If you have a passion for helping people, enjoy speaking with new people every day, and are willing to put in some hard work and long hours, becoming an insurance agent might be the perfect career for you. Being an insurance agent can be a rewarding career with plenty of opportunities for growth. However, it’s also a high-demand job that offers numerous opportunities to succeed in the field.
That’s because you work as an insurance agent to represent an insurer by selling its policies to individuals or businesses or advising them about coverage. You will then earn a set percentage of the premium on policies you sell in the form of commissions.
With that said, you are going to need specific knowledge and experience in insurance marketing and sales to become a good insurance agent.
Keep reading to learn more about becoming an insurance agent and the steps you’ll need to take if this career path interests you!
Steps to Becoming an Insurance Agent
Before you begin your career as an insurance agent, You will also need to know what sort of niche in the insurance sector interests you the most. Agents sell a wide range of products, including health, life, homeowners', automobile, and even workers' compensation insurance.
Once you settle on a niche, you'll want to decide on a career path as an insurance agent. There are multiple paths to becoming an insurance agent, including a sales position, a risk management role, or a claim representative position. You’ll also want to consider the types of companies that you’d like to work for as an insurance agent. Each insurance company has its own requirements for hiring new agents.
Some companies will ask that you have a specific degree or educational background. You may also need to pass a licensing exam before you can begin working as an insurance agent. General educational requirements that insurance agents may need include having a bachelor’s degree in business, insurance, real estate, or a related field.
General Educational Requirements
You may also be able to become an insurance agent with a high school diploma and sales experience. But taking relevant courses such as sales, insurance marketing, management, or risk management at your local community college can help give you a competitive edge when applying for jobs.
Keep in mind that different companies may have different requirements. Another good way of starting out in the field of insurance is to get some experience working in an insurance office. Working as an insurance agent assistant or as a licensed insurance adjuster can give you experience selling insurance. You can also volunteer at an insurance company or with a nonprofit organization that provides insurance for its members. This will significantly improve your chances of getting hired as an insurance agent.
Summing It Up
The insurance industry is one of the fastest-growing industries in the world and it is expected to grow by almost 7% by 2022. There are a variety of roles available in this industry, from being an insurance broker to becoming an insurance agent.
So, if you are looking for a new career path and want to join the insurance industry but do not know where to begin, hopefully, the steps highlighted above will tell you everything you need to know about becoming an agent and what it takes to succeed in this role.
