Agents Everywhere Are Turning To Drip Marketing. Should You?
Heard the term “drip marketing” lately? That’s not surprising. It’s become a buzzword in insurance circles. New web-based technology is making successful drip marketing more affordable and manageable than ever. And it’s helping some insurance agents turn more leads into big, fat commission checks.
Why Does Drip Marketing Make Sense?
Drip marketing isn’t a new strategy — and the concept is simple. Instead of one big concentrated marketing blitz, you create a long-term campaign that touches prospects repeatedly.
Many marketing experts claim that slowly and repeatedly engaging prospects with your message is a more effective way to get their attention. And if a success, the resulting leads are easier to manage.
Take a look at the “feast or famine” marketing model a lot of agencies use. They do an expensive mailing or place a big ad. If it’s a hit, their office is socked with incoming leads. They work like crazy… and they’re so busy some of those leads grow cold. Then suddenly it all dries up… and the office grinds to a halt while they try to scratch up another batch of leads. This strategy gets you by month to month, but it’s no way to successfully grow your business.
Drip marketing spreads your marketing effort out over weeks or even months. If you do it right, your offer stays in front of leads, helping you keep that “top of mind” position. And it turns cold leads back into hot prospects.
The New Meaning Of “Drip Marketing”
The old-fashioned way to drip market is effective, but it’s also time-consuming and pricey. It goes like this:
You send out a postcard. You follow up with an email. You make a bunch of outbound calls. More postcards. More emails. It can add up to a lot of typing, and a lot of postage.
But now agents have an easier way to stay in front of prospects. Drip marketing tools make the process automatic, and affordable.
The solution is called email autoresponders. Check out how they work:
- You get a new lead. The lead arrives — it’s either an internet lead you purchased, a lead from your insurance website, or it could be a lead you’ve manually entered into your lead management system.
- Your autoresponder fires off the first message. A new email message from you instantly pops up in the lead’s inbox. Your autoresponder program handles the initial contact… so even if you’re tied up, your lead is still introduced to you.
- It keeps on sending them. You choose how long you want to keep touching your leads, and how often. Follow-up emails can be spread out over weeks or months, each one featuring your personalized message. When your lead is interested in learning more about getting a policy, your email is right there.
With autoresponders you can create a campaign and just walk away. Or you can tweak your messages as often as you want to showcase a new product, or reflect the time of year. Some autoresponders are designed specifically for insurance agents, and can include individual health quotes in every email.
A lot of your prospects aren’t ready to buy that very first time you touch them. Drip marketing keeps you in the running to make that sale.
 Jeremiah Desmarais and his team have won 3 awards in 2006 for their marketing initiatives that touch Norvax' client base and carrier relationships on a daily basis. He is author of several white papers including the applauded ‘Selling Insurance Online: Identifying 9 Top Trends for 2006’, and has been a contributor to the Agent’s Sales Journal, Health Insurance Underwriter as well as a guest speaker at various carrier events and workshops. He is a member of the Society of Industry Leaders. He welcomes feedback at jdesmarais@norvax.com
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