Top Ten Tips for New Insurance Trainers

• By: Nancy Germond
• October 12, 2026

Assuming the role of a corporate trainer is never without challenges. Whether you’re promoted into a training position or you are hired by another organization, you want to excel at your new job. Part of building that reputation of excellence means avoiding mistakes. Although we often learn our best lessons when we stumble, some mistakes can seriously hurt your training program, damage your reputation, or even derail your career. 

Here are ten tips to ensure you design and present great training events.  

1. Complete a thorough needs assessment. Whether you use a formal process with interviews, a job analysis approach, or you interview supervisors, a solid needs assessment is critical to training success. New trainers often say one of the biggest mistakes they made as a new trainer/instructional designer was not taking enough time to understand learners’ needs. Managers may sometimes request training for an issue that won’t solve the problem. They might say employees need instruction on one topic when the real challenge lies elsewhere. As part of the needs assessment, speak with several participants to learn whether the proposed training addresses the actual problem. If managers and end users see the issue differently, have a diplomatic conversation about redirecting the training, so it closes the true learning gap. No organization can afford to spend time and money solving the wrong problem. 

2. Don’t answer every question. You may have gone from a role as a subject matter expert to a trainer. Especially when teaching continuing education courses, your participants have a reservoir of applicable experience and knowledge. Instead of answering every question, ask the audience what they think. If no one immediately volunteers, allow “dead space” or silence. Use name tags and directly ask people if no one volunteers. Let your learners interact, or you will definitely lose their interest. As the old saying goes, “Be a guide on the side, not a sage on the stage.”  

3. Honor different learning styles. Effective training, whenever possible, should include all learning styles – visual, auditory and kinesthetic. However, it’s imperative that we honor different styles if we want our students to learn. Incorporating interaction and case studies and allowing participants to work in small groups will help support learning differences.  

Simply dumping information will not enable participants to return to their desks and put learning into practice. In addition to using case studies, you can describe real-life examples and solicit examples from trainees to increase learning uptake. Use interaction, real-life examples, case studies and small-group activities to help participants process information, apply concepts, and learn from one another. Many people prefer to work in small groups rather than risk appearing clueless. Create small group activities that allow learners to collaborate as they solve problems. Then ask one participant from each group to describe their discussions. 

4. Develop a management tool to ensure supervisors reinforce learning. A variety of studies show most of the learning takes place after the training event, when managers actively reinforce a course’s learning objectives. Since most managers won’t attend the course, offer a management tool that outlines the learning objectives and tasks under each of the course’s objectives. For example, if you’re teaching new technology to newly licensed agents, create a management checklist tool to ensure that learners are transferring the key principles you taught in the class to their day-to-day work.  

5. Slow down! We often plug too much material into presentations, which forces us to rush. “One of the most common mistakes I see with new trainers, who are usually experts in the material, is covering the material too quickly and expecting the class to keep up or understand. I remember ‘bulldozing’ right through my material because it was so easy for me. I have since learned to slow down and read the room to ensure everyone is with me so far,” recommended one experienced trainer. Don’t pack too much information into a single training event. It overwhelms participants, and they often gain no clear vision of how to implement what they learned.  

6. Check the room and double-check your equipment. Arrive early. In the 1960 Presidential debate between John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon, communication experts believe that one of the main reasons Kennedy won the election was because he came early and “checked” the debate room. Radio listeners thought that, overall, Nixon performed better than Kennedy, but Kennedy knew about the lighting and studied the optics. Television viewers saw in contrast to a sweaty, no-make-up, nervous Nixon, versus a dark-suited, well-made-up Kennedy.  

Arrive early enough to ensure you like the room set up and test your equipment. Once you know your system works, you can “work the room,” greeting trainees to build rapport. I often run a motivational PowerPoint before the class begins but make sure to greet your students to help them feel welcome and to build rapport.  

7. Use appropriate humor. I grew up in an insurance family, so I often focus my humor on anecdotes from my life growing up with insurance agent parents. Point humor toward yourself and not toward your trainees. I can tell you from experience that it takes only one person feeling offended to cause you problems. While we nay frequently hear F-bombs and off-color humor and read memes that will curl your hair (while you laugh), salty humor simply is still a no-go in today’s workplace. 

While I recommend starting your talk with humor if you can, we cannot afford to use humor in the workplace that might invite complaints. When using images and anecdotes in your presentation, steer away controversial photos and stories. Too, today’s learners are often much more sensitive than those of us who’ve been in the business for years and grown a thicker skin. What may not offend seasoned learners may deeply offend newer entries to the workforce.  

8. Whenever you can, use images instead of text. In his book Talk Like Ted, Carmine Gallo recaps the “mountain of evidence” that shows we remember images much more readily than words. Three days later, we remember only about ten percent of what we heard, according to Gallo. Pictures increase recall to an impressive 65 percent. Younger learners, too, are largely image driven. We can greatly increase learning if we use fewer bullet points and more relevant images.  

9. Take time to rehearse. We spend weeks, sometimes months, designing the perfect curriculum. Then we don’t practice. Master the presentation. This enables us to stay on track after participants ask questions or sidetrack us. We need to be able to continue where we left off. The most common mistake made by beginning trainers…is that they do not work hard enough preparing. Trainers sometimes spend weeks developing a slide deck, but never once rehearse the actual presentation. A polished slide deck is only half the work. Rehearsing means you will be more confident and not easily sidetracked.  

10. If problems arise, when class ends do immediate damage control. Sometimes training sessions stray off course, perhaps by disruptive participants or from some other issue. When this happens, face problems head-on before they come to find you.  

First, try to talk to an upset person. Find out what offended them, or what they feel they did not get from the training, and either offer an apology or other resources. If that fails, alert your supervisor so that he or she isn’t blindsided by a complaint. If necessary, talk to both a trusted senior leader in your organization and your training peers. They can help you troubleshoot what went wrong and help you avoid that problem in the future.  

Training will always come with challenges. However, the good news is that you never have to face them alone. Surrounding yourself with a supportive community makes all the difference. Consider joining a professional organization such as the Society of Insurance Trainers & Educators or Toastmasters, where you can sharpen your skills, learn from experienced peers and grow into a truly exceptional trainer. 

These ten tips are your starting point. Put them into practice, lean on the people around you, and you’ll not only make a smooth transition into your new role, but you’ll also thrive in it. 

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