The fact of the matter is that when insurance agents enter the industry of selling insurance, their goal is not to make a million dollars. We frequently enter the profession with little more than a desire to interact with people and provide them with small-scale assistance in exchange for a few dollars. We step up and say, “Yeah, I can do this!” when we learn that there is a job to be done in preventing disasters and devastating losses in people’s lives.

Being an insurance agent can be a financially rewarding career, but typically only if you run your own insurance agency, consistently write new business, and are in a strong position with each policy renewal. Insurance agents are typically honest people just trying to make ends meet and maintain their clients’ financial stability. Following the purchase of insurance leads and additional marketing expenditures, new agents make very little money.

Insurance agents with experience understand that in order to generate a sizable income, they must constantly sell insurance and show concern for their clients. For the insurance agent who genuinely has their clients’ best interests in mind, the insurance business is simple.

Despite how unfair it may be, there are stereotypes about the lousy insurance agent. We can first address the misconceptions about insurance agents (and the insurance industry) while working to change people’s perceptions in order to move past the frequently incorrect portrayal of them as nothing more than glorified used car salesmen. It’s the only way to gain the trust of the people you’re trying to protect, and it’s also the most effective way to keep customers.

1. “Every insurance agent has a personal agenda.”

In some ways, the captive agent who works for a single insurance company has it easier because they are only pitching one brand and not pitting various insurance providers against one another, a phenomenon that confuses customers and makes them wary. “Why is this guy trying to sell me this car insurance over the other one?”

Yes, because they work with numerous insurance companies, independent agents are a completely different group of agents, it might be true that an independent insurance agent is attempting to sell one company over another, even at the expense of the client’s budget, but they might also be doing so because they know a carrier has better coverage that fits your client’s lifestyle (a legitimate interest). Alternatively, you might be aware that a particular insurance provider has a poor track record of paying insurance claims, making the additional monthly payment practically a guarantee of better service. However, an insurance agent never triumphs because the worst-case scenario is always assumed.

If you’re an insurance agent, be aware that when you promote one insurance company (or one type of policy) over another (especially if it’s more expensive), it’s always assumed that you have a self-serving agenda. As a result, you should always be prepared to defend your choices. Avoid doing it if you do have an agenda that isn’t in the interests of the client because it will be very obvious.

2. “My Insurance Agent Prefers Businesses Over People”

While it is true that commercial policies generate more income, not all insurance agents desire finding coverage for businesses over individuals and families.

One reason why most insurance agents enter the field is that we enjoy interacting with people and are skilled communicators. Therefore, nothing can ever fully replace the personal connections we frequently forge while helping clients find the right home, auto, or life and health insurance.

A sincere connection is what motivates us to find solutions for all kinds of financial issues for our clients, even after they have reached retirement age with a life insurance policy and perhaps even annuities. Life insurance agents have it the hardest, so make sure to remind your clients why you are a life insurance agent (if you are one) and let them know you’re on their side always. Do not pressure them or give them the impression that they are inferior to larger clients who have more expensive insurance policies.

3. “Agents Try to Sell Me Insurance I Don’t Need”

We’ve all encountered the pushy insurance agent who insists on selling a client boat insurance despite the fact that the client has motion sickness. Or perhaps it’s the insurance agent who tries to sell a platinum medical insurance plan to a 26-year-old who is in good health. Sometimes insurance agents fail in this manner because they are merely pushing products with the highest premium payments or because their hearts are not in it.

A bad insurance agent’s sole focus is on selling the most expensive insurance policies, which causes them to overlook their clients’ needs and neglect to explain the different coverage options. But that isn’t typically what insurance agents do. Undoubtedly, an insurance agent wants to earn a commission on a sale of insurance, but not at the expense of the customer.

 

The typical insurance agent strives to save the day, preferably well in advance of the actual event. Most insurance brokers are overly anxious and view the insurance we sell as protective financial covering. Simply because they try to upsell doesn’t mean they’re all unethical beings. But try convincing the common person that the insurance industry is not dishonest!

4. “Insurance agents are only your best friends when it’s time for renewal”

Even though it’s true that we poke our heads out of the sand whenever we spot a new commission or a renewal, we also don’t want our clients to stop being insurable because they keep forgetting to renew! In the event that we neglected to remind clients of their impending renewal, they would accuse us of wanting a higher commission by pressuring them into purchasing an SR22 for months of driving without insurance.

5. “Insurance Agents Are Fake”.

They claim that we are friendly because we have an agenda. According to them, we only communicate with them to rob them of their money. It simply is not true. Sure, there are a very small number of foolish agents who aspire to be Gordon Gekko, but aside from those select few, the majority of us are aware that selling insurance will never bring in more money than a comfortable living. We can’t stress this enough: We sincerely want to save people from financial ruin! It’s now up to you to convey that to every single one of your clients and keep fostering that sense of trust.

6. “The Insurance Business Is a Scam, and Insurance Agents Are Scammers”

Many people believe that once you read the fine print on an insurance policy, almost everything is excluded. Some people place such little trust in insurance that they are even willing to take the chance of breaking the law by operating a vehicle with no insurance at all.

Insurance isn’t a scam, even though it’s true that it wasn’t created to be financially advantageous for the customer. Without insurance, the majority of us wouldn’t be able to drive a car unless we were extraordinarily wealthy and could afford to pay for a potential accident out of pocket. Buying a cheap car and traveling from point A to point B is actually only possible for the average person because of insurance.

When something goes wrong, we can all draw on an incredibly democratic common fund called insurance. It’s true that insurance may benefit the insurance company rather than the client, but that doesn’t mean it does nothing to benefit them. It might help to clarify the situation to prospective customers.

7. “Insurance Is a Necessary Evil”.

They claim that they could have paid their own claims if they had saved the money they had paid into insurance. We know what you want to say in response to that. No, if you hadn’t needed insurance, you wouldn’t have been able to save the money you spent on it and pay for your own losses. Avoid doing it. Rather say “ In the meantime, you must purchase insurance, so you might as well select the appropriate level of protection.” However, it’s likely that a client will never express their opinion of your line of work to you directly; they’ll just give you that knowing look instead. Do your best to avoid expressing your feelings, because there are some people you simply cannot change.

8. “Insurance Execs Eat Our Premiums With No Contribution to Society”

It is a fact that capitalism’s genetic code includes insurance. In fact, without insurance, all national and global economies would completely collapse. Without it, nobody would take a chance on their luck in an effort to make a small profit. Almost everything you do and own is insured, as are the businesses that made your belongings and hired you. If insurance disappeared overnight, your life would also come to a grinding halt.

See, it all began thousands of years ago when European traders purchased maritime insurance before embarking on their business ventures. When merchants and shipowners started engaging in cross-border trade, they started splitting the risk of travel (insurance). What if the concept of shared risk (insurance) hadn’t been invented? We bet that few affluent merchants would have been eager to risk their fortunes by conducting business overseas. Yes, we are the pioneers of globalization, but so what? Anyone who appreciates a healthy dose of capitalism ought to be a fan of insurance. It’s the world’s most lucrative contradiction of a safety net.