Selling Life and Health Insurance to Gen Z Clients

By Jonathan Decker

Generation Z, aged 18 to 27, is growing up; the youngest are starting college, while the oldest are a few years into post-grad life. With the many responsibilities that come with early adulthood, finding insurance coverage is one of the most important lessons to learn right away.

Understanding this age group is important to helping them through a complex responsibility paramount to their financial security and health — now and for the rest of their lives.

The Importance of and Opportunity in the Gen Z Market

The foundational key to success as an insurance agent is building long-term relationships rather than trying to sign as many clients as possible. Right now, targeting and selling insurance for Gen Z clients is a market ripe with opportunities to build lasting, fruitful partnerships.

Gen Z is still young and faces uncertainty in the years ahead; they are currently going through one of life’s most transformational, confusing and challenging decades. At this stage, even the oldest are still learning about financial planning and adult responsibilities, especially as many are dealing with large amounts of debt.

Many of them feel undereducated about insurance in general, and there is an opportunity for agents to build relationships with these young adults and become a mainstay in their lives as insurance and personal finance mentors.

Gen Z Regarding Life and Health Insurance

Below are some quick notes about Gen Z regarding life and health insurance.

Life insurance:

• About half say they need to purchase or upgrade their coverage.
• Five main reasons Gen Z isn’t buying life insurance: They think it is too expensive, no one has approached them, many have other financial priorities, some are unsure of how much or what type to purchase, or they simply haven’t gotten around to it yet.
• Forty-two percent of Gen Z are concerned about privacy when purchasing life insurance.

Health insurance:

• Gen Z wants personalized and flexible plans.
• They want tech options, instant access to their data and mental health to be a priority. 
• Roughly half of Gen Z workers offered employment programs are still on their parents’ plans — a lower usage than previous generations; about half of those enrolled in their employers’ plans aren’t satisfied.
• Those still on their parents’ health plans tend to have lower awareness of benefits options.

Segmenting Generation Z

Here is a breakdown of the different life stages by age:

18–20

This group is finishing high school and in the early years of college. Many are enjoying college life and freedom out of their parents’ homes, while others are working during college or directly entering the workforce.

Many college students are still on their parents’ health benefits but also have plans through their institutions, jobs or government programs; 14% are uninsured. There might be an opportunity to sell Gen Z health insurance that is affordable in this segment.

21–24

Most of this group is over the halfway point of college. They are securing internships, and their college courses are getting more serious. Some have finished trade school; others have left or graduated college, with a portion of them moving on to graduate school.

A good number of them are still on their parents’ health plans, but those who are not can use the guidance of an insurance professional. They need someone to explain the importance of insurance to them, as well as introduce them to new vocabulary and coverage options.

Those not going to college are already working — some even running their own businesses, doing “side hustles” or going to trade schools. If you want to expand your offerings beyond life and health — you can offer them small business insurance or gig economy coverage.

A handful of those who chose to enter the workforce directly are even buying cars and homes and may have a decent amount saved for retirement. Many of them could use help protecting these large assets and managing finances at such a young age.

25–27

While some are still in graduate school, most Gen Zers have entered the workforce at this point.

As noted above, many Gen Z employees are dissatisfied with their employer benefits, and many are still on their parents’ plan but will be forced to find their own at age 26.

Some are thinking about marriage and kids; some are already married and planning for children, the life insurance Gen Z stage where it is much more important to have coverage than before partners or dependents came into the picture.

Reaching Generation Z

Gen Z grew up in the age of instant gratification, so agents need to make insurance easy for them to understand, purchase and manage:

Personalize Their Experiences

These consumers want custom-tailored insurance solutions, especially health coverage. You can use data analytics from a customer relationship management (CRM) platform to offer recommendations and services suited to their unique needs.

Educate and Guide

As mentioned above, Generation Z is generally undereducated about insurance. They are anxious about the process and require help understanding insurance terms and technicalities. You can teach and guide a whole new generation needing a trusted advisor.

Utilize Social Media

Gen Z already spends hours each day on social media platforms; here are the pillars of forming a sound social media strategy:

Be active and consistent.

Consistent posting is key to gaining more visibility, as active accounts are ranked higher on most platforms’ algorithms. Plus, social media users are drawn to more active accounts. However, the quality of your posts is just as important to reaching more users.

Become a thought leader.

Participating in relevant spaces attracts followers, influence and business success. Thought leadership is a way for you to stand out, build credibility and be a helpful source in the personal finance social media spaces.

Post a variety of content.

Diversify your content to be more engaging:

• Current events and trends – Participate in conversations regarding the big news stories and trends in insurance and personal finance.
• Educational content – Be an educational and uplifting voice.
• Promote your agency – Post about what makes you unique as an agent, the benefits of working with you, special offers and the importance of life and health insurance.
• Post on multiple platforms – Each platform has different audiences, and using multiple platforms will expand your reach beyond posting on just one; however, be sure to tailor your content to each platform’s specialty and user preferences.

End with a call-to-action (CTA).

It’s best to end most posts with a CTA to promote your business and boost traffic to your website.

Prioritize Your Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Strategy

Many web surfers do not look past the first page of organic search results, making it important to have a strong SEO strategy to reach as many consumers as possible.

While social media is becoming a popular search engine, fine-tuning your SEO strategy should still be a priority.

Digital Tools

Offering seamless, around-the-clock service is a key aspect of any agent’s retention strategy, especially with Gen Z:

• Gen Z is more likely to switch providers after poor website or mobile experiences.
• Sixty-two percent won’t use an app or website that is difficult to navigate.
• If one cannot resolve an issue or inquiry using self-service, 55% of Gen Z and millennials would use the product less and 52% would never use the company again.

Here are the building blocks to offering modern digital experiences:

• Website – An up-to-date, active and comprehensive website showcases professionalism, provides as much information as possible and generates instant quotes.
• Service and claims portals – Gen Z customers want off-hours service; “self-service or no service” is an emerging trend. One way to offer this is with AI chatbots.*
• Optimize mobile experience – Offer clients the ability to manage policies, file claims, contact you or use your customer service tools anytime, anywhere.
• Omnichannel approach – Give customers a cohesive, seamless experience across all digital channels.
• QR codes – Enable prospects and customers to go from non-digital resources to your website instantly.

* Read more about how to use AI for marketing in AIP’s recent article.

Referral Programs

With this generation’s distrust and dislike for advertising, they depend more on word-of-mouth promotion. A referral program saves you money on prospecting costs and incentivizes your clients to promote you. Encourage them to post on social media, keep track of the customers they refer or even create a link for them to send to friends and family.

Also, it’s worth noting Gen Z is using social media as a search engine to access more authentic, word-of-mouth-type reviews where users share personal commentary about the product via influencer-style posts.

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