101 Sales, Marketing & Agency Management Ideas

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Be Kind. No matter how educated, talented, or rich you are, how you treat people ultimately tells all. – Jonathan Friedland, Universal Property & Casualty Insurance Company
Be happy! Be happy with who you are! Be happy to represent your company! Be happy to help an agent/client with their needs! Life is too short to be stressed and unhappy. Work with a smile — it translates in your voice and in emails. – Debbie Simpson, QEO insurance Group
Be Creative. Creativity is a sales and marketing professional’s biggest asset. The more you can use it, the less effort you will need. – Carli Ackerstein, Marquee Insurance Group
Scientific Method. Selling insurance is too important to do with any method not based on science. – Frank Pennachio, ReSource Pro
Customer Focused. Prioritize customer service with 24/7/365 access. Offering 24/7/365 customer access can improve agency profits and value, as well as reduce expenses – all while easing the talent crunch on agency staffing. – Tony Caldwell, One Agents Alliance
Recruiting Is Sales. Brand Identity + A Strategic Plan = Successful Recruiting. What makes your agency unique? What makes your opening different? What is the candidate’s long term opportunity? These answers build your brand identity. – Mary Newgard, Capstone Search Group
Remember the Fundamentals. Amidst all the new tools and tech, it can be easy to overthink. Remember the fundamentals and stay true to your plan. Know your customer, your desired geography, how you want to show up in the market, and use data to track, learn, and adjust. Then become intentional about how you enable marketing efforts to meet your customers when, where, and how they want. – Chris Cline, Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America.
Get Paid. Account managers/CSRs are on the front line with clients every day. They should be paid for new business account rounding and presenting leads to other departments, if the new coverage is written. In personal lines we recommend a flat dollar amount per policy. In commercial lines or benefits, a percentage of the new coverage written, such as 10%-20% of the commission first year only, the amount paid depending on whether they do it alone or get help from a producer. – Catherine Oak, Oak & Associates
Riches in the Niches. Focusing some marketing efforts on a niche might seem like it will limit your potential prospects. In reality, specializing in a niche can make you a subject matter expert and the go-to insurance person for that niche, and it won’t exclude you from writing clients outside your niche. – Sam Nudelman, Firefly Agency
Building Trust. Customer trust starts at the very beginning. More insurance shoppers begin the buying process online and agencies need to build trust at the customer’s first click. Make sure your website is well-designed, easy to navigate and has clear contact information. When a customer reaches out via email or message, be responsive even if it’s just an acknowledgement of the request. – Robert Holt, National Association of Professional Insurance Agents (PIA)
Website Review. Remember that your agency website is not a “set it and forget it” proposition. Review it regularly for content, updated contact information, etc. Review it for overall look and feel at least annually, if not semi-annually. Once your agency’s website starts to look stale, that’s how your agency will be perceived overall by site visitors. – Doug Coombs, SIAA
Get Reviewed. Agents should encourage customers to leave online reviews, which both help prospects get more background on the agency and help boost an agency’s SEO. – Chip Bacciocco, TrustedChoice.com
Stop Fighting Social Media. Finally admit that social media is a non-negotiable and it’s more than a brand-builder, it’s a sales tool. – Nola Morris, Denim Social
Re-Purpose Your Customer Testimonials Any Chance You Get. As the famous copywriter Gary Bencivenga said, “Nobody buys without belief.” Customer testimonials are one of the best proof elements in an agency’s marketing arsenal. Make sure you re-purpose them any chance you get in emails, websites, brochures, etc. And don’t bury them on the bottom. Move them to the top, so your prospects keep reading! – Paul Ptashnick, copywriter & marketing consultant
Get Referrals. Every time agents have a win, such as a new sale, claim paid, exemplary service performed, a referral should be asked for. That is their hour of need and when clients are most likely to give you a referral or tell others how great you and your agency is. – Catherine Oak, Oak & Associates
Use Social. Utilize free social media marketing as much as possible. Taking advantage of platforms such as Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram can help expand growth easily and for little to no cost. – Brittany Shue, Burns & Wilcox
Be the Best. If you are going to do something, you should be the best at it!! We identify the strengths in our staff and put them in the position that will let them shine! Insurance is much more than sales and service. There’s technology and automation needs, training and operations, data quality control, ongoing client contact projects, legal and political, the list goes on and on! – Kristin Thelen, Bitonti Insurance Group
Embrace Today. “We need to write more easy main street business.” STOP! They don’t exist anymore … at least enough to have the size book of business you want. It’s a complex world, embrace it. The last few years have made the workplace, relationships, politics, the world, a more complex place. It’s not changing. Embrace it. – Greg Barcomb, Ten Eyck Group
Offer Flood Insurance. Flood is the most common natural disaster in the U.S. and too many structures are not adequately protected against this peril. Forward looking agents not only talk to all of their policyholders about flood insurance, they also understand the options available when it comes to flood insurance. – Craig Poulton, CEO, Poulton Associates LLC, owner of CATcoverage.com
Claims Opportunity. The best time to ask for referrals is at the time you deliver good claims service, a visit, a check, whatever. This is the purpose of insurance and it shows that the policy they purchased, did what it was supposed to in their hour of need. If the client is commercial, like an auto dealer, ask for the name of a few of their key competitors and ask if you can use their name. If a homeowner, get the name of a few neighbors, friends or family to refer you to. – Catherine Oak, Oak & Associates
Answer It. Pick up your phone when someone calls. Sure, it could be a scammer, but it could also be your next sale! – J.D. Babuder, RT Specialty
Be the Expert. If you have knowledge and expertise, use it, make recommendations, and when not followed, document it and confirm with the client accordingly in writing. I believe E&O claims can be avoided by being concerned with the customers’ financial security and trying to cover them to the extent one can — if they refuse or decline, fine. Just document it. – Frederick Fisher, Fisher Consulting Group
Audit Your Marketing Content. Audit your website, social media posts, advertising and outbound marketing for a 2:1 ratio. Two thirds of your content/promotion should be about them, one third about you. Highlight each in different colors. You might be shocked or pleased. – Marsha Egan, The Egan Group
Go Postal. Don’t be afraid to go postal with your marketing. In the world of so much of our marketing going digital, it can get lost in a sea of other digital marketing advertising and with many sites getting more in-depth with their privacy rules, your message may not be seen. With postcards, or other “old school mailings,” your target market is holding your information/message in their hand! Not only is it in their hands, it sparks something inside their brain rather than just another digital marketing effort. – Emmalee Sundet, Town & Country Insurance
Meaning of NO! I created motivational signage that says: “In sales, NO doesn’t mean never! Is it NOt the Right Approach? Is there NO Budget? Is there NO Time to Implement? NO can just mean NOt Now. It’s up to YOU to figure out what your client’s NO means. – Denise Dederich, Wisconsin Financial Group Inc.
Consider the Value in Doing Good. Build your reputation as a company that gives back to its community through charitable giving, leadership and volunteerism. You’ll attract new clients and appeal to prospective employees. Ensure prospective and existing agency employees understand the benefit of working for an agency and an industry rooted in protecting others and promoting social good. – Bill Ross, Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation
Passion Is Power. As you look to build out your book of business, follow your passions to find new niches. Consider expanding your business and your expertise in an area that interests you. Work with a specialty insurer in that niche and harness the power of the resources they provide like risk management know-how and vast claims handling experience. Visit prospects with these proven specialists to get familiar with operations and gain influence within your chosen niche. Growing your business in an industry you have a vested interest in can be rewarding both personally and professionally. – Larry Chasin, PAK Programs
Plan for the Future. It’s never too early to start perpetuation planning: Selling, merging, passing on to a partner or family member: there are more options than ever when it comes to agency perpetuation. Agents should start their perpetuation planning as soon as possible to develop roadmaps for every scenario. This ensures the business achieves maximum value. — Mike Becker, National Association of Professional Insurance Agents (PIA)
Use Sales Calls as a Content Creation Tool. One of the easiest ways for marketers to create content is to attend sales calls. During these calls, you’ll learn all about customer pain points, customer objections, hot topics, and much more. Marketers can use this information to write blog posts or LinkedIn articles addressing these issues to position your agency as a thought leader. – Paul Ptashnick, copywriter & marketing consultant
Renewal and Retention. After an agent establishes trust with a customer, they need to do more than just reach out to that customer once a year with a renewal invoice. Agents need to check in regularly to make sure their client’s risks haven’t changed, to share relevant tips and best practices, and to provide updates on how the insurance portfolio is being managed. – Chip Bacciocco, TrustedChoice.com
Do What You Love. Invest in your staff, get to know them, and lay the foundation for them to succeed at the highest level. Allow them to do what they love instead of putting them in a position that you need to have filled. – Kristin Thelen, Bitonti Insurance Group
Work Smarter Not Harder. Being true to your brand while staying up-to-date on all the latest trends can be detrimental to you in the long run. Work on new creative ways to spread your message while staying true to who your brand is and what you can offer.
Call Centers. Utilizing call service centers can save on agency customer service expenses, promote better support to clients with client retention benefits, reduce the need for hard-to-find quality full-time employees, and lighten the workload of existing staff members. – Tony Caldwell, One Agents Alliance
Multiple Visits. When I visit with an existing client, whether it’s a renewal or some follow up, I always try to visit one or two other businesses in the same area. I can generally use my existing client as a reference and I’m already in the area so it saves time and gas to try to pick up another client in the same area. – Steve Wilson, Steve Wilson Insurance Agency
Use CE. Continuing education is a powerful tool for referrals. You are the expert. You have a wealth of useful, relevant information about the insurance industry that can assist real estate agents in helping their clients. You can seek help to implement a CE program by finding a company that will manage it. This can save you the time you need to teach and build relationships with agents. – Megan Stevenson, Preferred Systems Inc.
Personalize It. Personalization is the future of insurance marketing. Customers who are matched to their individual needs are more likely to purchase, upsell, and cross-sell. Research from Accenture shows that 41% of consumers in the U.S. switch brands due to a lack of personalization or trust. Consumers are looking for brands that understand them and their needs through exciting new technologies that allow companies to provide better products and services. – Alice Shi, Finaeo
Mondays with Mia. Mia is a one-year-old mini poodle and comes to work with us every day. Each Monday we share a funny picture of Mia, which is our highest reached post each week. Our customers love to see Mia. – Rylan White, Star City Insurance Agency LLC
Simplify It. Insurance lingo is useful shorthand for the team, but prospects and customers don’t appreciate it. In your firm’s style guide, write simple explanations of your most commonly used terms such as limits, umbrella, blanket, endorsement or comprehensive. With this reference, your team won’t have to reinvent the wheel when communicating, and your customers will be grateful for real-world language. – Ronimarie Acord, Aartrijk
NFIP v. Private Flood. When quoting a National Flood Insurance Program policy, be sure to offer a quote for a private flood policy as well. Not only can you offer your customers broader coverage, but you can often offer significant savings over the competition. – Craig Poulton, CEO, Poulton Associates LLC, owner of CATcoverage.com
Demographics. You can use demographics to create personalized experiences. – Alice Shi, Finaeo
Outsource. Outsourcing customer access will also benefit those agencies that over or understaffed, while boosting efficiency, profitability and customer satisfaction. – Tony Caldwell, One Agents Alliance
Explore Niches. If you want to explore marketing to a niche, try finding Facebook groups related to your niche, genuinely connect and engage with group members, and create educational content for group members. – Sam Nudelman, Firefly Agency
Be a Social Seller. Do what you do best in insurance — build relationships. Social selling is using social media to sell a product or service and it hinges on relationships. Expand your network, humanize your brand and modernize your relationships on social media with a social selling strategy. – Nola Morris, Denim Social
Work Hard. Work harder to understand your insureds and prospects operations and then work hard to hone your craft in explaining the exposure properly to your company partners so they can get on board. – Greg Barcomb, Ten Eyck Group
Customization Requires Choices. We can have 300 cable television channels, 100+ channels through satellite radio, and subscription services with targeted news content. So, how is it that consumers are OK with going to an insurance agent that offers a single company’s products? Part of the reason can be attributed to messaging that is typically focused on a single characteristic such as price. Saving money does resonate, particularly during inflationary times. But studies show more than ever that financial security is critically important. So be sure that your messaging points out that true customization requires having choices and that is what you provide as an independent agent. Don’t assume that they know the difference! Dave Evans, Aartrijk
Individual Behaviors. You can segment your clients by observing their general behaviors. – Alice Shi, Finaeo
Sell Your People. Agents should spend at least as much effort and money to market their employee brands as they do their insurance coverages. On your website and in social media, express an authentic story (with video and photos) of what it’s like to work at your firm. Need ideas on what to say? Ask yourselves: Why should people work at your agency? Is it just for a paycheck? Or is there something else great going on that encourages people to stay? What do your people care most about? Happy employees will refer other happy employees — and great customers as well. Virginia Beach-based Prosper Insurance is an excellent example of a firm that gets this. Peter van Aartrijk, Aartrijk
Complex Risks. The successful businesses moving the world forward are complex risks and are looking for risk advisors who are up for the challenge. If you want simple and easy — find another career. – Greg Barcomb, Ten Eyck Group
Purchase/Sale History. By learning client sales history, you can more strategically cross-sell products. – Alice Shi, Finaeo
Distinguish Your Agency. Build your agency’s reputation by presenting your thought leadership in your key service areas. This can be done by relying on the expertise of your experienced agents. Regularly posting articles and content on social media, in particular LinkedIn, and commenting on relevant posts from fellow industry leaders, highlights the insights and expertise of your agency and its agents. – Rod Hughes, Kimball Hughes Public Relations
Raise Your Chances of “Going Viral!” Getting your content to go viral can transform your business overnight, but it’s kind of like lightning — you can’t really control where it will strike. There are things you can do to raise your chances: Know your audience, bring them in on the fun (create a piece of content and ask others to do their own version or participate in some way), make your content useful, and get the timing right (consider what’s happening in the news and other happenings that your audience will be aware of). – Kristen Nevins, Direct Connection Advertising & Marketing
Accuracy. Streamline your flow and work more efficiently with clients. Brokers can get to know their clients better and meet their needs faster and more efficiently through personalization. – Alice Shi, Finaeo
Communication Moves Business Forward. The ability to connect via technology is awesome and much needed, but face-to-face communication can be highly beneficial to developing a mutual understanding and a new relationship. – J.D. Babuder, RT Specialty
Be More than an Order Taker. Ask questions, delve deeper — covered insureds don’t sue. If you subscribe to the order taker standard and only get what’s ordered, you may not be liable, but you will be sued. What’s better, winning a lawsuit or not having one at all? Too often, insureds don’t know of code ordinance limitations, sewer backup limitations, etc. They find out when a claim is denied and that’s not when one wants surprises. I’ve always said, “I provide financial security. I let my competition sell some insurance.” – Frederick Fisher, Fisher Consulting Group
Consider a Specialty. Consider building out a specialty to diversify your books and grow your business. In addition to the industry based in your geographic area, look to your own industry expertise and passions, as well as those of your staff, when choosing a specialty market to explore. Developing a specialty can be a lucrative business decision for agency owners, but to be truly successful, be sure to partner with a specialty insurer who knows the niche, including its nuances, claims history, frequency, severity and more. – Lindsey DiGangi, Pennsylvania Lumbermens Mutual Insurance Company
Warm the Tummy. Send prospects a box of cereal, a pizza or a box of cookies. Tell them you’d like to meet for breakfast, lunch or a break sometime.
Get Involved. Volunteer for Little League, soccer, Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts, school band, school theater, or other youth activities. Get to know families in your community. At a minimum, you’ll have fun.
Emergency Response. Volunteer for local emergency response planning and lend your expertise.
Fly High. Hire an aerial advertising firm to fly a banner over a large local event. Rates run from $500 to $3,000.
Play Dress Up. Hire costumed character(s) to enact scenes from local history, literature, movies or theatre. Provide surprise entertainment in parks, downtown streets, at events. Film the sessions and post. Cost is from $150 – $200 an hour per character. Budget for more than once. Imagine lions, tigers and bears, oh my production.
What’s So Funny? Separate yourself from the slew of TV ads that try to joke about auto insurance. Market your agency as serious and not joking around about getting customers the right insurance.
Disaster Planning. Coordinate and sponsor local disaster planning and response seminars for your community. Bring in experts. Provide materials for families, small businesses and nonprofits.
Little Libraries. Sponsor a dozen or more little free libraries throughout your community.
Get Educated. Get your Certified Property Casualty Underwriters (CPCU) designation or Certified Insurance Counselor designation. Become a certified risk management, professional liability and/or cybersecurity professional.
Do Your Homework. Don’t go calling on a business client without having an idea of who they are, what they do, their history, and how you might be able to help them. This goes for existing clients also. Know what has happened and how things and personnel have changed since last time you met with them.
Be Prepared. Have your own detailed disaster recovery and business continuity plan. Reassure your customers that if there is a local event, you have the plan, backup and resources in place to remain accessible and help them in their time of need.
Google Alerts. Put a Google alert on your best prospects (and competitors). This will help you see what’s important to them. With prospects, it may give you a reason to reach out. With competitors, it’ll help you see what they’re up to.
Don’t Stop. I’ve found that many stop when they hear the word, No. They don’t really ask follow-up questions to find out why their client said no. Do they not have the time or money to deal with a new purchase now? Did you present the cost but not the value? I’ve found this approach works for sales and interpersonal relationships. – Denise Dederich, Wisconsin Financial Group Inc.
Support What Matters. Supporting those who matter — your partners, clients, employees, and your community — helps to establish who and what you value, and promotes ongoing success for your agency. Countless surveys and studies have demonstrated that the next generation is seeking rewarding work to make a difference in their communities while consumers want to do business with companies that care. – Bill Ross, Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation
Next Gen. Attract the next generation of talent — show them how your agency makes an impact: Give real examples and share stories about how you helped customers recover from an incident. Show the ways insurance helps people with the rebuilding process. The next generation of employees want to work for organizations that have an impact. — Mike Becker, National Association of Professional Insurance Agents (PIA)
Increased Revenue. Drive more effective sales. More insight into clients’ behavior and preferences can help brokers improve their targeted marketing and sales efforts. – Alice Shi, Finaeo
Reach Out to the Insurance Media. The insurance trade media runs on sources from within the industry. Reach out to an insurance trade publication about what you know, whether with a phone call, an email message, a social post, a news release, or a story pitch. That will let the editor know about your perspective, and if they use you as a source, you’ll make the insurance industry more informed. Charles Wasilewski, Aartrijk
Get Entertaining. Engage customers by entertaining them: Humor helps build a rapport and increases relatability. It also helps cut through the clutter and enables your agency to stand out. Find ways to inject fun ideas into your websites, brochures, presentation decks. One idea — instead of using all stock photos, see if there are any funny cartoons or amusing animal pictures that make your point. — Mike Becker, National Association of Professional Insurance Agents (PIA)
In Email, Style Equals Substance. In email communications, make sure the design is clean and the subject line is attention grabbing. In fact, the subject line is the most important part of your email, spend time crafting it. Use your agency’s colors and logo. You want to make sure the recipient doesn’t mistake your message for spam. – Robert Holt, National Association of Professional Insurance Agents
Email Testing. Consider using well-known marketing automation software to increase your chances of bypassing the spam folder. Don’t be afraid to A/B test two versions of an email and see which one gets a better response. And always proofread. Nothing diminishes your credibility like an email with grammar and spelling errors. – Robert Holt, National Association of Professional Insurance Agents (PIA)
Say No to Politics. Consider the wisdom of expressing your political views on your agency’s social media feeds (or anywhere online). Is there relevance to the success of your business by posting political opinions? Once you express an opinion, to the right or to the left, you may just alienate half of your prospective clients (not to mention your existing clients). – Doug Coombs, SIAA
Client Experience. Improve client satisfaction. Customers feel more special, valued, and appreciated with personalized insurance and service. – Alice Shi, Finaeo
Sales Training. Invest in sales training for your sales team, including the veterans and high-performers.
Target Markets. Invest in education for your sales team into your target markets and specialty accounts.
Quality Sales Managers. Invest in a quality sales manager who knows how to motivate and guide members to their goals.
Right Coverages. Talk clients into buying the coverages they actually need rather than settling for what you think they will buy. That is what a good salesperson does. – Chris Burand, Burand and Associates
Hit Ratio. Measure your marketing success by your hit ratio rather than your clicks. – Chris Burand, Burand and Associates
What’s Your Purpose? Include stories of the meaning and purpose behind your agency in your marketing. According to research from Liberty Mutual and Safeco Insurance, one in four recent agency hires was from Gen Z. Younger generations want to work with companies whose values match their own, and many say they would take a pay cut to do more meaningful work. Showcasing the deeper meaning behind what your agency does can help you attract the next generation of talent. This will be increasingly important as the next generation’s influence in the workforce grows and agencies need to increasingly compete for Gen Z hires more and more. – Dargan Thompson, Liberty Mutual and Safeco Insurance
Gaming. Make a game for prospective and existing clients — BINGO or digital prize wheel when they go your website. Games boost engagement and will also show who your top fans are.
Digital Tools. Make leveraging data more accessible. With the data analysis tools necessary for personalizing insurance, brokers can easily access reports on their performances and activities that will keep them informed and help them improve. – Alice Shi, Finaeo
Embrace Technology. Think about how you use digital tools as a consumer, then review how you might incorporate some of those approaches at your agency. Don’t stop there — consider how you might also implement digital tools to make your agency more efficient overall. If you don’t have an agency management system or customer relationship management (CRM) system, it’s time to learn how they can help you optimize your business. – Doug Coombs, SIAA
Guide Your Company. Your firm needs an editorial style guide. Why? Inconsistency erodes credibility. Document the correct formal and casual names for your company, phone number and address formats along with other company preferences. Does the firm name use “and” or an ampersand? Do you use “adviser,” which is correct, or “advisor,” which is popular? Ronimarie Acord, Aartrijk
Improve Hybrid Work with Collaboration. Create joint working sessions; the benefits can be very important when people are in separate locations. Use video conference for co-workers to complete tasks together. As you work on the projects, you can easily stop and ask questions and get feedback when stuck. – Robert Holt, National Association of Professional Insurance Agents (PIA)
To Know You Is to Trust You. Independent agents know a lot. They can use that knowledge to build familiarity and trust. One way to share that knowledge for the greater good is with a website blog. Potential customers who read what you know might be more likely to turn to you with a risk management or insurance question. Charles Wasilewski, Aartrijk
Automate Your Marketing. Maybe (just maybe) you don’t have the time to stay consistent with social media, craft the perfect newsletter each month, and follow up on every lead. You can save significant time and get better results by automating your marketing. The sky’s the limit, but three great places to start, include email marketing, social media scheduling and customer service. – Erin Dwyer, Direct Connection Advertising & Marketing
Boost Email Engagement. A few tips for improving your email response: segment your list (then keep it clean!); strengthen the design and visual elements of your emails; keep your messaging focused (craft easily-understood messages that are targeted to your freshly-segmented list of contacts); and structure your content so it’s easy for a reader to scan. – Kristen Nevins, Direct Connection Advertising & Marketing
Write Right. Those who use bad grammar or syntax are almost always unaware of it, but poor communication skills can quietly close doors. Online grammar checkers can help with simple constructions but are unequal to the complexities of English. Invest in your team with an online business writing course and keep those doors open. Ronimarie Acord, Aartrijk
Invest in Your Communities. Invest some of your marketing budget into community events. Make a commitment to a local nonprofit to sponsor an upcoming fundraiser where your agency will be featured. If you’re already doing sponsorships, brainstorm creative new ways you can support them to expand public awareness for the nonprofit’s mission and your commitment to community. Attending and supporting community events is great for networking, and your agency’s presence will last in the hearts of your current and future clients. – Alexis Holzer, Liberty Mutual and Safeco Insurance
Consistent Marketing is Key! Economic slowdowns happen, and we are facing the next one now. It’s important to remember that reducing efforts to generate new revenue only exacerbates the effects of a recession — and ultimately, the effect on your business. A few reasons to maintain your marketing budget (even during a downturn): you’ll send the message that your business is stable (while increasing brand recognition); you’ll avoid the dangerous feast-or-famine cycle; and slow periods can be a great time to rebrand or introduce new products. – Brad Nevins, Direct Connection Advertising & Marketing
Intend to Be Intentional. Too often agencies view the “race” to recruit top talent as a marathon with 10,000 entrants. It’s overwhelming and you will be lost in the shuffle. The best approach is to break down hiring needs into subgroups. Internal and external resources need to be utilized differently to hire an account manager, a producer and a leader. – Mary Newgard, Capstone Search Group
Clean Up Your Branding Guide — and Use It! A well-designed, consistent branding effort can boost your company’s recognition exponentially. Do you have a branding guide (and do you follow it)? It’s a great time to create one (or update the guidelines you already have) to ensure that all marketing collateral follows a cohesive message. This will help convey stability, reliability, and dependability. – Erin Dwyer, Direct Connection Advertising & Marketing
Work with Insurance Media. The best way to amplify your expertise beyond social media is to work with trade and industry media to publish contributed articles (where possible). You should also seek out opportunities to participate in media interviews on major industry trends and topics. Let journalists know about your background and what topics they cover that you may be available to comment on. This will showcase your agency’s knowledge and understanding of those matters. – Rod Hughes, Kimball Hughes Public Relations
Don’t Forget Local Media. Beyond trade and industry media, connect with local media. You may be able to contribute guidance and advice to your community on how they can best manage their risks and secure the right policy for their needs. Taking these steps will showcase how your unique insights and expertise can best meet the needs of current and future clients. – Rod Hughes, Kimball Hughes Public Relations
Vendor Help. Choose your vendor partners strategically. Vendors can be game changers for your agency. Before you leap, though, be very clear about the resources you’ll need to get the most out any service, along with the metrics you’ll use to ensure it’s a positive — and financially rewarding — relationship. – Dale Steinke, Liberty Mutual and Safeco Insurance
Take a Poll. Put a pop-up poll on your own and/or the local newspaper’s web site with one simple question about your community. The newspaper may even work with you to publish the results. Examples: What is your favorite local park? How often do you shop downtown rather than at the mall? What is the worst intersection in the city? What is the best outdoor public space for kids to play? What movie(s) or TV shows were filmed here? Which business has the best-looking outdoor sign?
Be a PR Expert. Put press releases and announcements on your website. Especially those about accomplishments of your people. It’s great for morale. Create a list of local media and send those releases to them as well. Tip: If your agency does charitable work, write a press release and upload it to: https://www.insurancejournal.com/charity/