Medicare Agent Training: What You Should Be Doing
Medicare insurance is a great business to get into. With 10,000 Americans turning 65 every day, the Medicare insurance industry is financially stable, not to mention rewarding.
The process of becoming a Medicare insurance agent may seem simple. You go to a few classes, jump through a few hoops, get your license and you’re ready to go. But being an agent is about much more than education and certifications. Being a good Medicare agent comes down to whether or not you can sell.
Sure, you can learn how to sell from the myriad of books, videos and online courses that are available. But selling Medicare is a specialized skill, which is why there are many Medicare agent training services to help you. Financial Grade, as a Field Marketing Organization (FMO), has agent training services to lead you to success in the Medicare insurance business.
How to become an insurance agent
Financial Grade is here to help—but you have to take the initiative. Here are the most important steps to start your Medicare agent journey.
Step 1. Obtaining your insurance license
While you don’t need higher education to become an insurance agent, you do need to get educated to obtain your insurance license. The requirements and processes are different in every state. Getting a license usually requires taking a few courses and passing a state license exam.
Step 2. Choosing an FMO
Insurance agents have the most success when under the umbrella of an FMO. This is because these organizations provide agents with necessary sales resources and contract their agents to sell the Medicare products they provide.
Step #3: Getting AHIP certified
Once you have your license and have selected an FMO, you need to take America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) exam to get certified to sell insurance products. This isn’t once and done, either—you’ll need to retake this exam every year.
Why you need Medicare agent training
You have your license and certification, but are you ready to sell? Even if you’re certified to sell insurance, you can do a lot more to round out your training and become an expert salesperson. Here are the benefits of continuing your Medicare agent training.
Benefit 1. You’ll learn how to sell
Without a doubt, selling is the most crucial part of being a Medicare insurance agent. However, converting your leads and retaining existing clients is challenging if you don’t know how to sell.
Medicare insurance agent training provides strategies and resources to learn the art of sales. These training sessions usually include shadowing consultations, reviewing case studies and learning about the latest insurance technology.
Benefit 2. You’ll improve your customer service
Remember, your clients could purchase their coverage directly from the provider. But what sets a representative like you apart is a personal touch and customer service. And when you participate in agent training sessions, your customer service becomes even more indispensable.
You need to make your clients feel comfortable. You need to talk to them about their needs, lifestyle and budget to match them with an ideal insurance plan. With Medicare agent training, you’ll learn how to provide top-notch service to your clients.
Benefit 3. You’ll stay informed
Although you retake your AHIP certification exam every year, you still need to do more. Training sessions will connect you with industry publications and the latest updates from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
Training to become a great agent doesn’t end with your certification. You can become a top-tier Medicare agent, and training is a massive part of that. So contact us to step up your training game today!
image credit: shutterstock/fizkes
