Do direct mail campaigns still have a place in modern insurance sales and marketing? Absolutely. Never underestimate the power of an old-school approach to health insurance sales. In a world dominated by online communication, it’s easy to forget that direct marketing campaigns using well-crafted insurance prospecting letters are still the most efficient, effective ways to prospect for new insurance leads.
Strategies for Writing an Effective Insurance Sales Letter:
1. The details matter – start with the envelope:
Insurance marketing letters that work must make a great first impression. Unless it’s a birthday or holiday, a prospect’s mailbox is usually filled with a collection of bills, advertisements, and assorted “junk mail.”
How often do you throw away a letter without even opening it, assuming that it’s just an unsolicited sales pitch? Your sales success begins with designing an envelope that catches a prospect’s attention and compels them to open it.
To make your envelope stand out, try these insurance marketing ideas:
- Depending on the scope of your marketing campaign, personalization is best. Handwriting an address on an envelope already eliminates the impression of a mass mailing. If your campaign is simply too extensive, consider using a font that looks like handwriting might be helpful.
- Consider a promotion that you can advertise on the outside of the envelope - such as “free offer inside” – but make sure you follow through with what is promised, and that the promotion falls in line with marketing regulations and guidelines.
2. Take your time:
Research your target demographic and direct your marketing campaign at a specific niche in the market.
Whether you are buying a list of insurance leads from an industry source, or pulling from your own book of business to explore additional products and services, you should be clear on who your audience is and what their particular needs are. Take your time writing and editing your letter to make sure your message is clear.
3. Putting a face to a name:
Consider adding your photo to your company logo and letterhead at the top of your prospecting letter. Not only does it draw interest, but adding an image allows prospects to put a face to your name, helping to inspire trust and a more personal connection.
4. Personal Introductions:
Buying health insurance is a very personal decision, and your introduction as a trusted adviser should be equally personal. The first paragraph of your insurance sales letter should be brief with 1-2 sentences at most.
Try to offer potential customers a quick glimpse into your integrity, expertise, and desire to help them find insurance solutions that meet their individual needs. Demonstrate your personal commitment to helping them find the right insurance solutions for their specific circumstances and explain why you want to work with them.
5. Make your contact information easy to find:
Scatter your contact information throughout the letter, giving your prospects every opportunity to call, email, or text you for more information. Offer your website and social media usernames so prospects can research your business and learn more about you and your products and services.
6. Choose your words carefully:
Use words that will motivate your prospects to take action, and appeal to their need to save money, improve their lives, and protect themselves and their loved ones from unexpected medical expenses. Explain that you can provide custom solutions to their insurance needs, but avoid hard selling techniques.
7. Remember your objective.
The goal of sending this insurance prospecting letter is to get someone to contact you. You aren’t selling a product yet – you are selling yourself as the right person to help them. You want prospects to read your letter and think of you as a credible source of information. Make sure your letter represents the best of who you are and what you can provide.
Lead Generation
Before you send insurance prospecting letters, try to create enough buzz for your brand so that potential customers will feel compelled to open your letter when it arrives. Using online lead generation strategies can make a big difference in your sales success, and building name recognition will encourage prospects to open your insurance sales letter and call you.
Explore methods of marketing to ensure that by the time your letter arrives, prospects will recognize your name. Use your online presence to establish your brand:
- Design a professional and consumer-friendly website.
- Host webinars and informational sessions that will help establish you as an insurance industry expert.
- Take advantage of SEO (Search Engine Optimization) keywords that can build your rankings and credibility so that potential customers searching for solutions to their insurance needs will find you.
- Use social media and networking sites, such as LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, and Snapchat to build your brand and develop professional relationships.
- Develop a referral program.
Follow Up & Measure Results
A sale can originate from an effective insurance sales letter and will hopefully close after a potential customer contacts you for more information.
Qualifying a prospect is the first step in determining if the prospect is in a position to take advantage of your products and services. Once you understand the customer’s needs, it will be up to you to take advantage of the opportunity and close the sale.
On average, a 2-5% response rate on direct mail campaigns has traditionally been considered a success. Track your results. Measure how many calls you receive, how many sales are closed, how much revenue was generated, and how many referrals you get.
Find out what exactly captured your prospects’ attention and inspired them pick up the phone to call you. Determining what worked and what didn’t in your direct mail campaign can help you plan insurance sales and marketing promotions in the future.
To get the best results from direct marketing campaigns, take the time and effort to design insurance sales letters that will introduce you as a trusted, knowledgeable source of insurance sales information. Sales success often depends on the quality of the prospecting leads and the communication strategies you use to convey your brand. Insurance marketing letters that work will result in a prospect contacting you, giving you the opportunity to make a sale and further your brand recognition.
