Insurance broker marketing strategies to drive sales
Insurance broker marketing strategies to drive sales | Insurance Business New Zealand
Guides
Insurance broker marketing strategies to drive sales
Use these insurance broker marketing strategies to increase awareness for your brand, stand out in the market, and convince customers to buy your products
Guides
By
Ramon Berenguer
The role and work of an insurance broker today is very different from a few decades or even a few years ago. Not only has the competitive landscape changed, but the way that younger buyers look, choose, and purchase products – insurance included – has evolved as well.
Your insurance broker marketing strategy should be in step with these drastic changes. These days, it’s of great importance to know how to market your insurance business to a younger, more tech-savvy generation of insurance buyers.
In this article on how to market your insurance business, Insurance Business will provide insight into insurance marketing strategies for today’s business environment. You’ll see some insurance broker marketing examples. These might help you with insurance marketing ideas and strategies you can make part of your insurance broker marketing plan.
Generally, the purpose of marketing is to help grow your business and unlock its potential for a high return on investment (ROI). The most common way to achieve this is to promote your brands, products, and services.
Marketing makes sense for any business, even insurance. And how else but through marketing would customers find out about your insurance business and its products?
Insurance broker marketing can:
Even if you offered the best insurance products, terrific service and had the best agents, these would go to waste if no one knew you existed or if you didn’t stand out from your competitors. And even if potential clients knew your company and it stands out, it would be for nothing if they weren’t convinced about your products.
This is where your insurance marketing plays a crucial role. With insurance marketing, you can plan and execute promotional efforts that can raise awareness about you or your company. Efforts that increase awareness can then translate to increasing sales, which goes back to increasing your brand awareness and market differentiation. Implementing these strategies can go a long way, considering all the time, money, and effort that go into putting up your own insurance company.
As for your insurance business’ marketing promotions efforts, these can be traditional, digital or a mix of both. Some traditional and digital marketing efforts can include:
While traditional marketing promotional efforts still have a place in insurance broker marketing, it is more cost-efficient to leverage the predominantly tech-reliant insurance environment we have today.
The following are marketing strategies that an insurance company or brokerage can use to expand its client base, by using the tech tools that are readily available.
1. Use search engine optimization (SEO)
These days, it’s not enough to have your insurance company listed in a directory, it’s even more important to have a high-quality website. While it’s now standard practice to have a well-crafted website that includes your contact information, products, services, and staff, it won’t do you much good if no one can see it.
This is where search engine optimization (SEO) can be a big help. In a nutshell, SEO efforts are things you do to make sure that your insurance company’s website is featured on the first page (ideally on top) of a search engine’s results. When a prospective client uses online search engines like Google or Bing to look for insurance, your SEO efforts should place you as one of the top search results.
SEO mostly entails putting yourself in the shoes of your prospective client and figuring out which keywords they would use to find information about insurance companies and their products. SEO specialists reverse-engineer these keywords, which you can sometimes use free SEO tools to find.
2. Optimize your website
It’s essential to have your marketing efforts centered around your insurance company’s website, since it serves as the central hub for information about your company and its products and services. It’s also the tool by which you can convince potential customers to buy insurance from you.
Your website reflects your company’s credibility. Whether you like it or not, the first impression potential customers get from it will influence whether they will do business with you or not.
So, make sure your website is user-friendly, organized, and updated so they will trust you with their business. Here are some important website characteristics to look after to increase your website’s conversion rates:
Loading speed
In a study, the average loading speed that customers expect nowadays is 2.5 seconds per page or less. It was also found that websites that load in 1 second experience a 40% chance of converting customers. That’s why it’s essential that your website loads quickly, or potential customers will look elsewhere.
Cybersecurity
Potential buyers of your products need to know that your site is secure. How do they know your website is safe and secure? For one, they need to see that your website address is HTTPS to have the reassurance that your website is not vulnerable to cyberattacks. As these are now a daily nuisance, potential customers must be sure that their data will be safe with you if they become your client.
Mobile functionality
More people use their smartphones and tablets to do a lot of their internet surfing. That’s why it’s important for your website to be as quick to load and work on these devices as they would on a laptop or desktop computer. The design and appearance of your website should remain just as user-friendly and functional regardless of the screen size and orientation (portrait or landscape) of the device viewing it.
Clear language
Your potential customers aren’t limited to Baby Boomers and Gen Xers, so your website should account for millennials and Gen Z business owners. There are distinct differences in the way customers of different generations communicate. Make sure that the language of your website is kept simple, clear, informal, and free of any industry or insurance jargon.
Interactivity
Try to make your company website as easy as possible to navigate, and easier still for potential policy buyers to get in touch. Always have your contact information placed in a convenient, easily clickable spot on your website. Better yet, have your website developer install a live chat feature that lets you answer queries in real time.
3. Use targeted direct mail campaigns
Yes, some traditional marketing tactics like this one still work in the internet age. A carefully planned and executed direct mail campaign can target specific demographics, industries, or geographical areas, and give you good leads.
A more direct and personalized marketing approach like this can help you stand out from competitors and spark interest among potential clients, especially in your local community.
4. Build and reinforce client-broker relations
You may be pleasantly surprised when you reinforce relationships with your existing clients. This can encourage repeat business and referrals. Exerting some effort to become a trusted advisor and maintaining regular contact will keep you top-of-mind when it comes to their insurance needs.
You can foster and strengthen these relationships via personalized messaging, staying informed about their life events, and following up on renewals and policy updates. Consistently nurturing your relationships lays the foundation for a loyal client base and gives the prospect of a strong referral program later.
It would be very beneficial if your website could collect reviews in real time, reply to feedback from clients, and engage in conversations with them. Efforts like these can result in better customer relationships, customer retention, and more customer conversions.
5. Use the power of reviews
Client reviews and testimonials can be powerful marketing tools for insurance agencies and agents. You can leverage positive reviews by showcasing them on your website, which can help build trust and credibility in the minds of potential clients.
Online reviews are more important nowadays, since Gen Z and millennials take them very seriously. In fact, they’re the generation that are most likely to write and read reviews.
Another similar tool to use is industry awards. You can display awards badges on your website or social media pages, just like some of the winners on our Best in Insurance page have done!
We’re proud to be named a 2024 Top Insurance Employer. https://t.co/EiujW6dWBk pic.twitter.com/p9876Q7tsz
— Risk Placement Services (@rpsins) August 27, 2024
6. Use data analytics
Data analytics tools can be indispensable to collecting, analyzing, and acting on valuable client insights and market insights. Using data analytics tools lets you make better-informed decisions when it comes to your marketing efforts, like the content for your audience, and product offerings.
With data analytics, you can uncover trends, track ROI, and better understand what does and doesn’t work in your marketing mix.
7. Give seminars and workshops
You can present yourself as an industry expert and resource person by giving in-person or digital seminars. Doing so can give potential clients a taste of your expertise.
These seminars will allow you to share your knowledge, answer questions, and directly engage with an audience who may be interested in your services. Providing free educational seminars is an excellent way to demonstrate your skills and expertise. It’s a great way to connect with potential clients, too.
8. Harness pay-per-click advertising
Pay-Per-Click advertising or PPC is a more cost-effective and targeted form of advertising that is done online. When you use PPC, you only pay for ads each time an internet user clicks on your online ad.
When these types of ads are on platforms like Google AdWords or Facebook Ads, they can help capture searchers who are serious in their search for insurance products.
Speaking of PPC advertising, here’s a short video discussing which platforms would be best for your PPC ads. The presenter also gives advice on which platforms to use for which purpose or to achieve which goal.
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When planned and executed correctly, PPC ads can substantially boost your online presence and visibility. This in turn drives more people to your website and increases the likelihood of converting potential clients into actual ones.
9. Partner up with local businesses
You can also tap your local community to generate leads or even increase sales. Try setting up joint marketing campaigns, co-branded promotions, or trade referrals with complementary businesses like:
Partnerships with these and other relevant businesses in your community can provide new potential referrals and clients, along with expanding your client base and those of partner businesses.
For instance, if you tie up with a realtor, you can have your home insurance piggyback on their catalog of homes that are up for sale. On the flipside, if you offer health insurance and auto insurance, you can assist local car dealerships by matching them with some clients looking for a brand-new or used vehicle.
10. Build a strong company culture
Did you know that you can bolster your marketing efforts by investing in your own company culture? Positively impacting on your employees leads to increased productivity and better customer service, which lead to better client relationships and retention.
To reap these benefits, your team members will need the resources and support to give exceptional customer service, communicate effectively, and contribute more actively to growing your business.
Don’t discount how a supportive and inclusive environment can boost your business by elevating your brand’s reputation in the industry.
It’s been some years since insurance businesses used digital marketing strategies and tactics as part of their insurance broker marketing. Use these different strategies in combinations that work best for your company.
Make sure that you have your digital assets like your website and social media accounts up and running properly. If all this seems overwhelming for you to do on your own, enlist the services of digital agencies or consultants to help with efforts like your email marketing or content marketing.
Which of these insurance broker marketing strategies do you intend to use? Let us know in the comments
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