How to Increase Sales Leads for Your Insurance Agency in 2024

In recent years, technology and innovations have changed how our industry thrives, and it’s important that your agency adapts to new ways of doing business to stay competitive.

Published: 01.04.2023 / Updated: 01.24.2024

Does your agency have strategies in place to continuously feed your sales pipeline with qualified insurance sales leads?

In recent years, technology and innovations have changed how our industry thrives, and it’s important that your agency adapts to new ways of doing business to stay competitive.

By implementing best practices, you can take your agency to the next level and ensure qualified leads are coming in for your sales team. Check out our insurance lead generation tips below and take your business to the next level.

Network Within Your Community

Foster relationships with other professionals such as, financial advisors, accountants, or lawyers, who work with employer groups and business owners and help them with insurance questions their clients may have. Become the trusted local advisor for all things employee benefits and insurance, and work together to build a mutual partnership where both parties feel comfortable to refer clients to each other.

Join your local chamber of commerce and network with business owners and find local organizations that your target audience may be a part of and see if they have any upcoming speaker opportunities. This will put you right in front of potential customers.

And don’t forget about virtual networking opportunities. Since the pandemic, virtual meetings and events have become the norm. Hosting webinars or virtual meetups is an easy and cost-effective way to connect with current or potential clients and community partners.

Step Up Your Digital Marketing Presence

In today’s world, if you don’t have a strong digital presence, you could be losing leads to the competition. The next generation of tech-savvy workers are starting to step into leadership roles at companies and are the ones making many of the benefits decisions.

One of the first things someone will do when you call or email them about your services is a quick Google search to research your digital footprint and reputation.

These types of questions should be immediately answered through clear and effective marketing practices:

What type of resources are you offering?
How are your services different from other agencies?
What are your customers saying about you?
What type of content are you posting to social media?

Many times, your digital presence is where you make your first impression. Without a modernized website, social media or web presence, you’re missing out on a huge opportunity to attract new business, appear reliable and reputable, and increase insurance sales.

If your agency has limited marketing resources, there are still free and low-maintenance strategies you could be putting in place to step up your marketing strategy.

If you don’t have a website, this is step one. There are tons of convenient and free website tools—such as Wix and WordPress. Create a few pages that outline your services and what sets you apart, and don’t forget to include a contact page so potential customers can reach out. More on websites later in this blog.
Utilize LinkedIn for your business. Set up a free company page and post content relevant to your audience (You can visit Savoy’s library of social media images to get started with content). LinkedIn can also help you attract top talent when hiring for your agency.
Make sure you’re accurately appearing in Google search and maps by creating a Google Business Profile. By personalizing your profile with photos and essential content, you will ensure your company stands out, you’re reaching the right customers, and that your first impression is on point.

Optimize Your Website

If you don’t have the resources for upkeep, there is no need for an expansive, in-depth website that costs thousands of dollars to build and maintain. But you do need to at least make sure your agency has a website and that it looks like it’s from this century. Your website should have a modern look and feel, be able to load quickly and be accessible from a mobile device.

The content on your website should be current and accurate, making it easy for potential customers to navigate. Your agency’s value proposition should be front and center—customers should be able to identify what your company does and how it does it differently from the competition.

Lastly, your website should have a contact form for potential customers to fill out and readily display accurate contact information so that your customers can easily contact your sales team. All potential customer leads that come in through your website should be contacted immediately within business hours. It’s important to be proactive with inbound leads—research shows replying to a lead within five minutes is 100 times more successful than calling 30 minutes later.¹

Ask for Referrals

It’s good to ask for feedback and referrals from your clients. 83% of B2B customers are open to referring a business after completing a successful purchase, and 78% of those B2B referrals create a viable customer lead for the business.²

The best time to ask for referrals is after a successful open enrollment with your client. This positive experience is fresh in your customers’ minds, making them more willing to provide worthwhile feedback and referrals. In most cases it’s appropriate to ask if they have friends or industry colleagues that may benefit from your agency’s services, the worst they can say is no.

Referrals are a popular source for leads, yet only 3 out of 10 B2B businesses have a formalized referral program.²Referral programs have little to no cost for your agency and provide significant return on investment.

Your referral program doesn’t need to be robust; it can be as simple as providing gift cards to the referring source. Just make sure you’re promoting it to your customers, that it can be easily tracked and that there is a simple way for customers to share your information with colleagues, friends or family.

Achieve New Levels of Success with Savoy

As your general agency partner, Savoy can assist you with putting practices in place to increase your agency’s qualified insurance sales leads and provide strategies to attract new employer groups.

With more than 39 years' experience, Savoy offers tools and resources that have the power to advance your career and give you the competitive edge you need.

To learn more about our latest resources, technology, and products, contact your Savoy Sales Team today.

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Sources:
¹ https://www.forbes.com/sites/theyec/2019/09/10/step-by-step-guide-to-following-up-with-b2b-leads-generated-by-sdrs/?sh=414ba9472309
²https://www.thinkimpact.com/b2b-referral-statistics/#:~:text=Report%20Highlights,have%20a%20formalized%20referral%20business