Inbound insurance calls are great, you know what the person needs and you know they were sent to you because you can help them. However, if you had a way to make your call interaction better you would want to know, right? Below are 5 of my favorite tips for making auto insurance calls/leads more successful.
- Always ask the right questions
When you go to a place that changes your oil and they ask, “What can I do for you today?” – That seems like a silly question. You are obviously there to get your oil changed. Same goes for when someone is on a live call. Do not ask them how you can help them today. Instead, since you already know they are looking for auto insurance use more positive questions;
- What type of auto policy do you have now
- How long have you owned your car
- How many drivers are in your household
By asking the right questions you are giving the caller faith in you, your agency and gets right to the meat and potatoes of the conversation. After all they already know why they are there and they expect you to know the same.
- Follow up, quickly
It feels like I say this in every post, with auto insurance, it’s even more important. You know how many other auto insurers there are out there, how many other choices customers have. If it happens that you can’t close the deal during the initial call, make sure you follow up the next day. Don’t lose them because you were too busy, “forgot,” or you even wanted to wait until later in the day or give them the next day. Remember, we live in such a fast paced/I need it now world, that if you are not the first call your customer gets the next day, they will probably move on.
- Make the call experience a good one
This might seem obvious, but it happens all the time. You have the customer on the phone, you know they want to buy, probably even today, but you mess up the call and they move on to another agency. A study by the Claes Fornell International Group, found 26% of insurance customers who have had a bad calling experience said they will definitely switch companies. It’s pretty easy to not provide a bad experience, just make sure you are upbeat, knowledgeable and friendly. Be organized, don’t need to look for a pen or shuffle through papers. If you sound stressed the customer will hear it in your voice. So be calm, cool and collected, act natural, remember you are selling auto insurance not diffusing a bomb.
- Listen, listen and then listen some more
Listen to your customers! We are in a world of “It’s all about Me,” but with an inbound auto insurance call it’s not at all about you, it’s about your customer. They need you to listen to what they need and how you can help them. A truly successful and effective agent must care, and not just pretend to care, but legitimately care. Guess how you let the customer know you care? Yep you got it, by listening to them. Think about it this way, today they are buying auto insurance from you, but next year they may need home insurance, and just think who they will turn to, you, all because you listened and cared.
- Record the call
Call recording is becoming a necessary part of most inbound insurance calls. It lets you review the information later and see if there was anything you missed. Client questions and facts can be given a second look when doing a follow up email or if you have a question, the information is right there. Recordings take out the need to call back the customer if you did not write down the make of the car, and saves the communication with them for more important conversations.
These are just a few of my favorite tips for auto insurance inbound calls. If you have any others please share them. You can never have too many ways to improve helping your customers.