Tactics To Win With Internet Leads (Part 3)

Have ever said to yourself or posted on social media about how terrible internet leads are?  Since the first internet lead was delivered shortly after Al Gore created the information superhighway (I jest), agents have complained about the downside of this ever-so-easy-to access-and-receive data source.  This approach may have worked in yesteryear, but in 2021, it’s time to make a change. In this post-apocalypse era of Amazon and other dot.com shopping for everything, the changing consumer, and the “Need for Speed,” (Top Gun, 1986), many agents approach me with a need to know what specific metrics they should track and measure to effectively create a feasible cost per sale. 

One of the beautiful things about of the insurance business from a new business acquisition perspective is that we have access to so many analytics.  This makes sense—the carriers all depend on analytics to make risk decisions—so why would we not, as field underwriters, use the same approach to build and scale our businesses?  The proverbial cat can be skinned in many ways, however, the best approach in the modern day is to identify the best Cost Per Sale approach and then pour gas on the fire.

Our friend Flo has invited the perception of the traditional insurance agent as a suited person, who looks knowledgeable but may also be a little “’Keystone cop-ish.”  He may guide the insured on their insurance quest and navigate their challenges—but is he actually worth it?  We of course say, “Yes,” but have to fight against a web-savvy consumer’s perception that we peddle a commodity.  Why not meet Flo where she is, as a means of bringing business through the door?  We don’t have to “sell the value” just to get the prospect on the phone or into a quote—we can address their cheap, speedy, and easy needs to get started, and then shift to a value-based conversation as we gain rapport.

Agents who are using their resources to execute on the call center model in order to compete with the direct carriers, selling their products, sometimes at a discount, will be counting more wins as they make their daily deposits.  While this is becoming apparent to many agents around the country, others are scratching their heads as they hear the terms social media, data-optics, and telefunnel metrics.  We are going to dive into the most important metrics of the telefunnel and what benchmarks to look for.

Based on data over the last 90 days, we were able to peel off and dissect what activity has worked in our agency and the results that came from those data.