Scroll down for a discussion on Lead Service - Shhhhh, Top Secret!!! within the Insurance Leads.
We've been using Seminar Direct for lead generation and seminar marketing over the past couple years. Our results are pretty consistent and we're very happy ...
We've been using Seminar Direct for lead generation and seminar marketing over the past couple years. Our results are pretty consistent and we're very happy with them. My mentor recommended them and I'm glad he kind of forced me to try them.
There is a huge difference between those asking the questions and those they expect to answer. The first few years are not easy and coming up with a system that delivers enough leads to work and make a living with is difficult. For most of us, we do not rely on any one source or method.
After you have been doing it a while you get leads from several sources, depending on your style. A phone oriented sales rep dials off of lists and makes sales, and they get referrals. I am not a phone oriented sales rep. I use a combination of direct mail, internet leads, and in the end get most of my sales from followup and referrals. Once you have a customer base the referral and cross selling opportunities fill the void and put you over the top,
The mailings and internet leads are just to fill in the voids, keep the funnel full so to speak, created new opportunites and replace lost business, not to be your primary source of business to fill the bank account. If you are depending and on any one single marketing method and you are relatively new, it is going to be difficult to grow your business.
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Chuck
If you think your boss is stupid, remember: you wouldn't have a job if he was any smarter.”
This is basically what I preach. New agents say "I'm just working internet leads." My reply is "so what are you doing with the other half of the day."
The truth is due to budget constraints most agents cannot buy enough leads to keep them busy 8 hours. This is when using other marketing methods comes in.
First, now you're working all day and secondly, you don't live and die on leads. If leads are your only source you're up and down with the quality of the lead vendors. Sometimes you're left hanging when that "great" vendor all of a sudden isn't so great.
The only way to avoid that roller coaster if internet leads are your only source is high volume. Even at that, you should use 2 or 3 vendors.
------------------------------------ Health Insurance Agents: Training, Support, Discounts, E&O for $440 www.ihiaa.com
The truth is due to budget constraints most agents cannot buy enough leads to keep them busy 8 hours. This is when using other marketing methods comes in.
This is what I am up against right now. I am still new, so I am living on the leads that the company gives me. I hate feeling that my life is based on their leads which seems like every body else is the area gets. So I have decided to not let that aspect of the job control my destiny, I am doing direct mailings which I have had a pretty good response with. (A member here said he would help with them, I email them to him a few weeks ago and never heard from him again, I hope they are working out well for him lol)
I LOVE old leads that are over a year old. To me, when I call a hot lead, it seems like I am the 10th person to call them, but when I call the old ones, nobody else has called and it is working out better, they seem much more willing to talk.
I LOVE old leads that are over a year old. To me, when I call a hot lead, it seems like I am the 10th person to call them, but when I call the old ones, nobody else has called and it is working out better, they seem much more willing to talk.
When I first started selling insurance, I was captive, the company was selling direct mail "leads" to agents for $25 each. I originally bought a few and then I came to the same realization you have.
I found out that they would give me the old, cold, "not any good" leads for free. I stopped buying them and took all of the "old, cold" leads they could give me. After that I was always in the top three agents for the month. There were 19 of us working out of that office.
You will do well in this business. You sound like a "real insurance agent", not just an "app writer".
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Medicare Supplement Sales Training and Coaching.
"The Perfect Contact Management Program (CMP) for the Insurance Professional" www.YourInsuranceOffice.com
877.633.0808
When I first started selling insurance, I was captive, the company was selling direct mail "leads" to agents for $25 each. I originally bought a few and then I came to the same realization you have.
I found out that they would give me the old, cold, "not any good" leads for free. I stopped buying them and took all of the "old, cold" leads they could give me. After that I was always in the top three agents for the month. There were 19 of us working out of that office.
You will do well in this business. You sound like a "real insurance agent", not just an "app writer".
Thanks
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Originally Posted by Frank Stastny
When I first started selling insurance, I was captive, the company was selling direct mail "leads" to agents for $25 each. I originally bought a few and then I came to the same realization you have.
I found out that they would give me the old, cold, "not any good" leads for free. I stopped buying them and took all of the "old, cold" leads they could give me. After that I was always in the top three agents for the month. There were 19 of us working out of that office.
You will do well in this business. You sound like a "real insurance agent", not just an "app writer".
Thanks Frank, I am trying.
Last edited by jaugusta : 01-26-2009 at 12:44 PM.
Reason: Posts merged
"Do or do not. There is no try."
- Jedi Master Yoda
But while you are doing, is that not trying to do what you are doing? At that point though, does it not become done and not doing? So if you are trying you are doing, but once you do you have done?
This is all good conversation. I know an agency that uses direct mail only. They send out about 5,000-10,000 mailers per month for P&C and achieve some great results. I watch them consistently put $40,000 per month in premium on the books (one agent). I can't figure out how they are achieving these results from direct mail alone.
I think the secret to their success is the quality of the mailing list. These mailers are being sent to the right people. I would estimate that the average cost is about $2,800 per month. Assuming an average 16% commission = $6,400. Not bad when renewals start coming in. Does anyone else know someone who is putting up that kind of revenue with only 5-10,000 mailers?
Whats are your opinions on Internet Leads now, VS 5 years ago?
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Originally Posted by p-adams
We've been using Seminar Direct for lead generation and seminar marketing over the past couple years. Our results are pretty consistent and we're very happy with them. My mentor recommended them and I'm glad he kind of forced me to try them.
Ive Never heard of them, How are they?
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Originally Posted by jaugusta
This is what I am up against right now. I am still new, so I am living on the leads that the company gives me. I hate feeling that my life is based on their leads which seems like every body else is the area gets. So I have decided to not let that aspect of the job control my destiny, I am doing direct mailings which I have had a pretty good response with. (A member here said he would help with them, I email them to him a few weeks ago and never heard from him again, I hope they are working out well for him lol)
I LOVE old leads that are over a year old. To me, when I call a hot lead, it seems like I am the 10th person to call them, but when I call the old ones, nobody else has called and it is working out better, they seem much more willing to talk.
DITTO!
Last edited by jparker : 02-20-2009 at 04:29 AM.
Reason: Posts merged
I very recently tried to use netquote for group health leads and it was the worst, most frustrating experience i had ever had, and only accomplished wasting money ($11 a lead). Not even one sale worked out over 4 months even though I had dillegently called each one as soon as it was e-mailed to me and followed up a week later. The problem was not the way that the callings were handled, but that the company had lbeen sending me either fake or inelligable group leads. If the group did not not have fake names like mickey mouse and george bush listed(I even recieved one name in a group where a prospective insured was named c*ckmeat sandwich and it took me an hour on the phone to get it credited back to me because they had initially declined to credit me) the groups were obviosly ineligable for group insurance because they were all one family under a fake company name trying to scam an agent for a cheaper rate.
I dont believe that leed services online can do anything more than waste valuable time and money.
I very recently tried to use netquote for group health leads and it was the worst, most frustrating experience i had ever had, and only accomplished wasting money ($11 a lead). Not even one sale worked out over 4 months even though I had dillegently called each one as soon as it was e-mailed to me and followed up a week later. The problem was not the way that the callings were handled, but that the company had lbeen sending me either fake or inelligable group leads. If the group did not not have fake names like mickey mouse and george bush listed(I even recieved one name in a group where a prospective insured was named c*ckmeat sandwich and it took me an hour on the phone to get it credited back to me because they had initially declined to credit me) the groups were obviosly ineligable for group insurance because they were all one family under a fake company name trying to scam an agent for a cheaper rate.
I dont believe that leed services online can do anything more than waste valuable time and money.
Anyone disagree?
You mean you've never heard of the c*ckmeat sandwich company? I thought they were moving into the Fortune 500 this year.
I've not only been using Live Transfer Leads over the last month - but it worked so well that the vendor kept asking me to give his new clients testimonies of how it worked. Well - I don't do anything for free - my time is worth money. So - instead of just being a reference - I became their exclusive marketer.
Here's my experience with these Live Transfers.
I buy 10,000 Calls a week at $125. I split the calls up 2,500 each day Monday through Thursday from 9am to 11am. They call out on 5 lines at a time.
On average - so far - this is the break down.
12 callers a day. 9 aren't even there - air - so I call them back later that day - but almost all of them say go away.
The remaining 3 - I'm able to talk to, ask qualifying questions and end up quoting 2.
Of the 8 I quote each week - I'm closing at least one. Last week I closed two - but the other one was from the week before that I followed up on.
Average Monthly Premium has been about $250.
So for $125 a week and $49.95 per month hosting fee - I'm creating $960 in first year commission and taking a $800 advance. Almost 7 to 1 ROI.
Mailer Leads work too . . . Expect 2% return if lucky.
Telemarketed Leads are the best for me - but they cost $30 each - so I don't buy but a few each month.
What I like about the Transfers is you could have a huge week and do better than average - just never know - but your cost is fixed.
No matter where you get the lead - it's all about the lead . . .
Tom
------------------------------------ [COLOR=Red]" If you must Hate - Hate the Game and not the Players"
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No matter where you get the lead - it's all about the lead . .
Tom
I disagree... "it is about the lead" is a cop out... an excuse...
So when one doesn't sell the contact, then the lead was bad... That is the mindset of all too many in this biz. Leads are nothing more than a track to run on... if you have the right train, know how to operate the train, and even when you get a totally bogus lead... someone is on the other end of the phone... So guess what, I ask them... "have you been thinking about some life ins lately...?" What I can tell you is that almost everyone will say NO to that question... but not everyone does...
Another example... I am not much of a fisherman, but I have caught some nice fish in my day. If I were to fish more often, I'd imagine I would catch more of them. e.g. more casts equals more chances... equals more potential fish.
OR, I could stand there and cast the line into the water and b*itch about how bad the fish are in the lake. OR, I coud just keep on fishin. I would imagine the latter would catch more fish. Like ole Henry Ford used to say... "If you think you can, or if you think you can't, you are right either way"
Bottom line is, leads are leads... work em like they are the oxygen in your air, and there are sales in those leads, no matter how terrible you could otherwise convince yourself the leads really are...
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"A successful man is one who can lay a firm foundation with the bricks others have thrown at him." David Brinkley
I agree that the success of leads depend on a host of factors - there is no holy grail as Al pointed out.
I'm of the view that leads are just that - leads. What an agent does with those leads is up to them. Some people are born closers, some can't close a door!
I liken my company to the Home Depot... we give agents the tools to build the home (or I should say write the home). Some agents do extremely well with our lists, others hate us because they are not closing.
For that reason, I tell our potential clients to get THEIR house in order first. I think a system has to be set in place to convert any kind of leads, before leads are bought from any provider.
We provide data on families nearing the first renewal date of their home. These families haven't were often locked into their first policy by the mortgage company, so they're paying too much, have no rapport with their current agent (many of them don't even know who their agent is) and haven't taken a close look at their coverage needs, so they are very receptive to a switch.
It's a prime group to contact, but again, what I find is that agents that have a good system in place and actively work the lists are doing very well - 7-10 new policies per month is not uncommon - but those that do not have those systems in place are doing poorly.
Re: Lead Service - Shhhhh, Top Secret!!!
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