Top 7 Ways to Stand Out in a Crowded Market

If you’re anything like the hundreds of insurance agents I talk with every year, you genuinely care about your clients. You want to make sure they’re covered for every possible “what if” so they’ll have peace of mind and financial security. You’re responsible and ethical, and you work your tail off to bring your clients the most value you possibly can. And for all of those reasons plus the reality that you have to earn a living, you’d love to bring that same level of service to even more people. 

But there’s a problem: So does every other insurance agent in town. And there’s a lot of them. According to the most recent data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, you’re just one of 386,320 insurance sales agents in the U.S. No, they aren’t all your direct competitors, but plenty of them are—enough that you have to think strategically and market wisely to get ahead of your competition. 

#1 Update your Insurance Company Website

Most of your prospective customers will vet you online before picking up the phone to schedule an appointment. If your website looks like it hasn’t been updated in years, contains errors, isn’t mobile-friendly, or lacks meaningful content, you’re losing sales. 

Of course, it’s also crucial to regularly review and update your site to keep Google happy. If you don’t land at (or near) the top of Google’s Search Engine Results Page (SERP), your site is virtually invisible to prospects. So, how can you make sure you’re not buried on page four of your local results and convert more prospects once they find your site? 

• Use Search Engine Optimization best practices.
• Make it easy for people to do business with you by including a clear call to action on the top right of your site and in several other places on the home page. “Schedule an appointment”or “Get a quote” are ideal CTAs for insurance agent websites.
• Rewrite your website copy so it’s customer-centric. Your prospects want to know that you understand the problems they’re facing, and they need to hear how you’re uniquely qualified to solve them.
• Be sure your site is mobile-friendly, even if it means scrapping your current site and starting again. At least half of your prospects are searching for an insurance agent from their phone or tablet.

#2 Be Social

To get more customers, it’s helpful to go where your customers are, and where they are is social media. They’re not just sharing cute animal videos and engaging in political debates, either; they’re asking for recommendations for everything from restaurants to, you guessed it, insurance agents. In fact, half of millennials look for referrals when they’re ready to purchase insurance

So is it worth it to have a Facebook business page for your insurance agency? Most certainly yes—if you use it in the right way. 

• Don’t use your Facebook page to talk about you. Instead, use it to add value to your audience, sharing meaningful and helpful content. 
• When prospects and customers engage with your posts, respond to them. It’s called “social” media for a reason. 

#3 Use Google My Business

When your prospects go online to find an insurance agent, they’re quite likely typing “insurance agents near me” or “insurance agents in [your city name].” To make sure you’re included among the search results, you’ll need to have a Google My Business account. It’s free and incredibly effective for improving your SERP rank.

• Visit Google My Business and claim your page.
• Follow the simple, step-by-step instructions for setting up your account.
• When you complete the categories and business description sections, get specific. Listing yourself as an “insurance agent” isn’t going to set you apart from your competitors.

#4 Buy Digital Ads

It would be great if you could stand out from the crowd for free. But if you’re struggling to get traffic to your website, the fastest way to get the ball rolling is by purchasing pay per click (PPC) Google Ads and Facebook Ads. Although the specifics of getting started with PPC ads are beyond the scope of this article, both Google and Facebook offer fantastic “getting started” guides and customer support for businesses.

#5 Use Email Marketing for Insurance Agents

You may have heard email is dead, but that’s simply not true. Most customers actually prefer email to any other form of marketing. It’s a fantastic way to nurture prospects, build trust and authority, and win new business.

• Produce a valuable piece of content for your prospects that solves a problem they have. For example, create a PDF that lists the top 5 ways to avoid getting ripped off when buying car insurance. 
• Put the content on your website, but require prospects to give their email before they can access it. 
• Add those prospects to an automated email series that helps customers see that you understand their problems and shows how you’re uniquely qualified to solve them.
• Be sure to include a call to action in each email, such as “schedule an appointment.” You don’t need to be high-pressure, but it’s important to tell people what they should do next.

#6 Get Reviews

As reported by Outbound Engine, nearly 8 in 10 people ask for referrals from their friends or family before they buy insurance, and nearly 9 in 10 people trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations. But most insurance agents don’t take advantage of reviews a solid source of referrals—which means if you do, you’ll crush the competition.

• Develop a formalized process to reach out to current clients to ask for reviews and get them posted.
• If you receive negative reviews, don’t ignore them or try to delete them: Pay attention to them. Respond with authenticity and compassion, consider what merit such reviews might have, and make adjustments to your business practices when necessary. 
• Don’t just respond to negative reviews; thank people for their positive ones, too! When prospects see that you’re paying attention to your current customers, they’ll be more inclined to reach out to you. 

#7 Get Referrals to Your Insurance Company

Reviews will bring you some referrals, of course. But you can’t rely solely on friends and family to grow your business—you have to be intentional about seeking additional referral sources. RECAMP provides a simple and effective way to build natural partnerships with realtors and lenders. To learn more, register today for a free RECAMP webinar.