 |
 |
|
|
Who are the easiest people to sell? Those who already know you and trust in you and your service. This begs the question, are you doing everything you can to keep your name in front of these people? Your clients are a huge asset, people's needs change, they have friends, family and business associates they can refer. Yet it doesn't stop there, what about the people who didn't buy from you initially? All sales are a timing business, make sure you get the most out of the time you spend working prospects. Stay in touch with them so as the time is right or their needs change you can close the sale. One problem here is the question of how much time to spend on someone who hasn't bought from you. At some point you will want to and need to move on to other prospects and clients, yet that asset is still there in your office. This is where an automated system is needed. Over the years the number of clients grows and you will not have time to follow up with them as often as you would like, much less stay in touch with the prospects that didn't buy. I have spoken with many agents who spend Saturday sending out birthday cards or yearly policy reviews and asked if they felt their time could be used more valuably? The answer is almost always yes but... The ever dreaded word, but, always seems to cost time and or resources. What they are doing is needed and valuable, but their time should be spent selling. Some agents hire others to do this and while this allows them to focus on other areas it may not lead to full use of data or the most cost effective. There are many ways to stay in touch whether it be a monthly or quarterly newsletter, birthday's, anniversaries, year policy reviews etc. Then there is the personalization, everyone wants to feel special. If you maintain a database of client information you can merge that will letters and emails to create personalized messages. This certainly isn't a new concept, however the more data maintained on clients and prospects the more personalization can be done as well as getting the right message in front of people at the right time. You will ask everyone in the process of quoting them if they smoke, and some will answer they have recently quit. That will leave them to be rated as a smoker, but if you track that data it can be used to contact them again in the future. At that time the case may be able to be placed at a significantly lower price and you do your customer a great service by letting them know. The same goes for those with certain health issues such as heart attacks, prostate cancer etc. It isn't always enough to contact the client or prospects a few times a year, but to know the right questions to ask when you do. Data is the key. Everyone has clients, but the top agents in the country take advantage of them. Without the data on them and a system to use it, the asset is wasted. Many people do not buy life insurance and just offer up referrals, but clients who feel looked after will be much more likely to refer others. Many studies have been done to determine how often to contact clients and I have seen agents be successful with aggressive approaches contacting clients more than once a month, while other agents will do three times a year. The key is to find the right balance that fits your selling style and the client. With VAM dB you automate the process of staying in touch with clients and prospects. The information you already have can be merged and sent autmatically via email or batch printed for letters to be sent. Over time as your client list and prospect list increases the more data you have the better you will be able to quickly and efficiently take advantage of opportunities. As new products are offered or companies adjust their underwriting guidelines, if you can quickly find your clients and prospects who may benefit from it your sales will increase. Those happy and well served clients are also the most likely to provide referrals. Make sure you don't let the most valuable asset in your office slip away. Get VAM dB FREE More Articles |
||
 |
 |
