VitalityLife has launched a Business Consultant Talent Academy to increase their number of business consultants offering support for advisers, with the first eight graduating this month.
VitalityLife's second intake started in May, while a further eight graduates will attend from September 2015.
Currently VitalityLife's almost 200 business consultants support an average of 68 advicers each, compared to an industry average of over 1,100.
The training and rotation scheme aims to enable the starters to understand both protection and Vitality's business.
The Business Consultant Talent Academy is separate from the Vitality Academy, which helps Private medical insurance advisers gain accreditation.
Justin Taurog, managing director sales and distribution at VitalityLife said: "A highly skilled and knowledgeable distribution team will help us stay one‐step ahead of the competition and meet the demands of an ever‐changing marketplace.
"The sales teams' learning and development requirements are an absolute priority for VitalityLife and we continually strengthen our Academy to help the team maximise their opportunities for success."
Mark Dennison, principal at LightBlue UK, said: "It is important for insurers to provide a face‐to face service for advisers because it improves the customer's buying process.
"We tend to use providers more often if they have a presence in our office because if you build a relationship with somebody and they provide a good service it helps to improve the customer journey for what can be quite a long process.
"I still believe that many people do business with people, rather than companies, and this is particularly true for financial advisers."
Further reading:
VitalityLife business protection sales up 26%
Adviser focus: How well is your proposition placed with your clients?
VitalityLife offers 5% discount on policies
