How To Become An Insurance Producer: What It Is and Career Path

What is an insurance producer and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted expert

Tom Faulconer JD, CPCU, CLU, ChFC, CASL,CFP(r)

Insurance producers are responsible for implementing marketing strategies to develop a strong network of prospective clients. They develop leads and contact them via phone and face to face to market insurance products. They also service existing clients, conduct annual reviews, and seek opportunities to present products to enhance their insurance portfolios. Insurance producers earn an average salary of $46,000 annually or $22 per hour.

Insurance producers are true professionals who are passionate about what they do. They maintain knowledge on all commercial products, monitor all insurance policies from inception to closing, and generate demands for all products. They also assist in developing strategies to increase the prospective base for all clients and maintain knowledge of all new businesses. A great insurance producer needs to have excellent analytical and communication skills to succeed.

Insurance producers typically hold a bachelor's degree in business, accounting, finance, or other related fields. Although, some employers may accept a high school diploma or GED. They are expected to have past sales experience or any similar role. Some employers prefer candidates with an insurance license.

What general advice would you give to an insurance producer?

Tom Faulconer JD, CPCU, CLU, ChFC, CASL,CFP(r)

Clinical Professor, Butler University

That depends on the type of agent the person is. Most of us deal with agents who sell personal lines, such as auto and home and life insurance. Their day is filled with prospecting for new clients, appointments to review current insurance with current clients, service work such as adding autos and changing addresses, and, helping take and resolve claims. Some agents specialize in commercial lines. They spend their days prospecting as well, but also work very closely with their clients on a regular basis to assure their insurance program is appropriate. This is because commercial clients usually have very large insurance policies, make frequent changes, and have lots of service work. Plus, the relationship is the key in commercial lines.

ScoreInsurance ProducerUS Average

Salary

5.1

Avg. Salary $65,112

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

6.8

Growth rate 6%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

5.6

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.15%

Asian 4.94%

Black or African American 9.51%

Hispanic or Latino 16.09%

Unknown 3.56%

White 65.75%

Gender

female 48.14%

male 51.86%

Age - 46

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 46

Stress level

6.8

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.9

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

6.1

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become an insurance producer

Explore insurance producer education requirements

Most common insurance producer degrees

Bachelor's

53.0 %

Associate

20.5 %

High School Diploma

11.0 %

Start to develop specific insurance producer skills

Skills	Percentages
Casualty Insurance	7.34%
Customer Service	7.28%
Develop Leads	6.46%
Health Insurance	5.68%
Financial Services	4.91%

Complete relevant insurance producer training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New insurance producers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as an insurance producer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real insurance producer resumes.

Obtain the necessary licensing

Becoming an licensed insurance producer usually doesn't require a college degree. However, you need to pass an exam to become a licensed insurance producer in most of states. 38 states require insurance producers to have license for their work. You can see the list of states below.

State	Education	Exam	License url
Alabama	-	-	Licensed Insurance Producer
Arkansas	Degree required	State exam required	Insurance Sales Producer (Agent)
Colorado	Specific course required	State exam required	Insurance Agent
Connecticut	Specific course required	State exam required	Producer License, Individual
Delaware	-	State exam required	Insurance Agent

Gain additional insurance producer certifications

Insurance producer certifications can show employers you have a baseline of knowledge expected for the position. Certifications can also make you a more competitive candidate. Even if employers don't require a specific insurance producer certification, having one may help you stand out relative to other applicants.

The most common certifications for insurance producers include Certified Professional, Life and Health Insurance Program (CPLHI) and Certified Insurance Examiner (CIE).

More About Certifications

Research insurance producer duties and responsibilities

Used consultative upselling techniques to provide leads
Facilitate communications between doctors, hospitals, third party insurance companies and patients to obtain and verify patient billing information.
Deliver on the GEICO promise to customers by solving problems and giving competent insurance advice in a courteous and proficient manner.

Prepare your insurance producer resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your insurance producer resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on an insurance producer resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable insurance producer resume templates

Build a professional insurance producer resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your insurance producer resume.

Apply for insurance producer jobs

Now it's time to start searching for an insurance producer job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do insurance producers rate their job?

-/5

5 stars

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1 star

Insurance producer reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Oct 2019

Pros

The diversity of the work flow and the diverse network of people I work with on the daily. From customers,lenders, realtors, inspectors to underwriters and Sales representatives. I enjoy assisting others, problem solving and analyzing the different needs and products available to the client.

Cons

Scripts, depending on who you work for.