Acing Your Colonial Life Interview: 15 Common Questions and Expert Tips

Founded in 1939, Colonial Life & Accident Insurance Company has grown into a leading insurance provider specializing in supplementary health, life and disability insurance. With a large sales force spread across the country, Colonial Life is always looking to recruit driven, personable professionals to join their team.

If you have an interview coming up with Colonial Life, it’s important to prepare thoroughly to stand out among other candidates. In this article, I’ll share 15 of the most common Colonial Life interview questions along with tips to craft winning responses.

You can impress the hiring managers and possibly start your career at this well-known insurance company by learning how the interview works, practicing your answers, and showing off your personality.

Overview of Colonial Life’s Interview Process

The Colonial Life interview process typically involves

• A phone screening with the recruiter
• 1-2 virtual/in-person interviews with managers
• For sales roles, a roleplay or presentation

Interviews are focused on assessing your insurance industry knowledge, sales abilities, work ethic, and overall fit with the company culture. Hiring managers want to get a sense of your communication skills, professionalism and likability

The questions are meant to find out if you have the skills and drive to do well at Colonial Life, which is a high-performance environment. Being sure of yourself, friendly, and interested can help you make a good impression.

Now let’s look at some of the key questions you’re likely to encounter and how to MASTER your answers:

1. Why are you interested in working at Colonial Life?

This is one of the most common opening questions in an interview at Colonial Life. The interviewer wants to gauge your level of interest in the company and role. They are looking for an enthusiastic response highlighting your research into Colonial Life’s products, mission and culture.

How to Respond:

• Show your excitement for the opportunity to work at Colonial Life specifically. Avoid generic answers.

• Discuss 1-2 aspects of their products or culture that resonate with you. Reference the website or brochures.

• Talk about how your skills would add value. Align with the key requirements of the role.

• Emphasize your long-term interest in the insurance industry and eagerness to build a career at Colonial Life.

Example: “I’m very interested in working for Colonial Life specifically because I believe strongly in your mission of providing supplementary benefits to consumers across America. Protecting people’s health, life and livelihood aligns with my values. I also appreciate your strong company culture and emphasis on professional growth. My consultative approach to sales would enable me to educate consumers about Colonial Life’s offerings to find the best solutions for their needs.”

2. What do you know about our products?

Colonial Life places immense value on product knowledge. The interviewer will evaluate how well you’ve researched their portfolio of insurance offerings.

Being able to discuss their products comfortably shows your preparation and motivation to succeed at Colonial Life.

How to respond:

• Provide an overview of Colonial Life’s key products – disability, accident, life, critical illness & health insurance.

• Pick 1-2 products to discuss in more depth: main features, benefits and value proposition for consumers.

• Reference specifics from their website, brochures, online resources etc.

• Share how certain products could provide value to customers you’ve worked with in the past.

Example: “Through my research on your website and brochures, I’ve learned Colonial Life offers a robust suite of insurance products, including disability, accident, life, critical illness and supplemental health policies. For instance, your accident insurance can provide lump sum payouts to help cover unexpected costs related to accidental injuries. Features like emergency room and hospitalization benefits provide financial protection when consumers need it most. I appreciate how your products are flexible with options to meet individual needs – for example, customers can customize their accident policy by adding riders for added protection.”

3. Why do you want to sell insurance?

Insurance sales roles at Colonial Life require tremendous motivation and work ethic. This question aims to uncover if you have the drive and resilience required to thrive. The interviewer wants to hear about your personal and professional motivations.

How to respond:

• Share when and how you became interested in an insurance sales career. Was there a specific experience that sparked your interest?

• Discuss qualities you have that would make you an excellent insurance salesperson – e.g. communication skills, competitive nature, ability to connect with consumers.

• Convey your passion for helping educate and protect consumers by finding the right insurance solutions for their needs.

• If you lack experience, draw parallels from previous roles to showcase relevant skills and motivation to enter this field.

Example: “I’ve been interested in insurance sales since meeting a State Farm agent early in my career who described the positive impact he had on clients’ lives. Two aspects drew me in – the opportunity to educate people on protecting themselves from financial hardship and the challenge of succeeding in a competitive sales environment. I’m naturally outgoing, resilient, and enjoy forming meaningful relationships. My communication and client management skills consistently helped me exceed sales targets in previous roles. I’m excited to build an insurance sales career where I can apply these strengths to empower consumers to take control of their financial wellbeing.”

4. How do you stay up-to-date with changes in the insurance industry?

Given the highly regulated nature of insurance, staying current on trends, regulations, new products etc. is critical for success at Colonial Life. This question evaluates your ability to be proactive about continuously expanding your insurance knowledge.

How to respond:

• Demonstrate you actively stay on top of industry news/trends rather than taking a passive approach.

• Share some helpful resources you rely on to stay updated – industry magazines, online news portals, Twitter feeds of thought leaders, etc.

• Give an example of how you recently applied something learned through your efforts to stay current, illustrating the value of staying informed.

• For less experienced candidates, share how you research industries/products and your eagerness to quickly learn the insurance domain.

Example: “Staying current with insurance industry trends and information is crucial, so I make it a priority to dedicate time each week to expand my knowledge. Some helpful resources I rely on include Insurance Journal, LifeHealthPro magazine, and thought leaders like David Duford. For example, I recently listened to a webinar discussion on the growth of supplemental insurance. This enabled me to better educate prospects on the value of Colonial Life’s offerings as complementary protection. Overall, this continuous learning approach ensures I can provide the most relevant solutions to consumers as laws, products and regulations evolve.”

5. How do you plan to prospect as an insurance agent?

Insurance sales roles at Colonial Life require disciplined prospecting skills to build a robust pipeline of potential clients. This question tests your pipeline generation abilities and proactive approach to sourcing promising leads.

How to respond:

• Demonstrate you understand prospecting requires creativity, discipline and persistence. Share 2-3 strategies and platforms you would leverage to source prospects.

• If you have experience, provide examples of networking approaches or lead generation tactics you used successfully in the past.

• Emphasize your work ethic and determination to go above and beyond to build your book of business.

• For entry-level candidates, give ideas on prospecting approaches you would employ if given this opportunity.

Example: “Prospecting is critical in the insurance business so I’m prepared to dedicate consistent time to building my pipeline across multiple channels. I would leverage existing professional connections, join local business associations, network at community events and actively maintain my profiles on LinkedIn/Facebook to generate referrals. I plan to set aside time weekly for lead generation calls, social media outreach and email campaigns to qualified prospects. I know insurance sales requires discipline and perseverance, which I have demonstrated consistently in surpassing past sales targets. I am motivated to put in the hard work needed daily to build my book of business.”

6. How would you persuade someone who believes they don’t need additional insurance?

Overcoming objections is a key aspect of succeeding in insurance sales. This question tests your ability to persuasively convey the value of Colonial Life’s offerings to skeptical prospects. The interviewer will assess your communication skills, product knowledge and persistence.

How to respond:

• Validate their concern but emphasize that insurance needs evolve throughout life’s stages.

• Provide statistics/scenarios highlighting why complementary insurance could actually benefit them.

• Gauge the core concern – cost? lack of understanding? Share how you would educate them on the policies to alleviate concerns.

• Demonstrate you can gracefully handle objections while maintaining professionalism and focus on the consumer’s needs.

Example: *”I understand why someone well-covered through their employer might question purchasing additional insurance. In such cases, I would reassure them that their current coverage is great, while highlighting how supplemental insurance can provide benefits their existing policies don’t. For instance, disability insurance helps cover living expenses if injury kept them from work for months. I would take time to educate them on how affordable add-on policies can provide crucial financial protection when unusual circumstances arise. However, I respect the consumer’s decisions, so if they choose