The day to day life of an insurance agent is nothing short of busy. There’s always a stack of work to be done at any given time. From prospecting and lead generation to marketing and sales appointments, agents have limited amounts of time on their hands to get things done.
This is why it is imperative that insurance agents become as efficient and productive as possible in how they carry out their daily responsibilities.
Here are three efficiency hacks every insurance agent needs to use now.
1. Utilize automation
Trying to switch between tasks, otherwise known as multitasking, is a very inefficient way to get things done. Because you’re never really fully focused on one project, it takes even longer to complete your list of tasks.
But with so much to accomplish every day, what’s the solution? Automation.
Almost every part of your workday can benefit from some type of automation.
For example:
Communication
Tools like Slack make it easy to streamline communication with your team. Conversations are sorted into threads and are easily tracked by topic. Slack is a useful email alternative that can cut down greatly on what arrives in your inbox each day.
Workflows
Do you wish the different software and tools you use could talk to each other? The good news is, they can! A tool called Zapier syncs with apps and software you already use to create automated workflows known as “zaps.” Whether it’s Quickbooks, Google Ads, or your email account, there’s a zap for everyone that can make their processes flow better.
2. Batch your tasks
This efficiency hack is a must for insurance agents. If you haven’t heard of batching, it’s the practice of grouping similar tasks together to increase productivity.
For example, checking your email every hour is going to really distract you during the day from completing more important projects. Instead of checking it every hour, take one or two blocks of time per workday to check and respond to email. Outside of those windows, you don’t look at it.
You can do this with any function really. Set up your appointments each week to only be scheduled between certain hours. Spend another specific block of time making prospecting phone calls. Whatever you’re setting out to do, focus on that task only.
3. Wake up earlier
This may not be the most popular efficiency hack, but it’s one you need to adopt. Sometimes personal lives spill into work. Worrying about your “to-do” list at home can be very distracting and prevent you from making progress at the office.
What time do you wake up? Edison Research’s “Wake Me Up” study found that by 6:00 – 6:30a, around half of Americans are awake. An hour earlier, however, only one in five people are awake.
Do you wait as long as possible to wake up before heading to work? It may be a good time to change that habit if you’re committed to getting more done. If you woke up an hour earlier every day for a month, you could potentially have 30 extra hours of productive time to work with. Not bad!
We hope these efficiency hacks improve your ability to be productive during the day. Is there any particular strategy that has worked for you as an agent?
