As a life insurance agent , there are always forms that need to be filled out and signatures to collect. It’s hard to remember everything, which is why we have a comprehensive list of all forms needed on HQ, our agent online platform supported by our parent company, Quility.
Outside of the paperwork needed to sell a policy, other documents can help increase retention, enhance marketing and generate more customer satisfaction. In this blog, we’ll cover three of those forms that every agent should keep handy when helping new clients. Doing so will help them create more sales while unveiling possible coverage concerns for the client.
Referrals are key to generating business for insurance agents. By implementing a referral system, agents can contact existing clients to find prospects and generate more leads for themselves. Depending on the success of the relationship you’ve developed with your client, creating referrals can be a breeze or more difficult to achieve.
The key is to have a form that you can have your clients fill out, typically after they’ve purchased their coverage. The form should give them a place to add information (family or friends) about individuals that they think could benefit from life insurance.
You can have a written form that they fill out if it’s an in-person appointment, or you could attach a digital form via email. Whatever method of the form you decide on, it should request the following information:
• Name
• Contact’s phone number
• Email address
• What kind of coverage they would benefit from
What’s more, you can find a good time to introduce the referral form to your existing clients throughout your relationship with them. Checking in regularly to see how their coverage is working for them is a great way to give yourself opportunities to ask for referrals. The better customer service you provide your clients, the more likely they’ll be to refer you to their friends and family.
Once you have the information, tracking it becomes important. Consider creating a spreadsheet that logs every contact’s information. By attaching that information to the original client, you can provide a more personalized message when reaching out to the referral.
According to a study by Texas Tech University , over 80% of customers are willing to give referrals, but since most of those customers are never asked, only 29% ever do. By using a referral form, agents can accurately track and manage incoming leads from their existing clients.
Cross-selling, like a referral, is a way to generate more business with your existing clients. Unlike referrals, cross-selling involves promoting a related product to your existing clients. With cross-selling, you’re keeping up with what products your client does and does not already have and looking for opportunities to fill those gaps.
A cross-selling form would be a simple way of tracking these products, as well as some important milestones that your clients may or have not experienced yet. With that in mind, create a list of products that you’re qualified to sell and simply ask which ones they already have. Maybe you’ve helped them secure a term life policy, but they don’t have final expense coverage . If your clients are reaching retirement age, bringing up the option of a final expense policy will make sense.
With that in mind, it’s important that you are also keeping track of where your clients are at in life. Do they have children or are they planning on having any in the future? Have they recently bought a home or are they working on paying off student loans before they can consider a purchase like that?
By asking these questions, you can pinpoint your clients’ gaps in insurance and help find products that will fill the void. Again, this is a great form to have logged into a spreadsheet. By keeping track of all your existing clients' needs and milestones you can plan out templated emails that will do the outreach for you.
A cross-selling form will illustrate your attention to detail for your clients. It’s also a great way to generate more business while continuously engaging your clients.
At first glance, this last form might not seem like it would help build relationships with your clients. However, using a coverage rejection form is a great way to build trust for any existing or prospective clients while establishing yourself as an expert.
Essentially, you would use a coverage rejection form after working with a potential client, offering them advice and then declining a recommended policy. The form itself should list out, formally, the client’s information (as well as your own), the coverage you recommended and a signature and date to show that they’ve decided to decline your recommendation.
Beyond that, it’s important that your form includes two additional things. First, the coverage rejection form should have a line before the signature that makes the client acknowledge that they’ve chosen to refuse the policy offered to them. Second, your form should say more than a few times that the client is declining coverage “ at this time .”
By adding the acknowledgment line, you’re reinforcing the point that this individual is not protected by the life insurance product you recommended. This underlines the gap in coverage for the prospect. The “at this time” phrase will support the knowledge that they can still secure coverage through you at any time.
Altogether, the coverage rejection form is a great way to solidify your authority on the subject for your prospective clients. What’s more, by giving them a copy of this form they’ll be more likely to contact you when they are ready for the coverage.
Using a coverage rejection form is an excellent way of handling objections while allowing your prospects to purchase a policy later.
Reliable business practices are key to engaging your clients and building lasting relationships. By using and tracking these three forms, you can give your clients a more professional buying experience while generating more business.
Symmetry Financial Group agents have access to high-quality life insurance, disability income insurance, critical illness insurance, and annuity products from more than 30 well-known insurance companies. This gives you the flexibility and reach you need to tailor plans to meet clients' individual coverage needs.
To learn more about how to begin a fulfilling career as a life insurance agent, contact us today .
