Introduction
Life insurance is one of the hardest things I found to sell. However, I challenged myself to sell it. I realized that there were certain words associated with life insurance, so I had to change that. When you say “life insurance,” people think of death. If you are not familiar with life insurance products, set up a meeting with your licensed life agent; get to know them, as you will be sending leads to them and need their guidance.
It is good to have a great relationship with them. If your life-licensed team member doesn’t meet with you regularly, set that up. Don’t just throw them leads—get to know them and come up with a plan. This is one of the best things I did. It gave me confidence in him and his knowledge and gave me peace of mind that my clients would be handled well.
So let’s talk about life insurance sales training. Why are we here? To see how a structured training model can help P&C teams become confident in cross-selling life insurance. Life insurance sales training is not that hard.
Foundational Life Insurance Sales Training
- Step 1: You need to bring in your sales agents, both P&C and Life.
- Step 2: Talk about life insurance, their personal life insurance (do they have a life policy? Why?).
- Step 3: Discuss how important life insurance is to have and why, if you have some stories tell them now.
- Step 4: Come up with a process on how the P&C sales agent can pass life insurance to the life agent.
- Step 5: Discuss what the P&C agent will get for passing the lead. Example: send 5 “qualified” leads, get $100 if any are sold, get $100 per lead (obviously numbers may be different here). You must provide incentives.
- Step 6: Make sure the P&C agent is documenting the pass of the lead and the life agent is also documenting where they got the lead and where it is in the sales process. You need to find a way to code and track it in your management system. Tip: NO documentation no payment.
- Step 7: Follow up with another meeting in a month or two to see how the life insurance sales training/process is going. Modify if necessary.
Three Ways To Ask About Life Insurance at Renewal
- Where do you have your life insurance? (This is my personal favorite)
- Did you know we offer life insurance?
- In conducting the renewal review, I noticed Insert Client Life Change – this means it’s time to review your life insurance.
On every single renewal review, we should be educating clients about life insurance. We call this Cross-Education.
Now let’s discuss words. Most people think of death when they hear the words life insurance and we as professionals need to change this. So what I decided to do was find better words. Below are some examples of what I did. You have your customer’s birthdate, so use it! Use better words with different generations of people.
This list below will help!:
- Baby Boomers (Born 1946-1964) – Legacy Planning – Retirement Security – Tax Benefits – Final Expenses.
- Generation X (Born 1965-1980) – – Financial Stability – Income Replacement – Education Funding – Estate Planning.
- Millennials (Born 1981-1996) – Affordability: Use terms like “budget-friendly” and “flexible payment options.” – Financial Independence – Tech-Savvy Solutions: Mention online tools and apps for managing policies – Life Events (marriage, children, etc.).
- Generation Z (Born 1997-2012) – Short-Term Benefits: Focus on immediate benefits like coverage for student loans or debts – Digital Accessibility: Emphasize easy online purchasing and management of policies. – Social Responsibility: Talk about policies that align with values like sustainability or community impact – Education and Awareness: Use straightforward language to educate them about the importance of life insurance.
Need help overcoming objections? You’re in luck, check out our blog earlier this month on How To Cross Sell Life Insurance.
General Tips To Educate Client On Life Insurance
- Empathy: Always show understanding and listen to their concerns.
- Personalization: Tailor your approach based on individual needs rather than a one-size-fits-all solution.
- Clear Communication: Use simple language and avoid jargon, especially with younger generations who may not be familiar with insurance terminology.
Adjusting your terminology and approach can significantly enhance your connection with potential clients across different age groups!
As you build rapport, make sure life insurance becomes part of your everyday conversation. Tip: You need to understand it and have it yourself and discuss why it is important to you for your family and their needs. Life insurance sales training and open and honest conversations about the topic help a great deal in this working smoothly.
This process and life insurance sales training not only helps the customer, but it also increases retention, increases revenue, and strengthens relationships, making it less likely for a customer to leave the agency.
Proven Training Model To Encourage Cross-Selling Life Insurance
Foundational Life Insurance Education
Step 1: Start with the basics of life insurance, breaking down terms like term vs. whole life, coverage amounts, and policy durations.
How this foundational understanding builds confidence in discussing life insurance options.
Simplifying the Sales Process
Step 2: Provide agents with a simplified sales script or guide for introducing life insurance during routine P&C discussions.
Example script: “As we review your auto or home policy, have you considered life insurance as part of your overall financial protection plan?”
Emphasize using relatable client stories and questions that uncover life insurance needs naturally.
Real-Life Scenarios and Role-Playing
Step 3: Use real-life scenarios and role-playing exercises to help agents practice and feel more comfortable introducing life insurance.
Overcoming Objections Training
Step 4: Teach agents how to confidently address common objections, like cost concerns or “I already have life insurance.”
Example response: “I understand that. Let’s take a look at what your current life insurance covers and make sure it aligns with your present needs.”
Conclusion
In conclusion, life insurance is not always an easy sell. It may take a process, but it is well worth it when a claim is filed and you and your staff know that you took care of ALL of your customers. The more policies the customer has with you, the higher your retention rate will be. Promote questions and emphasize how cross-selling can increase not only your agency’s size but also its retention.
🔥 Dive into our latest blog and unlock the secrets of How To Cross Sell Life Insurance
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