At any point in your insurance sales career, you have a solid strategy on how to succeed. You’ve done your homework and put together a business plan. Now, it’s time to set the wheels in motion.
One important decision you’ve pondered is whether to become an independent or captive insurance agent. Both avenues have their merits along with some drawbacks. It’s smart to explore each one before you make a decision.
The Advantages of Operating Independently
As an independent agent, you’ll represent many different insurance carriers. Doing business with the best insurance companies for independent agents can make finding appropriate products and competitive rates for prospects easier. This freedom of choice can help attract and retain customers since a prospective carrier may meet a customer need that a current carrier doesn’t.
As an independent insurance agent, the marketing, sales, and operational balls are in your court. You can run your insurance business as you see fit without much outside interference. If you feel social media and email are the best means to reach potential customers, then you can run with that plan and make it succeed.
The Disadvantages of Operating Independently
Business overhead could be a disadvantage of operating independently. Often, captive agents representing one company will receive subsidies for things like rent or computer systems. Many captives will also chip in marketing dollars and promotional items to make you visible in the community and beyond.
It takes forethought and execution to independently build your brand. Brand recognition for captives can be aided by exclusive affiliations with large national carriers. Consumers have a great deal of exposure to national carriers whose brands and messages appear all over various media channels.
Why the Right Partners Make a Difference
If you’ve decided on the independent route, you’ll want reliable partners to help move the needle forward. It’s not just the captive agent who can look to insurance experts for guidance. Many intermediaries provide insurance agent support through prospecting, marketing, and sales advice to agents who hang their own shingles. Here are some things a partner can help you with:
- Identifying the current phase of your insurance career: startup, mid-point, or seasoned.
- Helping you understand where you want to be now, in five years, and toward the end of your career.
- Analyze prospecting, marketing, and sales techniques that help you remain competitive in the market.
- Providing you with innovative technology platforms and solutions to help boost your bottom line.
How to Get the Support You Need
When searching for the ideal teammates, choose the ones with a proven track record in the insurance business. We provide effective sales training for licensed insurance agents. At Claro, we also provide the infrastructure to help you view sales history and customer payment status. Our Agent Resource Center lets you stay organized while focusing on crucial sales and marketing efforts.
The More You Know
Successful independent insurance brokers and agents understand the importance of building relationships, both with customers and partners who want to help an agency to grow and prosper. You can go it alone or team up with the ones who make it happen.
Claro offers resources, expertise, and experience in expanding the horizons of insurance agents. Join us to build or grow your business.
