October 22, 2015
When purchasing inbound auto insurance leads, it is always important to handle them as efficiently as possible in order to obtain the highest possible return on investment or (ROI). The monies you invest in your agency on inbound auto insurance leads will be the best investment you make in your agency, your producers and yourself.
1. Speed. Answer the phone and provide a fast efficient quote. Some producers and agency staff will allow calls to go to voicemail because they are busy, on another call or not in the mood to take a call. To obtain the highest conversion rate it is important to answer the phone when it rings and make every effort to help the lead while they are on the phone and have the time to obtain a quote. Do not let calls go to voicemail as this will make it more difficult to get them back on the phone or when you do, they may have already purchased a policy from someone else.
2. Listen to what the lead wants and do your best to provide it. Often sales producers will have an objective or target in mind on what they want to sell, rather than understanding the needs of the auto insurance lead or buyer. Sales producers should be open to discussing the needs of the consumer and do their best to provide a auto insurance quote that meets those needs.
3. Get as many calls as possible. Take calls from anywhere you are licensed. Insurance leads and insurance sales can be boiled down to being a numbers game. The more calls you take, the more quotes you will give out, the more sales you will make. It is important to purchase as many calls as you can and to do that, you should not attempt to limit who you speak with.
4. Follow-up, follow-up and do more follow-up. Inbound auto insurance leads are not a guaranteed sale. While it is someone who requests a quote, the insurance producer or agent will still need to follow-up with the lead to make sure they get the sale. If a sale is not closed during the initial conversation, you will need to schedule a follow-up date, send a thank you note, and continue to reach out to the insurance lead until you obtain the sale.
5. Have your best producers take the inbound auto insurance calls. Many agency owners will have their junior sales producers or other unskilled sales staff take the inbound auto insurance leads rather than having their best take them. This is a mistake. To obtain the highest possible close ratio, more skill agents should take the calls.
6. Track results of various marketing programs and auto insurance lead providers. In attempting to allocate your marketing budget to the programs that work best, it is critical to have a formal process in place to track the results of all the program you use. It is important to track every call, every email and every office contact to see what happens with that lead into your agency. This is the only way you will be able to know what works and what doesn’t.
October 22, 2015
When buying inbound auto insurance leads, many buyers make some common mistakes which lead them to losing money on their investment and often ‘swearing off’ buying insurance leads again in the future. The reality is inbound auto insurance leads work and the key is to figure out how they can work for your agency. The following are 5 common mistakes that you should avoid, if you are buying inbound auto insurance leads for the first time.
1. Try to buy the cheapest inbound auto insurance leads. Buying the cheapest insurance leads does not mean you are going to have the best ROI or limit your expense exposure. It is best to work with a company that has a good reputation, that has a good return policy and that will work with you to customize your auto insurance leads to meet your needs. The price of an auto insurance live transfer or inbound auto insurance lead has no correlation with the success you will achieve.
2. Limit your trial to too small of a test. Many agents trying out a new inbound auto insurance lead program will purchase a few calls and think that is enough to determine if a program will work. The reality is inbound auto insurance leads or calls is a new way of doing business and will require new skills, new processes and new ways of thinking. It is best to make a 90 to 120 day commitment to using inbound auto insurance leads to figure out how to make them work. The undeniable truth is inbound auto insurance leads work. Sometimes you just need to figure out how to make them work for your agency.
3. Have newly licensed agents or producers take the auto insurance live transfers or inbound insurance leads. With inbound auto insurance leads, you still have to sell the consumer on your company, the insurance product and your ability to service their needs. Having lower skilled sales staff take these calls is a recipe for failure. To make sure you have the best chance of closing these inbound insurance calls, it is recommended to have the highest skilled agents in your office take these calls.
4. Try to only buy the “perfect” call. Some agents will try to limit the inbound auto insurance leads they buy to only what they perceive as being the perfect candidate. This limits the opportunities they will have to sell and means they will be going after the most competitive segment of the market. Everyone wants only the top tier candidates and there is significant competition for these insurance consumers. It is best to buy as many calls as possible and the widest variety.
5. Not follow-up with the inbound insurance lead if they don’t buy on the first call. It is very important to follow-up with consumers to close the deal. As part of this, agents need to work with the leads to adjust the auto insurance quote, to better meet the leads needs, if it is not exactly what they were looking for initially. Some agents will provide an initial quote and then have a “take it or leave it” attitude rather than trying to find a policy that meets their needs.
Agent Ethan Kosmin Generated over $200,000 in premiums during first year in business thanks to Contact Concierge.
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