Lead generation for insurance agents is the dynamic process of finding potential prospects. Leads are the engine of your business’s growth and magnets to engagement. Keeping that engine oiled maintains a perpetual pipeline of new business opportunities. This article touches on all aspects of lead generation from where to find and qualify leads to how technology can help insurance agents increase growth efficiently and easily.
Regardless of whether you find leads using traditional or online methods, generating leads is essential for growth. In the past, insurance agents were accustomed to selling insurance and servicing their customers face-to-face. Now, digital innovation in insurance, known as InsurTech, makes it possible for customers to research, compare, and even buy insurance online without the need for direct interaction with an agent.
Where to Find Commercial Insurance Leads
New and seasoned insurance agents rely on leads to grow and sustain their business. Generating quality leads requires an efficient plan that works with your budget, business brand, and staff. There are many resources you can use to find commercial insurance leads.
Use the Internet to Generate Leads
One way to generate leads is by using the internet. The Internet can help you to connect with more clients and grow your business. Here are a few actions you can take to start generating leads online now:
- Create a Website – This should be a stand-alone site with a domain name you own (such as ABCAgency.com). Using a Facebook page as your website does not boost confidence with companies that may want to do business with you. Take the time to invest in and build a dedicated website.
- Invest in SEO – Taking the time to optimize your site so you can be found on search engines, like Google and Bing, can go a long way to helping you generate insurance leads. This optimization is known as search engine optimization or SEO. However, this can be a time-consuming process and your time is valuable. There are experts you can hire to assist with both the technical and marketing aspects of SEO.
- Send Email Messages – Once you have built your website and optimized it for search engines, you will want to create a way to communicate with clients and prospects alike. Adding a form on your website for people to signup for a newsletter is a great way to stay in touch. And sending out regular email newsletters (quarterly, monthly, weekly) gives you a platform to inform clients of new products and services, make community event announcements, offer promotions, and include valuable content.
Use Offline Sources
But not all leads are generated online. Some common ways insurance agents generate leads are through offline tactics such as buying lead lists and networking. These options have been used for years, are often expensive and/or time-consuming, and can be hit or miss.
No matter how you get your leads, keep in mind that understanding the needs and preferences of your leads will be the key to qualifying that lead and converting them from a prospect into a client. Being accessible and responsive, building relationships, and providing value at every touchpoint is going to increase your lead generation success.
Understanding Your Buyer
It’s important to get to know your clients and prospects because not all customers have the same needs or insurance requirements. Insurance is a relationship-focused business. Many times, the rapport you have with them can make or break a sale. Maintaining contact with leads and using all the tools available will help you understand your buyer and support your leads along the sales process.
Be Mindful of Your Clients Preferences
Another aspect of understanding your buyer is being mindful of how clients and prospects communicate with you. Their preferred method of communication can tell you a lot about the kind of client they are and the relationship you can build with them. Taking cues from your prospects and meeting them on their terms can often win them over. For example, some people may prefer to communicate with you via email while others may desire a face-to-face visit. Still, some prospects may want to connect over the phone.
The deeper your understanding of your customer, the better. Take time to get personal with your clients by showing a genuine interest in them and their well-being. In addition, finding common ground will help you gain their trust and build a relationship, and taking note of what motivates and matters to them can help you to keep an important connection going. All of these things will give you insights into what you might need to do in order to offer a special experience and earn their business.
3 Lead Sources for Insurance Agents
Lead Source #1: Customer Referrals
Lead generation is time-consuming and can be expensive. However, one of the easiest ways to find new leads is to ask current clients for referrals. This is a tried and true method of generating leads from leads, saving you time and money. According to the Wharton Business School, referrals cost less to acquire and in the long run have a higher potential for retention and loyalty.
If you are not in the habit of asking for referrals, then learning how to ask and practice will help you have more confidence to approach your customers. Get to know your clients, maintain contact, establish a regular cadence of genuine engagement, and build value before you embark on asking for a referral. Every customer knows people, and those people also know people. As you can see, it can become a domino effect of referrals. Once you start asking customers for referrals, it becomes even easier to ask. In addition, you may also consider creating a referral program that offers something meaningful and/or functional as a way to encourage referrals.
Create a Referral Program
According to Nielsen, 92% of people trust recommendations from family and friends. Why not reward current clients for referring new business to you?. Here are a few ways to create a simple referral program that is easy to establish and sustain.
- Offer an incentive – such as a gift card – as a way to thank a current client when a referral becomes a new client. That small gesture will go a long way in creating affinity and loyalty from your customers.
- Give out swag. People love free stuff. Find something unique and give it out as a thank you gift.
- Invite clients who have referred people to you to a special event, like a dinner or open house.
Regardless of the incentive, make it easy for clients to understand the rules and make it a joy for them to receive it. And always say, “Thank You.” Furthermore, be comfortable with yourself, your products and services, and your clients will love sending you referrals. The referral process requires patience, but it can work in your favor and help you grow your business.
Lead Source #2: Using Social Media to Find Customers
The internet and the rise of social media has forever changed the marketing landscape. Social media provides an opportunity for both business owners and insurance agents to participate in the insurance buying process. Think of social media as a digital storefront for your business. Not only do you need to be present on social media but participating is the key to successfully driving leads to your site and turning them into clients.
Opportunities to Generate Leads on Social
There are a number of ways that you can find customers on Facebook and other social media. Even if you are not a big social media user, there are some easy opportunities to generate insurance leads.
- Determine which platforms your ideal customers are using and create or update your business profiles. A good place to start is Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
- Share content that offers value on a regular basis
- Respond to comments or messages
- Use keywords and hashtag
- Create and Optimize Ads
- Create posts, ads or Call-to-Action buttons on your profiles that link to a form on your website
- Branch out to other platforms – once you have established yourself on these platforms, you may want to consider whether it makes sense or is the right time for you to expand onto other platforms such as Instagram.
Despite the challenges that social media can pose to any company, including insurance agencies, generating insurance leads requires maintaining a presence that represents your brand, adds value, and puts out engaging and informative content.
If you invest a little time in social media consistently, you will gain a following and find prospective clients.
Lead Source #3: Purchasing Leads vs. Cold-Calling
Cold calling and lead lists are common and traditional methods of acquiring new leads. But, are they worth your time and money? Is the ROI positive or does it leave you with a high acquisition cost? Below are some considerations when using this method to generate leads and grow your business.
Purchasing Lead Lists
Purchasing leads is one way to generate insurance leads and create new business. There are a number of services out there that will acquire and sell you those leads. Understanding how they get their leads, who they sell the lists to, and how long they keep the lists can go a long way in determining whether purchasing leads is a profitable expense your agency should invest in. Here is what you need to know about lead generation services:
- The leads are not exclusive to you. This means you are competing with others who purchased the same list.
- Leads can be expensive – both in cost and quality. Ask questions about how, when, and where they acquired the leads.
- Leads may or may not be aware that their information is being sold. In today’s market where business practices, such as buying leads, are more transparent, business owners may be unhappy you purchased their information and therefore unwilling to do business with you.
Lead buying may be common practice, but it may not produce the most qualified or receptive prospects.
Cold Calling
Another common practice in lead generation is cold calling. This type of lead generation requires patience and persistence and an ability to not take “no” personally. However, a cold call placed at the right time can lead to sales.
Here are some tips to make cold calls a little easier:
- Find a way to ease into your call and make a quick connection
- Do your research. Knowing what to say and saying it genuinely and with confidence is key to a successful cold call.
- Practice what you are going to say so that you project yourself in a comfortable, confident manner.
Whether you choose to purchase lead lists or test cold-calling to generate leads, be prepared to invest time and energy into converting those leads.
Generate Leads Automatically
Insurance lead generation sources are expanding, and with that expansion comes more costs and time investment. But what if your business could generate leads while you are in meetings, running errands, on vacation or even while you are sleeping? What if you could generate leads automatically?
Use Technology to Generate Leads
The wheelhouse is an innovative digital platform with the technology to help you generate leads automatically. Even though this technology is state-of-the-art, you do not have to be a master of tech to use it or reap the rewards of automatic lead generation. Here is how it works:
- We provide you with a custom link that is home to a digital insurance application, complete with your logo, colors, and messaging.
- You share this link on any digital channel – your website, email, social media, advertising, etc.
- Leads fill out the application and get real, bindable quotes instantly from top-rated carriers.
- You are immediately notified of the application and are able to approve and push the quote through to a binding policy.
- You own the book, the contact info, and 100% of the commission. Everything is yours.
You can use your dedicated link to generate even more leads. Use the link in an email, in an ad, or as the link behind a CTA button on social. There are a number of ways to use the link to attract your targeted clients.
Qualifying Small Business Leads
After generating leads, you need to qualify them to ensure you have the best chance of securing a prospective client. Qualifying leads can be done over the phone, in person, or for digitally-minded agents, using Wheelhouse on your website. You may want to Qualify the lead by using the BANT model. It is a simple method that was created by IBM in the early 1960’s.
The acronym BANT stands for the following:
- B {Budget} – Can the customer afford your product/service
- A (Authority) – Is this the decision-maker
- N (Need) – What is the customer’s pain point and how can your service/product solve it?
- T (Timing) – In what timeframe will the solution be implemented?
The benefit of qualifying your leads is that you vet the prospect before engaging in more time-consuming activities. The quality of a lead and the likelihood they will convert to a sale is important. Leads with motivation and a sense of urgency are worth engaging and nurturing.
Insurance quoting made easy
Now that you have generated your lead and pre-qualified them, you’re ready to quote a policy for them. If you’re still using the traditional method of preparing insurance quotes, you know how much time it takes. The more time you use for completing applications, talking with potential clients, looking up information, and making phone calls, the less time you have for growing and managing your business.
More Than a Comparative Rater
Wheelhouse, powered by Talage technology, makes easy work of quoting insurance policies. We know what you’re thinking. That sounds like a comparative rater. We assure you we are not. We are so much more! Wheelhouse empowers you, as the agent, to quote bindable small business policies any time of day or night.
We provide you with a custom URL you can use in any of your marketing activities. Whether sending emails, posting on social media, or paying for ads, this allows business owners to request their own quote. You read that right. Business owners can request their own bindable quote. Furthermore, you can leverage the tool to better service your existing clientele. You can retrieve bindable quotes yourself to allow you to make more informed recommendations.
Generate Leads to Grow Your business
Generating insurance leads is a major part of building and maintaining a small business. You simply cannot stay in business without leads that can be converted into clients. Digital platforms have transformed the way insurance agents generate and acquire leads. This enables them to better serve prospective clients, as well as grow and sustain their business.
Historically, writing small business policies has not been profitable due to the costly process of retrieving quotes. But, with Wheelhouse, insurance quoting for small businesses is highly effective, efficient, and easy. Premiums will practically write themselves. Get ahead of competitors and sign up with Wheelhouse to generate leads automatically.
