As a young insurance agent, your goal is probably to close more insurance deals. While closing more policies can help you make a substantial profit, without customer retention, you’re bound to lose money. And, with slim profit margins on most insurance policies, pushing more policies to make a living can push away your existing clientele.
Luckily for you, with the right communication and listening strategies, you can succeed in your insurance career. This means asking the right questions at the right time to communicate well with your prospects. Whether you want to scout for new policyholders or retain your existing clients, developing effective communication and listening skills is vital.
In this guide, we’ll look at how to ask the right questions to meet your bottom line.
1. Avoid Asking Rhetorical Questions
Most insurance agents make this mistake in an attempt to lead their prospects to purchase an insurance policy. Unfortunately, this can make your clients feel uncomfortable. Avoid asking questions such as:
• You don’t have diabetes or heart conditions, right?
• You don’t want health insurance, do you?
• Don’t you think it’s better to go for the highest price possible?
Instead, ask friendly, clarifying questions that don’t force your client to a specific response. For example, do you smoke? Do you have children? What exactly are you looking for? Remember, the more you ask, the more likely it is to select an appropriate policy for them. Besides, it gives you a chance to showcase your professionalism and expertise.
2. Ask Open-Ended Questions
Few questions can be answered correctly with yes/no, forward/backward, or A/B. For example, are you a smoker or a non-smoker? Therefore, ask open-ended questions to give your prospects time to answer with the appropriate level of detail so that you can find a package that matches their needs.
This way, they get the best value out of their insurance problem or situation.
3. Find Common Ground
When asking a question, try and find common ground to focus on as clients are more likely to work with you when they can relate to you. For instance, did you grow up in the same neighborhood? Do you share the same interests? Or shop at the same grocery store? Finding commonalities between you and your prospects establishes trust, resulting in healthy, long-lasting relationships.
4. Stick to Professional Topics
When asking your prospects questions, don’t deter too far from the main topic. You can ask some personal questions such as “how was your day?” to ease the conversation but avoid going too much into detail. Sticking to professional questions ensures your prospects can take you seriously as it demonstrates your role as an advisor.
5. Avoid Coming Off As Desperate
As a young insurance agency, it’s easy to come off as desperate when selling insurance. Being desperate is not only annoying, but it also shows clients you’re willing to sell anything as long as you make a profit.
To avoid this, be confident when asking questions, never assume your prospect is interested, and don’t issue ultimatums or press too hard for a meeting.