The licensing and appointment (L&A) process is crucial for advisors. They need to meet state standards for selling insurance products. Managing licenses, appointments and training requirements presents significant challenges. Advisors, distributors, and carriers must navigate varying regulations across jurisdictions. They must coordinate different standards for various insurance products.
Advisors often submit applications before completing their L&A verification. This results in high volumes of not-in-good-order (NIGO) submissions. It causes delays and frustration for all parties involved.
License to Thrill: Advisor Challenges
Advisors face several key hurdles in the L&A process:
- Maintaining active licenses and appointments across multiple states and carriers
- Completing required product training before making recommendations
- Navigating complex regulations, especially for annuities
- Avoiding application delays or rejections due to L&A issues
- Preserving client trust and preventing lost sales
This time-consuming procedure requires careful management to ensure compliance and business success.
Distributor Dilemmas: When Appointments Go Awry
Monitoring licensing and appointments across a wide advisor base is a massive undertaking. Expired or missing licenses can mean penalties and business loss. So, distributors need to ensure that every advisor maintains credentials.
Overseeing product training adds another layer of complexity. Brokerage firms must confirm advisors have completed required courses for their products. Keeping these training records current for a large advisor team can be challenging.
Distributors face regulatory risks when advisors lack proper product or carrier training. Non-compliance penalties reduce distributors’ profit margins. L&A issues disrupt business operations by preventing advisors from selling.
NIGO applications create significant difficulties for brokerage firms. When carriers reject submissions, it falls on the distributor to rectify the situation. This requires extensive back-and-forth communication. It consumes valuable time and resources with the advisor and carrier.
Solving the Hurdles for Achieving Can-Sell Check Workflow
It doesn’t have to be this way. Forward-thinking industry leaders are adopting innovative solutions. They’re streamlining the can-sell check workflow and verifying L&A and training.
A can-sell check verifies if an advisor can legally sell an insurance product. It also confirms the advisor completed required product training. Automating these checks improves efficiency, reduces errors, and ensures compliance.
App-solutely Integrated: E-Applications Get a Makeover
Modern e-application tools have integrations that can automatically check credentials against sales requirements.
If there’s a problem, the system tells the advisor right away. They can keep working on the application while fixing any issues with their license, appointment, or training. This helps advisors work more smoothly and efficiently.
Hard stops are safeguards against NIGO applications. They automatically reject submissions from advisors lacking licenses or appointments. This saves carriers from wasting time on submissions that are not approved.
Training Day: Learning on the Job (Application)
Embedding training within the e-application makes it easy for advisors to complete requirements. They can easily fulfill training within the same workflow as the application. And the system can automatically notify carriers upon completion.
This integrated approach ensures that advisors are always prepared to sell. They don’t have to interrupt the sales workflow to seek training. Brokerage firms and carriers can trust that advisors are fully trained on the products they sell.
The Direct Approach: L&A Calls Cut to the Chase
Connecting e-applications directly to licensing and appointment databases is a major efficiency boost. Instead of waiting days for manual checks, advisors get instant status updates. They can address any issues proactively before submitting the app.
Distributors and carriers get real-time access to L&A to see an advisor’s credentials. It’s a powerful tool for compliance oversight across states and product lines.
The Future of Insurance Distribution
Advisors, distributors, and carriers face significant L&A and training can-sell check hurdles. Connecting e-applications to licensing systems can make a big difference.
Modern technology platforms are the key. Carriers and distributors who digitize the can-sell check workflow gain a competitive edge. They enable their advisors to sell faster, with confidence. Clients enjoy a seamless buying experience. And robust compliance safeguards protect the business.
