) Don’t Ignore Sales Fundamentals
I’m sorry to burst your bubble, but Facebook, Twitter, Text Messages and QR Codes don’t sell insurance.
Of course there are tools that can make things easier and more effective for agents, but social media will never replace the basics.
” by Dale Carnegie. It was written in 1936 and teaches you how Teddy Roosevelt, Henry Ford, Benjamin Franklin and a lot of other old people become successful long before Mark Zuckerburg.
Everything in that book is just as relevant today as it was 75 years ago.
16) Become a Marketing Expert
You can’t rely on the agency or carrier you work for to come up with all the marketing ideas and generate leads.
Here’s a few marketing resources to get you started:
You’re not just a salesperson, you are a marketer.
) Be Better Prepared
If your inexperience makes you feel inadequate as a salesperson then find a way to get around it.Work harder, work longer, learn more about your products. Have an answer for every possible question.Read books about sales, listen to sales audio tapes, go to seminars about sales.Get in front of a mirror, a colleague, or a friend and practice your sales scripts, practice your rebuttals, your closes.Nothing comes to you. Prepare yourself and go get it.
) Expect to Live In the Trenches
Selling insurance is hard, hard work.Insurance agents you see with big houses and nice cars playing golf around the world didn’t get there overnight.They sold and sold and sold.And sold more.It’s the only way to become super successful in this business and if you want to be successful you’re going to have to do it too.
) Reference Combined Experience
Remind prospects that they’re not buying only from you.“I passed my licensing exam 3 months ago and I’m so lucky because our office has over 45 years of insurance experience! In fact, every single policy I write is double-checked by the owner of the agency.”If experience may be an issue for your prospect, make sure they know you’re up to your ears in it.
) Sell to Other Young People
There’s one group you have a huge advantage with in selling… other young people!And guess what…There’s millions of them!Millions buying homes, millions getting married, starting businesses, having kids, buying expensive stuff!Go get them!
) Don’t Sell on Price
I get it… people are shopping on price, they’re comparing on price, and they’re buying on price.You buy everything on price too, right?Wrong.Here’s the bottom line:If you honestly believe people only buy on price then quit today. You’re in the wrong business and the industry doesn’t need you.We’re not going to survive with a bunch of price-checkers. The entire industry will suffer if you don’t get out now.Need some ideas for selling value? Read this.
) Follow the Markets
If want to relate to a more mature and professional audience, follow the stock market.You don’t have to be an expert, just know enough to ask questions that don’t make you sound stupid.After you’ve qualified someone by asking if they follow the market, ask something like, “What sectors do you think are going to do the best in the next quarter?”And don’t turn into one of those Cramer wannabees who think they always know the sleeper stock. It’ll make you look inexperienced to someone who has followed the market for years.
) Speak Less, Listen More
As a young or inexperienced salesperson, there’s always an impulse to demonstrate your knowledge.You want prospects to see you know your stuff because you’re a bit worried about it yourself.The more you talk or explain things they didn’t ask about, the more obvious it is how much you don’t know.And the more likely you’ll elicit a question you can’t answer!
) Listen to Your Phone Voice
Record your voice on the phone while talking to some clients.Do you sound smart?Do you sound confident?Do you sound like a little kid who picked up the phone in Daddy’s office?
