Careers > Insurance Sales Agents

Insurance Sales Agents

$57.86K Median Salary 50.4K Job Openings (Annual Projection) 7% Job Growth

Find Colleges for this Career Find Certificates for this Career

About This Career

Sell life, property, casualty, health, automotive, or other types of insurance. May refer clients to independent brokers, work as an independent broker, or be employed by an insurance company.

Reported Job Titles

Insurance Agent, Insurance Broker, Insurance Sales Agent, Sales Agent, Sales Associate, Sales Representative, Underwriting Sales Representative

Career data shown for:

Skills You'll Need

Click on skills to find related courses.

Abilities

Oral Comprehension

Oral Expression

Written Comprehension

Speech Clarity

Speech Recognition

Written Expression

Near Vision

Deductive Reasoning

Problem Sensitivity

Category Flexibility

Inductive Reasoning

Information Ordering

Mathematical Reasoning

Number Facility

Knowledge

Customer and Personal Service

Sales and Marketing

English Language

Mathematics

Law and Government

Transportation

Administration and Management

Communications and Media

Education and Training

Skills

Reading Comprehension

Active Listening

Speaking

Critical Thinking

Persuasion

Writing

Time Management

Service Orientation

Negotiation

Social Perceptiveness

Active Learning

Coordination

Judgment and Decision Making

Mathematics

Technology Skills

Enterprise resource planning ERP software

Video creation and editing software

Customer relationship management CRM software

Financial analysis software

Medical software

Video conferencing software

Web page creation and editing software

Spreadsheet software

Electronic mail software

Document management software

Office suite software

Operating system software

Word processing software

Instant messaging software

Internet browser software

Presentation software

Data base user interface and query software

Calendar and scheduling software

Tools

Franking or postage machines

Wearable computing devices

Notebook computers

Laser fax machine

Digital cameras

Laser printers

Desktop computers

Personal computers

Abilities

Oral Comprehension: The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Oral Expression: The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Written Comprehension: The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
Speech Clarity: The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
Speech Recognition: The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
Written Expression: The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
Near Vision: The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
Deductive Reasoning: The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
Problem Sensitivity: The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.
Category Flexibility: The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.
Inductive Reasoning: The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
Information Ordering: The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
Mathematical Reasoning: The ability to choose the right mathematical methods or formulas to solve a problem.
Number Facility: The ability to add, subtract, multiply, or divide quickly and correctly.

Knowledge

Customer and Personal Service: Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Sales and Marketing: Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
English Language: Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
Mathematics: Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Law and Government: Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
Transportation: Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
Administration and Management: Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Communications and Media: Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
Education and Training: Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

Skills

Reading Comprehension: Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
Active Listening: Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Speaking: Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Critical Thinking: Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
Persuasion: Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
Writing: Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
Time Management: Managing one's own time and the time of others.
Service Orientation: Actively looking for ways to help people.
Negotiation: Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
Social Perceptiveness: Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
Active Learning: Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
Coordination: Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
Judgment and Decision Making: Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
Mathematics: Using mathematics to solve problems.

Technology Skills

Enterprise resource planning ERP software: Oracle JD Edwards EnterpriseOne; Oracle PeopleSoft; Oracle PeopleSoft Financials; SAP software
Video creation and editing software: YouTube
Customer relationship management CRM software: Blackbaud The Raiser's Edge; Microsoft Dynamics; Salesforce.com Salesforce CRM
Financial analysis software: Delphi Technology
Medical software: Henry Schein Dentrix; Medical condition coding software; Medical procedure coding software; MEDITECH software
Video conferencing software: Teleconferencing software
Web page creation and editing software: Facebook; Google Sites; LinkedIn; Social media sites
Spreadsheet software: Microsoft Excel
Electronic mail software: IBM Notes; Microsoft Exchange; Microsoft Outlook
Document management software: Adobe Systems Adobe Acrobat; Filing system software; Records management software; Transcription system software
Office suite software: Microsoft Office software
Operating system software: Microsoft Windows
Word processing software: 3M Post-it App; Evernote; Google Docs; Microsoft Word
Instant messaging software: GroupMe
Internet browser software: Web browser software
Presentation software: Microsoft PowerPoint
Data base user interface and query software: Blackboard software; Database software; Microsoft Access; Yardi software
Calendar and scheduling software: Appointment scheduling software