons to disqualify you. Triple check everything you send out for errors. You can use a service like Grammarly to doublecheck your spelling and grammar. Everything else requires methodical precision. But then, that’s your job, isn’t it? 

People rarely find lasting success on their own. They usually leverage the experience and skills of other people to get going, and then expand from there. Finding a skilled insurance mentor is one of the best ways to learn how to be successful in insurance sales and avoid costly mistakes.

Some agencies and insurance companies have mentorship programs. If you don’t have one available to you, start networking through your professional organizations. Eventually, you’ll find someone willing to help get you started. 

Insurance is a very intimate business. You’re selling a product that gets used only when something goes wrong in a person’s life. Sending out handwritten promotional materials, as well as thank you notes and holiday cards is a great way to add a personal flair to your communications.

Of course, you won’t have the time to handwrite all of those cards yourself. You’ll be too busy selling and servicing your clients. 

Instead, leverage Simply Noted to automate this process for you. Our handwriting machines use real ballpoint pens to create authentic feeling handwritten cards that your prospects and clients will appreciate. We can even replicate your handwriting! 

Some people are naturally empathetic, while others aren’t. If you’re in the first camp, you have an advantage. But if empathy is harder for you, know that it’s a skill that can be learned.

Empathy is important because insurance agents frequently work with customers going through emotionally-challenging life events. If you’re able to supply not just financial support, but also emotional support, your insurance practice will flourish. A customer that feels cared for is likely to recommend you to friends and family. So work on your interpersonal skills. 

Trust building is critical in sales generally, and insurance sales specifically. So never give your prospects or customers a reason to doubt you. Be straight with them, even when the news is bad. Fully discuss their options, and listen to their reactions.

If you think a course of action is a bad idea, let your customers know. You may lose a few sales by being blunt, but you’ll more than make up for them by building an iron-clad reputation as someone customers can trust to look out for their best interests. For insurance agents, trust is like oxygen. 

Novice agents are quick to expound upon all of the powerful features packed into their insurance products. But they forget that features, without context, can sometimes ring hollow for the uninitiated.

Instead, focus on how your insurance products will benefit your prospects. What are the positive effects you can bring to their lives? How can you make their lives better? What are the specific things they need, and how can do your products provide that? 

Benefits personalize what can otherwise be a fairly dry product. Benefits make insurance real for people. 

This is another common mistake that new agents make. They assume that everyone buys on price. But that simply isn’t true. If it were, everyone would shop at dollar stores for everything they need. People don’t because they recognize that, for some things, spending more gets you more value in the long run.

Sometimes you’ll be the cheapest agent, but oftentimes you won’t. If you sell primarily on price, you’ll lose out more often than you’ll win. Instead, figure out ways to sell the value of your products. If you can convince your prospects that your products are more valuable than the competition’s offerings it won’t matter if yours are more expensive. 

Insurance is a numbers game. You can generate a nice, lifelong revenue stream, but it doesn’t happen overnight. It takes work, selling one policy after the next, after the next. Don’t get bogged down by the grind. Remember your goal and keep pushing for it.

When you make a sale, celebrate, and then go right back to selling. Never dwell on your past achievements. If you want the gold ring, you have to keep moving forward. 

Simply Noted automated, handwritten card service is the perfect complement to any insurance business marketing plan. We help support your customers and prospects with lovely, authentic-feeling handwritten notes that are as easy to mail as emailing us an address and a message.

For insurance sales, it’s the personal touch that makes the difference. Let handwritten notes speak volumes for your business.