Insurance Agent Resume Sample

1. Know the difference: Independent Agents vs Large Firm Insurance Agents

There are two general categories of insurance agent resumes, and knowing which category yours falls into is key before starting the writing process.

Depending on whether you aspire to be an independent agent or work for a big company, you will be composing a slightly different one.

The reasoning here is simple. Independent agents are more like entrepreneurs in terms of managing budgets & rent, and are directly responsible for any growth in sales or business (a genuine one-man-band).

An insurance agent working within a larger firm will write a resume similar to one found in the service industry. The emphasis here will be on how you contributed to the company as a whole, instead of as an individual.

Check out how our insurance agent resume example highlights the applicant’s positive affect on each company (both past and present).

He makes it explicitly clear that his expertise lies within the realm of large-firm insurance. Making your area of focus stand out will help you make a positive impression on a hiring manager.

2. Write a clear insurance agent resume objective

The resume objective section in an insurance resume should target the specific job opening you’re applying for.

If you want to send out multiple job applications, that’s fine! Just remember that each career objective should be tailored to “respond” to that specific position. Below, we’ve included a picture of a sample insurance career objective.

Your career objective should be a three sentence resume introduction that:

1. Highlights your relevant experience

“Motivated Insurance Agent with over 8 years of experience in sales and customer relations.”

2. Reveals a specialty/area of expertise

“Seeking to leverage proven sales experience and achievements into the open management role in your company.”

3. Explains why you’re a great fit/qualified for the position

“Possess a Bachelor’s in Economics and an Insurance Sales License in California.”

You don’t need to write a great literary work here. Just sell your potential worth to the employer in a concise fashion, and you’ll be getting interview calls before you know it.

3. A little quantification goes a long way

If you’ve worked in the insurance industry before, you probably have experience selling insurance policies. At your company, there might be a way of finding out what the average sales are for someone in your position. 

If you managed to sell more than the average, you should definitely include that kind of important information.

If you’re having trouble quantifying your experience, ask yourself the following set of questions:

• Did you come up with a new sales method that was highly successful for yourself?
• Did you teach that method to others? Were they successful? How many people did you teach the method to?
• Have you trained new salesmen? How was the retention rate?
• H0w many projects did you lead? Were they successful?
• Have you helped your company surpass monthly, bi-annual or annual sales goals?

By answering any of these questions in a positive way, you’re including concrete, quantifiable information. Hiring managers are on the lookout for such content, so the more you have the better your chances of moving to the next stage of the hiring process.

If you worked independently in the past, make sure to emphasis management of expenses, record keeping, and revenue growth. These are all achievements unique to an independent agent, and look very impressive on a resume being presented to an agency.

4. Highlight your most relevant skills

Selling insurance isn’t a walk in the park. Employers will be looking for applicants who have skills that align with someone who can thrive in sales. It takes a set of both hard and soft resume skills to succeed in this industry.

Try to include some of the following in your resume, if applicable:

• Bilingual abilities (Spanish and Mandarin are the business languages of the day!)
• Software knowledge (if previously an independent agent, include managerial suites)
• Employee training skills (include the number of employees listed in numeric form, as they stand out clearest)
• Salesmanship skills (include sales numbers achieved in $ amounts to stand out)
• Leadership ability (again list the number to numerically quantify)
• Interpersonal skills (necessary in an industry with continual client interaction)

If you have particular expertise in selling a certain type of insurance, you should emphasize that as well. This is especially valuable if it’s a niche type of insurance that most people don’t understand, such as renters insurance or pet insurance.

If the writing process is still unclear, our how to write a resume guide can help you get started. Or if time is of the essence, our resume generator can help you build one in minutes.