Insurance Agent Forum

[Angio333]

State Farm, All State, Nationwide, or Metlife?

Which one do you think would be the best for a brand spanking new agent? I'm leaning towards P&C with cross selling Life, etc.

Thanks.

[Agent]

State farm all the way.

Check out financial-planning.com message boards for in depth discussion of the companies you mentioned.

[djs]

Your probably not going to go to badly with any of the above. All carriers have regional goods and bads, so other than knowing that each of these are above board, it is really going to depend on what you want to do, and how the carriers are competitvely in your market.

I highly suggest calling some local neighborhood agents for each, make sure they have been with the company for a while (i.e., 10 years or more) offer to buy them lunch in exchange for some info. Okay, you probably don't have to buy lunch, a lot of agents will tell you what is good (and bad) about the companies they represent.

Dan

[loweman]

I hear Met has a lot of expenses for their Life agents. State farm could be good. Allstate you have to open your own place at some time but could be good except I think their life products are not competitvely priced. Not sure if Nationwide has life products.

[CHUMPS FROM OXFORD]

Interview with all four. Read your contract offers closely and don't be afraid to negotiate. If you have aspirations of becoming a Financial Planner...it's Met hands down. If you're leaning towards the P&C side of things, skip Met.

I faced the same decision in 1980 and chose one of those four.

[MIBizInsurance]

Solid advice from all.

As Dan mentioned contact current agents. Also contact some new agents (1-5 yrs) as this will give you insight on how things (training,mang. etc...) are currently.

Also, don't forget local indy P &C agents. Training will probaly not be as structured but you would be able to offer multiple companies.

Good luck.

[moonlightandmargaritas]

In the past, State Farm has only hired new agents that are working in some other capacity in their company already (sales mgmt, claims, etc.)

Has that changed?

[djs]

Originally Posted by moonlightandmargaritas

In the past, State Farm has only hired new agents that are working in some other capacity in their company already (sales mgmt, claims, etc.)

Has that changed?

This might be a regional thing, but in California, they are actively seeking new agents. They bring them in and have them work in other capacities for a short time (i.e., training) and then put them out as a training agent.

They are tough to get in with, but by the time you open your doors, you will be successful.

Dan

[xrac]

Originally Posted by MIBizInsurance

Solid advice from all. As Dan mentioned contact current agents. Also contact some new agents (1-5 yrs) as this will give you insight on how things (training,mang. etc...) are currently. Also, don't forget local indy P &C agents. Training will probaly not be as structured but you would be able to offer multiple companies. Good luck.

This is probably the best thing that you can do. I would do this with all of the companies I am considering. Based upon my due diligence I would rank the opportunities and then pursue appointment with at least top two opportunities. The reason I would pursue two is it gives me a fall back position if for some reason my top choice doesn't pan out.

Once I was on the verge of being offered a position in outside sales for Ralston-Purina. The process had went well even including spending a day riding with an outside salesman and a second day riding with the area sales manager. However, I was never offered the job because they decided to close a New England sales division and transferred outside salesmen into the region I was being considered for. This killed the opportunity and taught me that things can occur beyond my control.