Are you getting into insurance without much professional experience? Here are some tips for younger insurance agents to help flatten the learning curve and ramp up your skills quickly.
1. Make the Most of Your Experience
As a recent college graduate, you might not have much — or any — professional work experience. But take a deeper dive into areas you might be overlooking:
- Have you had internships or co-ops? These positions may have given you an up-close, inside look at how the industry operates and the challenges insurance agents face.
- Have you worked in restaurants or retail? These industries commonly attract young people since they offer on-the-job training and flexible hours. By working in these areas, you probably learned customer service, how to handle stressful situations and why it’s important to show up on time and work hard.
- Have you completed group projects in school? You probably learned that people have different abilities, skills, priorities and goals, and how to take all of those things into account to succeed.
- Have you worked hard to reach a goal? If you’ve pushed yourself to pass a tough class, competed in a 5k or studied a new language, you know how persistence can pay off.
Even if you haven’t worked in an office or earned a salary, these experiences count. You can build on them to succeed as an insurance agent.
2. Build Your Sales Skills
It’s common to come out of school with little or no sales skills. That’s OK — you can learn how to sell. Even if you’re not in a sales position right now, these tips can help you boost your sales confidence:
- Exercise your active listening skills: Active listening is a key part of sales, and it’s something you can practice any time you have a conversation. Give your full attention to the person you’re speaking with, ask questions, paraphrase and repeat back what you hear. Over time, active listening will become second nature.
- Learn public speaking: Speaking in front of a group can help you build confidence you can use when you’re having sales conversations. You might find public speaking classes at a local college, community organization or Toastmasters.
- Connect with a mentor: A mentor can give valuable advice as you start in insurance. Do you know someone who’s an experienced salesperson? Ask if you can meet to find out how they grew their skills. They might roleplay with you so you can practice selling. You might also be able to shadow them and watch them in action.
- Find opportunities to practice: Informal “selling” happens all the time, so watch for it. Are you and your friends deciding what to do on Friday night? Think about what you want to do and why that’s a good choice for them, too. Can you find a solution where everyone feels good about the outcome? That’s good sales.
3. Grow Your Business With Fewer Connections
When you’re starting out, you may not have a deep network you can reach out to for potential clients. But with some effort, you can grow your book of business:
- Get involved in your community: Whatever you enjoy, there’s probably an opportunity for you to connect with others. Coach a youth sports team, volunteer as an usher at a theater, help out at a farmer’s market or organize an arts event. Just remember to let the connections grow naturally — don’t push your business on people right away.
- Build an online presence: Set up professional social media accounts where you share industry news and comment on others’ posts. Consider writing longer pieces on LinkedIn to showcase your expertise.
- Work with other professionals: Real estate agents, financial planners and mortgage brokers may have customers who need insurance, and you may have clients who need their services. Building relationships helps you both, and helps your clients, too.
4. Don’t Overlook Your Peers
Talk to your friends and former classmates to see what their needs are. Young people may need to transition off their parent’s auto insurance policy or buy renter’s insurance for the first time. Small sales built on strong personal relationships can grow into big accounts over the years. Plus, your friends know other young people, and they trust you, so they could be a great resource for referrals.
Get Started Today
You might be new to the workforce, but that doesn’t mean you have to wait to get your start in insurance. At Farm Bureau, our extensive training program prepares you to thrive in the industry. Reach out today to find out about the heights you can reach.