Insurance brokers have a lot on their plate. They must manage the producers and agents working within their brokerage. They must make sure everything is in place to ensure their agents are successful at their job.
To remain successful, insurance brokers must maintain certain habits. These habits help shape the broker, as well as the brokerage and the work ethic of its agents and producers. Therefore, insurance brokers must follow habits that inspire others to succeed.
Read on to learn about the five habits of successful insurance brokers, and in turn, successful insurance agents and producers.
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Organization Is Key
Yes, every list regarding success includes organization. The reason they include organization is that it is extremely important to remain successful. Running an insurance brokerage is not an easy task.
Insurance is always changing. Federal and state laws evolve to address the ever-changing needs of businesses and individuals. Therefore, insurance brokers need to ensure they remain compliant and all the agents within their brokerage are compliant as well.
Compliance is only one of the many issues that insurance brokers deal with daily. However, unlike other businesses, it adds an additional layer of difficulty to the business. Additionally, brokers must adhere to state and federal deadlines and ensure that enough business is coming in to keep the business moving forward and do all it takes to keep the lights on.
All these moving cogs require a well-organized broker to keep them moving efficiently. Therefore, organization is key. The most successful insurance brokers are well-organized.
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Create a Plan and Follow It
Every day is a new day. Ideas that worked yesterday may not work today. Therefore, the most successful insurance brokers create a daily plan.
Within your daily plan, determine your goals for the day. Maybe you want to create and finalize a new marketing campaign. Perhaps you want to help your agents close ten new policies. Whatever the goal, devise a plan to meet that goal.
Some goals may be more long-term. Your daily plan should map the daily steps necessary to reach your long-term goal.
Once you create your plan, follow it. Do not let anything deter you from following your daily, weekly, or monthly plan. Every day you ignore your plan, the less likely you and your team will be to succeed.
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Stay Positive
The business has its ebbs and flows. Some days are exceptionally busy and productive. Other days seem to fall apart from the moment you turn on the lights in the office. These types of days make it especially difficult to smile and think of better days ahead.
However, to be successful, you must stay positive at all times. It is acceptable to admit the day is not going well. It is not acceptable to assume tomorrow will be just as bad or worse. If you stay positive, your agents will remain positive, keeping the entire office moving forward towards the next successful day.
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Continue to Learn
Maintaining insurance licenses require a specific number of continuing education credits. Therefore, the industry requires insurance brokers to continue to learn. However, the most successful insurance brokers continue learning beyond industry requirements.
Insurance is a fluid industry. Policies, procedures, and laws change regularly. New products become available every day. In a world that constantly evolves, insurance must evolve to keep up.
Successful insurance brokers are aware of new products before they hit the market. They are training their agents and producers on these new insurance lines to prepare for the product launch date.
Staying stagnant and refusing to learn regularly is a recipe for failure.
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Continue to Motivate Others and Yourself
Any successful business requires motivation. Some people call it being hungry. Others call it keeping your eye on the ball. No matter what metaphor you wish to use, they all mean the same thing: stay motivated.
Motivation means several things to different people. However, the key to motivating yourself and others is to remember your “why.” Why are you an insurance broker? What keeps you going into the office every day?
Keep this information visually available daily. Whether your why includes your family or your care for others or paying off your debt and helping others reach their goals, find a way to remind yourself of it even on days where the business seems to work against you.
The more you remind yourself of your reasons for working within the industry, the more you can keep yourself, and your team motivated to find prospects and sell policies.
Final Thoughts
Success as an insurance broker is more about motivation, organization, and planning than sales. The more you create a positive, successful environment, the more business will come.
To learn more about the habits of successful insurance brokers, contact the NIP Group’s qualified insurance professionals at (800) 446-7647.
Looking to motivate your broker staff? Learn how to make selling fun again! Read this blog.
