While gaining new customers is essential to growing your insurance business, you shouldn’t forget about another potential source of income: your existing customer base. your existing customers know and trust you. they will most likely like the service you provide (after all, they are still your customers).
If you offer more than one type of insurance product, they may also benefit from those additional services. You can encourage them to purchase additional insurance policies through cross-selling.
Reading: How to cross sell insurance
The thing is, cross-selling insurance can be awkward at first. You don’t want to sound too pushy and end up annoying your customers, and you don’t want to sound like you’re pestering them to buy a service.
This article reviews some of the best ways to cross-sell your insurance products and keep your customers happy.
See also: Are Breast Lifts Covered by Insurance?
When done right, cross-selling can improve customer relationships
Believe it or not, a good cross-selling strategy can strengthen the relationships you have with your existing customers. And satisfied customers are more likely to renew their policies with you year after year.
One way to ensure your satisfaction is to continue to ensure your physical and financial well-being. cross-selling allows you to do just that. At the same time, you benefit from cross-selling, which gives you a way to generate more revenue without having to find and sign on new customers.
When you do it the right way, cross-selling isn’t an argument for getting more money from your existing customers. it’s about adding value and providing solutions to the insurance-related challenges your customers face.
See also: Are Breast Lifts Covered by Insurance?
cross-sell vs. up-sell
Whether you’re new to the insurance industry or not, chances are you’ve also heard of the term “upsell.” Some people use cross-selling and up-selling interchangeably, but they are two different concepts. Up-selling is the practice of encouraging your existing customers to purchase comparable but higher quality products than those they currently have or are currently looking to purchase.
Basically, when you upsell, you’re looking to get your customer to spend more money. For example, if you know that one of your clients is recently engaged, you can suggest a rider in their homeowners or renters policy to protect the engagement ring.
Both cross-selling and up-selling offer distinct benefits when it comes to selling insurance. You also don’t have to choose between one or the other. When done right, they can be mutually beneficial, allowing you to deliver maximum value to your customers while increasing your revenue.
See also: Are Breast Lifts Covered by Insurance?
what is cross-selling in insurance?
Cross-selling is the act of selling products that are related or complementary to those that your current customers already own or use.
For example, you cross-sell prescription drug coverage to an existing Medicare customer as a way to keep costs down. Another example might be offering an auto insurance policy to a current homeowners insurance customer to bundle their policies and help keep costs down.
See also: Are Breast Lifts Covered by Insurance?
how to easily identify cross-selling opportunities
To effectively cross-sell insurance, you need to be able to identify opportunities. One way to do this is to take a look at your customer database.
Look at the insurance products they’ve purchased and see what supplemental products they don’t already have that might be beneficial in your situation. here are some examples to consider:
- a customer with a homeowners insurance policy but no flood insurance
- a client with health insurance but no dental or vision coverage
- a client with a medicare advantage but without a hospital indemnity plan
- a client with medicare supplement but no dental plan or medicare part d
- a health insurance customer who has a child about to turn 26 (and will need their own insurance policy)
- a homeowners insurance client who recently had a child and may benefit from a life insurance policy
- an auto insurance customer who recently moved out of his parents’ house into an apartment and could use a renters insurance policy
- change in policy: any change in an existing policy offers an excellent opportunity to cross-sell products, whether your customer is starting a business, buying a car, or buying new one. home.
- Policy Review: Not everyone has the time (or has the time) for a proper insurance policy review. Make the process easy by preparing a few questions ahead of time that will allow you to uncover potential opportunities based on any changes in a customer’s life. For example, if a customer is considering switching to a new company, he or she may be able to cross-sell insurance products with bundle discounts.
- Major Life Events: Some complementary products become relevant as current customers age or reach certain milestones. New homeowners may need to consider a homeowners insurance policy, or older clients may need to reevaluate their life insurance policy. keep track of major life changes and open a dialogue when they happen.
- free agent
- hold
- safe
- radial bob
See also: Are Breast Lifts Covered by Insurance?
11 insurance cross-selling tips
The first time you try to cross-sell insurance products, you may feel uncomfortable. Rest assured, you’re not the only agent who feels this way.
however, with a little practice, you’ll learn to do it more naturally and effectively. The more you implement good cross-selling strategies, the easier it will be to showcase complementary and related products. here are some tips that can help you.
See also: Are Breast Lifts Covered by Insurance?
1. start the conversation early
See also: Credit Life Insurance | Bankrate
You want to respect your customers and take care of their immediate needs first. don’t miss the opportunity to start the conversation about additional insurance products sooner rather than later. the longer you wait, the less effective your efforts may be. If you don’t initiate the cross-sell discussion within the first 30 days, you may not make those sales.
Note, however, that you should look for clues. If it’s not the right time to sell more insurance products (for example, if the customer is upset or in the middle of filing a claim), plant some seeds, but don’t make a big deal out of it; , follow up later after signing up.
See also: Are Breast Lifts Covered by Insurance?
2. let your customers know everything you sell
If your customers don’t know you sell particular products, how can you expect to sell them? this is an easy problem to tackle.
Let your customers know everything you have to offer. When you sign in for the first time with a new customer, tell them about all your products. You might even consider going one step further and creating an inventory of your offerings and making it available on your website, social media pages, and a brochure.
Another option to consider is updating your phone’s message hold to include information about your product list. that way any waiting customers will be able to hear what you have to offer while they wait for you to answer their call.
See also: Are Breast Lifts Covered by Insurance?
3. ask your customers questions
talking to your customers offers an effective way to learn more about them and their needs. they can also help you identify cross-selling opportunities. To this end, naturally include relevant questions in your authentic conversations.
When you ask questions, you show your customers that you really care about them, their health, and their financial well-being, which is great for building relationships. at the same time, it gives you a great opportunity to learn as much as you can about them. the more you know, the better equipped you will be to serve them and offer additional products to meet their unique needs.
As you discover opportunities, increase your customer’s awareness of the particular product you want to sell. have an idea of his interest at the same time. this allows you to position yourself for another sale, which may not necessarily happen at that time. there’s a good chance that if it happens, it will happen a little later.
4. don’t be pushy
As you ask questions and gather information about your customers’ insurance needs, resist the temptation to be too aggressive. hard selling techniques are rarely effective, and may even end up pushing your customer to look elsewhere.
Take the time to learn about their needs and explain what you offer. but give them enough space to process. let them know you’re here when they’re ready.
See also: Are Breast Lifts Covered by Insurance?
5. discuss potential savings opportunities
For your customers, one of the biggest benefits of cross-selling insurance is that you can offer them discounts for bundling policies. Some policy combinations can save clients up to 25%, so this is a major selling point for you and one to mention frequently.
Most insurance agents like to discuss discounts when they hear about insurance opportunities. instead, you can get a head start by discussing the availability of multi-policy discounts early on.
It’s as easy as saying, “I know we’re sending you a quote for a homeowners insurance policy today, but we offer discounts if you have something else you’d like us to insure. Would you like to know more?”
>
Listing your available discounts is a great way to let your customers know about potential money-saving opportunities should they be interested in purchasing another insurance product. an agent
6. discuss common misunderstandings
If your client came to you for one type of insurance policy, they may not be familiar with another that you are trying to cross-sell. Maybe they’ve had car insurance for years, but are just buying their first home and new to homeowners insurance. If you were a renter, you’ll need to know how property damage works on your homeowners policy.
or consider someone new to life insurance. Many people underestimate the amount of life insurance they need and others misunderstand the difference between term life and whole life coverage. As you cross-sell, be sure to address these common misconceptions so your customer can better understand what you’re offering.
See also: Are Breast Lifts Covered by Insurance?
7. take advantage of social networks
See also: What Is the Cost of Full-Mouth Porcelain Veneers?
If you’re not on social media yet, you should be. Platforms like facebook, linkedin and twitter allow you to connect with current and potential customers alike and let them know everything you have to offer. You can create a variety of posts for each of the products you sell.
make sure your existing customers know your social handles and follow you. this allows them to share your posts on your own, which could potentially connect you with other customers outside of your base.
One thing to keep in mind is that it can be difficult to measure the direct ROI of social media. Regardless, it is an excellent opportunity to make known everything you have to offer them. plus, every connection you can make with your customers helps. the more they see your product selection, the more familiar they will be with it.
See also: Are Breast Lifts Covered by Insurance?
8. leverage an email list
Email marketing is another essential piece of your digital marketing strategy and presents a huge opportunity for cross-selling. Here, you can send out newsletters or blog posts that offer educational content about the various policies you sell. This gives your clients the opportunity to learn about other types of insurance without feeling like they’re in a high-pressure sales conversation.
You can even segment your email lists in ways that allow you to strategically send emails to different groups. For example, you might have a list of customers approaching age 65 who would benefit from educational content about Medicare. Or you can email homeowners insurance policy holders that cover add-ons like earthquake coverage. you can be as specific with your email lists as you like.
See also: Are Breast Lifts Covered by Insurance?
9. keep an eye out for opportunities
Instead of waiting for your customers to come to you when they need something, stay in constant contact with them. That allows you to make sure they have adequate coverage and point out any dissatisfactions or uncertainties they may have before they feel the need to change their policies. here are some opportunities to look for:
See also: Are Breast Lifts Covered by Insurance?
10. use a reliable customer relationship management system
The success of your cross-selling will largely depend on how well you keep track of your existing customer information. You need to be aware of their ages, the types of cars they drive, where they live, their home ownership status, if they have dependents, what policies they have, when those policies expire, and more. That’s a lot to manage, and it can quickly become overwhelming, especially as your business grows and you acquire more customers.
No one can expect you to remember everything on your own. You can make this challenge much easier by investing in a reliable customer relationship (CRM) system. Not only will you be able to quickly pull up a log to see what products a particular customer has, but you’ll also be able to see vital information and past communications at a glance. it’s a great way to identify the best opportunities for your individual clients.
When it comes to using a crm, it is important to know that each crm system comes with its own features, and there is no single crm for all insurance agents. There are out-of-the-box CRM solutions as well as CRMs specially designed for insurance agencies. what works best for one agency may not work best for you. If you’re looking for CRM software to get started, here are some common solutions for insurance agents and agencies:
See also: Are Breast Lifts Covered by Insurance?
11. keep track of customers who seem interested
While you’re having conversations with your customers, always be prepared to follow up. take notes on policies they seem interested in or upcoming major life events that could change their needs. When you have your regular registrations around renewal time, it’s also a good opportunity to mention some of the additional policies you’ve discussed in the past.
See also: Are Breast Lifts Covered by Insurance?
be patient and opportunities will arise
It’s understandable that you want to take advantage of opportunities as soon as they arise. after all, if you don’t, you might lose them, right?
Cross-selling is a unique selling situation. It’s not like you only get one chance to close a deal. You’ll have multiple opportunities to interact with a customer, so don’t worry about trying to fit everything into one conversation. that’s a sure way to complicate things for you and confuse your customer at the same time. instead, be patient. remember to ask questions and plant seeds along the way. The more you talk about potential cross-selling opportunities with your customers, the more you cross-sell. It may take a little time, but it is well worth the effort and patience.
See also: Are Breast Lifts Covered by Insurance?
more clients allow more opportunities
Cross-selling insurance products can help you grow your business and increase your success. the more clients you have, the more opportunities you have available to you. As such, lead generation is vital. let nectar be your source for real-time insurance contacts. When using the online platform, you can use preset or custom filters to ensure you receive high-quality leads that make the most sense for your business.
plus, potential customers connect with an agent (you!) who delivers what they need. they get a more personalized great experience, which means they are more likely to convert. you can grow your business and continue to identify new opportunities along the way. when clients and insurance agents win, it doesn’t get any better than that.
If you’re looking for more opportunities to grow your business and continue to provide the best possible service to your customers, nectar is here for you. sign up today to start the process. With more quality leads, you can convert more quality customers, allowing you to achieve higher levels of success.
See also: Are Breast Lifts Covered by Insurance?
