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Are there a lot of job openings for insurance agents right now?

#insurance #job-openings

insurance job-openings
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Michael’s Answer

The insurance industry is always (ALWAYS) hiring insurance agents. There are also a lot of insurance agencies who are investing in new agents to continue to grow their business. It is critical to find an agency who is willing to invest in their talent in the event you decide to go down this career path. With that, there are some good pieces of advice above - getting a job selling insurance is available, keeping that job and the work that goes into developing a book of business is very difficult and one you need to be prepared for. I would highly recommend discussing this field with someone who has been an agent for some time and they can share the pros and cons to help you make the right decision. Good luck!
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Carrie’s Answer

Hi Drake-
I agree with the advice given to you already. As an independent agent, building your book of business can be a long but rewarding process. However, there are other types of insurance-related positions that you may not know about. For example, I work at AIG, and one of our subsidiaries provides retirement plans (401k, 403b, 457b) for businesses - schools, colleges, etc. As part of our service package, we provide access to financial advisors, who are very well versed in insurance products and educate their clients about the types of insurance that might be helpful to them as they prepare for retirement. Granted they are financial advisors, but many of them hold the same licenses as independent insurance agents.

So to answer your question, yes, there are many openings in this field.

Carrie recommends the following next steps:

Schedule some time to talk with an insurance agent about career path
Meet with a career counselor at a college/community college for degree info and/or career fairs
Thank you comment icon Thank you! This helps a lot! Drake
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Jay’s Answer

I have been a life insurance agent for my entire 20 year career. Its a wonderful profession. But it is hard work... and not everyone is cut out for it.

The short answer is GETTING a job selling insurance is easy. KEEPING that job it hard....

The insurance industry has taken the strategy of hiring loads of young agents, with the understanding that maybe 10% will stick with it. Just about anyone with a pulse can get the job. These jobs do not have a salary. Your income is a portion of the revenue from what you sell. So they hire you at monetary cost to themselves. You take all the risk.

Its my opinion is that a huge percentage of insurance agents are interested far more in their commission than their client. That is a sure recipe for failure. The key to success is learning how to put the client's needs ahead of your own. People have great intuition; they know when they cannot trust you. Do the right thing for your client and in time you can find success. If you are good it can be quite lucrative.

Best of luck, Jay Woodall CFP, CLU
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Mike’s Answer

Hi Drake - all of the above answers are spot on. I along with a few of the other responders have worked on both the insurance agency and insurance company/carrier side. The industry as a whole is looking to hire younger candidates and there are lots of lucrative positions available. I started out on the Property/Casualty retail brokerage side in 2006 (which means that I worked for a brokerage that represented numerous insurance carriers) and switched to an Insurance Company side about six years ago. While the agency/brokerage side has its positives, I would encourage people to begin their career on the company side as you learn the coverages/industry better, which could serve you better down the line if you decide to cross over to the agency/brokerage side. Either way, the insurance industry is a very stable and lucrative field and offers lots of opportunity for advancement for a younger candidate.
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Bill’s Answer

Drake - the insurance industry is a growing industry and one that will always be around as insurance is a required commodity for everything from buying a house, owning a car or owning your own business. Insurance is required for almost every transaction today. As such, there is the need for insurance professionals to fill a number of jobs. Agents who sell the insurance, underwriters who determine risk acceptability and price the insurance, claims reps who handle losses and provide pay outs on compensable losses as well as a whole host of people who work behind the scenes supporting these basic rolls.

If you go to https://www.insurancejobs.com/ you will find hundreds of opportunities across the United States in all facets of insurance or insurance support rolls.

It's a great industry to get into.

Good luck.
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Deborah (Dee)’s Answer

As others have said, there are normally a lot of openings for sales agents. I currently work for an insurance company that has captive agents. That means our agents are actually employees of our company. The company provides the agents with an office, computers, service staff, along with benefits such as Health insurance and a 401K match, they also pay for your training and licensing. The salary of the agents includes a base pay along with commission from your sales. The base pay of our salary goes down as the tenure with the company goes up because you should be selling more and more as you gain experience. This can be a good choice of a new sales agent because it is a little less risky that being an independent agent. Good luck!

Deborah (Dee) recommends the following next steps:

Research the difference between captive and independent agents and try talking to one of each.
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Elizabeth’s Answer

Dear Drake,
I know this is an older question, but I wanted to mention this question as the job market changes during the aftermath of Covid. I just started in the insurance field after more than a decade in the Entertainment industry. I don't know what kind of job in the industry you are looking for, but I can tell you that now is an amazing time to try and get into the field. Not only are there a wealth of jobs, but there is a great diversity in the types of jobs available. Whether you want to do sales or processing or something else, there is a lot of growth in the industry. I have also found in my limited time in the industry there seems to be a lot of room for personal advancement, which is great when you are trying to build a long career. Best of luck in your search.
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Michael’s Answer

I have been working in the insurance industry for 30 years, and I can tell you that there are never enough insurance agents. Being an agent is a tough job and statistics show that only one in ten new insurance agents will last four years. For this reason, there is always a demand for new agents. If you are able to make it beyond four years, the likelihood of long-term success increases each subsequent year you are in the business as you can rely on renewal commissions to create a steady stream of income. An additional reality that is facing the insurance industry is that agents are getting older and new hungry and hard working agents will be needed to sustain their practices. If you have a good work ethic and have the personal resolve to keep pushing forward despite being told "not interested" more than any other job there is, you can have a very successful career as an insurance agent.
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Michael’s Answer

Hi Drake,
Thank you for your note and your interest in the insurance industry. Personally, I've had the experience in working on both the agency and carrier side of the insurance business. Insurance agencies are continually looking for new producers/agents to join their agencies and sales force. The first couple years on the agency side of the business can be tough and it is critical to find an agency who will provide the support you need to be successful - training, mentoring opportunities, continuing education, etc. It is hard work building a book of business; however, it can be very rewarding being a trusted advisor to your customers. If you align yourself with an agency who will provide the support to get your business running, and you have a strong desire to put your customers first, being an insurance agent can be a very strong career move. Best of luck, Drake - I hope this helped.

Michael recommends the following next steps:

Research agencies who are hiring and what their training programs consist of
Obtain a property & casualty insurance license in your state
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Peter’s Answer

Yes, as other responders have mentioned, there are plenty of insurance agent positions available (P&C or financial products focused). Those can be independent, or positions dedicated to one insurance company (State Farm, etc.). When asked, I've tended to direct recent college grads to consider positions within insurance companies first, before going into insurance sales. Underwriting is probably the best place to start with people focused on transitioning into sales, but there is an argument that claims or loss control could also be a good starting place. Most companies provide training for new hires in claims or underwriting, which is a great perk when starting a career. Working as an agent is a tough career path as compensation is based on acquiring business, so you want a high level of insurance knowledge that will help you win and retain customers.
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Jennifer’s Answer

The career of an insurance agent is very entrepreneurial in nature and very sales oriented so I would say yes, most likely there are quite a few job opportunities available right now. It might help to have an idea of what type of insurance you would like to sell - life and/or health insurance, property and casualty insurance, or personal lines (auto, home, etc.). Each of these different areas of the insurance industry has different licenses and educational requirements so knowing which area you want to specialize in can save you a lot of time and energy.

Jennifer recommends the following next steps:

Search the career/job websites to see what is available for entry level insurance sales. If you don't see anything you like you might want to look at working in an insurance agency or for an insurance carrier/company to get a sense if you would like to be an agent.
Thank you comment icon Thank you so much! Drake
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Elizabeth A. C.’s Answer

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment of insurance sales agents is expected to increase by 10% over the next 10 years. This is slightly higher than the average for other occupations (e.g. sales and related occupations are expected to grow by 7%). With the advances being made in InsureTech, many clients are doing their own research and purchasing insurance online. However, insurance agents will still be needed to help clients understand their options and choose the policy that is right for them.
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Pat’s Answer

There are always jobs available in the Insurance industry. While this can be through a broker agency or as an independent agent, I have found that if you can find an openings on the health insurance carrier side, that will allow you to gain the most experience as well as allow for the most opportunities in the future. Health carriers work with all types of insurance not just medical. They also work with independent agents, large broker firms, hospital systems and providers, so you are constantly making connections that can benefit you from both an experience and relationship standpoint.
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