50 percent of small businesses fail with the first five years.
Why do so many small businesses fail? Probably because they didn’t have the foundation to succeed.
Have you been wanting to start your own business but are afraid of falling victim to this statistic?
Starting your own insurance business is one of the best ways to become an entrepreneur. But successfully starting your own life insurance business requires starting out on the right foot.
Keep reading for our guide to starting off right with your new life insurance business.
Creating a Vision
The first step when starting your own life insurance business is creating a business plan.
Creating a vision for your business will guide you throughout the rest of the process. The more time you take to plan and strategize in the beginning, the more efficient you will be. One of the most useful tips for starting is business is learning how to set goals and how to measure your progress.
When you work for yourself, you don’t have a boss to evaluate your performance. While you probably see this as one of the biggest perks of having your own startup business, it’s important to remember that you really do have to become your own boss.
This means taking on the responsibilities that a boss would normally handle. The best way to be your own boss in a meaningful way is to set goals that you can measure.
Business professionals recommend setting SMART goals. SMART goals are:
- Specific
- Measurable
- Achievable
- Relevant
- Time-bound
When you set strategic and meaningful goals, you can evaluate your progress more efficiently. This is especially important if you are leaving a traditional career to start your own small business for the first time.
Setting goals and learning how to track your progress can streamline the process of starting your own business and help ensure you are focusing your efforts in the right areas.
Learning to be Your Own Boss
Starting your own life insurance business requires you to develop more skills than just selling insurance. You have to learn how to be your own boss and do a good job at it if you want your business to succeed. One of the most crucial skills to learn and apply to your life insurance business is time management.
When you work for yourself, you are responsible for getting your work done. No one will remind you of upcoming deadlines.
Starting your own life insurance business is appealing because of the freedom that comes with being self-employed, but with that freedom comes great responsibility. While you can work whenever and wherever you want, if you don’t get your work done, you won’t get paid.
It’s important to be fully prepared before quitting your day job.
Honing your time management skills can help you succeed as an entrepreneur. Technology can help you stay on track and schedule your day to include both work time and personal time. It’s easy for these lines to get blurred when working from home.
Delegating your time and making sure you have a designated workspace in your home can help you stay focused during work hours. If you plan to start an agency and hire employees, you will need to learn how to manage them as well.
Evaluating Yourself
Creating a vision and setting goals is the foundation of starting your own business. But how do you know whether you’re meeting your goals?
When you set SMART goals, your goals will inherently be easier to evaluate.
Learning how to evaluate your business can help you cut unnecessary costs, refocus your efforts where they are most needed, ensure you stay compliant with carriers, and increase sales.
A successful business is always growing and thinking ahead. Asking critical questions about how things are going and how they could be done better is the hallmark of a successful entrepreneur. Here are some pro tips for evaluating your business:
- Develop a habit of compiling data and information about your business
- Always be honest with yourself about your progress
- Document your achievements and successes but also your challenges
- Always look ahead to the future and remember that mistakes are a chance to grow
- Try to be as objective as possible
- Commit to lifelong learning
Know What Startup Business Costs to Expect
When you’re starting your own small business selling life insurance, you will need to make some initial investments. As is true with many things, the more you put in, the more you will get out. Let’s take a look at some of the basics you will need to get started selling life insurance.
Licenses and Certifications
In order to start your own life insurance business, you’ll need the proper licenses and certifications. What you will need to do to become licensed depends on the state where you want to sell life insurance. Each state has its own process for becoming licensed.
You can expect to be required to take and pass an exam covering the basics of life insurance and the ethics of selling insurance. Your license will allow you to sell life insurance in that state. You’ll have to renew your licenses every couple of years, based on state requirements.
To stay current on the latest life insurance trends and developments, you’ll need to take continuing education courses to keep your license current and avoid paying a penalty fee.
Insurance
In order to sell insurance, you need to carry insurance.
To open your own life insurance business, you’ll need a minimum of Errors & Omissions (E&O) insurance. The more experience you have in the industry, the lower your premiums will be.
E&O insurance protects you if make a mistake and provide incorrect information to one of your clients and they take legal action against you. Your insurance policy will cover your legal costs.
Being insured also increases your credibility with potential clients. They know that you are covered if anything goes wrong.
Office Space
When starting your own life insurance business, you have to choose whether you want to rent office space or work out of your home. You can save money by working out of your home, if possible.
Be prepared to pay for the costs of your phone and internet connection. Be sure to ask your tax preparer about deducting the expenses associated with having a home office.
Our Best Tips for Starting Your Life Insurance Business
Starting your own business is never easy, but with the right tips for starting, you can increase your chances of success. Here are some of our top tips from insurance pros to help you get started.
Understand Your Products
Perhaps the most important thing you must do when starting a life insurance business is to ensure you have a very good understanding of life insurance and the products you are selling. The better you understand what you are trying to sell, the better you will connect with prospects.
You want to avoid making your clients wait while you search for answers to their questions. When you present detailed information in a confident manner, you’re more likely to close sales.
Understand Your Audience
Understanding your audience is as important as understanding the products you are selling. Successfully selling life insurance is all about developing rapport, especially if you are selling life insurance over the phone. You have to learn to connect with your prospects on their level.
Life insurance is purchased by a diverse audience, so this takes some time and practice. Take the time to think about why a prospect might want to purchase life insurance.
How can they benefit from a life insurance policy? This is the angle you want to take with clients. Avoid being too pushy or salesy.
Establish an Online Presence
If you want your business to succeed, you need to develop a solid marketing plan. While there is still life in marketing offline, most of your efforts should be focused online.
Marketing online is easy and cost-effective.
You might consider building a website. At a bare minimum, you should have a presence on social media. offers tools to help you market on its platform.
Are You Looking to Start a Life Insurance Business?
As the world adapts to the long-term effects of COVID-19, people are reevaluating their careers.
If you’re looking for a change that will allow you to work from home on your own terms, you should start your own life insurance business.
With our coaching, mentorship, training, guidance, and support, you will be on your way to financial freedom in no time. Click here to learn more about how we can give your life insurance the foundation it needs to succeed long term.