It takes insurance agents a lot of time and effort to find and generate new opportunities, not to mention expanding product lines into an existing book of business. It’s very tedious work, especially when you can spend your time selling instead.
So how do you get face time with prospects in the increasingly competitive insurance marketplace? The best solution is using outsourced telemarketing services for insurance agents. Here’s why.
Why Outsourced Telemarketing Works
As the hard-grafting on the front lines intensifies, more and more independent agencies outsource their most challenging task: finding new business.
Unfortunately, producers don’t like to prospect; they want to close, so someone must get in the trenches and do the dirty work. Outsourcing allows producers to focus on the low-hanging fruit and convert more leads into sales.
With outsourced telemarketing services for insurance agents, you can expect a team of experts who qualify leads and convert them into real opportunities for your agency.
How to Use Telemarketing Services for Insurance Agents
Here are a few ways insurance agents use outsourced telemarketing services in their agency.
Pre-screen incoming leads from advertising efforts and process according to set procedures.
Whether your advertising generates leads from mass media like TV and radio to an 800 number or online advertising, it makes no sense to have these leads go straight to a producer. Instead, they need vetting to determine if it is a legitimate inquiry and the information provided is complete and accurate.
An inbound call center specializing in telemarketing services for insurance agents will pre-qualify and determine if the lead meets the agency’s qualifications before the producer or agent reaches out.
The inbound call center agent can forward it to the appropriate local agency when designated as a qualified lead. Then, take it a step further and have the inbound call center schedule an appointment for the lead and the agent or producer to speak using shared calendar tools.
The benefit to the agency is that they eliminate the challenging and time-consuming work of lead qualification. Instead, the outsourced telemarketing team ensures the lead is well-qualified, using the qualification requirements you establish.
Follow up with online form submissions
It takes a lot of time and diligence to continually follow up with leads if you cannot reach them the first time. Outsourced telemarketing teams can make outbound calls to online inquiries. Let the expert telemarketing team vet each lead before sending it to the agency.
Flexibility in staffing
Outsourced telemarketing companies have the luxury to shift their resources based on seasonality or volume. For example, if your insurance agency plans a marketing campaign and anticipates a high volume of inquiries, the outsourcer can accommodate the increase in volume, and then decrease staffing accordingly.
This model typically brings the cost of staffing down compared to hiring an in-house team where there isn’t the flexibility or skill-set of a team specializing in the insurance market lead generation. I should also mention that outsourced telemarketing can provide 24/7 staffing if needed.
Current customer outreach
Nothing says “you don’t matter to me” more than ignoring a customer for a whole year. So, to keep your customer retention rates high, use telemarketing services to stay in touch with current clients through courtesy calls throughout the policy year.
A phone call now and again might make the difference between a client routinely continuing their coverage or pausing to think if there might be a better option elsewhere.
An alternative to an external team reaching out to your customers is that it can free up time for you to do it yourself.
Customer service
There are many customer service functions that an outsourced partner can support. Depending on the specific function, licensed agents may be required.
Many telemarketing companies have licensed insurance agents on staff. If your agency does not have the staff, the facilities, or simply the desire to house their own, many call centers offer this level of service.
Contingency Plan
Of course, no discussion about staffing these days can go without the shadow of COVID over it.
Every company needs to have a backup plan in place if their in-house center is suddenly seriously understaffed. They can be extensions of your office through the software you share with them.
Most telemarketing partners will have text, email, and chat capabilities. In addition, you can find domestic centers, near-shore, and off-shore centers.
Whichever you choose, look for the type of systems they use and the labor market to know they can cover your peak times and their experience.
Conclusion
It’s important to remember that the telemarketing industry can provide solutions for many different business situations. I have tried to touch on some of the more common telemarketing uses for the insurance industry.
Quality Contact Solutions has conducted high-quality outbound telemarketing programs for thousands of insurance agencies throughout the U.S.
If you need any guidance about a telemarketing solution that makes sense for your business, contact me or any one of my sales associates. We are happy to help.
Steve Korn is the Business Development Executive for Quality Contact Solutions. Steve’s experience spans 40 years and includes ownership of his own call center for over 20 years plus experience in B2C telemarketing and in-house B2B call center management. His core strength is in working with small and medium sized companies in designing and implementing programs for lead generation and appointment setting. Steve can be reached at steve.korn@qualitycontactsolutions.com or 516-656-4198.
