‘Consultative conversations’ drive the Latin insurance market
Agents who understand customers’ cultures and languages can become the trusted advisor to countless U.S. consumers seeking insurance expertise.
Editor’s Note: PropertyCasualty360.com is committed to sharing a diversity of perspectives from insurance professionals worldwide. In celebration of National Hispanic Heritage Month, we are pleased to share the following article. To read this article in Spanish, please click here.
I’m blessed to have been born into the Latin culture — my parents emigrated from Cuba — and to have landed a part-time job in an insurance agency at age 19 to launch my career in the independent agency culture.
I know personally how much these two cultures need each other, whether Venezuelans who’ve recently fled to safety in Miami, Cuban families well into their second or third generation in the United States or others.
At age 12, I recall being on the phone with an English-speaking representative of the health insurance company. At my side was my mother, who was most comfortable in her native Spanish and not yet able to fully communicate her questions in English. Being bilingual, I could work with both to help them understand each other.
I’m still doing that — serving as a value-added independent agent with a prospect or client on one side and the carrier on another. What is the progression of needs among Latin-speaking cultures in the U.S.? They look for the American dream. They work. They buy a car. They get married. They buy their first home. They start a business.
As my parents’ own restaurant business grew, they sought an independent agent who spoke Spanish and was Cuban. Why? They wanted to feel comfortable asking questions of someone who understood their culture. Millions of U.S. consumers like my parents want to speak to someone in their first language about their insurance. Having that consultative conversation in a comfortable way makes all the difference.
Everybody fears asking stupid questions. But we, as agents, want any prospect or client to ask questions, so we can educate them about policies, coverages and claims.
Unfortunately, sometimes recent immigrants become targets for deception or fraud. I’ve seen insureds in Florida get taken advantage of by someone selling insurance. And with Hurricane Irma in 2017, public adjusters and roofing contractors knocked on doors and enticed homeowners to file claims by pointing out a roofing condition or other issue. When the claims were denied, the homeowners’ insurance companies naturally suspected the roof was deficient in some way and either increased premiums or canceled policies.
Another situation involved a Latin homeowner who purchased a first home after seven years in the U.S. When buying insurance from an agent, they were charged for premiums twice in the same year. It turned out that the agent did not forward the premiums to the insurer, and the customer never had the coverage. An agent can prevent things like that.
These situations call for trustworthy independent agents who are attuned to customers’ cultures and languages to answer questions, provide the right coverages, and step up at claim time.
As in other cultures, many Latino families have a generational divide. My daughter, a second-generation American, prefers to research and shop online. Young adults often purchase insurance online like they shop for everything else. It’s not uncommon, though, that at claim time, they realize they might not have made the right choices.
As an independent agent, I love not only to work with prospects and customers but also to work with my peer agents and independent agency professionals through AIMS (American Insurance Marketing and Sales) Society, which provides education in those key areas, as well as The Institutes. I tell my students an insurance transaction is not just about the sale:
Think of yourself as an advisor. Every time you speak to a prospect or customer, make sure it is consultative. That will enable them to understand better what they need and what they’re buying. Plus, you learn more about your clients. Remember, my parents wanted someone to speak their language so they could have consultative conversations. It’s still true today.
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