When selling life insurance, agents need to introduce their customers to the harsh reality of life expectancy and that it will end someday. And then what will happen to their family members if they are not financially secure? But the irony is that you can’t initiate a conversation like that even if you are an experienced life insurance sales agent.
That’s why life insurance professionals need to approach their customers and seamlessly teach them the importance of having a life insurance policy without scaring them away from the product. In this article, we’ll cover how to approach your customers with empathy and close sales without frightening them.
What Stops People from Buying Life Insurance
Did you know that only 52% of Americans have some type of life insurance policy? This means nearly half of people in the U.S. are not aware of the benefits of a life insurance policy. Some of these individuals may be misled by myths and conceptions surrounding life insurance. A lot of work needs to be done to educate and inform customers about insurance in a calming manner.
According to LIMRA’s Life Insurance Barometer Study 2021, there are four major misconceptions Americans have about life insurance:
- Life insurance is cost intensive.
- Employer-provided insurance coverage is adequate.
- Purchasing life insurance is a complex process.
- Life insurance isn’t required at a younger age.
Most people believe that they do not qualify for a sufficient life insurance plan while others are uncertain about what type or how much life insurance they need. In addition, people tend to avoid thinking about death, so they don’t even think about buying life insurance.
Whether people are not well informed about the benefits of life insurance or they are unsure of where to buy it, life insurance agents can play a vital role in informing and educating their customers. This will set you apart in the competitive insurance industry.
Best Way to Approach a Customer About Life Insurance
Be confident when approaching your customers for selling life insurance. Most importantly, display an empathetic behavior so that your customers can connect. Keep in mind that most customers find insurance overwhelming and confusing; you are there to answer any questions they might have about insurance.
Address Reservations
When you approach your potential clients for life insurance via cold calling or in person, be consultative in your approach. Listen to your customers actively to understand what’s stopping them from buying insurance. Most of the time, they believe that purchasing a life insurance policy is expensive as they overestimate the overall cost to be much higher than its actual cost.
Take this as an opportunity to inform them about the original cost of a life insurance policy considering their age, health conditions, and other factors. Use a life insurance comparison tool to explain to your new customers what the actual cost of a life insurance policy or health insurance policy would be compared to what they assume it will cost them.
Build Rapport
To push your conversation in a positive direction, you need to start with a friendly, harmonious approach. Mutual attentiveness, coordination, and positivity are required to make your interactions easier. Pronounce their names correctly, make a good introduction to hook prospective clients, and engage them with your offerings.
Listen to your customers carefully as it will give you a better opportunity to suggest the best life insurance plan according to their insurance needs. Ask engaging and thoughtful questions to your new leads. Don’t forget to ask them if they have any questions or concerns about the life insurance policy. Be active and answer all their questions effectively.
Personalize Your Approach
Not everything that works for your fellow insurance agents would work for you. Experiment with different marketing strategies to achieve your business goals. Note down your client’s questions or anything they’re eager to know. Sometimes, you don’t have the best answer to your client’s queries on the spot. So, tell them you will get back to them with answers as early as possible.
Now in your follow-up call, answer everything your clients have asked about a particular life insurance offering in the previous meeting. Use a CRM tool to track and compare the different types of insurance policies your client reviews and the coverage limits they offer so that your clients can have a clear picture. You can also compare different policies to show them what’s best for them if they haven’t previously reviewed it.
Keep Everything Positive
Shine numbers in a positive light, keep the tone light and upbeat, and be kind to answer any questions that come your way. Rather than using terms like death benefits, shift focus to the legacy that your customer will leave behind for the loved ones. Explain how a life insurance policy is a way to replace lost income after the policyholder passes away.
Tell the customers how a permanent life insurance policy can build cash value which their family members can use to pay off debts or cover interment expenses. Give your clients peace of mind that their family members will be taken care of with financial protection. Remember to use layman’s terms as an insurance salesperson for more clarity and better chances of closing a sale.
Educate Customers
Clients may have reservations because they just don’t know enough about life insurance. Educate your customers about the value of life insurance, why they need it, and how much coverage is sufficient. Emphasize the need for having life insurance and how your offerings can help instead of highlighting your achievements as an agent.
Give your customers a breakdown of two different situations — what will happen if they don’t have insurance and what will happen when they do. Initiate the sense of urgency for having insurance and make your prospect believe that they need your life insurance products. When speaking with an existing customer, you can cross-sell products that match your client’s needs.
Prepare Your Scripts
No specific criterion can help you close insurance leads successfully in your first meeting with the prospects. You need to move step by step through the sales funnel to succeed. When it comes to approaching the prospects for insurance sales, tailor-made text scripts play a vital role. Focus on the prospect’s pain points and make a sales pitch that aims at offering solutions.
By using powerful insurance text scripts, you can focus on providing a to-the-point solution to a specific problem. Personalize your phone calls and direct communications in a friendly manner by integrating open-ended questions. Using an all-in-one CRM tool can help you design insurance text scripts that keep you focused and positive throughout the sales process.
Track Client Conversions with iLife
When approaching customers, insurance professionals should portray themselves as trustworthy agents. Having a life insurance website can make your insurance business look more credible.
Whether you are working for an insurance agency or as an independent sales agent, your first expression matters.
From lead generation to nurturing leads to the conversion state, you need to constantly inform the prospect about the benefits of your life insurance plan. The decision to buy insurance is a big one, and you should always expect the customer to take some time to consider monthly payments, overall coverage limits, and types of insurance before converting.
Sign up with iLife’s insurance quoting tool and use it for giving your customers multiple life insurance quotes so that they can decide on monthly payments. You can also utilize iLife’s Content Library to get access to text scripts, email templates, and social media posts. The tool helps you keep track of your customers and manage your book of business seamlessly. Sign up today!
