As I travel around this great country and speak with some of the greatest Insurance Agents in the industry there is one thing I hear from a lot of people. It is that they are having difficulty staying in front of the customer. The efficiency gap of calling customers to check in or to provide them with critical information is always going to be difficult. The great news is twofold in that we agree constant communication with our customers not only keeps them with us but it also provides better service overall. To achieve this there needs to be an effective and efficient strategy.
Before we talk solutions, I believe it’s great to intertwine a topical example of how you can earn a leg up on the competitors and even the major carriers. I was having dinner with a friend who writes their Auto Insurance through a major carrier. At his previous stage in life that was really all he needed but now he is engaged and living with his fiancee in an apartment. They have a few toys (huge flat screen TV, apple computer, engagement ring) and he asked me how he should insure all these things.
Before I answered I asked him if he ever hears from his current agent, for example to discuss Renters Insurance or if they send him emails in regards to rounding him out. He thought for a second and said no. At best he thinks he gets a quarterly newsletter from them. My first thought was that this major agency doesn’t take advantage of their mass email capabilities!!! I finished dinner and referred my friend to a great local agent who I knew would take great care of him.
EFT has changed insurance largely for the better. However, there is one area that agents need to counterbalance. With EFT you client is seeing their carrier name every month in their checking account. Not your name, only their carrier. When their renewal comes in, your name is very small. If you don’t stay in front of the customer, they will forget who you are and search on their own for solutions. Email is still the best way to stay effectively and efficiently in front of your client.
Getting back to the question of what effective communication is not only time efficient but, more importantly, cost effective. The answer is simple. Email!!! There are so many tools available now that are cheap, easy to use and keep you in front of the people that matter the most. It can be daunting when selecting the right tool but the amazing news is that Agency Performance Partners has worked with several of the top email marketing tools. We can help you find and build a cost effective email strategy that will keep your customers happy and you profitable. Give us a call today!
