Insurance brokers face more pressure than ever before to meet sales goals in an ever-changing landscape. The burnout rate in the insurance industry has reached record highs, according to stats I’ve read and what I’ve observed as an industry veteran.
First, the industry has gotten more competitive. Producers have to strive to write higher volume to get lower premium rates and meet increasingly high sales goals to achieve supplemental bonuses.
Challenges Insurance Brokers Face to Meet Sales Goals Today
Not every insurance professional is willing (or able) to hustle the way we did in our 20s or 30s. Many brokers no longer want to play the insurance industry version of the Glengarry Glen Ross game. If you recall, this movie from the early ‘90s was about real estate people and popularized the phrases: “Always be closing,” and “Coffee is for closers.” It was all about hustling to find leads, close deals, and be better than the next salesperson.
Today, as insurance brokers strive for a better work-life balance, many producers are comfortable maintaining their block and watching their retirement savings grow until they can leave the workforce.
The industry, as a whole, is getting older, with the average age of a licensed, employed agent at nearly 46 years old, according to AgentMethods.com, with many approaching their 50s and 60s.
However, carrier bonuses contribute a substantial amount to an insurance agency’s bottom line, often helping to cover their lease or payroll. It’s not easy to leave that money on the table and settle for slow growth or maintaining the status quo. You’ve worked hard to build your insurance business until now. You shouldn’t have to choose a stressful life of constant work pressure or losing what you worked so hard to create.
The Changing Landscape of the Insurance Industry
The insurance industry started to see changes long before the Covid-19 pandemic. Consolidation within the industry, including mergers and acquisitions on both the broker retail side as well as amongst carriers, left brokers with fewer options. Changing customer preferences and smaller margins also created new struggles for insurance brokers.
In 2017, New York became the second state, behind California, to mandate Paid Family Leave insurance, and the only state to allow private coverage of PFL, bundled as a rider with required DBL insurance. Insurance brokers writing statutory disability, ancillary benefits, and voluntary worksite plans in the New York metro area had to learn a whole new industry with PFL.
Those who viewed this as an opportunity, rather than a challenge, grew stronger. Those same brokers, along with The DBL Center, are also the ones most willing to embrace other changes in the insurance industry to meet sales goals.
With PFL and PFML quickly spreading across the country, the future is waiting and we are ready for it. But with The DBL Center by your side, you don’t have to hustle like you used to.
Impact of Digital Disruption on Insurance Sales
Digital disruption in the insurance industry takes many forms. Individual consumers shopping for life, home or auto policies can get multiple quotes online without ever speaking to a broker or agent. Disability, ancillary benefits, and other employee benefits lines haven’t reached this point yet. But technology is already helping us streamline the sales, underwriting, and renewal processes.
You can bind DBL policies of less than 50 lives online right here. But we maintain our personal touch to deliver personalized service. Likewise, our Broker Dashboard: Net Revenue Tracker helps our insurance brokers track cancellations, renewals and commissions easily online.
The DBL Center has always been on the cutting edge of digital disruption. But we don’t view it as a “disruption.” It’s more of a step forward from the days when DBL Center company founder David Cohen would track books with a pencil and paper ledger.
Changes in Customer Preferences and Behavior
Consumers don’t necessarily view the digital era as a “disruption,” either. Consumers are embracing the convenience, shopping for policies through InsurTech companies like they might order groceries through InstaCart. One survey from credit bureau TransUnion found that 40% of consumers went online or used an app in 2022 to shop for individual life insurance.
However, group benefits and required disability coverage remain in a different category. HR directors, benefits advisors, CFOs and company owners still need the personalized service of a knowledgeable agent. But how can agents today set themselves apart without spending every waking minute chasing leads and closing sales?
Group insurance sales has always been built on relationships. Whether it’s sharing season tickets to a ball game, meeting over lunch, or hosting top clients at a dinner party, brokers and carriers alike need to continue building these treasured relationships – even in the limited time we all have. In essence, it’s important to take a step back from the hustle and remember the fun and camaraderie we used to share in this industry.
Even with that personal connection, though, more budget-conscious companies today shop for employee benefits based on price alone. That’s especially true for required benefits like TDB in New Jersey, DBL in New York, or PFML in the New England states and other areas of the country. Brokers who don’t write high volume can’t compete on price.
The DBL Center addresses these challenges and more for our producers.
How The DBL Center Helps You Overcome Challenges to Meet Sales Goals
At The DBL Center, we make extra efforts to recognize our top producers, carriers, and other partners. It builds a stronger bond and can help reduce burnout. The insurance brokers we work with can (and should) take a page from our company playbook and make time to build customer relationships. But you don’t have to do it alone.
There are three sides to meeting sales goals:
- The personal side
- The pricing side
- The digital side
You can rely on The DBL Center to help you strengthen every facet of your insurance business. We act as your white-label, white-glove back-office staff to serve your clients with the personalized treatment they deserve.
Because of our relationships with top carriers, we can help you compete on price with even the largest brokers. You don’t have to meet new business or persistency requirements from the carriers.
It’s about working smarter, not harder. The DBL Center meets the quotas and you collect the commissions. Small- to mid-size brokers, especially, can rely on us to help their businesses continue to thrive, even as carriers raise the bar on sales goals and bonuses.
Finally, our Broker Dashboard and state-of-the-art website helps you stay on top of your business from anywhere you choose to work. We help you track your profit and loss, service your block of business, and file day-to-day RFPs to help you generate more revenue to your bottom line. You don’t have to keep your eye on an ever-rising sales target, but instead can focus on business strategy and building relationships.
Final Note
Things aren’t the same in our industry as they were even five years ago. To meet your sales goals, it’s important to change, evolve, and get help from the right places. Contact our experts for help to meet your sales goals and hit your bonuses this year.