Whether you’re in the auto and home insurance industry or another type of sales, lead follow up systems have the same basic goal: to move and track leads through your sales life cycle. Hopefully you have several strategies in place already to generate leads into your pipeline or sales funnel, from referrals and cold-calling, to taking advantage of third-party resources.
Filling up your sales funnel and pipeline is a great first step, but if you don’t have lead follow up systems in place, your conversion rate will suffer. Many agents make the mistake of following up with leads and not having a structure in place to record a lead’s progress. Some lead follow up systems focus more on the short term, while others are geared toward a bigger picture long term. Good lead follow up systems are a mix of short and long term strategies.
1. Use Customer Relationship Management Software
The key for successful lead follow up systems is the ability to track and monitor your leads. The great news is that there are many customer relationship management (CRM) softwares available that do a lot of the heavy lifting. Depending on the software you use, you’ll be able to track all communication with your leads from phone calls to emails and even snail mail. Being able to click on a prospect’s name and see a snapshot of all recent contact with that prospect is essential for efficient and effective communication.
Using a CRM is also crucial if you work on a team and someone else may be connecting with your lead. You and your colleagues can stay on the same page and avoid duplicating emails and phone conversations. Smooth communication builds trust with your prospect and helps turn a lead into a sale. Not only that, CRMs are great for reporting stats each month or quarter and help you assess your efforts and where you might need to focus more of your time.
2. Introduction Email
An introduction email can be the most important piece of communication you send to a new lead. This is your chance to make a great first impression. Beyond the typical introductory greeting, don’t be afraid to get into why you do what you do. This is a good place to share why you’re passionate about insurance sales and what helping people means to you.
Even better, create an intro video that you can link to in your introduction email. It can be a simple video uploaded to YouTube where you’re sitting at your desk talking about why you love your job and what your goals are for new clients. The benefit of a video is your new leads get to virtually meet you on screen and feel like they’re getting to know you. An intro video lets your personality show and gives the lead a sense of connection which you’ll use throughout the sales cycle. With all intro emails, find ways (through your CRM) to automate them, so text can prepopulate and emails can be sent without much individual intervention.
3. Initial Follow Up Contact Within 24 Hours
After your first contact with a lead, the timer starts and you have about 24 hours before you should follow up with them with a phone call. This is especially important if your first contact with the lead was via email or other online messaging. It’s best to reach your lead by phone but at the very least, leave a concise and friendly voice message with a clear action step for them and a follow up plan.
4. Schedule an Action Meeting/Call
Once your initial introduction email has gone out and you’ve gathered information from your lead during the first follow up call or email exchange, it’s time to schedule a follow up action meeting or call. At this point, you’ve qualified your lead and have sent them information for them to review. This action meeting can be a time when you review quotes and rates, ask for clarifying information from your lead, and answer any specific questions your lead may still have. Ideally, you close the deal here, but don’t lose hope if a decision isn’t made yet.
5. Always Send an Email After a Call
Any time you speak with a prospect on the phone, you should follow up with a short email afterward. This is a great place to summarize your call and add any action items and timeline information to make sure you and your lead are on the same page.
6. Send a Nudge Email
Did your lead not answer their phone? Did they forget about your scheduled meeting? Or maybe you haven’t heard from them in a while. Sending a gentle nudge via email is a great addition to your lead follow up systems.Your email should contain a concise message checking in with your lead and asking them to connect with you. This is a great place to attach any documents or quotes you may have already sent. Don’t make them go through their inbox searching for previously sent attachments. Build out a set of template emails that you can reuse. There are even ways to automate these kinds of messages within your CRM.
7. Offer a Text/SMS Message Communication Option
More and more clients are opting into text/SMS messaging as their preferred mode of communication. Make this available to your leads as an option to stay in touch. The bonus, here, is that you can make sure your contact information is saved in their phone so that they can easily reach you or refer you to friends and family.
8. Send a Handwritten Note/Postcard
When it comes to personal communication, nothing beats a handwritten note. Incorporating a personalized note or postcard into lead follow up systems is an excellent way to build a connection with your lead. A simple thank you note after a lead’s initial contact will go a long way in building trust with your lead. Send personalized notes and postcards to your leads with anything from birthday greetings to reminders and new product or rate information.
9. Follow Up With Your Follow Up
You can be tracking your lead communications in CRM software and sending emails and postcards regularly. But if you aren’t following up on your action items for each lead, then all of the lead follow up systems in the world can’t help you. Build time into your weekly schedule for follow up action items. By reviewing all of your leads, you’ll be less likely to let anyone slip through the cracks.
Building lead follow up systems is only as good as your sales funnel or pipeline. Be sure to have continuous double-verified leads by working with HBW Leads. Let their technology and insurance experts get leads specifically for your business so you can focus on connecting with your leads and converting them to sales. Connect with HBW Leads today to learn more.