MAKING INSURANCE SEXY, AGAIN
Many of us who stumbled into insurance one dark and gloomy day some years ago chuckle at and enjoy all too well the actual story of how we ended up here. Here being insurance, the glorious insurance industry. From claim adjusters to CSRs, principal agents to CEOs of insurance carriers; we are an industry filled with people who have devoted their careers, their lives, and their businesses to putting lives back together at some of the darkest hours. We all have a story of how we ended up here; for many of us, it was not deliberate. The job or career happened while we were making other plans.
Insurance is a Lifestyle business.
I’m starting the conversation - to make insurance sexy again.
I have often reflected on this common thread among us, laughed about it, and more seriously, considered it as I see a lack of young candidates show our industry a genuine interest and rather a distasteful glance. It, unfortunately, is a well-kept secret, maybe held too closely. Many of us know how great it is, and we hold the secret within a small family business, passed from one generation to the next, boxed in by a stuffy industry that just removed its pantyhose off the dress code. (I might still wear mine; shhh, don’t tell anyone.)
I have been watching in the grandstands for years, watching college graduates flock to industries similar but different of course: law, real estate, accounting, finance, and investing. I ask them, “Did you ever consider insurance?,” and they say, “no, of course not,” with turned-up noses. When I press and ask why the response, they don’t have a clear answer.
As I have been on the hiring end in more recent years, I often ask myself what is so appealing about the industries the new grads have chosen. I often wonder what it is about an industry or a particular Fortune 500 employer that makes it so sexy, so appealing to a new grad looking to put their mark on the world.
I believe some of it comes from the prestige we put on some of these industries, the glamor they think they’ll offer, or just the salary and lifestyle options they provide. These industries seem to be more transparent with their lovely qualities, which made me realize, we do a terrible job of marketing our industry. And then I realized it’s not going to change unless we work to illuminate and raise our industry. So I decided to create my own mantra: “make insurance sexy again.” Insurance is an industry that many of us love dearly, defend, and are proud to represent but we need to do better illuminating our industry to others. We need to make insurance sexy again.
In hindsight, it did not seem like a welcoming industry to a 20- 20-something female right out of college, but I jumped in, truly fell in love, and stayed despite the challenges; I never considered it a sexy career. A few years in, despite the great promotions I was earning within the company I was working for, I still considered returning to school to pursue a JD because it seemed more prestigious, noteworthy, and accomplished. It didn’t help when I looked around; I didn’t see many people I wanted to look like.
Our industry doesn’t have a great recognition system for all we do, all we’ve learned, and how we apply it. Unfortunately, beyond Google and some customer reviews, you won’t always know the quality of the insurance agent you’re working with, the knowledge of the companies they represent, and the policies they sell.
It is an industry filled with variety in every way, shape, and form around bringing people in and helping them. You see everything from the top marketing experts of their time; consider why we all know, "In 15 minutes, you could save 15 percent" to some of the most detailed mathematicians who graduated as actuaries at the top of their class. You have the twenty-something who went out to work in a different industry after college and realized that there is nothing quite like being self-employed like his parents. I smile when I see them come home to take over the local insurance agency.
So, this is starting my conversation to make insurance sexy again. To help the great break out and have the courage to be different from the mediocre since so many insurance agents want to be the same. Doubt me? How often have you seen a unique logo or call to action to customers?
Indeed, this only fixes some of it. There will always be the slightly slick sales agent in it for all the wrong reasons, who feel the sense of dread wash over them when someone calls with an in-depth coverage question because they are so focused on the sale and not about the coverage. We're not the only industry this happens in; it's seen in law, investment planning, and many others. This industry has a wide array of talent, commitment, knowledge, and integrity, and some of the bad few give the great majority a bad name. I want to ensure our industry shines for the next generation with our excellent work.
We're not good at beating our drum, and at times, insurance is often the well-kept secret in town. It is the family business that no one wants to tout too loudly for fear we'll be judged for being "too successful" or doing too well in small-town America. We need to be more transparent about how rewarding insurance can be for the person looking for a lifestyle business.
How many business professionals get to say that they help put people's lives back together? They help families make their most significant investments, from homes to farms and businesses. How many business owners can talk to their customers on some of their worst days and some of their best days? We get to be their advisor in buying a business, helping a new nonprofit get started, or sharing the excitement of a young couple buying their first farm. That is big stuff, powerful stuff. While many agency owners will complain about it, the fact that every little league team, 4H show kid, and parent-run organization shows up on my doorstep first asking for donations or help or my support makes my heart burst with pride to be able to be "that" small business in my hometown.
It is a great industry, yes, a sexy industry. It's 'pull the suit off, go golfing, and meet the customer for drinks.' It's as sexy as you want it to be. Since I don't golf, that wouldn't be my ideal way to spend a summer afternoon. However, you can be sure I will find a reason to leave early on a sunny day to visit a farm client.
