Once you’ve been working as an agent for a few years it can be easy to get into a rut, going over the same sales pitch, marketing in the same demographics, and interacting with the same contacts day in and day out. However, even if your sales are steady there is always room for improvement and by introducing a little creativity into your daily work routine you’ll find you’ll not only draw in new prospects but also become more engaged in your career.  Here are a few suggestions to get you started:

As a sales agent, it can be easy to get bogged down in the details and forget the big picture when it comes to marketing and contacting prospective leads in a timely, organized fashion. However, by putting pen to paper and actually articulating a set of guidelines and goals for yourself, you will soon see your overall marketing plan come together and become and constant and consistent part of how you do your day-to-day business.

When working through your sales targets, do you find yourself dividing your time into monthly sections, and judging your performance according to a 30-day schedule? If so, you may be allowing arbitrary dates and deadlines to sabotage your sales success by following the typical ebb and flow of a monthly routine which can cause unnecessary stress and poor performance.

It can happen to the best of us, you’re in the middle of a sales pitch when you suddenly realize you’re not paying attention to the words coming out of your own mouth.  Agent fatigue can be a real problem, especially during the summer months when outside distractions are at an all-time high, and you will notice a dip in sales if prospects suspect that you are phoning in your work.  So, how to get out of this rut and back into the game? Here are a few ways to refresh your approach and reconnect with your clients:

It takes a certain amount of confidence to get into sales in the first place, but above and beyond the basic “sales personality”, you will notice that the most successful agents are also the ones that seem to exude an extra dose of self-assurance. So how does one build confidence? Here are some easy steps to get you started:

Keep track of past successes: When you’ve made a great sale, do you document it for future reference? It can be easy to get down on yourself if you’ve had a slow week or month, but by taking the time to review the bigger picture and keep your past successes on hand, you will be able to maintain a more buoyant attitude and brush off the bad days.

As busy agents, we often find it difficult to take time away from the office because every minute counts when it comes to sales success. However, with a few simple changes to your vacation outlook, it can be easier than you ever imagined to take a break, rest-up, and come back refreshed and ready to tackle new projects. Here’s how:

When you think about vacation time away from the office, do you picture long weekends, or perhaps a week off while still checking your email and phone messages on a daily basis? Are you more into the “stay-cation” than actually taking some time out of town?

If so, you may be a bit too tethered to your office life, and susceptible to burn-out at a much greater rate than your more balanced co-workers. “But,” you may ask, “how can I take the time away without losing business and being hopelessly behind upon my return?” Here are several steps you can take to make your next vacation a more relaxing and rejuvenating experience.

With all the emphasis on green living these days, it’s important to do your part to send a positive message to clients and co-workers that you share their values and care about your environmental impact. From recycling to reducing power consumption to cutting down on waste, by proving yourself a leader in making green choices, you will appeal to your prospects as an accountable and forward-thinking option when it comes to their insurance needs.

Here’s how to get started:

In the insurance industry, business cards are key to successful networking, often handed out to prospects, customers, and fellow business people on a daily basis. But because of their ubiquitous nature, it can be hard to make yourself stand out from the crowd without going the extra mile. Here are a few easy tips to leave a more lasting impression.

When you arrive at your desk on a Monday morning, what’s the first thing to meet your eye? Is it a clutter of papers, notes, and “to do” lists waiting to be tackled, or a blinking answering machine full of messages to return? The truth is, even the best agents can have difficulty organizing their office and implementing a method to keep track of the steady flow of material and information they are supposed to negotiate. However, by taking the time to set up a functional organizational system, all agents can benefit from the extra time they will free up by streamlining their activities. Here are some suggestions on where to start: