Types of Marketing
One effective way to market to your existing clients in bulk is by having an agency newsletter. The best thing about a newsletter is that it demonstrates your professionalism and interest in the products you offer. It also lets clients know that besides offering the products that your newsletter talks about, you are also an expert in these products. A newsletter also cultivates referrals, helps round out accounts, and lets your clients know of other insurance lines you offer. This is a powerful branding tool that helps your retention by keeping clients on the books. A newsletter is an indirect approach and many existing clients like this because it’s not pushy. However, it opens the door for them to reach out to you, which puts you in a much better position and makes it easier to close a policy rather than you reaching out to them. Even if when do reach out to your clients, having a newsletter helps present you as a professional, rather than a salesperson.
In addition to an agency newsletter, you should contact your clients once a year by phone to do an account review, and meet in person with more sophisticated accounts or if the you have not met with the client in over five years. The agency newsletter helps clients warm up to these calls and meetings as well as emphasizes the importance of having a quality insurance program.
Emails communications can be used as a substitute for phone or personal meetings. However, this only works well when:
1. You have a certified email service or other capability that tracks when, where and the IP address of an email message being delivered and read by the addressee.
2. You have a client who is willing and responds to communication and exchange emails. Some clients routinely delete emails after only reading the subject line.
Outbound and inbound email activity should also be integrated with an agency management system. Such a system can facilitate mass messaging to client groups for marketing and provide communication triggers on individual accounts, such as for policy renewals or account anniversaries.
The Bottom Line
Reaching out to your existing clients is absolutely the “best bang for the buck” when it comes to agency marketing. If your existing clients have policies with other agencies, or you if you don’t have your clients’ other lines of business or you want to strengthen your policy and client retention, existing client marketing is a huge gold mine. Don’t forget that you are also seeking referrals when you market to your existing clients, which is the icing on the cake. Without such a dedicated marketing effort, your clients won’t know you well and will not be loyal. Would you rather have an unstable foundation with gaps that are widening or establish a solid foundation by filling in the gaps and building a foundation for growth?
You can create your agency newsletter by going to InsuranceNewsletters.com, where you will find a number of options including creating an email or print newsletter that can be customized and personalized for your agency. This article was written by Joseph Totah, President of Strategic Agencies LLC, the parent firm of InsuranceNewsletters.com.
