One of the first things anyone in the insurance industry discovers is that all leads are not created equally. Access to enough of the right leads is the number-one barrier separating those who succeed from those who don’t. Think of all of the different problems you have with leads. Now imagine filtering all those draining attributes out — and then cranking up the volume on the margin of profitable, qualified leads. That’s how fine-tuned lead generation can work.
Your competitors are doing it. And that means you can, too. These companies are taking the lion’s share of the sales. It’s that hard, and it’s that easy with precision segmenting and an intentionally crafted process.
Understand Your Target Audience
While an auto insurance company might think of “all licensed drivers” as its target audience, there are likely some subsets where its products are a better fit or have a specific competitive advantage that will likely lead to a sale. The same is true for other lines of insurance.
For example:
- Families with teenagers in Broward, Union, and Jackson County, where your rates are statistically lower for newly licensed drivers than a major competitor
- Medicare Advantage customers who are struggling with claim denials due to excessive pre-authorizations from their insurer while your company has a more favorable rating
- Health insurance for couples that have a second home and need multi-state coverage, and your competitors only offer in-state coverage
- Customers of XYZ insurance company who recently lost their homeowners insurance in an area where you offer coverage
In the auto insurance example, while your competitors are casting their nets based on sweeping generalizations, you can design campaigns for families with newly licensed teenagers in the exact areas where your rates are 38% lower than a major competitor — and you can do this for every customer persona segment.
Building a Strong Online Presence
In the past, companies would build a beautiful, well-appointed office for customers to visit. Today, a well-functioning, content-rich website with interactive capabilities is how business is being done. Your sales copy acts as your salesperson, working 24/7 to screen buyers, present features and benefits, and pre-handle objections, sending you the most targeted, interested, motivated leads to finalize the process.
It’s not just about what you see with a custom-designed insurance website that lends to greater sales conversion — it’s what’s under the hood. Search engine optimization (SEO), advanced analytics, data gathering, integration, and reporting work to further refine the process while revealing new potentially overlooked opportunities.
An active presence on strategically selected social media sites allows you to “appear” with a solution and a reference link on the spot. Each of those conversations leaves a footprint, a digital trail to be found by others searching for the answers to the same or similar problems. As long as that post is archived and can be found, your voice will continue to serve as a sales funnel, directly driving customers to the solutions you offer.
Content Marketing Strategies
Your customers are online searching for solutions to their specific problems. An actual person is searching for “life insurance for someone who has been cancer-free for 3 years.” A person searching at this level of depth has likely already discovered that broad searches don’t solve their problem. If your product does, a blog post that addresses this person’s needs becomes a powerful lead-generation magnet for you when it directs them to your sales funnel.
You likely already have a wealth of blog topics from your customer interactions. Go back through your emails and look at every question people have asked. Keep a notebook at your desk and write down every question you’re asked on the phone. Each one of these is a potential blog post topic. Content marketing allows you to dig deeper into specifics than your main product pages.
These kinds of content pieces are naturally keyword-rich, particularly in long-tail keywords, the outliers of generalized keyword topics that may individually be few in numbers but together make up a large portion of the pie. These keywords serve as SEO power players, and people searching for answers at this level of detail are often thrilled to find answers and more ready and willing to convert than those conducting general searches. For reasons like these, blogs produce the highest ROI of any marketing channel for insurance companies.
Email Marketing
Think like an advisor instead of a marketer when it comes to email marketing. Imagine each recipient values you as a consultant versus a pitchperson. How would your messaging change? Email can be a powerful tool for a quick shot of trusted, low-barrier sales when you build and nurture your list with intentionality and purpose.
For insurance companies, there are many valid reasons to reach out to people on your list throughout the year, and those reasons are naturally conducive to making a sale. Whether it’s a policy change, an open enrollment deadline, or a seasonal product need, you can reach out in an advisory role with information that is beneficial to read and important to their life.
It doesn’t need to be lengthy. It needs to be relevant and valuable. Position yourself as a wealth of resources. Link to and promote the services of those in your agency directory that can solve different pieces of the insurance puzzle for your readers.
Telemarketing Strategies
A recent study by xAd revealed that a whopping 62% of people said that talking to a rep on the phone was the most influential factor in their buying decision. People want to complete the sale with someone over the phone. These are customers speaking!
Telemarketing has gotten a bad rap — and understandably so when the approach is to cold dial everyone within one broad category. Instead, let your highly targeted and optimized lead-generation website do the filtering and vetting for you. Instead of a huge workforce to do low-level lead vetting, pair your very best salespeople with people actively seeking solutions your product provides.
Integrating telemarketing with your digital strategies creates a more personalized, cohesive, and permissive experience. And like everything else in today’s data-driven world, you can use intelligent metrics to analyze telemarketing performance and make data-driven adjustments for continuous improvement.
Compliance and Data Protection
In digital marketing and lead generation, building a website that complies with data protection regulations such as GDPR and HIPAA is imperative for establishing trust and safeguarding client information. Businesses must ensure explicit consent for data collection, transparent processing practices, and prompt response to breaches to adhere to GDPR standards.
In the healthcare sector, compliance with HIPAA is critical, emphasizing the secure handling of protected health information. Steps include implementing clear consent mechanisms, transparent data processing policies, and robust security measures. By navigating these compliance requirements, businesses can construct lead-generation mechanisms that not only ethically handle client data but also foster trust and mitigate the risks associated with data mishandling.
Generate More Insurance Leads in 2024
Successful insurance lead generation in 2024 can be exciting — even fun. We’ve arrived at a place in technology where the reach, the interactivity, and the interconnectivity of the web allow us to be personal and interactive while leveraging digital tools to improve reach.
Successful insurance lead generation in 2024 is a blend of employing old-school personalization and networking with modern-day tools. The digital shift requires insurance agencies to view their websites as more than just digital business cards but as interactive offices. At the same time, content marketing and social media presence serve as public speaking events, Q&A sessions, and networking opportunities.
It is crucial to recognize the industry’s dynamic nature and stay adaptable to emerging trends and changes while not getting swept away by it and forgetting the point. Embracing innovation and continuously refining strategies will generate more leads and position insurance agencies for sustained growth in a rapidly evolving landscape. As we navigate through 2024, the key lies in staying proactive, flexible, and committed to refining our methods to meet the market’s evolving needs.
At Neilson Marketing, we know that lead generation can be overwhelming when you’re busy focusing on your insurance business. If you’re interested in outsourcing your digital marketing and taking lead generation off your plate, contact us for a free consultation so we can discuss your needs. With our help, 2024 can be your best year yet for securing qualified leads who convert into loyal customers.
