The designation of financial representative is becoming more widespread among prominent insurance companies, particularly life insurance companies. Though the specifics vary depending on the organization, the title primarily refers to an insurance sales representative who also serves as an investment broker and/or a financial planner. Let’s find out how to become a financial representative and what their typical salary is in the United States.
What Does a Financial Representative Do?
A financial representative, often known as a financial advisor, advises clients on prudent financial decisions. Financial advisers primarily guide and plan customers’ financial decisions based on their objectives, goals, and requirements. They make recommendations for financial goods and services to help clients manage their portfolios. Among their other responsibilities are the analysis of current accounts, the interpretation of data, and the development of strategies to improve and manage their assets and portfolios. They also keep an eye on market trends to find possible leads. Finance professionals must be analytical to examine, assess, and make decisions based on the facts provided to them.
What are the Requirements for Becoming a Financial Representative?
A bachelor’s degree in finance, business, economics, or a related field is required to become a financial representative. To demonstrate your dedication and expertise, you might become a Certified Financial Planner (CFP). Experience in sales or customer service is advantageous because you may be responsible for finding your clients. You must be knowledgeable about securities, insurance, and mutual funds, as well as financial trends. Other requirements include Microsoft Office fluency, active listening skills, good communication abilities, and a goal-oriented mindset.
Personality Traits and Finance Representative Skills
According to our calculations, 13% of Finance Representatives are skilled in Financial Services, Customer Service, and Life Insurance. They’re also known for soft talents like customer service, attention to detail, and initiative.
Here is a breakdown of the percentage of Finance Representatives with these talents indicated on their resume:
#1. 13% in Financial Services
Managed all areas of the financial services practice, including prospect generation, recommendation creation, underwriting, and product delivery.
#2. 10% for Customer Service
While performing teller tasks and developing and creating professional relationships with customers, I provided great customer service for account balances.
#3. Life insurance, 9%
Consumer loans originated and closed Mortgage loans were created and closed. Life and disability insurance policies were sold. Collections
#4. Mutual Funds, 9%
Provided financial representatives and shareholders with information and services about investment assets such as mutual funds and individual retirement accounts.
#5. FINRA, 8%
Attained property and casualty, life health and annuities, and securities licensure (FINRA Series 6 and 63).
#6. Securities, 8%
Demonstrated capacity to constantly acquire and apply knowledge, as well as execute critical details in the risk management and securities industries.
Read Also: Innovative Approaches to Risk Management in an Ever-Changing Financial Landscape
To execute their work, most finance representatives employ “financial services,” “customer service,” and “life insurance” skills.
- Customer service skills. Customer service is an important soft skill for a finance representative to have. This is relevant to the work of finance representatives because “securities, commodities, and financial services sales agents must be persuasive and make clients feel comfortable with the agent’s recommendations.” A finance representative resume also demonstrates how finance professionals apply customer-service skills: “received up to 150 calls per day providing financial assistance to Verizon wireless customers.”
- Details oriented. Another key soft skill for performing finance representative jobs is attention to detail. This talent is rewarded because “investment bankers must pay close attention to the details of initial public offerings and mergers and acquisitions because small changes can have large consequences.” Here is how to finance representatives might use detail-focused in their professional tasks, according to a finance representative’s resume: “assisted customers with bill payments, payment arrangements, billing problems, and basic plan details.”
- Initiative. This is a vital ability for finance representatives to have to carry out their tasks. Consider how “securities, commodities, and financial services sales agents must create their client base by making “cold” sales calls to people to whom they have not been referred and to people who are not expecting the call” as an example of how this skill is important in finance representative responsibilities. This example from a resume demonstrates how important it is to a finance representative’s day-to-day activities and responsibilities: “coordinated marketing initiatives with key stakeholders to create awareness regarding the importance of life insurance.”
Read Also: EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS: Why Are They Important?
- Analytical skills. Finance representative duties frequently necessitate “analytical skills.” The duties that rely on this skill are demonstrated by the fact that “to judge the profitability of potential deals, securities, commodities, and financial services sales agents must have strong analytical skills.” On a typical day, finance professionals use their analytical talents to do the following: “analyze delinquent accounts and assist customers in making acceptable payment arrangements according to company policy.”
- Math skills. A frequent ability required for financial representative responsibilities is “math skills.” This ability is frequently encountered in the work of finance representatives, since “securities, commodities, and financial services sales agents must be familiar with mathematical tools, including investment formulas.” An example from a real finance representative’s resume demonstrates how important this talent is to what a finance representative does: “developed financial needs analysis reports based upon quantitative and qualitative client data analysis.”
The Required Financial Services Representative Experience
For Financial Services Representative employment, most financial organizations use a tiered approach. Employers often prefer 1 or more years of customer service and/or sales experience for entry-level Financial Services Representative I roles. Financial Services Representative II and III positions frequently require new hire training as well as extra responsibilities. As a result, for these positions, you may want to prioritize individuals with three or more years of experience in banking or a similar sector.
Education and Training Requirements For Financial Services Representatives
In most circumstances, a high school certificate or GED is all that is required to start a career as a Financial Services Representative. You may want to give preference to individuals with an associate or bachelor’s degree in business, finance, or a comparable subject. Insurance and investments such as annuities and mutual funds are sold by some Financial Services Representatives. These people must have a state-issued license. Each state has its licensing requirements. Those seeking a license must often finish a training program and pass a written examination.
Is It Difficult to Work as a Financial Representative?
Working as a Financial Representative may be both difficult and rewarding. On the one hand, it necessitates a thorough understanding of financial products, markets, and regulatory frameworks, which necessitates ongoing learning and remaining current with industry changes.
Building a customer base and earning their trust may be difficult, and market instability can add to the stress. On the other hand, the profession provides significant earning potential, prospects for personal advancement, and the satisfaction of assisting customers in reaching their financial objectives.
What is the Distinction Between a Financial Representative and an Advisor?
A Financial Representative is a professional who works for a certain financial institution or company, such as a bank or an insurance company, to sell and promote its products or services. They may provide information about the company’s products and services as well as assist clients with transactions. A Financial Advisor, on the other hand, is a larger term that includes specialists that provide comprehensive financial counsel and advice to clients, generally in an independent or advisory role.
What Does a Financial Representative Earn?
The average annual salary for a Financial Representative in the United States is $71,627 as of December 18, 2023.
In case you need a quick salary calculator, that works out to about $34.44 per hour. This equates to $1,377 each week or $5,968 per month.
While ZipRecruiter reports annual salaries as high as $115,000 and as low as $31,500, the majority of Financial Representative salaries in the United States currently range from $44,500 (25th percentile) to $92,000 (75th percentile), with top earners (90th percentile) earning $107,500. The typical salary for a Financial Representative varies substantially (by up to $47,500), implying that there may be several prospects for growth and greater income dependent on skill level, location, and years of experience.
According to recent ZipRecruiter job posts, the Financial Representative job market in Atlanta, GA, and the surrounding area is quite active. A Financial Representative in your area earns $71,627 per year on average, which is the same as the national average yearly salary of $71,627. Georgia ranks 37th out of 50 states in terms of Financial Representative wages.
Highest-Paying Industries
Insurance has the highest median total pay of $91,425, Information Technology has the highest median total pay of $87,864, Financial Services has the highest median total pay of $80,591, Healthcare has the highest median total pay of $79,875, and Transportation & Logistics has the lowest median total pay of $78,378.
What Are the Top Ten Cities With the Highest-Paying Financial Representative Jobs?
We’ve identified ten cities where the average salary for a Financial Representative position is higher than the national average. San Francisco, CA tops the list, with San Jose, CA, and Oakland, CA close behind in second and third place. Oakland, CA outperforms the national average by $13,250 (18.5%), while San Francisco, CA outperforms the national average by another $18,299 (25.5%).
With average incomes higher than the national average in these ten cities, the chances for economic progress by shifting locations as a Financial Representative appear to be extremely profitable.
Finally, the average salary in these top 10 locations differs very little at 7% between San Francisco, CA, and New York, NY, reinforcing the limited opportunity for significant wage development. When comparing location and salary for a Financial Representative career, the possibility of a cheaper cost of living may be the most important element to consider.
Sample Financial Representative Job Description
You may get a decent idea of what businesses are looking for when hiring for this role by reviewing this Financial Representative job description sample. Remember that each organization is unique, and each will require distinct qualities when hiring for a Financial Representative position.
Job Description
We are looking for a Financial Representative to assist our clients in setting and achieving their financial objectives. In this role, you may assist customers in planning for retirement, saving for a significant purchase, or just growing their money. You will provide investment opportunities, assist them in developing a realistic budget and timetable, and provide tax advice. You will also monitor their money and change the strategy as needed. Our ideal candidate has a bachelor’s degree in finance or accounting as well as several years of experience in private equity, bookkeeping, or general accounting.
Responsibilities and Duties
- Set up meetings with potential new clients.
- Assist them in compiling and analyzing their financial documents.
- Make wise investing and saving suggestions.
- Make a long-term financial plan.
- As markets fluctuate, adjust your plan.
Requirements and Qualifications
- A bachelor’s degree in finance or accounting is required.
- Years of financial management experience
- Data input abilities
- Knowledge about Quickbooks software
- Excellent communication abilities
Conclusion
Financial agents assist their clients in achieving financial security and independence. They can operate individually or as part of a bigger firm, and they typically pursue professional qualifications that demonstrate their expertise. Their income is determined by a variety of circumstances, and the average starting salary is significantly more than the national average.
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