Cold calling has always been a surefire way for insurance agents to net new clients and expand their reach. Like most businesses, insurance companies have taken a huge hit from the COVID 19 pandemic. The lack of face-to-face communication has made it much more difficult for insurance providers to generate new leads and boost sales.
Innovative companies have shifted their focus to cold calling, which gives them the means to spread awareness and increase profitability without any physical interaction. Cold calling is nothing new to insurance companies, but most of them haven’t quite gotten the hang of things. Through cold calling, insurance agents have the opportunity to market and explain their policies to prospective clients and boost insurance sales.
In today’s post, we’ll be highlighting a few cold-calling tips insurance agents should employ for better lead generations.
1. Have a Mirror in Front of You During the Call
We know it sounds dumb, but having a mirror in front of you during your cold call really helps. Of course, the person on the other end of the line can’t see you, so why do you need a mirror? Well, looking into a mirror during your cold call will help you maintain a great big smile.
Believe it or not, smiling during your cold call actually helps you sound and feel happier. Go ahead, give it a try and see for yourself. Sounding happier makes you more pleasant to speak with and enables you to pitch your product much more effectively.
2. Get Your Timing Correct
Timing plays a crucial role in determining the success of our cold call. Calling someone at 7 AM to tell them about your different insurance policies makes no sense. People are grumpy and tired in the morning, and you’ll likely get a flat-out rejection.
The same goes for cold calling prospective clients late in the day when most of them are tired from work. Studies say that the best time to cold call prospects is between 4 PM to 5 PM in their local time. That’s when most people are done with work and are either prepping to go home or are on their way home.
Your chances of success are almost double if you time your calls correctly. Also, remember it’s 4-5 PM, their local time, not yours.
3. Do Homework on Your Contacts
A blind approach to cold calling rarely translates into any results. Cold calling isn’t as simple as dialing random numbers on the keypad and hoping for the best. If you want to generate solid leads, you need to do proper research on your contacts before touching the dial.
You can research your prospects by:
- Visiting their websites and social media pages
- Reviewing their industry niche and checking out what kinds of products and services they offer
- Learning their business history and their customer base
- Reading online review sites
A little research will go a long way in helping you learn about your prospects and help you seal the deal. This is especially true for commercial clients who run various businesses. For regular clients, you’ll have to learn as much as you can about them from their social media.
4. Create Personalized Scripts for Your Contacts
The worst mistake most insurance agents make is having a single script for all their contacts. The problem with this is that the conversation sounds boring and somewhat lackluster. Instead, consider creating personalized scripts for each of your contacts.
Before you can create personalized scripts, you need to know your contacts intricately, which leads us back to the previous point. A personalized script makes the prospect feel special and is a show of commitment to service delivery quality.
5. Avoid Talking Yourself Up
There’s no point in having a 10-minute-long conversation that ends in a flat rejection. Talking themselves up is another mistake most insurance agents make, and most are oblivious of it.
Here’s how to cold call without talking yourself up:
- Start by briefly introducing yourself and the insurance company you work for
- State the reason you’re calling them and how you learned of their business or them
- Explain how the insurance company can benefit their business or improve their lifestyles
- Ask them if they’re willing to meet in person so you can discuss details and work out a deal
If you’re good, you should have everything done and dusted in no less than 30 seconds. Even though you’re selling insurance, you should think of it as selling any other product, like Medicare, for instance, over the phone.
6. Focus on Customer Engagement
Don’t focus too much on selling the product and forget to have an actual conversation with the contact. If the phone call becomes more of a one-way monologue, there’s a high chance it’ll end in rejection. Instead, focus on having a meaningful two-way conversation to enhance customer interest.
You need to show actual interest in the prospect’s issues and demonstrate how your insurance policy can help address them. Listen to their concerns and answer each question carefully and adequately. If you’re having trouble engaging with your contacts, you can use open-ended and follow-up questions to help the conversation.
7. Remain Optimistic While Cold Calling
On your desk, write down a couple of positive self-affirmations about yourself. Believe it or not, constant positive self-affirmations boost your self-confidence and motivates you to do more. This will go a long way in helping you remain positive and keep you motivated to pitch your insurance policy to prospective clients.
If written words of affirmation don’t work for you, try watching a couple of motivation videos on YouTube. Both will achieve the intended result of keeping you cheerful and optimistic.
No Rejections and More Conversions
The above cold calling tips are all you need to take your insurance sales through the roof via effective lead generation. Say goodbye to rejections and brace yourself for a barrage of sale conversions. Just remember to keep polishing your cold calling scripts for even better results.
For other informative reads, be sure to check out the other pieces on the site.
