Insurance Lead Generation And Conversion

Why Go Digital

The online shopping market is booming; 81% of shoppers conduct online research before buying and this gives you a vast top-of-the-funnel user base. But while 65% of consumers are ready to get automobile quotes online, they still want to talk to a human agent when it comes to insurance. This is because insurance is perceived as complex terrain, lacking the kind of intuitive and informative marketing which can drive direct conversion.

In this guide, we give you all the tools required to build a strong digital marketing strategy and launch a lead generation plan designed for outcomes. You will walk away with a deeper understanding of today’s policyholder, and how digital marketing can help you turn them into lifelong customers.

The first hurdle to overcome when marketing insurance on digital channels, is to cut through the online noise and garner attraction. Today’s consumer does not want aggressive messaging pushing them to buy. All of the 81% mentioned above – comprising 200 million American shoppers – want to do their own research, compare policies, and weigh every option before taking a decision.

So how do you approach this modern skeptical buyer? How do you provide all the information required, while also keeping it simple?

Here are eight best practices to follow to win the digital marketing game in insurance.

Start with your website

Invest in Search Engine Optimization

Put time and effort into blogging activities

Make use of PPC advertising

Plug in social media

Outline a video marketing strategy

Actively solicit reviews from your customers

Embrace the latest marketing technology

Start With Your Website

The website is the first touchpoint for online visitors and you need to engage them in 10 seconds; otherwise, they will likely move to another provider. Make sure your website is:

Fast (Google AMP optimized)

Secure (via HTTPS encryption)

And Mobile-Friendly (following responsive design)

Besides these three principles, ensure that you:

Don’t overcrowd with too many choices; focus on what’s relevant

Offer a comprehensive “insurance 101” resource or an interactive guide

Embed a quote comparison tool (and heavily promote it via paid ads)

Create video snippets explaining the different types of insurance coverage

Showcase recognition in the form of awards, reviews, and testimonials on the landing

Here is a responsive design example.

As mentioned, your website needs to extremely fast as 47% of your users will expect the page to load in under two seconds. Below is a sample insurance website’s speed and usability test.

If you’re looking for more ways to dress up your site, it is a good idea to have contact information on the top right corner which is scientifically proven to garner the most eyeballs.

You can also implement actionable features like Contact forms, Chatbots, and location-based recommendations to boost engagement.

Invest In Search Engine Optimization

Organic traffic will make up a big portion of your user base, which means the website should be easily searchable on Google. Remember, 93% of online experiences begin with a search engine, making it essential that you rank high in the list of the available options.

Follow these principles to help your insurance website appear in the first couple of pages of google search:

Incorporate SEO into title tags and meta descriptions

Opt for HTTPS instead of HTTP

Add schema markup so that Google understands your domain

Provide high-quality content with plenty of backlinks

Optimize images with detailed alt-tags

Here is a screenshot of Google SERP for a commercial intent based keyword.

Of course, Google assesses over 200 factors when determining search positions, and the results will take approximately a week to be implemented. Keep these in mind when adapting your website for SEO.

Put Time and Effort into Blogging Activities

Businesses often ignore the need for having a blog, especially in their initial years. Blogs will boost website traffic and also establish your authority in the domain, build trust, and convert you from being a service provider to a “go-to partner”.

For insurance, this is even more important as your blogs will give customers the required information before making a purchase.

If you are confused about what to write here are a few suggestions, depending on the reader’s position in the marketing funnel.

Attract

3 Things Every New Homeowner Must Do ASAP

Why You Need to Start Preparing for your Child’s Future Today

How to Create a 360-Degree Personal Financial Calendar

Engage

5 Reasons Why You Need Life Insurance

6 Things to Remember when Choosing Your Provider

Are You Eligible for ?

Convert

How to Read Between the Fine Lines of your Workplace Insurance Policy

Is your Medical Insurance Coverage Enough?

Don’t Put Off Renewing your Auto Insurance Policy

Make Use Of PPC Advertising

While a lot of your traffic will come from organic (making SEO critical), paid ads are also important, especially when prospects google phrases like “buy insurance” or “buy insurance at low cost”. For high-intent searches like these, ads will take up most of the search engine real estate, while for low-intent searches such as “do I need insurance”, no ads will appear.

Sample Search Results

While a huge number of people are clicking on these ads, the insurance industry has the highest average cost-per-click. You should work with an experienced PPC professional to ensure your investments are maximized.

When it comes to advertising content, we recommend focusing on renewals rather than on new policies as 70% of consumers are eager to save money at this juncture.

Sample Search Results

Plug in Social Media

A mistake made by a lot of insurance agencies is not measuring the impact of their social campaigns. Posts cannot be random and irregular; the same message shouldn’t be posted across Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Snapchat without considering platform-specific best practices. Partner with a social media expert to better target your content and audience.

Strategize Your Content
For ideas on the type of content you could post on social media, consider:

Tips on reducing insurance costs

Infographics on insurance buying procedures

“How to” videos related to your industry

Customer stories and testimonials

Updates on events and webinars

Target your audience
For ideas on the type of audience you could target on social media, consider:

Demographic Targeting

Interest Targeting

Behavior Targeting

Demographic Targeting

Interest Targeting

Behavior Targeting

Outline a Video Marketing Strategy

By 2020, video will make up 80% of all global traffic and this includes high numbers across geographies as well as B2B and B2C sectors. As a marketing professional, you can’t ignore the power of video for your insurance brand.

Here are our recommendations along with some examples you could look at:

Informative videos explaining how to find the best insurance rates, how to inspect a house for cracks, how to take care of automobiles, and more – the possibilities are endless. (See: https://www.zurich.com/en/corporate-video)

Policyholder testimonials which illustrate your brand values and also product efficacy. (See: http://www.anallianceforlife.com/testimonial-videos/)

CSR content showing your commitment to society, a major part of any insurance business. (See: http://www.aia.com/en/healthy-living/corporate-social-responsibility.html)

Actively Solicit Reviews From Your Customers

Research has continuously shown that buyers are much more likely to be swayed by reviews than ads. With 84% online buyers considering reviews as valuable as a friend’s recommendation, this is a great opportunity for you to push conversion.

To create a repository of reviews for your products, you should:

Email buyers and politely ask for a review

Make it a part of the after-sales process for new policyholders

Adopt dedicated software such as Review Us Now

Cross-link social media comments to the review platform

Embrace the Latest Marketing Technology

Once you have the larger lead generation and conversion strategy in place, it is time to select a martech stack which fits your business needs. Begin with email marketing, creating a regular line of communication with policyholders.

Email marketing can cover the following topics:

Seasonal guides for insurance purchases

Referral contests for existing customers

Automated follow-ups, renewals, and tips

Reminders and updates on loyalty programs

By automating the email marketing process as well as other steps in your marketing strategy, you can significantly reduce time-to-convert as well as the cost of new customer acquisition. Marketing automation will link the entire top-of-the-funnel to mid-funnel and bottom-of-the-funnel communication process, reducing friction across the buying journey and giving you full visibility. For insurance which has traditionally been an agent dependent industry, this can go a long way in reducing marketing costs while increasing leads.