Insurance Agent Forum

[mikespine]

I will be getting my Health Ins. Lic. in North Carolina in February 2007. I currently work as a Physical Therapist in Raleigh.
- Can you start in this industry working part-time?
- What companies offer a good core for learning?
- What companies to stay away from/scams?

Recently took the State Farm Career Profile+ by LIMRA. (It is to be an indicator if will be successful in owning an Agency). Is anybody familiar with this test. They either give you an A-Acceptable or N-unacceptable, I received an N-unacceptable. Meaning I can not apply for Agency for 1 year with State Farm.
- Has anybody taken this test?
- Any idea on how to "pass", what are they looking for in being a success?

Thanks.

[somarco]

Join a "career" shop to learn the basics. Even if you end up with AFLAC, Colonial, American Income you at least will get some basic training and an idea if you are suited for this business.

By staying on the periphery, offering ancillary products you wont do too much damage to those who buy from you.

It really is too bad that Mutual of Omaha is no longer in the business. They had one of the best training grounds for new agents.

[al3]

Originally Posted by somarco

Join a "career" shop to learn the basics. Even if you end up with AFLAC, Colonial,

I don't know about AFLAC but Colonial is not captive. They have two appointment structures. One is an 'agent' agreement that is rather restrictive in it's non-compete clause but not captive. The other is their 'broker' agreement which I signed which says nothing about selling competing products, etc. They know that I am appointed by other (health) carriers and that I will continue to sell those products in addition to Colonial's workplace supps (which are sometimes called "mini-meds" but from what I understand... really aren't.)

What IS the definition of 'mini-meds' as opposed to workplace "voluntary benefits"?

Al

[healthagent]

Originally Posted by mikespine

I will be getting my Health Ins. Lic. in North Carolina in February 2007. I currently work as a Physical Therapist in Raleigh.
- Can you start in this industry working part-time?
- What companies offer a good core for learning?
- What companies to stay away from/scams?

Recently took the State Farm Career Profile+ by LIMRA. (It is to be an indicator if will be successful in owning an Agency). Is anybody familiar with this test. They either give you an A-Acceptable or N-unacceptable, I received an N-unacceptable. Meaning I can not apply for Agency for 1 year with State Farm.
- Has anybody taken this test?
- Any idea on how to "pass", what are they looking for in being a success?

Thanks.

*Stay away from any company that wants to charge you a single nickle to "join" their opportunity.

*Stay away from any outfit that has you in a group interview.

*Stay away from any company that wants a list of your friends and family.

Ask any prospective company to outline a typical week for you - as in "Ok, it's Monday morning at 9am - can you outline what my day will be from 9am to 5pm."

Also ask them to "work it backwards" regarding pay. For example, if you were to sign up to sell Assurant and you stated that you needed $1,500 a week in pay you would say: "Listen, I need to have $1,500 a week in commission. Walk me through what I'd have to do for the week to earn that."

I'd reply:

The average premium is $3,500 and your commission is 20%. That means you need 2 deals a week. Since you're new you'll close 1 out of 15 deals. You can either generate leads on your own by telemarketing or business or business or you can hire someone and pay them an average of $10 per lead. That means you need 30 leads or $300 in marketing expenses.

You basically want it all laid out for you. You might have companies telling you that you'll get free leads. Again, you want specifics:

"Ok, how many free leads will I be getting on a weekly basis and how many can I expect to close?"

[jb123]

Why "even if you wind up with aflac" I'm thinking of getting into thr biz. What is wrong with aflac?

[TheSalesWolf]

Any sales company that gives you a test like "State Farm" and others are looking for an extremely confident person. Every answer should relay that to them. I'm not totally familiar with State Farm's but I took one for Allstate and a couple other companies and basically just answered every question like I was the best salesperson on Earth, which I am, so it was easy. (just kidding... a little)

Anyway you can work part-time on insurance, however it's just like anything Part Time doesn't give you Full Time pay.

AFLAC is a very niche market to sell. Doesn't pay a lot because the premiums and commissions are fairly low.

Get yourself in HEALTH and LIFE INSURANCE. That's where the money is.

Email me if you're interested in getting appointed in health and I can point you in the right direction. info@healthins101.com

[Newby]

Originally Posted by jb123

Why "even if you wind up with aflac" I'm thinking of getting into thr biz. What is wrong with aflac?

I don't know much about AFLAC personally but I do know this:

Everytime I run an ad recruiting (I used to do a lot of hiring within the funeral industry) I would ALWAYS get lots of applications from agents who were selling for AFLIC. Seems that everybody who is in there is trying to get out. Not a good sign.

[skeet64]

Just make sure that you don't pay any company up front. At the end of the day, they should be willing to invest in you as a partner. If they charge upfront fees, then beware....