Lizzie Schmaltz

Today we are talking with Lizzie Schmaltz.  Lizzie is an insurance agent with State Farm and her office located in Eden Prairie.  

Lizzie has over 18 years of experience in insurance agencies and is selling policies to individual clients with an emphasis on long-term relationships with her clients.  She has worked with the top level insurance companies and has been named employee of the year multiple times.  Throughout her career she has combined commitment with great communication to provide her clients with the best policies.

Let’s start off by letting our reader know a little bit about you and your company. Tell us about your background?

I grew up in a small town in Minnesota and I was always passionate about helping people. My mom was a school teacher so she would sometimes talk to me about her teaching techniques and I just latched onto it. I loved it. I was always asking for more, and when I had the opportunity in school to get into classes I ran with it.

In college, I had my first opportunity to work with the entrepreneur club and it made everything kind of click in my head. My dad was always in business and I got my business head from him. My parents have also been entrepreneurs for a long time (and I started tons of my own silly “businesses” as a kid!) so I think I am a product of all of that background and experience.

How did you get started in the insurance industry? 

I was looking for something that provides not just a paycheck, but also a purpose. I was more interested in a profession that offers a chance to give back.

Being an effective salesperson is a valuable talent when you work in insurance, but it’s not just a sales job. I saw an insurance career as a way to help satisfy this desire for meaningful work and community involvement. At its roots, the insurance industry is about protecting members of a community. Insurance can pay to rebuild a home after a fire, provide for loved ones after a death, or help workers injured on the job. By encouraging individuals to share risk, it protects each of those individuals if tragedy strikes.

The insurance industry is continually evolving as my customer’s needs do. That means I also get to spend time learning new things.  In the past 10 years I’ve needed to understand social media, digital marketing, and cyber communication.

So that’s how you got into the insurance industry?  What did you do before starting an insurance business?

After working in a corporate job in Chicago and finishing my MBA in NY, I decided I wanted to do something where I worked more with people, but kept my foot in the door in terms of the business environment. I just didn’t want to be in a corporate office all day long. I also wanted to move back to Minnesota to be closer to my family.  At that time, I was working for a relocation company on an as-needed basis and conducting a typical MBA job search.

Where is your office located?

Our office is located in Eden Prairie, right off of Eden Prairie Center Drive.

So when you got started, how did you differentiate your company from others?

One of the advantages that I really enjoy about being a small business is that we are able to truly bring customized solutions for our clients. Of course, there are common topics that clients struggle with (e.g. differences in policies) and when it comes to the culture there are research-backed dimensions that are helpful to use when talking about differences, but the way we put the pieces of the puzzle together is always a little different. We get to think outside the box a lot.  This really connects us with our clients.

What has been your most effective way to connect with your clients or prospective clients?

Our monthly newsletter  has a tremendous following. We send out a really fun email once a month with cool culture tips and tricks including everything from the meaning of certain terms and interested or important industry news.  We focus on sharing rather than selling and stay in front of people once a month so we’re consistently top of mind from a marketing perspective.

Now some frequently asked questions from our readers:

If my garage burns down with my car inside, is my car covered under my homeowners insurance or car insurance?

Your homeowners insurance does not cover the loss of your car, even though it was, “in your house.” You typically must have a form of comprehensive physical damage coverage on your automobile insurance policy for it to be covered.

I like to run my dishwasher overnight since it’s so loud.  If I run the dishwashers overnight and it breaks and leaks water all over my beautiful kitchen wood floor all night, will my homeowners policy cover that?

Most homeowners insurance policies will not cover the source of the water damage. That means you will be responsible for paying for the broken dishwasher.  Your policy may cover the cost of tearing out and replacing that damaged kitchen floor.  Every policy is different. That’s why it’s important to understand what is, and, is not covered up front before you have an issue like a leaking dishwasher.

Lizze, thanks for talking with me today.  I really appreciate your time.

What is the best way to get in touch with you if I want to discuss my insurance options?

The best way is to go to our website and click “Contact Us”. This will give you the option to send us an email, do live online chat or call us directly.

Thanks for talking with us today Lizzie!