Diversify Your Insurance Portfolio & Reap Real Rewards

Know the saying, “Don’t have all your eggs in one basket?” Diversifying is good for many types of businesses, and your insurance business is one of them.

Being able to sell more than one or two types of plans to your clients can boast many benefits. Let’s explore the top reasons to expand your insurance portfolio beyond Medicare and how to do it.

What Does It Mean to Diversify Your Portfolio?

As you’re likely already familiar with, an insurance agent’s portfolio includes all the different plans for which they’re contracted and can offer to clients. If you’re in the Medicare business, these might include:

• Medicare Advantage (MA) plans
• Medicare Supplements (Med Supps)
• Prescription drug plans (PDPs)

Diversifying your portfolio simply means A) Contracting to sell new types of plans or products that you don’t already sell or B) Contracting with new carriers for types of plans you do already sell or C) both! These could include more health or non-health insurance options like:

• ACA/marketplace
• Dental, vision, hearing (DVH)
• Short-term medical
• Limited medical benefit
• Short-term care/home health care
• Long-term care
• Accident
• Hospital indemnity
• Critical illness
• Cancer, stroke, and heart attack
• Life
• Final expense
• Annuities

Expanding your plan and product offerings is essential to the growth of your insurance business. Let’s learn why!

Why Diversify?

Think about the last time you went grocery shopping. Were you able to get everything on your list from one store or did you spend all afternoon store hopping and running down your gas tank?

Who wouldn’t like the convenience and efficiency of shopping at one place? You can be that “one place” for your clients’ insurance shopping list when you start diversifying. Here are the multiple benefits to your business you can expect.

Appeal to a Larger Client Base

One of the biggest benefits of adding to the number of plans and products you sell? Being able to reach more prospects.

Sell to the Whole Family

With the number of multi-generational households quadrupling since 1971, well-prepared insurance agents can quite literally cover an entire family in one swoop. This means you can sell grandma and grandpa Medicare benefits, while offering marketplace plans to mom, dad, and their children. Even better, you can present DVH plans to all the above, as well as a slew of other ancillary products to benefit each unique situation and person.

This is possible even if these family members don’t live in the same household. If you prove you’re a reliable agent, your clients will likely recommend you to their family members for their insurance needs!

Meet Different Budgets

Having more plan options in your toolbox means exponentially more plan configurations to fit what your expanded clientele can afford. Many people have limited incomes. In fact, KFF reports half of all Medicare beneficiaries had incomes below $36,000 per person in 2023 while half of all U.S. adults say it’s difficult to afford health care costs. Health care is expensive, and costs only increase as each year passes. In 2023, Fidelity estimated that someone retiring at 65 years old could expect to spend an average of $157,500 in health care and medical expenses throughout retirement — even with Medicare coverage.

So, it’s important that your clients use their money wisely when selecting a health or ancillary plan, as it could help shield them from high out-of-pocket expenses. The good news is that, with different plan options, you can better find one (or more!) that works for each person’s financial situation.

Take a look at your market area and see which plans and carriers are competitive. Carriers with plans that offer financially helpful benefits, like the Medicare Part B premium giveback, are definitely ones to consider adding to your selling options. In addition, MA plans, Medicare Medical Savings Accounts (MSAs), and certain Med Supps can be competitive options you can offer clients with budget concerns.

Meet Different Client Needs

A diverse portfolio can meet more diverse needs beyond those that are monetary. When you expand, you’ll be able to assist more prospective clients based on their varying health statuses, ages, and preferences.

Younger generations might be interested in life insurance. Those individuals with certain risk factors might want a cancer or critical illness plan. Someone between primary medical plans might want a short-term medical policy. A snowbird or travel enthusiast may be interested in a Med Supp. And think — with a diverse portfolio, you could sell a suitable plan to each type of person.

Increase Possibilities with Current Clients

Diversification also means being able to cross-sell to your current clients. They already bought from you once; chances are good they’ll do so again, especially if you’ve prioritized relationship building and formed a connection and deep understanding of their needs.

Having both Medicare and under-65 plans in your portfolio could be helpful if there’s an age gap between a couple where one is eligible for Medicare and another isn’t — ensuring you can insure both! However, Medicare or ACA plans may not always cover other expenses such as prescription drug costs, dental, vision, or hearing costs, various copays, and more. Therefore, it’s a good idea to keep some ancillary products packed into your portfolio as well, to complement your primary plans.

Take Your Business to the Next Level

Bulking up your portfolio can be the difference between being a beginner vs. seasoned agent or engaging in a part-time hobby vs. a full-time career. Having a diverse repertoire of plan options enables you to scale your insurance business effectively.

Especially if you’re seeing signs that you need to expand your insurance portfolio or feel like you’re self-sabotaging your sales, it’s time to strategize and map out a plan for a diversification growth strategy. Signs to look out for might include:

• Clients are asking about a product you don’t sell
• You haven’t added a new product in a while
• New contracting opportunities became available
• Your portfolio can’t provide full coverage

If any of these are true for you, then start researching new plans in your area and brainstorming which might be the most useful to your clients.

Sell Year-Round

If you’re in the Medicare world, you know that the bulk of your business comes during the Annual Enrollment Period (AEP) from October 15 to December 7. The rest of the year, or lock-in period, can see a big dip in sales. The best way to combat a dry season? You guessed it, a diverse portfolio!

Offering marketplace plans means you’ll be able to capitalize on another busy season, the ACA Open Enrollment Period (OEP), which typically runs from November 1 to January 15.

During the rest of the year, you’ll be able to use Initial Enrollment Periods and Special Enrollment Periods to enroll clients into primary health plans. Ancillary plans and life insurance can be sold all year, potentially bringing a big boost to your lock-in period.

Generate New Income Streams

If the average millionaire has seven different sources for income, we feel confident saying that diversifying your portfolio increases the potential for you to earn more commission!

Now, potential is just that. More commission won’t magically appear in your bank account. You’ll need to put in the consistent work of finding more quality leads for your new plans, meeting and presenting options, and closing deals. But you can’t sell plans you’re not contracted for, so diversifying is the first step to generating new income streams.

Lessen Your Risk

A diverse portfolio provides a safety net for your income. If one product or insurance line is having a tough year, you have other products you can sell to keep earning.

Or perhaps you are tired of compliance regulations for certain plan types and want to switch your focus. Doing so isn’t a heavy lift if you’re diversified.

Boost Client Retention and Loyalty

Finally, another powerful result of portfolio expansion that will really take your business to the next level is improved client retention and loyalty. Your clients will be able to trust that you have a plan type to fit their needs and are always ready to help them explore the right fit for their unique circumstances.

Let’s return to our grocery store analogy — you want to be the superstore to their insurance needs, so they’ll keep coming to shop again and again. And better yet? Satisfied clients refer people and places to their friends and family!

How Can You Diversify Your Portfolio?

Now that you have a good understanding of why you should diversify, let’s explore how to make it happen.

Contract with Different Carriers

One of the quickest ways to diversify is by contracting to sell new insurance carriers for Medicare products you’re already familiar with. You’ll already have completed some of the necessary Medicare training courses and certifications. For different carriers, you’ll simply need to sign the contract and complete any necessary carrier-specific product certifications.

If you don’t have these types of carriers in your portfolio, consider adding one the following:

• National or regional
• Highly recognized, strongly rated
• Stable or new and innovative
• One-stop shops or specializes in a certain product
• Features different formularies or networks

Remember, this is a quick and simple “diversifying win,” so we recommend starting here when mapping out your strategy.

Add Different Types of Products

Another important step to take when diversifying is to contract for various product types. Here are some different categories of products you could potentially sell:

• Health
  • Medicare (MA, Med Supp, PDP)
  • ACA
  • Short-term medical
• Ancillary
  • Long-term care
  • Short-term care/home health care
  • DVH
  • Critical illness
  • Hospital indemnity
  • Cancer, heart attack, and stroke
• Life & final expense
• Annuities

Obviously, different product types are a must if you want to start cross-selling. Wondering which plans to start adding to your portfolio first? You can start by asking your current clients! Send them a poll with a list of products you’re considering to gauge their interest. Then, won’t it feel nice to reach back out to them and notify them that you now sell that product?

Expand Offerings Within a Product Type

Finally, consider adding different types of plans and benefits for enrollees within a product type. Here’s a breakdown of how you can expand your offerings within a plan type:

• Medicare
  • Special Needs Plans (Dual Eligible, Chronic Condition, Institutional)
  • MSAs
  • MA-only or MA with prescription drug coverage (MAPD) plans
  • Med Supps and PDPs for those with Original Medicare
  • 5-Star MA plans or PDPs
• Network
  • HMO vs. PPO (MA)
  • PPO vs. HMO vs. EPO vs. POS (ACA)
  • National vs. regional
  • Travelers (e.g., Med Supp) vs. homebodies (e.g., HMO MA plan)
• Approaches of medical benefit
  • Holistic
  • Functional
  • Integrative
  • Traditional
  • Formulary differences
• Different costs/levels of affordability
  • Low to no premium
  • High or low deductible
  • Copays

As you can see, even within certain product types, many opportunities for diversifying exist.

Let Us Help!

Feeling overwhelmed with all the ways you could expand your portfolio? That’s understandable. And that’s also why Ritter Insurance Marketing is here to help! Follow these simple steps, and you’ll be on your way to a diversified portfolio of plans for your clients. (If you’re confident in how you’d like to expand your offerings, skip to 4!)

Step 1: Request a Portfolio Review

Schedule a call with your Ritter sales specialist. They can go over the plans you currently offer and suggest which additions make sense for your local market and business goals.

Additionally, get a free Ritter Smart Sheet, customized to your local market, that details competitive carriers and plans where you’re selling. Claim your free portfolio review now

Step 2: Educate Yourself

Capitalize on Ritter’s industry-leading educational resources, including our eBooks, ASG Podcast, and self-led video course, Knight School. Here are some relevant resources to get you started:

• The Complete Guide to Selling Affordable Care Act Insurance Plans
• A Quick Guide to Cross-Selling Ancillary Insurance with Medicare Products
• The Complete Guide on How to Sell Final Expense Insurance
• Knight School Path 4: Expand & Dominate

Step 3: Attend Live Events

To further enhance your education, attend live trainings like Ritter’s post-AEP webinar series, Diversify Your Portfolio. Ritter staff will dive deep into different health and ancillary products to add to your portfolio during lock-in. Check out our other webinars and events at RitterIM.com/events.

Learn more about our training series, Diversify Your Portfolio

Step 4: Start the Contracting Process

Finally, it’s time to take the leap and contract for new carriers, products, and plans! Ritter makes it as easy as shopping online through Contract Now. Simply choose from Ritter’s 120+ competitive carriers, fill your cart with the carriers and products you want in your market, review each contract, and sign. Our full-time contracting team will take care of the rest, usually getting your completed contract in the carrier’s hands in 72 hours.

Note: Newly registered Ritter agents must speak to their sales specialist to activate Contract Now in the Platform.

All of Ritter’s tools, technology, and resources come completely free of charge. All you have to do is register with Ritter!

Diversifying your portfolio is one of the insurance selling strategies that’s essential for the long-term health of your business. Besides taking your career to the next level, expanding your plan offerings can boost client retention and referrals, grow your list of prospects, and better meet the different needs of your current and future clients. Consider one new carrier or product you’d like to add to your portfolio and take action today!

Need more info on how to diversify your portfolio? Ritter’s here to help you expand and dominate your local market. Register today to gain the resources, support, and contracts you need to diversify your portfolio.