I probably milk leads more than anyone . . . and it pays off . . . enough of the time to keep me going. Perhaps that is why my lead cost is under $5, my cost of acquiring a new client is around $80 and my ROI is 5:1 or better.
But even I question how to drop a prospect without booting them in the butt.
I just made my "last call" to 5 leads I have been nursing for up to 6 weeks. These are folks who took enough of my time and showed enough of an interest to keep asking questions.
They all have one thing in common.
They weren't ready to buy when they initiated their inquiry.
One of the leads told me he had already bought from one of those hot shot phone mills. (My words, not his). They applied for the GR Copay Select.
That is not my choice, especially in this situation, but it was too late.
The lead came in at 11:06 AM and a proposal went out within 5 minutes. It was read at 12:58 PM and I called while he was looking at my proposal.
That's when I learned he had already applied. I pointed out that his wifes meds (Vytorin, Tricor, Wellbutrin, Nexium and Lexapro) will not be covered by the Copay Select plan.
"Oh no, he countered. The guy on the phone told me they would be."
And you believed him?
"Sure, why not"?
I can think of a couple of reasons. Perhaps he didn't know and wanted to make you feel good about your decision. Or maybe he did know and just wanted you to feel good about your decision.
Tell you what. I am going to keep your file open for now and will call you back in a few weeks if I don't hear from you first. That will give you time to receive your policy and see who is correct.
Fair enough?
"Fair enough".
So today I called. Got his voice mail. Reminded him who I was and of our earlier conversation.
And then I said something different.
I told him I would close out his file if I did not hear from him by the close of business today. It felt so good I decided to do it with a few other calls.
I don't expect all of them to call and beg me to work with them. Perhaps none of them will.
Just wondering how many of you issue a last call and how you handle it.
Nursing leads for 6 weeks? I know I have some leads around here from 2001, try nursing them for 6 years! ha ha { I never throw anything away, I'm a pack rat. I have my insurance license from 1986 somewhere around here... }
I do put folks on my Constant Contact list and leave them there for up to 6 months unless they opt out or can their email. After that they are history.
AOR is a good idea I have thought of (and done) before. But sometimes my brain just goes dead . . .
Bob, When it's apparent someone is not going to buy now I normally say "Jim, it looks like I'm not going to be able to help you right now" (and I always put, an ever so slight, emphasis on right now. "Jim, things do have a way of changing over time, with that in mind, do you mind if I check in with you from time to time"? They never say no. I then put them on my drip program.
I think it might have been you in a previous post that said the key is being in front of someone at that moment when they are prepared to buy or make a change in coverage.
Once I get a prospect who has the ability to buy and has average intelligence I never let them go.
Sometimes, I'm tempted to send all of the leads I don't sell (obviously, quite a few) an agent of record letter to sign. I would emphasize that I am local, independent and have years of experience.
I don't do that, because I assume it is not legal. Or is it?
Sometimes I forget my own advice in the heat of frustration. I can't believe how foolish some folks can be and will simply take what the agent tells them at face value without checking.
And yes, timing is everything.
Ed (Chumps) -
I can't imagine why it would be illegal (or even immoral) to ask for an AOR letter. Heck, I might even start doing that as well.
Of course since you sell 80% of your leads how many more clients do you really need?
Why ask for an AOR letter before they are qualified for coverage?
What would be in the letter. I think getting someone to sign an AOR before finding the product they are interested in as a way of marketing would be strange. What do you think of the level with you close Ask them If they are looking for insurance when the answer is yes then say I'll make you a promise. I wont hard sell you anything If you promise to make a decision on one of the many plans I have to fit your needs/ budget today. I have had very little success with mailings advertisement ect. I need more business as well as we all do. With as many professionals as there are in this community we should be able to encourage ideas that will bring us all more business.
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"The difference between the almost- right word and the right word is.....
the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning."
-Mark Twain
Bob,
I know Ehealth cannot be superceded with an AOR change. I wonder if some of the higher producing "phone mills (love that)" have a similar arrangement with GR and possibly other carriers?
I know many of you disagreed me on this point once before but I think in the current political climate, the phone mills are adding fuel to the fire against what we try to do for customers as quality independent brokers. With these calling centers and what's starting to happen to Mega, people will have very little sympathy to the brokerage community due to the large volume of bad apples.
Re: Last Call - don't think that will helpGo to Top
Bob,
One more thing, I'd recommend you send out a letter to all these prospects versus giving them an ultimatum last call.
I don't think the customer buys it. I know if it were me I'd think: "what, if I call next week instead of by the end of the business day today he won't do business with me?".......Right!
Just a thought. I think a letter would be better saying that they should contact you if things transpired as you predicted. Also, tell them where to look in the policy materials. Some people get the ID cards and then shut their health insurance light switch off without checking. They want this over with.
Re: Last Call - don't think that will helpGo to Top
Originally Posted by newmindfashion
Bob,
One more thing, I'd recommend you send out a letter to all these prospects versus giving them an ultimatum last call.
I don't think the customer buys it. I know if it were me I'd think: "what, if I call next week instead of by the end of the business day today he won't do business with me?".......Right!
Just a thought. I think a letter would be better saying that they should contact you if things transpired as you predicted. Also, tell them where to look in the policy materials. Some people get the ID cards and then shut their health insurance light switch off without checking. They want this over with.
ahh, it's all psychology. He doesn't say he won't do business, he doesn't say he won't reopen the file. He provides some wording that sounds like a final thing. Some will welcome this, "Hey Marge, that silly insurance guy finally says he'll stop calling if we can ignore him one more day", some will say, "Oops, Marge, we really need to finalize on our insurance coverage that we've been procrastinating on, or else we'll have to start over again, and deal with the phone ringing off the hook for six weeks. Let's call".
You always want to give an individual a 'call-to-action'. This does that. May not work, but it definitely can't hurt.
Last Call
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