What does an insurance sales representative do?
An insurance sales representative is primarily responsible for securing insurance sales by reaching out to clients through calls, correspondence, and even appointments. They are also responsible for gathering client information, discussing and recommending suitable terms, and even providing advice to meet their needs, all while building rapport to ensure customer satisfaction. There are also instances where they have to adjust existing terms, assist in filling out applications, and produce progress reports. Furthermore, it is essential to devise strategies to find new sales opportunities, as most insurance sales representatives must reach a particular sales target.
Insurance sales representative responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real insurance sales representative resumes:
- Used consultative upselling techniques to provide leads
- Translate and assign diagnosis and medical procedures into CPT, ICD-9 and ICD-10 codes.
- Lead rep for major payer.
- Monitor the performance of each account rep.
- Educate physicians and clinic staff on current ICD 9 and CPT coding regulations.
- Comply with company policy, procedures, and pertinent laws and regulation such a HIPAA.
- Commission-Base sales of life insurance, long term care insurance, fix indexed annuities and Medicare supplemental insurance.
- Accelerate the client prospecting cycle while performing consumer sales of Accident/Health/Life insurance, variable annuities, and retirement/estate planning.
- Investigate payer rejections/denials for accuracy of claim information and generate appeals following payer guidelines.
- Calculate outpatient surgery deposit, call patients with estimate surgical deposit amount, and collect surgical deposit.
- Draft and file appeals of administrative hearing decisions ensuring submissions are timely and follow state filing requirements.
- Facilitate communications between doctors, hospitals, third party insurance companies and patients to obtain and verify patient billing information.
- Work within AFLAC standards to develop business with local small and medium size companies.
- Implement a sales protocol and sell various types of supplemental health insurance policies to businesses and individuals on behalf of Aflac.
- Maintain knowledge of competitor's offerings to provide current and prospective customers with the Allstate difference.
Insurance sales representative skills and personality traits
We calculated that 17% of Insurance Sales Representatives are proficient in Customer Service, Excellent Time Management, and Work Ethic. They’re also known for soft skills such as Analytical skills, Communication skills, and Initiative.
We break down the percentage of Insurance Sales Representatives that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Customer Service, 17%
Worked with delivery and merchandise installation personnel to ensure items were properly installed and customer service was satisfactory.
- Excellent Time Management, 16%
Position requires excellent time management, superior verbal and written abilities.
- Work Ethic, 12%
Position required life insurance licensing, independent work ethic, confidentiality training, and a dedication for extreme customer service.
- Strong Customer Service, 11%
Demonstrated strong customer service skills to resolve inquires quickly and effectively.
- Strong Work Ethic, 11%
Maintain a strong work ethic with a total commitment to success each and every day.
- Lead Generation, 4%
Utilized many sources for lead generation including direct phone call, several online resources, and personal referrals.
Most insurance sales representatives use their skills in "customer service," "excellent time management," and "work ethic" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential insurance sales representative responsibilities here:
Analytical skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for an insurance sales representative to have is analytical skills. Their role and responsibilities require that "insurance sales agents must evaluate the needs of each client to determine the appropriate insurance policy." Insurance sales representatives often use analytical skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "provide thorough coverage analysis and recommend products for life, short-term and long-term care, and medical supplemental insurance. "
Communication skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling insurance sales representative duties is communication skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "insurance sales agents must listen to clients and be able to clearly explain suitable policies." According to an insurance sales representative resume, here's how insurance sales representatives can utilize communication skills in their job responsibilities: "thrived within busy, high-volume call center environment, requiring the ability to provide exceptional customer service and communication skills. "
Initiative. This is an important skill for insurance sales representatives to perform their duties. For an example of how insurance sales representative responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "insurance sales agents need to actively seek out new clients in order to increase business." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of an insurance sales representative: "provided exceptional customer service to all clients in accordance with corporate initiatives by creating a comfortable environment that promoted client retention. ".
Self-confidence. For certain insurance sales representative responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "self-confidence." The day-to-day duties of an insurance sales representative rely on this skill, as "insurance sales agents should be confident when contacting prospective clients." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what insurance sales representatives do: "performed administrative tasks; including maintaining confidential records and handling policy renewals. "
The three companies that hire the most insurance sales representatives are:
- National Agents Alliance480 insurance sales representatives jobs
- Bankers Life Insurance Company387 insurance sales representatives jobs
- Allstate239 insurance sales representatives jobs
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Compare different insurance sales representatives
Insurance sales representative vs. Sales agent
A sales representative is responsible for offering goods and services to potential and existing clients. Sales representatives must display a strong knowledge of the company's products to assist customers with their inquiries and concerns. A sales representative should have exceptional communication skills and extensive knowledge of the sales industry to deliver sales pitches and negotiate pricing offers with the clients. Sales representatives must also keep themselves updated with the current market trends to provide service recommendations, improving their sales to increase revenues.
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between insurance sales representatives and sales agent. For instance, insurance sales representative responsibilities require skills such as "excellent time management," "strong customer service," "strong work ethic," and "lead generation." Whereas a sales agent is skilled in "customer satisfaction," "life insurance," "insurance products," and "customer issues." This is part of what separates the two careers.
On average, sales agents reach similar levels of education than insurance sales representatives. Sales agents are 0.6% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.1% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Insurance sales representative vs. Licensed insurance agent
A licensed insurance agent is primarily responsible for finding and utilizing opportunities to secure insurance sales. Moreover, a licensed insurance agent must reach out to potential clients, discuss and negotiate terms, respond to inquiries, and perform various assessments to determine their ability to uphold financial obligations. Besides building a client base, they also need to handle current policies, process renewals, monitor claims, maintain an accurate record of transactions, prepare progress reports and strategies, and distribute policy proceeds according to the company rules and regulations.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real insurance sales representative resumes. While insurance sales representative responsibilities can utilize skills like "securities," "health insurance products," "sales presentations," and "life insurance products," licensed insurance agents use skills like "insurance sales," "insurance products," "compassion," and "health insurance."
Licensed insurance agents earn a lower average salary than insurance sales representatives. But licensed insurance agents earn the highest pay in the finance industry, with an average salary of $52,022. Additionally, insurance sales representatives earn the highest salaries in the finance with average pay of $53,082 annually.Average education levels between the two professions vary. Licensed insurance agents tend to reach similar levels of education than insurance sales representatives. In fact, they're 0.1% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Insurance sales representative vs. Insurance producer
An insurance producer is responsible for selling and buying financial services and products for an insurance company. They negotiate issues regarding health, life insurance, and other properties. Also, an insurance producer maintains a good relationship between clients and prospective clients by offering the best insurance service and ensuring that all the policies and guidelines are fully followed.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, insurance sales representatives are more likely to have skills like "excellent time management," "work ethic," "strong customer service," and "strong work ethic." But a insurance producer is more likely to have skills like "health insurance," "team-oriented environment," "financial services," and "phone calls."
Insurance producers earn the highest salary when working in the real estate industry, where they receive an average salary of $62,146. Comparatively, insurance sales representatives have the highest earning potential in the finance industry, with an average salary of $53,082.When it comes to education, insurance producers tend to earn similar degree levels compared to insurance sales representatives. In fact, they're 1.7% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.7% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Insurance sales representative vs. Life insurance agent
A life insurance agent is responsible for offering life insurance services for clients according to their needs and qualifications. Life insurance agents handle insurance claims of the beneficiaries, ensuring the accuracy of documents and account statements for verification. They also discuss possible options and alternatives, as well as considering the clients' long-term financial goals and objectives. A life insurance agent must be well-knowledgeable of the insurance services offered by the company, discussing policies and coverage to suit the clients' best interests.
Types of insurance sales representative
Updated January 8, 2025
