Tips for Selling Insurance
No matter what kind of insurance you sell — life, homeowner’s, disability, or auto — the goal is always the same: to grow leads and increase sales. However, selling insurance is different from selling anything else.
Insurance is one of the most important investments a person will make in their lifetime, yet they can’t touch it or see it. When you sell insurance, you’re selling ideas and promises. For most insurance salespeople, this provides a huge challenge — especially for those who are younger and inexperienced.
Follow these tips to become a successful insurance salesperson.
1. Be professional. Customers often feel confused or anxious about picking the right plan. Purchasing an insurance plan is a serious task and customers tend to take it seriously. A salesperson who doesn’t take customers seriously seems untrustworthy. If you dress more professionally, it indicates to your customer that you care for them and are taking them seriously. As a result, your customers will want to close a deal with you.
Dressing professionally, however, is only a small part in being professional. What you say to your client and how you say it has an enormous impact on their level of trust. Casual responses such as “gotcha,” “totally,” “yeah, man,” and “dude” make it seem like you aren’t taking them seriously. You also don’t want to use industry jargon that they wouldn’t understand. That would only confuse them more. Speak to them respectfully and in easy-to-understand language.
2. Be personable. Many inexperienced salespeople have difficulty reconciling being professional and being personable. You don’t need to be casual in order to be personable, you need to show interest in the client and treat them as a human. Find common ground by asking them if they have children or if they’ve ever purchased insurance before. Creating a personal dialogue can be beneficial in creating a professional relationship that will result in a successful sale.
3. Listen more, speak less. Upon first meeting prospects, it can be tempting to begin explaining all of your plans and their features. However, for a confused and anxious prospect, this may confuse and frustrate them even more.
Instead of spewing the details of an insurance plan, let the prospect lead the discussion. Ask questions about their lifestyle, family, and what concerns they have. Let them tell you what they are looking for.
4. Don’t sell products, sell benefits and solutions. Instead of listing the plans you have and what they cover, listen to their problems and concerns and react by discussing plans that match their needs.
Explain how this specific plan could be right for them and how it could benefit them and block potential problems down the road.
5. Be memorable. When people look for insurance, they usually meet with several different companies in order to find what’s right for them. The salesperson is what can make the difference between picking one company over another. If you make it clear that you care about the client and want to help them, they will surely return. At the very least, give them something physical like a business card so they can get in touch with you when they have questions.
