10 Ways to Market Your Insurance Agency On a Budget
I get the chance to work work with many insurance agency owners, whether they are member SIAA insurance agencies or captive or independent insurance agency owners, the one universally true thing, everyone wants to find more leads, do more quotes, and get more sales.
The other thing that is pretty universally true, we’re all on a budget. 🙂
As a marketing junkie, I always like to ask new insurance agency owners I meet, “What do you do to market your business?” The most frequent answer I get, and this might not surprise you, is – “referrals.”
This is the story from state to state and agency to agency.
Don’t get me wrong, I do get plenty who wax poetically about sophisticated advertising and marketing initiatives, but let’s face it, most of the mid-sized and smaller agencies are doing little to market their insurance agencies.
While I understand the realities of a tight budget, it’s hard for me to understand why an insurance agency would elect to forego marketing, it’s the fuel that drives a business.
How can a business be successful without marketing or advertising?
“Many a small thing has been made large by the right kind of advertising.”
-Mark Twain
Marketing and advertising can be expensive, so for many insurance agency owners, when revenues decline owners begin to cut marketing from the budget to focus on the “essentials.”
However, it’s during the tough times when you need to promote your business the most.
Obviously, inbound and content marketing strategies are becoming increasingly more important, as is social media, but there are still many conventional marketing ideas that you can consider when your budget is tight.
Here are 10 clever ways to market yourself on a shoestring budget:
1 | Have a quick, concise, and creative elevator pitch
If you’re in insurance sales you should always be marketing. There should never be a time when you’re not prepared to make a pitch – regardless of where you are. This means you need a compelling elevator pitch.
When I was a junior executive I was instructed to always be prepared to explain what I was working on in a quick, concise pitch. You never know when you’ll be sharing the elevator with the Chief Executive, and the last thing you want is to look unprepared in front of the Big Kahuna.
This same technique is taught in business schools all over America.
Attention spans are short and people are busy, you don’t have a lot of time. But you only need a few seconds to grab someone’s attention.
You’ll likely have less than a minute, so if you successfully grab someone’s attention you want it to be good. Spend the time to craft a killer pitch. Highlight all the ways that you provide value and make their lives just a little better.
If you do a good job, this should provide dividends immediately.
2 | Leverage your community
Most insurance agencies should be thinking locally … that’s smart. Not all marketing needs to be done on a grand scale. What’s going on in your community? Are there opportunities to sponsor the local Little League teams, or charity walk/run? Are there places where your ideal customer spends their time, and how can you get involved?
Are there any community events, like chili cook-offs, festivals, or markets where you can promote your business?
Search out all your local opportunities to get in front of your customer with your marketing message.
3 | Join-venture marketing opportunities
A great way to gain new clients is to leverage the customer base of a business in your area. It’s a good idea to put together a group of like-minded business owners in your area and agree to cross-promote.
This can be done with flyers, coupons, bundles, or simple referrals. You can even organize meetings where you invite others to receive presentations on your areas of expertise.
When you collaborate with other businesses you expand your reach and potential customer base.
4 | There is always networking
This isn’t for everyone, but when you’re good at it, there isn’t any better way to build your business than getting out to some networking events. There is something special about shaking hands and getting to know new people.
You should sign up for www.meetup.com and search for our networking opportunities in your area.
Be prepared, this will require a commitment of time, and the results will not be immediate, but a strong network can be a huge asset as you build your business.
5 | Hang up your fear and give a speech
I know what you’re going to say … I hate to speak in front of a crowd. I also know that it’s one of the biggest fear for all of us. However, some organizations are always looking for qualified subject matter experts.
It will be challenging in the beginning, but you’ll get better at it the more you do it. So, swallow your fear and get out there. Don’t worry about your skills … as long as your material is good, you’ll do fine. You’ll thank yourself if you do this, nothing provides you greater credibility and authority than giving a speech.
6 | Create buzz
This one may be a bit of a stretch, but I think you should give it a try. Public relations are huge, and there are many ways in today’s online space to get a free buzz. I recommend you subscribe to www.helpareporter.com.
There are plenty of media outlets, both big and small, that need questions answered. Why should you not be a source? You’re an expert in insurance-related issues, right?
Make sure that the reporter gives you a “follow” link back to your “about” page on your site if this is an online publication.
7 | Ask for referrals
I know this is the #1 thing you’re all doing, but I felt it needed repeating in case there are any out there not asking for referrals.
Don’t be shy, ask your satisfied customers for referrals. Most people are more than happy to pass on your information if you ask … so do it.
In some cases, you can create a bonus program or a small gift like movie tickets for referrals that become customers.
Don’t miss out on an opportunity to get referrals because you were afraid to ask.
8 | Build relationships and retain your existing business
New customer acquisition is costly. It’s always less expensive to retain a customer than to develop new ones. You need a program to deepen your relationships with existing customers.
Do you currently have an email newsletter or a blog? If you don’t then you need to consider starting one.
In your blog and email newsletter, you need to share useful and valuable content with your customers consistently. This is important, don’t share stuff about you or your products, people don’t care about that stuff… make this about your customers. Share content that makes their lives just a little bit better.
9 | Sweepstakes
As long as your State’s Department of Insurance regulations allow it, you should hold a sweepstakes. Each new customer who gets a quote is entered into a drawing to win something that has value, but is not expensive … iPads make great giveaways.
10 | Get your business online
This is probably the most important, so I saved it for last. The reality is that there is a huge shift in the way consumers are being marketed. Today, conventional marketing no longer plays a significant role in consumer purchase decisions.
Today’s consumers DVR shows and bypass commercials, listen to ad-free Pandora or Spotify, and can navigate the web or read a magazine and not even recall a single advertisement.
Most phone numbers are on the national do-not-call registry, and it’s darn difficult to get expiration dates by text.
Savvy online marketers use content marketing and social media to connect with an increasingly empowered consumer class. Using content marketing you can market your business without actually marketing.
Since this is a huge component of the new realities of marketing, we will dedicate an entire post to it next time. But for now, you should review your current website with the mindset of turning it into a dynamic environment where you can actively share valuable, FREE, content with prospective and current customers.
Conclusion
Above we have provided these ten ( 10 ) easy-to-deploy and relatively cheap marketing tactics to help you engage your customers, and build relationships even when your budget is tight.
Remember, it is always important to keep your company and your brand top-of-mind with prospective customers. You’ll have to invest some time … but sometimes that comes easy than money.
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