As a commercial insurance agent, you know how important marketing is to the growth and management of your business. That’s why we’ve put together this guide on marketing ideas for insurance agents. It’s an overview designed to keep you competitive, help generate leads, and most importantly, close deals.
Marketing can be expensive and time-consuming. The good news is, you don’t have to reinvent the wheel. Nor do you need to hire an expert to access and implement good marketing ideas. So, whether you are looking for help with email, social media, blogging, or SEO, you will find simple steps that are easy to implement included in this guide. The best marketing ideas for insurance agents are the ones that optimize efficiency, reduce costs, and help you better serve the needs of your clients, and there are plenty of options to explore.
Low-Cost or Free Marketing Ideas for Insurance Agents
There are plenty of blogs on the internet that can tell you how to market your business, but that’s a lot of information to sift through. We’ve done the hard work so you can focus on your business. Here are a few low-cost or free ideas you can steal to jump-start your digital marketing.
Create Original Content
This is a no brainer when it comes to free marketing ideas. No one knows your business or your clients like you. Take that knowledge and put it to revenue-generating use. The best content solves a problem or need for your client. Figure out what’s causing an issue, write about it (including providing a solution) and you have a recipe for success. Once published, share your content across your social media accounts and email newsletters.
Videos
This is another easy way for you to create value for your clients. You don’t need to be a fancy video editor in order to create valuable content. Use your smartphone, find a quiet space, and start recording. You can even talk about the same topics you’re writing about. Publish it to YouTube and share it on your website, emails, and other social media platforms.
Email newsletters are a great, low-cost way to stay in touch with your clients as well as provide personalized one-to-one communication. There are many great options available such as Constant Contact or Mailchimp. These services can help take a load off when creating emails thanks to their customizable templates and list-building tools.
Create Eye-Catching Graphics
You don’t need to be a designer to create great graphics for your website, social posts, emails, or even ads. There are low-cost marketing tools like Canva that have premade templates ready to go for anything you need. The free plan features access to more than 8,000 templates and over 100 design types.
Consistently Publish on Social Media
You need to have a presence on social – it’s no longer optional. You don’t need to be active on every platform available, that would be overwhelming. Choose two or three and start publishing regularly. Most experts and studies agree that you should publish one or two times a day. However, even if you publish twice a week consistently and offer some kind of value to your followers (e.g., all that content your writing on your website), you will reap the benefits.
Advertising
You may think that advertising on Google or social media may be out of your budget but the good news is, that’s just a myth. Anyone, with any budget, can advertise. You will need to put in a little more effort, but with the right target audience and an eye-catching design, you can make pay-per-click (PPC) work for you.
Host a Class or Event
This can be done in person or online. Pick a theme or topic and choose who you want to invite. You can choose a select group of clients and ask them to bring someone they know (e.g., another business owner) or invite your community by posting your event on Facebook events. Either way, this is a great way to get your name out there and the cost is minimal.
Request online reviews
Make it easy for satisfied clients to post positive online reviews with 1-click call-to-action (CTA) buttons on your website or send email reminders requesting reviews (think Yelp). Many consumers base purchasing decisions on peer reviews. You can make it easy for prospects to choose you over the competition by having an excellent online reputation. And be sure to monitor and respond to reviews. This will allow you to correct any negative or inaccurate reviews and maintain a stellar online reputation.
Ask for Referrals
Referrals are essential for commercial insurance agents. If you don’t have a referral program or one that offers incentives (such as discounts for referrals that lead to sales), now is the time to create one.
Marketing Basics for Insurance Agents
SEO Basics
Any online marketing effort begins with the hub of your digital operations: your website. Once you have a website with a branded URL (e.g., ABCInsurance.com), it’s time to optimize your site. This will help increase your online presence, improve outreach, generate leads, drive conversions, and generally provide a virtual storefront for prospects and clients to get to know you and your business better.
Keyword Research Is Key For Insurance Agent Marketing
A critical component in search engine optimization (SEO) is keyword research, and because trends change rapidly, it’s not a one-and-done activity. Keyword research is one of the most time-consuming parts of marketing. It’s often done poorly or skipped altogether. But it’s key to being found on any search engine like Google. While there are keywords and phrases that pertain to your business, your brand, your location, and so on, keyword strategy is something you will have to continually tweak to remain competitive.
Start with Google Keyword Planner
A good place to start your research is with the Google Keyword Planner tool, which can not only help to optimize ads but your content in general. It’s best to start with words that define your business or industry and branch out from there. Once you have a list of words you believe accurately represent your business, enter them into Google Keyword Planner to better understand how many people are searching your terms and better understand the cost associated with advertising using those words. From there, enter the words into Google to see what other sites show up in the results. Does your business fit with the other sites? If so, you are on the right track. If not, you may want to reconsider the word or phrase you’ve chosen.
A great example of this is the phrase, “Pie near me.” When you see or hear the word pie you may think apple pie, cherry pie, or pumpkin pie. But when you enter the term in Google the results return pizza pie shops (this will vary by locality). Context and intent are key to keyword research. You remember the song, “One of these things is not like the other,” – Google bases the results it returns on the intent of the searcher. So, while the key phrase, “pie near me” may make sense, the intent of the searcher invalidates that specific phrase.
There is a lot to learn about SEO, but context is one of the most important aspects to understand. Just because people search that word or phrase does not mean it is appropriate for your site. SEO authority Moz offers a great primer on Keyword Research for beginners.
Create Content
Once you’ve done your research on keywords, what do you do with them? Create content. Whether it’s for core pages of your website (such as your home page or product pages), or for your blog, content is at the center of any successful SEO strategy. Often, new content is the vehicle for keywords and other SEO efforts, so you need a strategy that involves a regular schedule of publishing relevant and engaging content.
Track and Analyze Metrics
The final piece of the SEO puzzle is analytics, and this starts with implementing the right tools for tracking metrics. Google Analytics is a must for beginners. Review the data to better understand what is happening on your site so that you can gain the valuable insights needed to make the most of your SEO and online marketing efforts. You can learn more about Google Analytics here.
Defining Your Brand is One of the Best Marketing Ideas for Insurance Agents
Branding is the visual representation of who you are – as an agent and as a business. Consistent use of logos, images, contact information, links, messaging, tone, and more ensure that whenever a current or prospective client encounters your brand online, they find recognizable images and enjoy a familiar and positive experience.
Branding starts with understanding your brand identity – your mission, core values, and goals – as these play a role in every decision you make regarding how you promote yourself and conduct business. When you understand your brand identity, you have the best opportunity to create a cohesive message and brand.
Social Media Tactics for Commercial Insurance Agents
As an insurance agent, it’s important to curate a consistent and active social media presence. Here are a few social media tactics or activities you can implement today.
Audit Your Social Profiles
Set up or audit your profiles and accounts. Take inventory of which platforms you’re on, the logos used, imagery, about section, contact information, links, and anything else in your profile.
Update Profiles
Update your profiles with consistent imagery (logos) and messaging (about section) so they represent your brand and appeal to your target base. This will help prospects and clients feel confident knowing they are engaging with you and not another, similar brand.
Content
Attract followers by posting helpful content such as product information or helpful how-tos. Consider not only posts of your own content and content from industry experts, but platform-exclusive content as well.
Personalize your follower’s experience using demographic data to determine different types of content and tone that will speak to that group.
Engage with Followers
Engage with followers. Social media is designed to be social. It’s expected that you will engage with your audience by replying to comments and responding to messages.
Use Hashtags (#)
Using or creating hashtags can enhance the experience and encourage interaction.
Practice Social Listening
Practice social listening, or keep tabs on what competitors are doing online, as well as client reactions to your content and your competitors. This can provide you with insights as to what your audience responds to, helping to drive success in the social arena.
Advertise on Social Media
Advertise on social media. Social media marketing is a great way to allocate marketing spend. Social platforms have options to define extremely targeted demographics and customize ads for the best possible return on investment (ROI).
Analyze Analytics
Review analytics. Social media platforms provide analytics to help you better understand your audience. By reviewing how both your ads and posts perform you can make adjustments to ensure that you have the best opportunity to deliver the content they’ll find compelling.
Tips for Using Email Marketing Effectively
Email marketing is a tried and true, low-cost marketing tactic that shouldn’t be overlooked. And, it allows you to deliver personalized messages to both prospects and clients. Some of the best marketing ideas for insurance agents rely on the targeted use of email to increase outreach, awareness, and personalized messaging. Even better, many efforts can be accomplished through automation, reducing time and effort on your end.
With email marketing, there are a couple of things you can do to ensure the best possible response.
Personalization
Personalize your emails for every reader. This is actually easier than you might think, thanks to sophisticated automation tools. Consider, for a moment, the benefits of direct communication with a client. Email allows for a one-to-one connection where you can completely personalize content, garnering a greater degree of engagement, and improving the prospect of a conversion.
Frequency
Frequency is also important. You don’t want to inundate current or prospective clients with promotional emails because this will cause them to unsubscribe very quickly. But by sending regular updates (think monthly or even weekly) you can keep awareness high, provide valuable and timely information, and share items of interest.
Whether you’re maintaining communication with past clients or following up with leads, email provides a means of communication that allows you access and the opportunity to promote yourself without having to generalize your messaging for a broader audience. You can use email to personalize content for the needs of each client, building relationships that lead to sales, and hopefully, sharing and referrals.
Learn to Blog
A blog is one of the best ways to create content for SEO purposes, create added value for your audience, support brand identity, and solidify your reputation as an authority in your field. That said, actually penning a blog regularly can be time-consuming.
You could hire an agency that not only writes content but caters to creating valuable plans and successful marketing ideas for insurance agents. But if you want to control the voice and tone of your content, you should write the blog yourself, or have someone on your team do it. You are, after all, the expert, and you know your clientele better than anyone.
Quality Content is Essential
Quality content is a must, so if you’re not a good writer, consider hiring someone to write or at least edit your content. Once you’ve decided who will write your blog, you need to decide what you’re going to write. Focus your content on delivering value for readers. Consider tying topics to important dates on the calendar, such as holidays, tax filing, or other seasonal opportunities (hello hurricane season). Be sure to keep up with current events, as well, so you can pivot to tie important information into important happenings in the world.
Promoting your brand is fine, but you’ll find that creating an authoritative blog goes a long way toward building credibility within your community – among both your peers and your clientele.
Marketing to Your Network
Growing and maintaining your network is among the best ways to court leads, encourage referrals, and generally ensure a steady stream of business. Including networking as part of your overall marketing strategy, in addition to the other marketing ideas we’ve shared, will give you the best opportunity for success. Networking keeps your brand fresh in the minds of clients and helps you reach your business goals.
That said, networking involves more than online efforts like participating in groups on LinkedIn or sending connection requests to other users. Meeting people face-to-face gives you the opportunity to make a lasting impression. Try attending industry events or local business owner events. Participation in these types of events provides valuable interactions with colleagues and potential clients, as well as the chance to continue learning and growing.
As for making new inroads with potential clients, consider the many benefits of community outreach. Whether you make a point of partnering with local vendors, participate in charitable events in your community, or give back by volunteering with local groups, you can build meaningful relationships. These relationships help to bolster your network and earn renown for your brand. Sometimes the best marketing ideas for insurance agents are really about marketing yourself!
Using Data to Find Marketing Gold
Once you’ve implemented all the marketing basics we’ve covered above you may be looking for more ways to improve business efficiencies without sacrificing client satisfaction. One of the best ways to do that is with data.
Learn Google Analytics
Google Analytics provides anonymous data about visitors of your website, social media provides more specific, but still anonymous information about your followers and those that engage with your posts like interests and hobbies, but none of this data connects you directly with people. With the right tool at your disposal, you can add convenience for clients, minimize your workload, and receive valuable client information.
Invest in Technology
Wheelhouse, powered by Talage, offers the technology you need to increase efficiency without a huge cost or taking a cut of your commission. For a small set-up fee and recurring monthly fee, you’ll enjoy a branded platform that delivers instant, bindable quotes when clients fill out an online application.
Furthermore, you can be proactive at managing your existing clients by using Wheelhouse to retrieve quotes for renewals, ensuring your clients always have the right amount of insurance coverage.
Finally, your book is your own. With Wheelhouse you keep 100% of commissions, and best of all, you can cater to small business accounts with technology that does the heavy lifting for you, saving time and making every deal profitable.
This comprehensive tool can be shared on all your digital channels and the best part is the data collected belongs to you. You can use this information to better market your services across your website, email, social media, PPC, etc., making it one of the best marketing ideas for insurance agents. With client information at your fingertips, you can cater to your customers, or even attract new demographics.
If you’re a commercial insurance agent looking for ways to improve your marketing efforts, having the right technology and tools at your disposal is a must, and Wheelhouse is a smart and affordable way to protect and promote your brand.
