What Insurance Agents Should Be Doing in 1Q

This year, 4.2 million people turn 65. Are you on the right track to helping these seniors? Knowing what to do at certain times of the year helps keep agents on track, and the ability to push forward, at the right times. Agents know what to do leading up to AEP season, including certifying and training for the upcoming selling season, but when AEP is over and done with, it’s important to keep pushing forward and to have a great strategy to keep your income steady outside of AEP season.

Grassroots Marketing

Are you familiar with Grassroots marketing? If not, grassroots marketing is basically taking a targeted group of people, sharing your message (think Insurance knowledge) with them, in hopes to create a word-of-mouth marketing plan. This kind of marketing is very cost-effective for the return you may receive on it. If done successfully, you will have created a marketing strategy.

For a Medicare Insurance Agent, you could develop a relationship with the manager at a local community center. That would open the door for you to host educational seminars at their facility, and where you would be speaking to a targeted group of seniors sharing your knowledge and expertise. Upon meeting with those seniors, the hope is they will call you to schedule an appointment and refer you to their spouses, family, and friends. From that moment on, those seniors at the center will think of you as the expert in insurance.

Market Dental, Vision, Hearing, Ancillary, and Life Insurance to Your Clients

You can call agents during this time period to offer them additional benefits they may not have thought about last year. Maybe they will benefit from a hospital indemnity plan if they have a high deductible with their Medicare Advantage plan? Or maybe they have decided they will need an additional dental plan after all? Give your clients a call and see if they would be interested in hearing more about additional benefits. UIG also has an ancillary appointment workbook to walk you through those appointments; helping you know the right questions to ask!

Reflect on Previous Year

At the start of every year, it’s a good idea to evaluate the previous year. Take a morning, or an afternoon, sit down with your laptop, or a piece of paper, and really focus on the previous year. Recognize your accomplishments and reflect on the lessons you have learned along the way.  Use the notes you take as a self-improvement tool. This tool will help you build your strategy for the new year and provide you with an idea of what you want to continue, change, or add.  

Here are some thought-provoking questions you can ask yourself:

• Focus on what your strengths were. What were some things that went well? What skills did you acquire this year?
• Focus on your weaknesses. What were some things that didn’t go according to plan, or something that wasn’t thought about in your strategy? What were some mistakes?
• Are you adequately trained on the products you’re selling?
• Did you break out of your comfort zone, and do something challenging for your business?
• You are a business owner, did you set aside time to double-check your commissions each week?

Is it Time to Switch FMO’s?

If you’ve considered researching what other FMO’s offer, you’ll find out that most FMO’s offer the same things in some capacity. But the level of support you receive may vary. If you’ve considered making a move, now is the time to do it with mostly all black-out periods lifted since before AEP began.

At UIG, we go beyond just contracting you with carriers. And, at no cost to you, you’ll receive so much in return, that other FMO’s may not offer you:

• Competitive Commissions and Incentives – Including Co-Op Dollars
• Extensive and Ongoing Training from Licensed Agents
• Industry-Leading Product Portfolio
• Innovative Technology
• Administrative Support
• VIP Sales and Marketing Support

Whatever it is you decide to do in the 1Q, just know the UIG team will be alongside you to support you. Please reach out to us, run your ideas by us, and we’ll help you stay on track through the course of the year. You can reach us at (800) 878-1058, ext. 1380, or by emailing us at [email protected] to get started in 1Q.