The definition of upselling according to Business Dictionary.com is a ‘sales strategy where the seller will provide opportunities to purchase related products or services, often for the sole purpose of making a larger sale’.
This makes upselling sound like a dirty word and not a benefit for the client. In fact, upselling can increase your customer satisfaction and retention by providing necessary coverage through risk management techniques that will allow you to meet or surpass your customer’s satisfaction.
How many times as an insurance agent has a client asked you “Why didn’t you tell me about XYZ coverage?” after a loss?
The secret to successful upselling is to provide a potential loss scenario to the client that illustrates the possibility of loss or injury that could affect that individual client or his/her property.
Upselling should not be a sales strategy but instead a path that walks a client through specific peril filled obstacles with the idea to diminish the client’s exposure through avoidance of risk, mitigation of risk, transfer of risk and acceptance of risk.
Let’s face it, insurance is only necessary after the time of a loss. When the expected coverage is not there, the client blames the agent. The average agency loses around 20 percent of its non-retained clients base due to disappointment with coverage at the time of a claim. The customers that receive the proper coverage at the time of a claim are one-third more loyal than other customers.
By not upselling, an agent is failing to attend to his customer relationship and let’s not forget that the documentation of upselling is also a tactical approach for errors and omissions protection.
Read more: http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/upselling.html
Written on August 23, 2017 by Peggy Corbett Open Post
One of the most overlooked and profitable client is right under your nose…your existing customers.
Many of these loyal clients represent an untapped source of new business and the good news is that these clients already know you, trust you and you have a proven track record with them.
Cultivating your existing client base not only increases your business but enhances profitability by lowering the cost of customer acquisition and increasing retention. Customer retention is exponentially multiplied by every additional policy that each customer has with the agency. It also fosters loyalty to the agency and deters the customer from shopping with their “other” agent.
While there are no statistics on how many independent agencies are actively cross-selling to their customers, many experts say they’re not doing it as often as they should—in spite of the fact that their survival in today's customer-driven environment may depend on it.
Below you will find keys to prospecting and retaining your existing client base.
Awareness
Know your customer – What are their needs, assets, concerns?
Identifying the answers to these fundamental questions will help you provide the appropriate coverages and policies for each customer’s individual needs. By knowing your customer and their needs, you can build a customer profile of their personal and economic data. Also, recognizing your customer’s “triggers”, such as when the customer’s child is about to turn 16, allows you the opportunity to provide invaluable information and advice on necessary additional coverages or policies.
Continuously Update
Update customer information continually. Remember that knowing your customer’s needs and concerns of three years ago may not represent their current needs and concerns. Also, keeping an accurate, up-to-date client list containing both a mailing, phone and an e-mail address is an essential building block for any successful marketing initiative. This may sound easy, but it frequently is not.
Reach Out
Connecting with your customer on a regular basis not only secures that customer to your agency but also provides the best opportunity to cross sell new products or upsell existing coverages. Ask your client’s how they want to be contacted – mail, email, phone or text – and use this method. No one wants to receive a phone call at work when they have specifically told you that their preferred method of contact is email.
Act, React and Repeat
The challenge of any marketing campaign is that they are easy to start but hard to maintain. Therefore, it is essential that after you create and execute a marketing plan, you measure the response and adjust accordingly to sustain a repeatable model for growth. Be sure to be consistent. You can always accelerate your campaigns but you definitely want to avoid an inconsistent start-and-stop cycle. In any event, keep in mind that the more repeated and continuous your communications, the better your results are likely to be.
Written on July 17, 2017 by Peggy Corbett Open Post