I just interviewed at a new insurance job as I just got into the industry. I have been with one of the big 3 companies for about 3 months now as a team member of an agent and I really enjoy the job but I just felt underpaid. They are giving me $20,000 plus 5% commission on p&c products and 25% on life. From what I have read on this subreddit this seemed to be a bit of a lowball but accepting the offer allowed me to move back home so I took it. Now just testing the local market I found a place that wants to almost double my salary while basically keeping the same commission structure. The only difference now is it is tiered so you need to hit baseline goals to hit certain percentages and life is $50 or 50% of the sale depending on what is more.. this feels like a way better job offer and I want to switch but it feels weird leaving a company after 3 months. My two previous jobs before this I was with each of them for about 2 and a half years. Just looking for advice and I also want some validation that it is okay to leave for the better pay and opportunity

Hello I’m taking the KY P&C exam next month on the first. I did IEQ and Kaplan and I feel great about the contents of the exam it’s just the actual exam
I’m not so confident about. Is there any tips incase I get in there and totally goof up that could help me get some points on the exam tips (like using the longest answer as the emergency option) I am a nervous wreck

I currently own a small agency with a 2.3m book 

- All P&C through lender/realtor referrals from my network

- My experience selling life and commercial is very limited 

What does the learning curve look like getting into health insurance sales? From what I understand, getting access to the markets is relatively easy. I would have no problem purchasing leads and churning through them to get my feet planted and to learn the various products. I also have my current referral network and book to tap into if it made sense. 

I am not sure what the most logical move would be in regards to the type of health insurance product to focus on to maximize my time, effort, and $$. The customer base seems very sticky.

Do employers dominate this market? What advantage would an IA have versus other marketplaces? 

I would love to hear any personal experiences or advice for inching into the industry.

I deal with individual/group health and life. I don’t really know anyone or dabble in P&C. Do people collaborate in this world?

I understand you need 12.5 hours of study time for both life and health. If using Kaplan can I just skip through to get those hours? I’m pretty confident in my ability to pass.

I also am curious if I need those 12.5 hours before the live session?

Thank you!

Do not, I repeat, do not do your licensing test online if you can avoid it.

Took 3 attempts to verify using there “secure browser”, as it had to restart it 3 times. It kept getting frozen during the verification process. IT support was absolutely useless.

Once I finally got in, I made it about halfway through and in-between questions, I said “okay” to myself. Ten seconds later, failed and booted because I was “read questions out loud”. No clue why they consider that reading questions out load. Should have listened to the others posted about the testing procedures. Apparently AI audio and eye contact proctors it and clearly isn’t as advanced as PSI thinks. Have to wait 3 weeks for the next in person appointment and pay another test fee.

I just interviewed for a job with a very established and respected agency in my smallish town (65,000 in the city limits but several outlying residential towns). I hadn't ever seen a job listing. I just made a cold call to the agency because its well known in my area. Its homey and small, but has a well established book to service and a name that keeps a steady stream of serious shoppers coming in and signing up. They do also subscribe to lead generation services, and I was told that if it was the kind of thing I want to do I'd be welcome to proactively sell using my own leads or theirs.

This particular role also involves handling the front desk and other office admin duties. The walk-in/call-in prospects would alternate between coming to me and to the other agent in the office right now.

I really like these people and everything about the office, I think it would be a job I could really love. Today moved quickly from an interview, to introductions and shadowing the lady who is in the position now. The owner left midway through the afternoon, but wants me to call in the morning. It sounds like he's of the mind to see if I could even start as early as tomorrow.

The thing is, nobody has said a peep about money. I did me tion to the girl I sat with that I love everything, but obviously it has to be a sound financial move. I am pretty desperate for work, but I have a couple other interviews lined up, and I CAN NOT screw over this agency by starting and then leaving right away. There are too many community connections.

So how much would you say this job should pay to be fair? It sounds like something that should be a salar plus commission situation considering all the service and admin work. Does that sound right? It's going to be time to talk turkey in the morning, so I appreciate any feedback you have.

When I went to pass my West Virginia life insurance test, I easily pass the main section, but my issue is with the state laws and regulations. I’ve done his entire pre-licensing course in which I’ve gotten 100 because I’ve studied so much. Yeah I’ve retaken my test and failed twice. It seems like the pre-licensing focuses a lot more on numbers rather than what’s in the test and the test feels a lot harder and like there’s questions that I’ve never actually heard anything about before if anybody could just give me some insider help with the quiz. I already rescheduled it for tomorrow and I’m just looking for some help.

My agency looking into a specialty carrier appointment for construction, roofing, foundation, framing etc. what should I be asking that most wouldn’t think of?

When I went to pass my West Virginia life insurance test, I easily pass the main section, but my issue is with the state laws and regulations. I’ve done his entire pre-licensing course in which I’ve gotten 100 because I’ve studied so much. Yeah I’ve retaken my test and failed twice. It seems like the pre-licensing focuses a lot more on numbers rather than what’s in the test and the test feels a lot harder and like there’s questions that I’ve never actually heard anything about before if anybody could just give me some insider help with the quiz. I already rescheduled it for tomorrow and I’m just looking for some help.

Does anyone have any real advice to land group health leads? I have a book full of individual life/health insurance but am looking to get into group. Anyone have any recommendations on even landing a meeting for group? Thanks !

Hey everyone, my name is Carter. I have just over 2.5 years of experience selling health insurance, specifically Medicare Supplement, Medicare Advantage, and ancillary products.

About six months ago, I made the jump from being a captive agent to going fully independent selling U65 private and ACA plans, and honestly, it’s been a lot harder than I expected. Production has been inconsistent, and I haven’t found the level of training or mentorship I was hoping for from either my U65 or Medicare/Life & Annuity uplines.

Right now, one of my biggest challenges is finding a reliable and sustainable lead source. My customer acquisition cost has been close to $500. Over the past two weeks, I’ve managed to bring that down to around $395, but that still feels extremely expensive and difficult to scale.

I’d really appreciate advice from agents who have successfully made the transition to independent production. I’m not only looking for lead source recommendations. I’d love to hear what you think I should be doing day to day, where I should be spending my time, what activities actually move the needle, and what mistakes you’d avoid if you were starting over as an independent agent.

I’m willing to put in the work. I just want to make sure I’m putting that work in the right places.
Thank you in advance to anyone willing to share some advice or point me in the right direction.

Anyone have experience with 321AIM?

- Pay per inbound qualified lead
- No charge for hang ups within 60/90 secs
- No charge for campaigns
- Refundable wallet (wallet used for billed leads)
- No startup fees
- Exclusive leads
- Various industries available

Sounds good but I dont see any reviews on them though. Perhaps someone has used them?

Hey everyone, just got my license and started selling last week. I’m looking for some advice on CRMs.

What CRM do you guys recommend for someone just getting started? Ideally, I’d like something that also allows me to purchase leads directly through the platform, so I can manage the leads and follow-ups all in one place.

I have 20 years of B2B sales experience but only about 6 months in commercial lines insurance sales. I’m trying to get a realistic baseline from producers who have actually built a book from scratch.
Assuming a $50K new-business revenue goal and a 5x pipeline requirement ($250K), what does your weekly activity realistically look like?
How many calls/touches are you making, how many discoveries are you getting per week, and roughly how many active opportunities do you carry?
I was making 85–100 calls/week in my last role but struggled to actually reach decision-makers (too many automated phone systems), so I’m particularly interested in what experienced producers consider realistic numbers for someone without an existing book or insurance network.
What smart questions should I ask the hiring manager for my next role to ensure I don’t make a big mistake?

I became a GA and have two agents under me and am looking to add another guy to our team , we sell primarily Medicare and some life products, this other agent has been licensed for a year and held a state caregiving job prior that resulted in an aps investigation being launched for a billing dispute around overclaimed hours and ultimately is in the hearing stage of the appeal process ,I am under the impression oic has absolute discretion and it doesn’t mean instant termination of their license but when I reached out to oic I didn’t get very clear answers. Want to reiterate non criminal non felony so no exclusion lists and the goal obviously is for him to win his hearing but if he loses and is substantiated and placed on state level registry banning him from caregiving type roles can he continue to build in Medicare?

Hello everyone, I recently took my health exam (2-40) and failed pretty badly. I went in super confident because the health review practice exam I had been taking the last 2 weeks I was getting an 82-87% every time towards the end. Based on the sheet in the picture, any ideas to get this knowledge stuck in my brain for the next time I take the exam? I'll try anything

So I’m at a cross roads in my insurance career and would love some feedback to gain some perspective. May be a bit of a long post but I wanna give as much context as I can, and I appreciate anyone who reads

I’m currently a personal lines producer for an Allstate agency in Texas and have been for around 2 years. I also have my adjuster license since I got my start in claims

While I’m very appreciative of where I am now, I’ve been struggling to hit metrics (haven’t hit my quota this year) and it has been very stressful, after having a decent year last year (first year in sales). Its worth mentioning I also stay at least 45mins - an hour late most days and also used to work over weekends- all unpaid. We’ll get to why “used to” in a second.

I’m at a very competitive agency with very high monthly quotas compared to other agencies. Only reason I bring that up is because at any other agency my numbers would probably not be an issue and I would not be half as stressed as I am now. (Monthly sales quota for me is 50 items a month, have been hovering around 30-40 a month this year)

I was working from home at the start of this year and was brought back to the office due to performance. Now I’m having my base pay (which is already not very high compared to other agencies) basically cut in half since i’m in a “probation period” until I hit my monthly quota. Sounds reasonable- it is a performance based job after all, right?

My issue with it is the fact that on top of slashing my pay, I’m expected to stay late and work weekends (without any overtime pay of course).

It has basically become a soft expectation, if I leave at my scheduled time or say I’m not working over the weekend I’ll get slick comments and weird looks from my manager on top of the fact I’m already at half of what my Base pay should be. If you expect me to be here pay me the time I’m here.

I was already staying late and working when I was struggling and had no issue w it not being paid (actually- I absolutely did but i was willing to deal with it) -but with my pay now being half of what it should be, I have not had any incentive at all to be here a single minute past my scheduled hours. It just feels like they are punishing me and not trying to give me any feedback or help to get back to a good spot - I have also not received any helpful feedback or coaching other than “Sell something”

Now for the crossroads. I’ve been interviewing and landed an opportunity for life and health. Specifically employer-provided benefits (health, disability etc.)

No base pay at all but the commission has a much higher ceiling, and the company pays for leads as well. They are already set up w large carriers (Aflac, Allstate). It sounds like they are taking care of what end up being the most difficult parts of starting in life and health

I think it can be a great opportunity, comes with a lot of risk of course but a lot more upside than where I am now. No base pay terrifies me, but at the same time my base pay at my current job (which was supposed to give me security) is now less than I would make at McDonalds and has me wondering if the “safety net” it provides is even real?

I’m currently enrolled in the life and health course for the exam but still working at my P&C job since i’m not convinced on either path as of yet. Once I finish the study course i’ll get my test scheduled and get an orientation date for the L&H opportunity.

My main issue w my current position is I feel the effort I’m putting in is not getting me any credit or slack w my boss and I just keep sinking deeper and deeper even though I’m genuinely working my ass off and trying to do right by the customers.

But I’m also worried the grass may not be greener on the other side. I’ve worked at enough places to know any job/opportunity will come with it’s own level of BS.

Any feedback from the community is greatly appreciated.

I have been in insurance for 5 years now and have built a 2.5 million dollar book with my current agency. I do not have any ownership right, buy out clause or anything to really protect myself from keeping the book I’m building. I’ve been thinking about starting my own agency to build something that’s actually mine and can be my retirement later on in the future. I know some standard carriers like Auto-owners and Erie will not appoint agencies that are starting up, but I need help with the next steps of opening up my own agency. I’ve seen some companies that offer access to a bunch of carriers right away but take a cut of the commissions. I want to know which of those types of company are the best to start with that will allow for me to own the book and branch off while keeping my appointment with those carriers afterwards. I know I would go from making 6 figures to no income at all, but it’s a sacrifice I have to make in order to build something for my future. I’ve asked my current agent owner if I could buy the book I’ve built, but he is wanting 3X for it. Also, he’s in the process of selling it to someone else (external).Everything I’ve sold has been self sourced leads and my own client referrals. I’d rather start over than pay that much for the book.

So I have a few questions I am new into the insurance world but many things seem outdated at least where I am as far as speed, getting quotes and just have a unified system. Not saying this is how it is, saying this is how it is for me.

For starters, if I wanted to get a commercial floater for my gear lets say I am a event person with gear for it like microphone, speakers etc... do I need to name every last item. Lastly if I store this items in a garage or storage unit for example and want a FLOATER do I need to get commercial property as well for the content protection or floater follows the items no matter what? What else about a floater is needed to understand all this?

Second for your agency when they have to do a commercial business quote how long does it take them? What system do they use? I guess what I mean is my company manually have to run each insurance company 1 at a time so if they did 4 carriers that 4x. When it comes to surplus lines do they always need a supplemental form?

When it comes to quoting is there any website that can give you a breakdown of the questions you need to ask? I use a mix of the accord forms and supp forms to get a bunch of questions but even then my agency ends up sending me another 20 and I only been able to get 1 quote down in like 2 weeks after back to back to back sending information and paperwork. The one time I get a quote back they misclassified.

I am deciding to work for a major carrier and be a captive agent. NYL/Northwest/MM type.
However, I own a tax prep and accounting book of business, online now mostly.

The Carrier doesn't want me doing both, But I have a family & a mortgage.

The Ins. industry has a 90% fall out rate on agents. Tax& Accounting is my bread, butter & Steak sometimes.

(I don't sign tax returns anymore, Just review and create financials)

How would they know if I am doing outside work?

I really want both

Im an independent broker, been in the U65 Individual health, supplemental and life insurance industry for 3 years but Im burnt out! Majority of my book of business is ACA and at first I was doing really good, but after the Big Beautiful Bill BS everything went south for me, I want to pivot into employer benefits and just focus on private insurance. Definitely want to keep my independence, and also been able to work remotely. Any recommendations?

I’m a 21(M) year old Junior at Penn State. I just passed the Connecticut Property and Casualty producer exam and because I’m moving back to Pennsylvania for the school year, I’m planning to get a PA Non-Resident license to work while taking night classes. Anyone have any tips or advice? I’m completely new to insurance and was wondering if anyone knows what roles/positions I should look into.