Do not try if you have no car and have no financial backing.
They send you to Chicago for training for a week (paid hotel, paid travel and little food stipend). Although it was all jumbled up in a short period of time, it was all very useful and disciplined. I had Nickio as my teacher, she made it enjoyable and fun and I had a great time learning. The money you make is all commission based and it’s not completely yours until a year passes from selling the policy. If the customer cancels the policy within that year, you owe the money back. There are benefits, residuals, free vacations if you sell a lot, which is nice. I was with the company for a little over 6 months and over the course, more then half the people I met in Chicago, left the company for various reasons. And most of the people I kept in touch with were making less to nothing. Although you make your own schedule, you really have to work early in the morning till late at night, sometimes in the AM to really make any money. You are out all day and everyday and you basically have no home life. For me, this job made me realize a 9-5 job was heaven. At least with a 9-5 I know I will be getting paid for the effort I’m putting in and I can at least go home knowing there will be pay. The reason I left was because of the unfair treatment and the unprofessionalism. It was promised that you will be trained for two weeks to get the hang of things. But my manager only gave me 3 days and then I was on my own. He promised he would make it up and train me every week but it never happened.
ProsSocial Networking, Discovering new places in your neighborhood
ConsHorrible management, Disrespectful customers, No life
My typical day at work started at 8-9am with meetings to discuss sales and provide training opportunities. I learned to sale insurance to the needs of the customers. I was taught how to listen to key things in a person's response to cater our product to what they sell as insurance policies. The policies are really not that great for people over 75 which is understandable when its insurance and a person is nearly in the end stages of life. They workplace is at times stressful, but very supportive. Training in Chicago is fantastic, but when you hit your home office, its at times too fast paced to really help effectively. They will train you to death on their product but not necessarily how to understand your pay and access your pay stubs with tax information. They really need to spend just as much training on teaching sale representatives how to access their full pay stub and benefits as they do teaching their products because sometimes that affects the mental attitude when you can't see where all your money is going until you get a W2 once a year. Great job for young people with a lot of stamina and limited sales experience but not necessarily for a single parent. The hardest part of the job is getting appointments, but once you get them they prepare you to sell the customer well. They provide leads but not great ones. The hardest part of the job is the work hours and being able to find a good balance of home and work life. The other difficult part of the job is w
ProsW2 employees, opportunities for advancement, training, bonus opportunities for first 6 months
Conswork/life balance, getting appointments with customers, access to complete pay/benefit info
8:00 am - conference call with Vice President of the company and my peers discussing staff results, goals, challenges and solutions
9:30 am - office meeting with my staff where I reviewed their results, goals, challenges and offered solutions. designed and implemented daily product and skill training. reviewed each agent's daily plan, providing guidance and motivation to reach set goals.
11:30 am - interviewed applicants scheduled by company recruiters
1:00 pm - LUNCH!
2:00 pm - field trained new employees
5:00 pm - brief conference call with my staff gathering daily results
5:30 pm - prepare management reports and update spreadsheets with team's results
6:30 pm - email reports to VP and Regional Director
What I Learned:
How to efficiently manage a large team of agents in various locations throughout the state.
Management:
Was very structured, caring and supportive
My Co-Workers:
Friendly yet competitive
Hardest Part of the job:
At the time, managing long hours with young children
Most enjoyable part of the job:
The people! Bonding with my peers at Regional meetings gave me an opportunity to travel to new places and experience new activities while team building. Connecting with my amazing staff and their families during company events and getting to know them through our normal daily interaction.
They rely on the undereducated, unaware client from mostly lower working classes!
Phoney hype promoting a constant barrage of never ending positive mental attitude, which of course is needed to sell their over priced under performing insurance policies. This is done on basically a random basis and constantly changing locations, hitting up people and businesses that were solicited 6 months prior. Most insurance companies are now doing credit checks because the agent is self-employed and 80 to 90 percent of them end up spending way more than they make, ruin the value of their car and end up Big Time in the hole financially. So, if you have great credit scores, they love you! Also a lot of the Big Insurance companies run credit checks on the application you fill out online. So, if you have bad credit the application is programed to stop processing your application and either send you back to the beginning or just plain Quit Working! Imagine that! It's important to realize that even after you sell a policy, they can take your commissions back, sometimes for many, many years. So, let's say you quit, they have ways to attach your bank account for years! The odds of actually succeeding in Combined or other insurance companies is very, very long and remote. Thus their constant push to hire new agents. Now if anybody wants to prove I'm wrong, go ahead, Make My Day!!!!!
2.0
Customer Service Representative | Chicago, IL | Jul 27, 2019
Lacks qualified managers
1. Most managers have not degrees or the appropriate training.
2. Managerial culture is more like a military academy, where you stay straight up, reply "yes sir", and have not opinion at all.
3. The company lacks a structure for advancement or professional grow. The few people I saw getting promotions, where people who were close friends to the manager, which btw, took longer breaks/lunches, missed many more days of work, and/or were given vacation whenever they "need it", and did little work (but were always praised for it)
4. HR gets lost in translation and replies once in a blue moon.
5. Life/work balance is almost non-existing. They used a first come-first serve type of method to assign vacation time which can get very frustrating.
6. The culture of the company its just bad. Although, I meet people who worked there for many years and where happy; however, they were happy because they had higher positions and consequently more flexibility.
7. They like to preach a new culture and are trying hard to change the old one; the problem is the old cats remain the same way and the new ones are the ones taking all their "frustrations", which makes it difficult for you to change when everyone else is not required to. In other words, there is a lot of "blind eyes" for some people.
Very good place to work if you can sell to anyone anywhere
I find the compensation to be outstanding but the benefits are almost too expensive to be worth it. I enjoyed the work and everyone i worked with had an excellent attitude and was incredibly friendly. My only dislike about the job its self is the door to door sales. You are expected to go door to door and business to business to acquire new business. this means you need to be able to transition from hello i've never met you and you've probably never heard of the company i work for to I am now your insurance agent and you trust me implicitly. in most instances this is incredibly difficult to do. Most people won't even listen to a word you say so you need to be very creative on your approach. Also there can be a lot of travel involved so you need to make sure you can sell enough to afford driving every day all day as well as pay your bills. I loved working for this company, but it is a lot of work. If you can stick it out however it is worth it. I met and worked with more millionaires than i would have imagined, and anyone can be one with this company if you have the ability to put n the time and effort required.
Prosgood compensation, great coworkers, great management
Consa lot of effort, commission only compensation, a lot of driving, cold calling
My day starts early as 4:30 a.m. daily. I generally start my day by planning the area and then people I will need to work with. Usually it will involve researching their current coverage with us to see what protection is potentially available to offer. While appointments are preferable I often have time daily to cold call on small and medium size businesses. Upon engaging a customer or potential applicant I'll always seek to find out as much background information as possible. Starting with any current health issues to covering financial condition as well as family financial goals. This position has allowed me to truly serve the needs of families. I am sometimes a bit of a counselor, informational resource but mostly just a sympathetic ear for those who just need someone to listen to them. My managers and co-workers are very supportive and offer assistance in any areas needed. The hardest part of my job is to have a potential applicant who wants coverage but are unable to afford it or qualify for coverage due to health issues. The most enjoyable part of my job is at the end of the day, when I am able to look back over my day and review all the families I have helped to protect the financial assets.
There is no future with Combined Insurance. They claim to be a Positive Mental Attitude company, but they aren't. They come from the old school of management where you get a bigger stick to increase productivity among the agents. I was hired to find out why the agent retention rate was so low........I did, the training, comp, and attitude of the upper management was to blame.
A day with Combined begins with a meeting either by phone or in person with your manager, you are asked for your objective for the day as far as sales go, if it isn't enough the manager creates his or her own number and passes it on to the marketing director who will hold your feet to the fire if you don't reach it. You then go business to business (door knocking) for the rest of the day, hoping to sell anything to the owners or if your lucky the employees of the small business.
The training consists of 2 things, an approach to use when you canvass business to business and internal leads, which are policy holders already and have been harassed on a monthly basis as the new agent turn over is so high.
The products themselves are fairly priced and are competitive, but the daily grind is not worth your time
Training program is the best I've encountered. It is very fast paced and you are treated like a king or queen. You are promised at least $5000 your first week in the field even if you don't have your own clientele set up. Your Sales manager takes you out and has those immediate sales lined up. But for me that never materialized. Then there were the morning"motivational" meetings which were just too overbearing for me. My deepest regret was meeting a plethora of clients who had been sold in the past who were actually never qualified for the insurance coverage in the first place! They would never have been paid if they filed a claim due to having medicaid, yet other agents sold it anyway due to the pressure on them to make sales. I have never been one to sale something just for a commission and this set me at odds with my beliefs.
It cost me too much money to simply get off to a fast start due to several financial issues and I will tell anyone that before you go into these commission sales you'd better have a nest egg to carry you through the first six months.
ProsCompany training, awards, trips and vacations, founder's vision
Consinitial lack of sales support, high pressure meetings, anxiety
Insurance brokers and account executives work site marketing BEWARE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I have many years of insurance experience. When I initially started with the company it appeared to be the right place at the right time kind of deal. This was far from the truth.
On the work site side, this carrier takes business from insurance brokers and high jacks the case and some times gives the case to another broker. The carrier has a direct side called AE(account executives) in which many times they do basically the same thing.
In short, do not submit business to this company unless you want to lose your client base. Dealing with this type of activity is a night mare and no one can run a successful firm long term like this. The national sales director of this company has the company on a path like the Titanic was sailing on. You can not trust any sources and you will be told what you want to hear and have your business stolen. This is exactly what these people are about. This company is trying to compete with the name brands in the market and they are hiring people from the competitors.
The philosophy is churn and burn. BROKERS DO NOT DO BUSINESS WITH THIS CARRIER UNLESS YOU WANT TO LOSE YOUR CLIENTS.
AGENT Position: The process from the start...
Hopefully you are recruited in-person by an Insurance agent. IF it’s from the internet/email, unless its a sales manager, its probably a contracted telemarketer or a recruiter that doesn’t really know what being an insurance agent is all about. Talk to someone before you interview, don't just respond to emails. Ask them about their experience.
Everyone gets an interview (if you are alone, it’s because no one else showed up) the next step you'll be asked "to demo", spend 8 hours working with someone "in the field" ...ASAP. If you are presentable,show interest, you're not a Felon, have a car and pass the insurance test, they'll hire you. AND, they'll pressure you to do it all – quickly; making it appear like they have a lot of candidates for the job… NOT TRUE.
Combined is DESPERATE to hire. Well over 2500 people a year are hired as agents, less than 10% make it 12 months.
After passing and paying for your state exam. The First 2 weeks are good. Week 1- No cost (no income) Chicago training- (you’ll share a room), Then week 2 Called a PAL week,- work w your manager that writes up a lot of insurance for you. If you are lucky, your manager will be able to work in-field with you after week 2. There are daily morning meetings w training but main reason for meetings is to get you out of your house. More field training is needed but Managers don't have time, they must recruit or face consequences. Required Formal training
ProsDefinitely will get the job.Chicago training, Benefits available, after 1 year 401k matching and profit share.Advancement to sales manager. Good products.
ConsDifficult and aggressive sales process, Commission Only, Limited career options, Managers need development, Old boys club, Public dislike for door to door sales people
Absolutely shocking management and business practises
Work your own hours! No previous sales experience required! etc
It seemed too good to be true, and it was.
They target individuals who are desperate for work, and brainwash them with cult-like indoctrination.
The training is poorly organized and run by inept salespeople with zero training skills or teaching experience, who treat you like a child, and who ultimately decide if you get the job or not - so complaining about being disrespected isn't really an option.
They do offer ongoing support, but the primary purpose of this is to keep you with the company, even if you're a terrible salesperson who isn't making any sales - as Combined is making money out of you regardless.
They nickle and dime you with fees (laptop rental, business account admin fees, etc), and make you pay for all your own travel expenses.
The management hierarchy works like a pyramid scheme, with managers constantly trying to replace reps under them who leave, as they get a bonus for every new person they sign up who passes the training course, and a cut of their sales.
This results in an ENORMOUS turnover of sales reps leaving and being replaced, with the management being mostly made up of dodgy "car salesman" type con-men who will smooth talk you into doing, and believing anything.
On paper, they technically follow all the industry legal requirements, but in the field they encourage you to do everything possible to sell their cover short of blatantly lying or breaking the law.
ProsWork when you want, potential to make big money if you're a scumbag, lots of prizes and rewards for selling.
ConsShady managers, cult environment, ridiculous contract, high pressure selling, lots of travel, you will likely have to act unethically to do well
nothing but lies right from the ads they put online. They will tell you most people make over 40k their 1st year when in reality vast majority make less than 20k in their 1st year. They will tell you you rarely have to travel and most of your territory will be within 45 mins of home. Nope They will expect you to be away from home at the least 1 week a month but usually more than 2 weeks a month. Everything while you are on the road is paid by you. When you are home your territory is usually at least an hour from home and you are expected to work until at least 9pm everynight. Your sales leaders and district leaders will "check in" to make sure you didnt leave the field early. You are required to attend meetings twice a week where they check on how you are doing so far that week. These are not paid and you will get complained at if you book a client to meet with during this time instead of attending the meetings. If your numbers arent where they expect them they will demean your work ethic and tell you how if you dont step up you are going to have to go back to a min wage job and work hourly like thats the worst thing ever. The Truro office is constant drama and run by a man with very little respect for others. They are always drinking together and expect that when you are on the road you will get very little sleep as this is party time. The company finds any reason possible not to pay employees. when you finally realize how awful it is and leave make sure you tell
There is absolutely NOTHING good I can say about working for Combined Insurance. I was and still am a struggling college student and they painted a masterpiece of what this job would do for me in my mind. They told me about free trips, the awesome commission percentages, prizes, exciting team meetings and more. My sales leader said I could make 80,000 or 100,000 a year if I wanted to. He said I would be able to pay for my tuition with the cash in my checking account. Except now, I've been let go from the company after being 'inactive' for 8 consecutive weeks and now apparently owe them over $4000.
After enduring an intensive three week insurance course and receiving my A&S licence, I was never contacted ONCE by my regional manager or district manager. Not a single welcome or a congratulations. Nothing. I was then left in the dark with NO GUIDANCE to go door-to-door to try and sell these products.
Mind you, I am in college full time and I was working my butt off trying to sell these policies (no matter how many hours you put in.. if you don't make a sale, you do not get paid). When you complete your schooling, your sales leader is supposed to provide you with a package and help with lead cards, sales tactics and workbooks. This did not happen at all. I was totally left in the dark. Every-time I tried to reach out to my sales leader for help, he would never get back to me
As an act of my teams laziness towards helping me, I am now being told that I owe this company ov
ConsNo matter how much time you put into canvassing, if you don't make a sale, you don't get paid. Lazy leaders who are unwilling to help.
At Combined Insurance, I was a sales representative (advisor) who collected clients as well as maintained existing ones. I would visit different clients within an hour of Cornwall to renew their insurance policies and go over their current coverage. I would also introduce new policies and assess their needs to see where they could use additional coverage. I was responsible for collecting my own clients as well which I did through social media networking, referrals from my existing clients, door-to-door knocking and phone calls. I would fill out applications, PAD forms, needs analysis forms and sales disclosures for those who sought coverage. At the end of the week I would complete my sales report and hand in all forms, cheques, moneys, etc to my sales manager on behalf of my clients.
The most enjoyable part of my job was getting to meet lots of new and wonderful people and I also enjoyed creating my own schedule. I would say the hardest part was collecting new clients. I found a lot of people had a negative outlook on "insurance" itself and I really had to convince some people why the coverage would benefit them. I did manage to obtain my own clients, however it was sometimes a challenge. My co-workers and management team were great. Although we didn't see much of each other, we attended weekly meetings and discussed our progress, our plans for this week and gave each other some encouragement and/or suggestions.
I really learned a lot with this job such as how to main
ProsGreat company incentives, motivational management, wonderful opportunities
ConsLots of driving, lots of money to be put into job for success
They very much follow the American way of doing things. This is how it's done, do it. Don't question us, we know best. Too focused on the sales agents, to the detriment of head office staff. Head office staff are underpaid and the best ones leave to go elsewhere. What you are left with is "yes-men" and people that are willing to work for a lower salary. Combined Insurance is a stepping stone to a career in insurance. High staff turnaround leaves little experience left to run the business. Management is aware of this, but refuses to fix it. Low salaries for head office staff remain and sales agents get all the perks. It's all about quantity, not quality, at head office. Managers are either too rigid and have to tow the company line or too new to understand what they're getting into. Trying to move the company up-market with high value products, but sold through agents who don't understand the concept due to training issues that never get fixed. Company sets un-realistic targets then suffers when they aren't met, which eventually filters down to the employees thru low salaries and very tough expectations with little to no incentive to meet them. Company is run more and more like the American head office is, to the point of being unable to explain to them why things won't work here. Very rigid, American style of management (not unlike the current man in the White House), they just don't get why it doesn't work.It has to work as it works great in the USA... So long as you can do
ProsWork was easy, but high volumes and very repetitive.
ConsLow payscale attracts low quality people, Uncaring management who can't fix problems now matter how many times you complain, very frustrated and tired home office staff.
Combined Insurance is a fantastic Sales opportunity
But also a very demanding one.
Lets be clear that my only reason for leaving is that it conflicted with my personal projects.
Combined Insurance starts you in sales and you can work your way up to various positions from there. If youre looking for an hourly wage or a salary, well... unfortunately Combined insurance is commission only.
Ive had the benefit of having worked at more than one insurance company and I can say without hesitation that Combined is one of the best to its employees. It has a strong commission structure and most of your coworkers are awesome.
As I said, my only reason for leaving was that combined insurance was very demanding on my time. Most of the time youre working an hours drive from home and you will be working 8-12 hours if you want to succeed.
You need to accommodate for your leads, your existing clients and your referrals and this often means working long hours. Mon-Friday are full days, and I know that I personally would be working 60 hours Plus travel time, and unfortunately, friday is book keeping day, thats in and of itself can take a solid hour or two :-(
You get home friday night, rest, have fun on Saturday, and...Id hate to say it, but Sunday youre calling clients to book appointments, youre organizing your route and prepping for Monday. Realistically, Id say to steer clear unless youre prepared to work 80+ hours.
Im not trying to scare ya, its a great sales job, but like most sales jobs, its long hours, tough wo
ProsGood Commission, Leads are provided, Strong Presence in rural communities
Productive and fun working with Combined Insurance Co. of America
On my current project, there is no such thing as a typical day to day other than that there is lots going on...each day is full of surprises and challenges-you have to be flexible and well prepared at all times!
What I learned: It is crucial to be able to communicate and get on with all sorts of people, to be flexible and adaptable to change-things can change in an instant-and most of all to be enthusiastic and willing to learn. To organized work area to quickly reference and close sales based on individuals needs. I learned how to effectively communicate with others to help find what they were looking for.
Management were great!! I really enjoyed working for everyone of them.
Co-workers: It's always a good feeling to receive positive feedback from clients and team members, and seeing team members succeed.
Part of being successful at work is having the skills to work together with your co-workers and be a valuable part of the team.
Exp: Pitch in on the small stuff, be reliable, get to know your co-workers, learn flexibility, offer constructive help, participate in group meetings and planning sessions, respect each other, solve problems together.
Hardest part of the job: My weakness is that when I am given a task I tend to be very focused. Sometimes people may think that I am quiet, or reserved, but really I just like to put my focus on my work and get it done.”
The most enjoyable part was knowing I helped a customer choose something that fit their lifestyle and what they
Questions And Answers about Combined Insurance
Is this job commission based?
Asked Dec 28, 2016
This 100% commission based. They do however pay you $3,000 over a 6 week period, but what does that really do for someone???? They expect 120 calls a day with the pandemic.
Answered Aug 14, 2020
Yes. This job is commission based, and you will not make any money at all unless you work atleast 40 hours a week and sell premiums every single day.
Answered Apr 13, 2019
What questions did they ask during your interview at Combined Insurance?
Asked Feb 25, 2016
Do you enjoy working with people? Do you have a license and a reliable car? Can you fog a mirror? (Not really, but they really just want a live body to sell their products)
Answered Aug 9, 2019
I was mainly asked various questions about my communication skills, my ability to perform quickly and sell products efficiently. I basically had to sell myself on sales and communications, and then I landed the job.
Answered Apr 13, 2019
Do you have to have experienced in selling insurance to work for combined Insurance?
Asked Jul 31, 2017
Nope and it is good experience for a first timer in sales. You do have to have thick skin, the training is sort of like a boot camp but it is totally worth it. Make sure you are stable financially because after you are on your own after the training, it is hard to make money.
Answered Oct 9, 2019
No. You are required to take an online course to learn everything you need to know about selling insurance in general and the specifics for your state. There is a pretest included with the coursework, and then you are required to take a state exam. There is also a week long training seminar held in Chicago, all expenses paid for by the company, and extensive training done weekly after you get hired.
Answered Apr 13, 2019
How long does it take to get hired from start to finish at Combined Insurance? What are the steps along the way?
Asked Feb 25, 2016
In total, it took me one week to get an emailed offer of employment from the company. I took part in a total of three interviews.The first interview was a phone interview held with a Manager at the location in Chicago. When that went well, she contacted the hiring manager and he set up an interview with me for 3 days later, but ended up asking me to meet him the following day. The second interview was two hours long. After that, I was set up to shadow a Sales Agent in the field 3 days later for an entire day. There is a computer course you have to complete that is 50 dollars, a pre exam is included with that, and then you have to pay for a state exam to officially be allowed to sell insurance. This all needs to be done during the interviewing process because during the day of the demo, you could recieve an offer via email, and then you are leaving for Chicago for a week long training seminar. Plan on working from 8am to 5pm daily. All in all... I was hired in exactly one week, with one phone interview, one face to face interview, and one day of shadowing. There will be an extensive amount of training and testing to complete.
Answered Apr 13, 2019
About 3 weeks.
Sign up for online insurance exam prep course.
Study for Exam
Pass Exam and apply for license
Go to Chicago for week long company training.
5 week supportive introduction to the field.
Answered Nov 16, 2017
If you were to leave Combined Insurance, what would be the reason?
