What is Hardest Part of Selling Insurance?

[Liz]

I often hear that prospecting/getting in front of qualified prospects is the hardest part of selling insurance. However, I have also seen people who have plenty of leads, struggle to be successful. What do you think is the hardest part of selling insurance? I plan to write an article based on the results.

 

[GMANPRO]

I often hear that prospecting/getting in front of qualified prospects is the hardest part of selling insurance. However, I have also seen people who have plenty of leads, struggle to be successful. What do you think is the hardest part of selling insurance? I plan to write an article based on the results.

It's still the same issue. Despite what people say, all leads are no created equal. What's the quality? How many can you get? How are you managing them?

There is a lot more to it than just buying random leads. The hard part is turning them from information to clients.

 

[Indy007]

Prospecting/finding enough qualified people... Accidently hit closing. Closing is probably the easiest part, if you do enough fact finding and listening.

 

[Justin Bilyj]

Managing your time wisely. Set defined times for calling,field work,and administrative tasks which shouldn't fall within 9-5 unless you have an assistant doing it.
If your day is organized; you know when your supposed to call and when your supposed to be out in the field. If you have time slots for these activities then you can fill up the time slots with more of the appropriate activity instead of wasting time on different scheduled activities.

 

[TonyC]

-Getting quality leads
-Pre Qualifying leads by phone
-Managing Lead appt.
-Application process (correctly)
-Managing Underwriting
-Closing
-Getting paid.

 

[DecisionMan]

I saw a great quotation today I wish I could take credit for, but it came from one of my fitness friends on twitter:

"Your grass would be just as green if you took time to water it."

I believe the hardest part of selling insurance is the prospecting, in any market.

Don't know enough about the product? That can be researched in non-money-time hours. Plus, get in front of enough prospects and you'll learn the major points through trial and error.

Don't know how to handle objections? Spend a week prospecting in whatever manner and you'll hear all the objections you need to know. Then, write out your answers over a cup of coffee and rehearse them every morning.

Don't know how to present? Get in front of enough prospects and one will improve over time.

Don't know how to close? Get in front of enough prospects and one will improve, plus get the lay-downs, plus get the lucky ones, plus be at the right-place-at-the-right-time, plus earn enough money to stay in the business until one gets real good at it.

But what happens is that agents continually look for where the grass is greener. Should I add P&C to my products? Do I get my series licenses? Maybe I should switch zip codes for my lead drops? Do I sell Med Supps or FE or both? Maybe I should go with an agency or should I go independent?

Much of this is basically the question of where the grass is greener, and in most cases, all we need to do is water the grass we have and it gets greener, along with our bank account.

What is the greatest reason for failure among salespeople in general? Lack of consistent prospecting.

A full pipeline of deals gives one confidence. You don't care about the next "no" you get because you've got plenty in the pipeline. You don't care that a lead drop pulled a little less this time than last. You don't care if so-and-so happened to write a huge deal (maybe it was his only one for the year, or a relative).

A full pipeline comes from seeing people, getting through the "no's," the no-shows, the underwriting rejections, the compliance irritations, the horrible sales management, the typical lack of training in this industry, and all the looking over the fences that keep one from just going out and seeing people.

I really don't think we sell insurance. I think we're really professional prospectors that happen to sell insurance products.

 

[JoKat]

Very good. I like that. I shared it with my fellow agents

 

[Liz]

Managing your time wisely. Set defined times for calling,field work,and administrative tasks which shouldn't fall within 9-5 unless you have an assistant doing it.
If your day is organized; you know when your supposed to call and when your supposed to be out in the field. If you have time slots for these activities then you can fill up the time slots with more of the appropriate activity instead of wasting time on different scheduled activities.

Great point. I've see this as a challenge in any job I've ever had that has competing priorities. You can combat it with finely-honed systems and processes, but often there's an adjustment period.
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I second that @DecisionMan - lots of good points to think about!

 

[DS4]

What is Hardest Part of Selling Insurance?

Prospecting.
The actual selling of the insurance is the easiest part of the process.

I categorize everyone into,
1) Suspects
2) Prospects, and,
3) Clients

Say you are at a dinner party. Everyone in the room is a suspect. Once you start talking to someone, they become a prospect.

 

[smokin goose]

Getting out of bed. :-)