Even though it's no longer reported as widely, COVID-19 is still with us. People are masking even when it's not required. Let's face it, coronavirus may be the nail on the coffin on the brick-and-mortar insurance agency. So much for all the compliments you got on having a warm handshake, right? No more touching! What’s more, no more fist-bumps with the clients you’ve known for years. And no more pats on the head with the kiddos who followed mom into your office to square away the family’s insurance policies.
Yes, the past seems risky now when you think about all the types of contact we’re told to avoid because of the coronavirus. Perhaps prematurely, we were all hopeful when the lockdown ended and everything opened back up, but now we see that our options are still limited: financial collapse or infection resurgence.
Most of us are still trying to straddle the line between reclaiming normalcy and avoiding getting sick. It’s an uncertain time, but it doesn’t have to be a desperate time if you're an insurance agent. We know what works.
Where Is Everybody?
Chances are that you’ve opened your doors for business or you never closed them because insurance is an essential business. However, people still are not dropping by. It’s not you; the same is true for nearly every brick-and-mortar agency in the country! Just like you aren’t going out as often as before, insurance shoppers are not leaving the house unless they have to. And they don’t have to!
Ever since the pandemic started, more and more people began looking for ways to bind policies online without ever having to leave their couches. They are hesitant to make an in-person visit to their local agency, but that doesn’t mean that they aren’t buying insurance. Prospects know from television ads that insurers are offering price breaks during the pandemic. They want deals.
Chances are that many valuable prospects are shopping for new auto insurance, health insurance, business insurance and more by visiting SmartFinancial. SmartFinancial prevents them from having to shop and compare on their own, which may take hours or days. They know that SmartFinancial does all the work for them. We can do all the work for you too!
Meeting Insurance Shoppers
Before we get into how you will meet the folks looking to buy all kinds of insurance policies, let’s discuss the events you can take off your to-do list:
- Community activities
- Networking events
- Conventions
Any events where you were hoping to make new sales are either cancelled or will end up with poor attendance. You’ll also be risking your health if you decide to be one of the few who still goes. Some of the conventions you attend every year are holding virtual meetings instead, so check with each vendor before you consider making travel arrangements. Take part in these virtual experiences. They do help!
Now, think about the money you will save on traveling and other related expenses. It’s time for you to invest that money elsewhere, in campaigns that are sure to work.
When you buy insurance leads from SmartFinancial, your schmoozing is done and the important information you need is already compiled for you. You just have to give the prospect’s information a once-over while making a genuine connection before giving the prospect a quote.
In short, make buying leads a part of your new-and-improved post-COVID marketing plan. Forget everything you assumed about buying insurance leads. If you had a bad experience in the past, try a new vendor. Are all lead generation companies the same? No. Every insurtech company operates differently and supplies a different quality of leads. SmartFinancial leads are the best in terms of quality and returns.
I Got the Leads in My Inbox, Now What?
In some ways, leads from SmartFinancial are the same as leads you’d generate on your own. In other ways, they are wholly different. We don’t know what your process has been like when you meet someone who shows genuine interest in changing insurers or getting insured for the first time, but this is what works with SmartFinancial leads:
1. Your best bet is to contact the prospect as soon as you receive the lead in your inbox. Your leads will be shared with 3 other agents (not with the same insurer you work with) unless you buy exclusive leads, which are more expensive.
2. This person has already unloaded their information into a form so call up their information in your dashboard while talking, and avoid making them repeat themselves from scratch. You can see all the details right there in your agent portal.
3. Make a genuine connection. Just because you’re not in an office doesn’t mean you shouldn’t still be personable. In fact, you may have to overcompensate for not being able to smile, shake hands and make eye contact. Smile while you talk; It changes your tone, believe it or not.
4. Walk around while you talk. It may sound silly but injecting a little energy into your voice is a good thing. Whatever you do, don’t treat this like a cold call and don’t call with a flat tone. Nothing is worse for a sale than lack of enthusiasm.
5. Ask lots of questions, yes even personal ones. Form a genuine connection as if you were trying to make a friend. Don’t rush to a quote. Get to know this person. Make this person like and trust you by being friendly and personable. Also, based on the conversation, figure out what insurance products they need that you sell.
6. The prospect may be eager for a quote, so don’t stall indefinitely. They may be shopping around and also talking to other agents. Why not consider standing out by making a video quote that you can text or email over to the prospect? All you need is an iPhone or Android to record yourself giving a warm greeting and the quote, and anything else you’d like to say to your prospect. This can be just one more way to make a more personal connection than a phone conversation allows.
7. Overcoming hesitation may be a step along the way to your sales goal. Regardless of what you’ve assumed about leads, you will not make a sale after one phone call in most cases. Nurturing a lead, convincing a lead, is a part of the process. Don’t take an “I don’t know” as a “no.” Also, don’t take a “no” as a “never” because they are worlds apart (remember ex-dates! And remember the power of persuasion!).
8. Schedule a Zoom meeting for your next appointment. Bring value to this second meeting by bringing new information to the prospect. Anything that will make that person see that the product you’re offering is better than the others they may be considering. Now’s the chance to truly sell, and doing it over Zoom or Chat lets you add that personal touch that you’ve nailed after all these years in the business.
Let’s face it, now’s the time to get comfortable with technology because the economy is sink-or-swim without it. The great news about entering the digital world of insurance is that SmartFinancial Account Managers are there to guide you along, if you need a little catching up. We’re here to connect you with insurance shoppers today.
