Finding qualified candidates is always a priority at insurance agencies and firms – but with more advisors reaching retirement age plus a recent surge in younger generations buying life insurance, the need for new talent is clear.
Most agencies know the avenues for finding potential advisors, including job search sites, social media, college fairs, internship opportunities, and employee referrals. However, when trying to attract the best recruits, it’s important to think from their perspective. It’s not just about whether they’re the right fit for your firm; equally important is what your practice offers them that will fuel their growth and success.
Here are the ingredients you need to attract and recruit new life insurance advisors in 2020.
Strong Training Program
Nearly a third (31%) of employees leave their jobs within the first six months. With insurance sales being a particularly challenging field to get your feet on the ground, a solid training program is critical to attracting recruits and ensuring their long-term profitability.
When it comes to a successful training program, agencies need to go beyond the standard operational and regulatory training. Similar to the life insurance sales process, it should be a consistent effort that occurs over time. Some of the keys to good training are a continued program that allows advisors to build new skills and competencies, the ability for advisors to train on their own schedule, and a program that aligns with both the advisor’s and firm’s goals.
Mentoring is another component of a good training program. Pairing your industry veterans with young advisors is incredibly helpful in learning how to sell life insurance and build client relationships.
Research shows that insurance agencies that have extended training programs reported significant benefits, including 61% increased sales, 67% reduced training costs, and 29% reduced turnover rate. A strong training program not only helps you retain recruits but also attracts motivated candidates who are interested in continuing to build their skills.
Superior Tech Tools
Life insurance candidates will also be looking at what technologies your agency uses to attract and communicate with clients. They understand the importance of digital tools in connecting with the new generation of tech-savvy insurance buyers. And having a superior insurtech tool can be a major differentiator among clients.
With a digital connectivity platform like LegacyShield, for instance, advisors are empowered to collaborate with clients and grow their client base through enhanced connectivity. The platform acts as a secure virtual workspace where advisors can privately upload and share important documents with their clients, facilitating communication between both parties.
The right digital tools will make your advisors and firm more successful by enhancing client relationships, generating new leads, and streamlining workflow processes.
Turnkey Marketing & Sales Systems
Related to digital technology, agencies and firms can attract great advisors by providing marketing & sales systems that assist with the most difficult part of insurance sales: finding and converting new prospects.
Make sure candidates are aware of how you support advisors in finding more life insurance prospects from digital marketing and advertising to your lead generation processes and CRM/sales tools. One of the biggest benefits an agency can offer, in contrast, to work as an independent advisor, is a robust marketing & sales process that does a lot of the legwork of finding new leads.
Some insurtech tools, like LegacyShield, have sales and referral marketing capabilities built into their system. The platform makes it easy to connect with clients’ families and loved ones, organically building leads without spending valuable time hunting new ones.
In 2020, the key to finding and retaining great advisors is providing them with the tools, technology, and knowledge needed for success. By investing in your advisors, your agency and your clients will see major benefits.
For more information on how to motivate potential candidates to become a life insurance advisor, check out our blog, “Why Is Selling Life Insurance a Good Career Opportunity.”
