As you can probably tell, we’re pretty excited here at America’s Health Care Plan. We’re entering the fourth quarter, and very soon the busy time of the year in the Individual, Medicare, and Group Health markets will be upon us. It’s a time of great opportunity, especially this year, so we wanted to offer a few pointers to help you maximize your time and, therefore, your selling potential. We hope you can find a nugget or two in our words that will help your business.

We all know that, for nearly every product or service, people are much more likely to buy when they receive a recommendation from a friend. For some reason, though, a lot of insurance agents are reluctant to ask their satisfied clients if they know anyone who could use their service. Other brokers ask but without much success.

Here’s a fun idea: ask your satisfied clients to organize an “insurance party” for their friends and family members.

With the exception of very small companies, the vast majority of employers offer group health insurance. And the number one reason they offer health insurance and other benefits is to attract and retain quality employees.

Shortly after the Affordable Care Act was signed into law, insurance carriers across the nation, particularly in the individual market, slashed the commissions they pay to agents and brokers.

The individual insurance market is seeing some hard-hitting changes. Premiums in many markets have increased more than expected, deductibles and out-of-pocket costs continue to go up, and now some carriers are beginning to drop their popular PPO plans.

Everyone needs insurance to help protect them, and their family members, from financial loss when something unexpected happens:

A recent Wall Street Journal article by Drew Altman, President and CEO of the Kaiser Family Foundation, reports on the connection between health insurance and financial security. The article is based on Kaiser Family Foundation polling of California residents who obtained health insurance after the Affordable Care Act took effect.

We’re currently in-between open enrollment periods in the individual market, so brokers are receiving a lot of advice—from AHCP and elsewhere—to sell other products that their clients need. It’s not a bad idea considering the number of products our license allows us to sell; indeed, there are insurance products to protect almost anything that’s important to our clients and prospects. Plus, it’s a good time to diversify, to place our eggs in a few other baskets, especially with the current uncertainty surrounding individual health insurance commissions.

Are you striking out when trying to sell supplemental and ancillary insurance? Maybe it’s because you’re trying to cram all of your sales efforts into a single call or appointment. There are three big reasons why this may not be a good idea.