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Persuasive strategies used by insurance agents in prospecting customers based on the customers’ age factor

Through this study, the writer aimed to find out the persuasive strategies
used by X insurance agents in prospecting the customers. The writer tried to relate
the persuasive strategies used by insurance agents to the customers’ age factor. In
this study, the writer used descriptive qualitative approach to get and analyze the
data. The writer chose three insurance agents with some criteria; firstly, the
insurance agents should be in their 20s; secondly, the insurance agents have
worked in the company for at least one year. After that, the writer classified the
customers into two categories based on their ages; firstly, customers who are in
the same-age group as the agents; secondly, customers who are in different-age
(older) group from the agents. Each insurance agent prospected two customers,
one was from the same-age group and the other one was from different-age (older)
group. The writer did a voice recording to the verbal communication between the
insurance agents and their customers. Aside from the persuasive strategies, the
writer also wanted to reveal the differences and similarities between persuasive
strategies used by insurance agents in prospecting same-age customers and older
customers. In analyzing the data, the writer used the Persuasive Strategy (Beebe &
Beebe, 2012) and Persuasive Strategies and Age (Yoon et al, 2005) as the main
theories. The writer found out that generally the insurance agents used both
persuasive strategies proposed by Beebe & Beebe (2012) in prospecting same-age
and older customers, but some methods were not used. It turned out that insurance
agents used more logic and evidence (60.21% for same-age group customer and
73.73% for older group customers) rather than emotion in persuading both types
of customer. In conclusion, in prospecting both customers’ categories, the
insurance agents used both persuasive strategies; however some method of
persuasion strategies were not used at all. This study also concluded that age does
not really affect the way insurance agents prospect their customers.