Building a successful practice in the life and health insurance market requires that both clients and prospective clients see you as someone they can trust. You want to be their go-to expert for insurance needs.
“You must be proficient at finding and keeping clients,” said Lawrence Geller, president of L.I. Geller Insurance Agencies Ltd., in Campbellville, Ontario, emphasizing that strong client relationships are crucial for success, leading to referrals and repeat business.
Establishing a unique identity or personal brand sets you apart from competing advisors. While there are different approaches to building your profile, here are nine steps you can take to showcase your expertise and grow your practice.
Specialization is critical
Focus on life and health insurance, and showcase your expertise. Deliver value in a way that resonates with each client you serve.
“Focusing on a specific type of client, product or area of practice is key to standing out and becoming an expert,” Geller said. “If you do one thing and do it really, really well, it will be a lot less work for you.”
Akil Balachandran is a Markham, Ont.-based certified financial planner and founder of BlueMind, a customer relationship and practice management software program for insurance advisors. He says developing a market you want to focus on is important. “You should also highlight your qualifications and experience to give clients confidence that they will be working with a knowledgeable professional that they can trust.”
Take a targeted approach
Once you’ve identified your target market, focus on engaging potential clients “like a laser rather than a shotgun,” Geller said.
Taking a targeted approach requires a deep understanding of potential clients and their problems, Balachandran said. “You must be able to identify ideal client profiles and know their preferred information sources.”
Provide insightful content
Whether through your own website or social media channels, you can build your personal brand by sharing informative and educational articles and stories about life and health insurance. Your content must be insightful and appealing to your target audience.
Set up a content calendar and follow it consistently so that you can remain top-of mind with your readers.
Use search engine optimization strategies to track your readership and what types of content they like most.
“Understanding and addressing clients’ problems in your content is more effective than simply selling insurance,” Balachandran said. This way, clients can see you as a thought leader they can trust.
Cultivate relationships
Geller recommends focusing on prospective clients with whom you share a common relationship. That one degree of separation is key.
“If you’re cold calling someone without some sort of strong recommendation or a referral from a relationship, then the likelihood that you’ll do business with the person is not as good,” he said.
Balachandran recommends doing webinars, seminars or joint presentations with your target market to build relationships.
Raymond Yates, an independent insurance advisor, affiliated with Max Financial in Brampton, Ont. belongs to networking groups and sponsors community events and workshops, which he says are useful.
Earn trust
Honesty and transparency are essential for building trust with clients. Deliver on your promises consistently and show empathy by paying attention to clients’ hopes and concerns.
Once clients know they can rely on you, their trust grows.
Show them that you’re not just about selling them insurance, Yates said. “I always position myself as an advisor and not a salesman. I make sure that whatever plan I’m putting in place is for the client’s benefit.”
Nurture existing clients
Take a deep dive into your book of business to identify clients in need of life and health insurance. Nurture these clients by consistently providing value, without making a sales pitch. This could involve sharing helpful insights or offering holistic financial advice.
Balachandran suggests that it is often easier to nurture existing clients than get new ones. It can take less time, cost and energy to get more business from them, compared to acquiring new clients.
At the end of the day, it’s not about the number of policies advisors write, it’s about the number of relationships they nurture that can result in a better return on investment.
Get referrals through quality service
High-quality service makes people more likely to tell their friends about you, Geller said. “Providing excellent service leads to positive word-of-mouth referrals, making it easier to find new clients.”
But you’ve got to make yourself referrable. “You need to provide value to the client, not selling for commissions,” Balachandran said. “You must provide service and really care about meeting their needs.”
Obtain client feedback
Balachandran said that he always seeks client feedback that provides him with insights on how clients view their relationship with him. “Testimonials are of huge value, especially in building trust,” he said. Post them on your website.
Leverage technology
Balachandran’s BlueMind platform is linked to AI and provides practice management tools, onboarding, client nurturing, policy selection, compliance and more.
“AI is not going to replace life and health insurance advisors,” he said “But advisors using AI and the right technology will replace the ones who do not.”
Geller, on the other hand, “operates his practice entirely online,” he said. “I haven’t had a face-to-face appointment with a client in eight years. I haven’t physically touched a client’s application or been in front of them when they completed it, although I walk them through and ask every question.”
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