OM DENNE EPISODE
Buy the leads.
Work the script.
Make more calls.
And if it isn't working… just dial MORE.
That's the playbook many new insurance agents are handed.
But Chris Chappell believes the future of insurance looks very different.
After 17 years in the tech industry, Chris walked away from the highest income of his career because the stress was affecting his health, confidence, and ability to show up as the husband and father he wanted to be.
Then he started over in insurance.
Today, Chris is a life insurance advisor in Arizona serving millennial parents and he's intentionally building a completely different kind of insurance business.
Digital-first. Relationship-first. Low-pressure.
A business flexible enough that sometimes his office is the front seat of his Rivian while his kids are at swim practice.
In this episode of The Modern Insurance Agent Podcast, David Denning and Chris explore what happens when you stop trying to become the insurance agent the industry tells you to be and start building a business that fits your personality, values, clients, and life.
In This Episode, You'll Discover:
- Why Chris left a 17-year career in tech to start over in insurance
- What corporate leadership taught him about systems, teams, and business growth
- Why earning more money wasn't enough when his career was costing him in other areas of life
- What it was really like going from a steady W-2 paycheck to commission-only insurance sales
- Why Chris believes the insurance business is surprisingly “figure-out-able”
- How he's applying software development principles and agile frameworks to his insurance business
- Why he rejected the traditional hustle-and-grind sales culture
- How he works his insurance business around his family instead of forcing his family around his business
- Why he refuses to use pushy insurance sales tactics
- How he's positioning himself as an advisor instead of another salesperson
- Why millennial parents are such an underserved insurance market
- How caring for children and aging parents changes the financial conversation
- Why cold calling may become increasingly difficult as AI-powered call screening and spam detection improve
- How he's using AI for underwriting questions, organization, marketing ideas, and efficiency
- Why he stopped relying on purchased leads and started building an organic, digital-first foundation
- How Facebook content is creating conversations without constantly posting about insurance
- Why documenting your actual life and experiences can become part of your marketing strategy
- What Chris would tell new insurance agents transitioning out of corporate America
- Why Chris Is Building a Digital-First Insurance Business
Chris tried the traditional approach when he first became licensed:
Buy leads. Work the script. Keep dialing.
But every time his own phone rang from an unknown number especially one marked “potential spam” he realized something.
He wouldn't answer it either.
As AI-powered call screening and spam detection continue to improve, Chris believes insurance agents who rely heavily on cold outbound calling may need to adapt quickly.
So he's building in the opposite direction.
Instead of interrupting strangers and trying to convince them to discuss life insurance on his schedule, Chris is creating an online presence that allows people to get to know him first.
He's leaning into Facebook, local communities, personal stories, career-transition content, and everyday life as a millennial parent.
The opportunity isn't coming from constantly pushing insurance content.
It's coming from sharing his life, building relationships, and becoming someone people already know they can talk to when they're ready.
A Relationship-First Approach to Life Insurance
That philosophy carries directly into Chris's client conversations.
He's not interested in pushing someone into a product. He wants millennial parents to understand what they already have, identify potential gaps, explore their options, and make informed decisions without feeling pressured.
Chris understands that audience personally.
He's raising his own children while also having his mother living with his family a situation many adults are beginning to experience as they support kids, help aging parents, build careers, manage mortgages, and prepare for their own future.
That lived experience helps him connect with clients facing similar challenges.
The Lesson for New Insurance Agents
Chris believes the insurance business is surprisingly “figure-out-able.”
Eventually, you're going to hit a wall.
But he doesn't see that as evidence you're failing.
The wall shows you where you need to grow.
The agents who make it aren't necessarily the ones who never struggle. They're the ones who learn, adjust, use the resources around them, and keep moving.
If you're an insurance agent, life insurance agent, new producer, agency owner, or someone considering leaving corporate America for insurance, this episode offers a practical look at what building a modern insurance business can actually look like.
Connect with Us:
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