Six Fresh Marketing Ideas for P&C Agents

Becoming a successful P&C agent requires a ton of know-how and a whole lot of hustle. Not only are you expected to be an expert on the industry itself and maintain your license(s), but also you have to be a top-tier communicator, an analytical thinker, an excellent administrator, and a self-starter. 

Oh and by the way, you have to be a marketing whiz, too, if you plan to grow your business. Given that consumers are doing their own research online and often bypassing local offices altogether, it’s more important than ever to have effective marketing ideas for insurance agents. 

If you’re feeling overwhelmed, you’re certainly not alone. I’ve talked with hundreds of P&C agents over the years, and most of them feel confused and frustrated trying to figure out exactly how to spend their limited marketing dollars. If that resonates with you, our top six marketing ideas for insurance agents will help!

Give away your expertise.

I know giving stuff away seems to work against making money, but hear me out. One of the best marketing strategies you can employ is to be a genuinely helpful person. By sharing thoughtful tips and insights with your audience—without asking for anything in return—you build credibility and trust. Then when you finally do ask for the sale, people are more likely to say, “Yes!” Marketing experts call this “content marketing,” and according to the Content Marketing Institute, this strategy results in three times the number of leads when compared to paid search advertising.

Content marketing for insurance agents doesn’t have to be complicated: Simply make a list of typical questions your prospects and clients ask, and start answering them via blogs, email, and social media. 

Use email marketing automation.

You’ve likely heard that email is dead or dying. Nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, email marketing has a 3800% return on investment. No, that’s not a typo: For every $1 spent, email generates $38.

When someone gives you their email, they’re giving you explicit permission to contact them. What’s more, because they obviously know you’re a business that offers services for money, they’re actually giving you explicit permission to sell to them. Don’t waste that opportunity. Start sending emails on a regular schedule—weekly or monthly works well for most agents. Frequency isn’t nearly as important as consistency, so choose a rhythm and stick with it. 

Now, email marketing is not about being obnoxious and spamming people with high-pressure sales messages. That’s the quickest way to end up with exactly zero people on your email list. Instead, add loads of value (see #1) and, from time to time (but not very often), highlight a particular problem you know your audience has—and then offer to solve that problem with a product you sell. Easy peasy! 

If you don’t have an email list, it’s easy to start growing it:

1. 1. Develop a useful piece of content. For example, you can write up an eBook such as, “The Smart Consumer’s Guide to Life Insurance” or a checklist like, “10 Things to Know Before Your Teen Gets a Driver’s License.” 
   2. Add the content to your website. Instead of just posting your eBook or checklist, require people to provide an email address before they can access it. This is called “gated content,” and it’s the backbone of a successful content marketing strategy.
   3. Send an automated email series. When people download your gated content, add them to an email series targeted directly to them—just five or six emails welcoming them, giving them additional valuable content, and eventually inviting them to set up an appointment.
   4. Write compelling headlines. Prospects seeing your name in their email inbox is helpful on its own; top-of-mind awareness is important in our busy, cluttered world. But getting folks to actually open and read your emails is the goal—and the first step is writing great subject lines. 
   5. Add new subscribers to your ongoing list. When the welcome series runs its course, the new additions to your email list can drop into your regular list.

Also, make sure everyone in your current database receives your ongoing email communication—not just new subscribers!

Mix it up with video content.

According to research, more than half of consumers want to see more video from the brands and businesses they support. Plus, 89% of video marketers report good ROI, and video marketers get 66% more qualified leads per year.

Your videos don’t need to be Oscar-worthy epics, either. Here are a couple of simple ideas: 

• Take out that fancy computer you carry around in your pocket, make sure the lighting and sound are decent, and spend a minute answering a question you get a lot. (Seriously: A minute. People’s attention spans aren’t great, and they’ll appreciate a quick and helpful tip.) 

When you’re volunteering in your community, shoot a quick video highlighting the nonprofit you’re serving—not how great you are for serving them—and share it with your social media followers and email list.

Claim your Google My Business profile.

It doesn’t matter how stellar your website is if you’re not getting any traffic. Investing in Google Ads is one way to increase visibility quickly, but it can be expensive. Our favorite free way to get more exposure is Google My Business (GMB). 

People who want to work with a local agent are likely typing into Google something like  “insurance agent [your town]” or “car insurance near me.” If you don’t have an accurate GMB listing, chances are slim that you’ll show up in those search results. 

Manage your online reputation.

Online reviews are the new personal referral. You may think I’m overstating that, but it’s pretty tough to exaggerate: 88% of people trust online reviews as much as they do personal recommendations. If you’re in a neighborhood or community group on Facebook, you’ve no doubt seen this in the real world. How many times in the past month have you seen someone post, “Anyone have a recommendation for a plumber? Roofer? Daycare? Dog sitter? Restaurant?” Tons. 

The point is, people vet businesses online before they ever pick up the phone: they browse your website, they check your social media accounts, and they hunt for reviews. If you’re not asking your current clients to leave reviews on Google, Facebook, Yelp, and so on—you’re no doubt missing sales.

Nurture referrals.

Just because online reviews are important doesn’t mean you should stop engaging in referral marketing for insurance agents. What you should do, though, is develop an intentional referral strategy targeted at realtors and lenders. These natural referral partners can blow the lid off your business. We’ve seen it time and time again. Still, it can be frustrating to build those relationships. 

Until now.

Grow Your Referral Business with RECAMP

With RECAMP, you get a proven referral system to skyrocket your success. Attend one of our free webinars to learn how you can save time and put your referral program on autopilot.