Successful insurance sales professionals have persistent concerns about business growth, increased sales volume, increased sales productivity, and broader market reach, etc. To address these concerns, there are 4 pillars that are essential to the success of the insurance sales business. Is it so:

(a) Mindset

Selling is about dealing with rejections. What kind of mindset does she rely on when she runs her sales business? Do you have the mindset that fosters resilience? The answers to these questions are crucial, as they will determine whether you will prosper or simply survive in this business.

Your goals and dreams direct your action and determination. Are you committed and dedicated to your business goals? Are you emotionally attached to your dreams? Do you wake up in the morning feeling excited about what you have to do during the day?

Your conviction, belief and passion will force you to succeed. With the right frame of mind, you discover opportunities when people see problems. To be successful in any business venture, you must activate a change in your mindset and beliefs.

(b) Market

What kind of market do you have to offer your insurance products? Are you more into the natural market or do you prefer cold calling? Are you more comfortable with professionals or business owners? Are you especially interested in prospects with specific backgrounds, such as stay-at-home moms or seniors?

The market segment you choose will decide the types of marketing strategies that work best for your target market. You must select from a wide range of marketing strategies ranging from prospecting, direct mail, advertising, trade shows, and Internet marketing.

Marketing is also about how to establish your presence in the market you plan to penetrate and also how to preemptively block out competitors in the market where you have planted your roots for a long time.

A detailed analysis about the market you want to develop can go a long way in gaining a larger market share. You need to understand the factors that motivate your prospects to buy and change the appropriate sales approach that can help you increase the depth and breadth of the market.

(c) Mastery

High-performing producers can respond positively to demanding sales situations and effortlessly demonstrate sales techniques to overcome challenges. They have to their credit a wide range of skill sets ranging from appointment setting, relationship building, fact finding, objection handling, closing, etc. to make them stand out in the sales business.

Most insurance companies can help insurance agents hone their sales skills by providing sales training and well-crafted sales scripts that are proven and workable. However, sales training is a one-time effort; it’s the sales activities in the field that keep sales agents learning.

Experienced or top growers may develop a different skill set that emphasizes relationship building so they can garner referrals. At this stage, your focus may be on getting referrals and repeat business from existing clientele.

(d) Measurement

How reliable is your sales forecast? How do you assess your business skills? How do you know the areas of development you need to reach the next milestone? The answer to these questions can be summed up in one word, that is, data.

Professional sales agents make strategic decisions based on data to assess their competencies. The data helps diagnose sales performance and benchmark performance standards. Valuable insights could be derived from the data to help design the right sales activities to meet sales targets.

We need measurement for quantitative and qualitative improvement. It is important for insurance sales professionals to establish the minimum number of sales calls they must make in a week, the number of phone calls to make in a day, or the minimum number of follow-ups per customer. All these sales metrics are the basis for measurement.

The best employees know that the sales process is a science in which each problem requires a systematic approach to reach a solution. Measurement leads to the discovery of areas for improvement. Improving sales performance is not just about sales volume, but also about efficiency where the amount of time, effort and resources invested to generate sales matters.

The 4 pillars are important considerations for any insurance agent who wants to achieve breakthrough sales results. The pillars represent areas of focus for sales agents’ personal development and also opportunities to help them increase the value of their business.