How to win customers' hearts

Kang Soon-i

By Kim Tae-jong

Kang Soon-i built her career as a sales agent at Kyobo Life Insurance over the past 30 years. Since joining the insurance firm in 1983, she has sold more than 17 billion won in life insurance to more than 2,000 customers.

The sales veteran, 59, recently received an award from her firm for her dedication to her customers. This was the eighth award she received from the firm in her career.

She attributes her successful career to her close relationships with her customers, which have lasted from generation to generation.

“The secret is, I treat my customers like they’re my family,” she said. “You always have to come to your customers if they need you as a financial advisor

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When her customers are in trouble, she also uses her social network to help them out. Along with providing financial advice, she tries to help them find new jobs after retirement and even help their children find soul mates. She has helped 12 couples tie the knot over the past three decades.

As she takes care of about 2,000 customers, half of whom are VIP clients, she has two personal assistants who help her offer better services to customers.

Because of her dedication, the two-year maintenance rate of her new contracts

is nearly 100 percent, she proudly said.

“I’ve just been trying to support my customers, which is how I’ve developed my career so far. Young employees whom I met 30 years ago have become executives at a well-established firm, and watching them become successful is the most rewarding part of my job,” she said.

To provide sound financial advice to customers, she also kept learning not only about insurance but also succession of property and real estate trades.

Indeed, she is one of the admirable figures in the insurance industry. She is not only a member of the Million Dollar Round Table, a global association of successful insurance salespeople and financial advisors, but in 2009, also became the first Korean female sales agent to deliver a speech at the association’s annual meeting.

She published a book last year titled “Thank you, Kang Soon-i!,” which describes her knowledge and experience in insurance sales.

Despite her significant professional achievements, she has yet to consider retirement.

“As a financial advisor, the more experienced you are, the better advice you can give to your customers. I’ll work harder to increase client interest in financial products,” she said.