Would You Say That P&C is an Easier Sell Than Others?

[emery011]

I tend to think that auto policies are an "in demand" product and would be an easier sell than the others. Yes, most have HO policies and Health as well. Life is a little more of a sell. Would you agree with this statement?
My thinking is that if you can get the sell on the auto the rest would come a little easier.

 

[Josh]

I think auto and ho insurance are the easiest to sell of any insurance, just not a ton of money in it unless you do it very long term. It doesn't take as much sales skill (if any) because its a commodity. Life is MUCH harder to sell and actually involves knowing how to really sell. If you want to end up selling life, start with life or you'll get lazy.

 

[stormtracker]

You'd think that P&C would be a relatively easy sale, given that it is mandatory for lien vehicles and property. However, my experience has been that the difficulty comes in cost comparisons as customers flock to the cheapest, mostly without regard for other concerns.

 

[1manshow]

When I started my training 24 years ago they told me the garage door was the biggest door into the homeleading with auto has been very successful for my agency....of course you do need a good product

 

[Josh]

The sake itself is ducks in a barrel. I managed an Allstate office for about a year and thought it was fine, but id never get rich doing it. The culture of the p&c business is slow and methodical. None of them were any good at life sales and really didn't understand it. They are gatherers, not hunters.

 

[djs]

For the record, any personal lines insurance (home, auto, health, life) is a commodity product. There are differences, but they are all heavily regulated that the ability for them to not be a commodity product simply doesn't exist.

Auto is probably the simplest to sell. Good luck making money at it. It is a volume game, no real money in any single sale. People think they understand auto insurance, but few really do. Home is probably the second simplest to sell, though it can be a complicated product. Don't think so? Wait till you have some strange claims. Home insurance is probably more complex than health, though few understand this because the claims are very infrequent.

Health is a true commodity product. Everyone wants everything for very little money. They understand deductibles and copays, nobody understands office visits may be covered but xrays won't be till you meet the deductible stuff. Don't even bother talking about durable medical equipment, unless you want to see someones eyes glaze over.

Life is by far the least complex to understand. One claim and you are done. How complicated is that? Okay, yes, some uses of life insurance can be very complex, but those are probably less than 10% of the sales (though probably 50% of the commission). Of course, getting someone motivated to buy a life policy is probably much harder than getting them motivated to buy an auto policy.

Here's the thing... if you go out with an overpriced auto policy, you have the toughest sale on the books in front of you. It's much easier to sell overpriced auto insurance than it is to sell overpriced life insurance. On the other hand, underpriced auto insurance is very easy to sell, while underpriced life insurance still is problematic. Reason for this: Simply put, the reason people buy these products is different. Also, most term life policies (majority of life sales) are not a big impact on the family budget, where auto policies can be.

Bottom line, the simplest to sell enough of to pay your bills is totally up to you. You have to sell far more auto policies to make a living than you do life policies. Yes, it's easier to sell one, but you'll need a 5 to 1 (or better) ratio for the same first year income.

Dan

P.S. Yes, stay away from my P&C sales

 

[Aram Fingal]

The one advantage the P&C has is that it may take a while to build a book, but when you do the renewal income is nice from it. Whereas most life policies pay no renewal or very little, so you have to keep selling or the money stops. It's easier to take a vacation with a big P&C book without a disruption in your income than it is if you're a life only agent.

On the other hand, you could probably make as much money in 6 months as you could in a full year of P&C, so just take 6 months off.

 

[Cranson]

I have said this before but I'll say it again. If you plan on selling P&C please learn how to sell life and health because about every prospect you sell home and auto insurance to are Life and Health prospects (or at least Life Ins prospects). So if you constantly cross sell life insurance to every auto or home client you will benefit from the great cash flow the life insurance commissions bring while you build your long term income with a P&C book. Last I checked Term Life insurance doesn't pay well after the first year.

And to answer your questions, P&C is an easy sell if you can offer the lowest rate, otherwise it will be a tough sell. Sometimes getting the best auto markets is tough in P&C unless you contract with a wholesaler that takes a chunk of the commissions.

Good luck!