Key Takeaways:

• Be comfortable enough to easily explain the benefits and answer questions
• Bring resources and examples to illustrate the benefits
• Avoid medical and dental jargon
• Be yourself and take everything as a lesson

When preparing for open enrollment meetings, insurance brokers can often have thoughts of "what not to do." Overthinking is easy, but the right answers are simple. Your clients will want to hear about the benefits you have to offer in relation to their business needs. The fine print can come later. Here are six tips to help build your confidence as you take on open enrollment meetings.

DO:

• Come prepared. First, know your products like the back of your hand. You should be able to explain benefits quickly and clearly and be prepared to respond to questions with ease. You will want to be an advocate for your products and services.
• Answer questions. Be sure to answer all questions in a clear, easy-to-understand way. If someone does not understand your first explanation, find another way of wording it until they do. People are more likely to invest in benefits they understand. Go one step further and encourage your audience to actively participate in the discussion.
• Connect with potential clients. Connection is important to finalizing the sale. Try to avoid being pushy and just be yourself. Some meaningful small talk with your clients can go far. The more comfortable and approachable you are, the more confident they will feel to invest in your services.

DON'T:

• Use medical or dental jargon. Be sure to use language your audience can understand. Keep in mind, that the average person does not spend much time reading up on insurance coverage. So, they may not understand much of the terminology that you use daily.
• Rush explanations. When describing benefits, make sure your explanations are clear and easy to follow. Using example situations may help, like coverage for one person compared to a family plan. A lost audience is not likely to pay attention. You can come with additional resources to help demonstrate the benefits and leave them with the client. For example, documents to illustrate the importance of dental benefits.
• Feel discouraged. It is those meetings that do not go according to plan where you can have valuable learning opportunities. The daily ‘grind’ of planning and meetings can often get in the way of the big picture. Plan to avoid what went wrong last time and reflect on what went well.

Remember these six tips and know that open enrollment comes just once a year. You are sure to prove helpful to your clients, whether you are attending your first open enrollment meeting or have years of experience. We wish you many mutually beneficial meetings. You’ve got this!