Marketing out of the box?

[OCNobel]

Hello all,

My agency is based in Southern Cal. and we have been in operation a little over 6 months. I have hired a couple producers and we are ramping up but I have hit a marketing wall. The internet leads from Insureme, NetQoute, etc., are pretty used even if you are the first contact. Anyone having success with out of the box marketing tactics, like direct mail, door hangers, sponsorships etc.?

Tim Pine

 

[Survivor]

I've had some success spray painting my name and number on walls of homes and businesses around town.

Joking aside, I came home one day and a flier with a business card was hanging by a rubber band on the flag of my mailbox. It was for a porch screening business. I don't really want a screened in porch, but I sure looked at the ad. I liked it because when it's in the mailbox, its easily identified as "junk mail." It's in the mailbox with 3 bills, a bank statement, and two other ads. People cut to the chase. With door hangers, I usually don't pay them too hard of a look because when I'm getting home I usually have my hands full or have to get right to doing something. The "rubber banded to the flag" approach was just different I suppose.

 

[Alston]

I've found that sending thank you cards helps my closing ratio quite a bit.

I always send a thank you card when I "make first contact."

I either thank them for visiting my website or thank them for their time on the phone. I use very cheap greeting cards that are either blank or say "thank you." Of course, I include a business card in the envelope and a let them know what we can do for them.

I have definitely increased my closing ratio since I started using this simple technique.

 

[somarco]

I've found that sending thank you cards helps my closing ratio quite a bit.

That is an old fashioned, personal touch.

I like it!

 

[djs]

The problem is that there aren't many new ways that beat the old ways. You can definitely make a living working internet leads, but it will get very frustrating. Despite what claims are made, there is also a very limited supply of good internet leads. You can cold-call/telemarket, and do pretty well. You can work centers of influence / network market, very time consuming and slow to develop, but very effective.

And of course, you can do direct mail campaigns, but I haven't seen these pay for themselves, much less anything else.

My suggestion is to take a 30 second spot during the superbowl. You can probably get it for $2M if you compromise a bit. Hope the phones ring off the hook afterwards! Ohh, that's been done......

Dan

 

[moonlightandmargaritas]

Hit or miss "occasional" marketing will never do as well as a consistent, focused effort.

FWIW, here's what I do. One of my targets is pretty narrow, individual/family health insurance with self-employed and micro-business owners. I use it as an opening transaction (as a demand product) to gain entry to sell the boss further products like life, DI, etc.

I have two telemarketing gals call to see if they are candidates for what we do (in other words, they buy their own health insurance, not covered by spouse, on Medicare, uninsured, etc.)

If they are, we put them into our database.

They receive a contact from us once a month (direct mail postcard, phone call, email, then repeat).

When they're ready, they contact me. Not too sexy, but real effective (I'll do between 200-250 lives this year).

Thinking that there's a magic bullet like an every once in a while mailing or whatever that will be effective is naive, at best. It's all about doing it CONSISTENTLY. You've got to have a marketing plan.

 

[Agent Jeff]

I've had some success spray painting my name and number on walls of homes and businesses around town.

Joking aside, I came home one day and a flier with a business card was hanging by a rubber band on the flag of my mailbox. It was for a porch screening business. I don't really want a screened in porch, but I sure looked at the ad. I liked it because when it's in the mailbox, its easily identified as "junk mail." It's in the mailbox with 3 bills, a bank statement, and two other ads. People cut to the chase. With door hangers, I usually don't pay them too hard of a look because when I'm getting home I usually have my hands full or have to get right to doing something. The "rubber banded to the flag" approach was just different I suppose.

If it works that well there has to be a law against it.

 

[OCNobel]

I've found that sending thank you cards helps my closing ratio quite a bit.

I always send a thank you card when I "make first contact."

I either thank them for visiting my website or thank them for their time on the phone. I use very cheap greeting cards that are either blank or say "thank you." Of course, I include a business card in the envelope and a let them know what we can do for them.

I have definitely increased my closing ratio since I started using this simple technique.

I have been doing some of this, sending a thank you card with a starbuck's card, etc. but by sending a card to everyone that I get a lead from would definately increase that our reach and hopefully keep us on peaple's minds when it come around to insurance needs.

Thanks for the tip

 

[arnguy]

Mark, dot "cum?" You must be joking!

 

[moonlightandmargaritas]

I would encourage you to plug into a marketing system where you are doing everything that is necessary to build a biz. If you will prospect, and take care of customers with diversification, you will succeed. It does take a System and a Coach to help you take your biz to a new level.

BTW - there are some great ideas within this thread. I would just encourage you to THINK BIGGER about the overall picture!

Mark,

Let me ask you this. Do you ever have any kind of input that doesn't involve shilling/promoting/pushing your coaching and system products and services?

This forum, as well as most, benefits greatly from "givers". Seems like you are a "taker".