Did you know there are roughly 36,500 independent agencies in the US?
That's a lot of competition. As an insurance agent, you need to ensure you're always staying ahead of the game and reaching leads that other insurance agents are passing by.
One of the ways to do this is by selling annuities online.
Marketing your services and selling annuities online is a great way to reach a wider customer base, better serve your clients, and forge ahead of your competition.
But how does one start? What's involved in selling annuities or other insurance products online?
Keep reading to learn more about the benefits of selling annuities online, and how to get started.
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The Benefits of Selling Annuities Online
Selling annuities online has a range of advantages over traditional marketing and sales techniques.
Here are some of the main benefits of marketing yourself online when selling annuities.
Reduced Costs
First up, online marketing is typically a lot cheaper than traditional methods.
Let's look at email marketing versus direct mail for instance. Although it does involve some costs, email marketing is renowned as one of the cheapest forms of marketing. What's more, it can attract an ROI of 4,200%.
With direct mail, on the other hand, you have to pay for printing costs, envelopes, postage, etc. You also don't receive the same depth of analytics as with email marketing. This makes it harder to tweak your campaigns to optimize results.
That said, this doesn't mean you shouldn't market via direct mail. Direct mail leads can be some of the best. What it does mean is you shouldn't focus solely on traditional marketing methods
Another example is Youtube Ads vs traditional television ads. TV ads placements are notoriously expensive, whereas Youtube ads can be fairly cost-effective, and don't require a minimum budget.
Additionally, Youtube ads are 84% more likely to gain attention than TV ads and trigger 1.4 times better brand recall.
Access to A Wider Lead Base
Another advantage of selling annuities online is it gives you access to a wider lead base.
Instead of being tied to only marketing to leads within a certain distance, your independent insurance agency can cast its net far and wide.
Of course, there are some restrictions. For instance, if you want to sell annuities to clients outside of your state, you will need to obtain out a license for the state they reside in.
However, even if you stay within your state, this can still give you a far wider range of leads than if you were tied to marketing to those in your city.
Better Targeting
Speaking of targeting, online marketing methods allow for much finer targeting than traditional avenues. With paid ads, you can target certain demographics, as well as people with specific interests, hobbies, income levels, etc.
Pro Tip: You can also take advantage of ad retargeting. The strategy behind ad retargeting is to show ads to people who have already expressed an interest in what you offer.
For example, if a visitor lands on your website, you can then choose to advertise your services to them. You can also display ads to people who have done searches around buying annuities.
By doing this you can target leads who have a better chance of being interested in your ad and clicking on it.
This type of fine targeting is not possible with traditional advertising.
The Ability to Better Serve Your Leads
Another powerful advantage that comes with selling annuities online is it allows you to better serve your leads.
Consumers want agents and providers to offer the same level of simplicity and accessibility that is common in other sectors. Consumers are also spending more time researching their options online, using social media to interact with brands, and leveraging price comparison tools.
Unfortunately, many providers and insurance agencies are lagging behind the times when it comes to how they interact and interface with consumers. Many still offer experiences that have limited integration between channels, lengthy form filling, and a lack of online services.
This contrasts strongly with the demand for online accessibility. According to reports, 71% of surveyed consumers did some form of digital research before purchasing their insurance. A further 26% bought their insurance online.
If you aren't marketing your independent insurance agency online, you're leaving leads and clients on the table.
What’s Involved in Building an Online Presence
Whether you are just starting an independent insurance agency, or are already established and want to branch into selling annuities online building a virtual presence is key.
Now that we've covered some of the advantages of selling annuities online, let's take a look at what's involved in building an online presence.
A Website and Landing Pages
One of the first places to start when building an online presence is creating a website and landing pages for your independent insurance agency.
Make sure you take your time over this and ensure that your site is well-functioning. You'll also want to take some time to optimize your landing pages.
Practices like A/B testing are important for ensuring you eliminate friction points and that you're getting the best conversion rates.
Content Creation
Another important part of creating an online presence is content creation. Content marketing is a powerful and cost-effective method for drawing new leads and providing them with value during the buyer journey.
Content Types Can Include:
- Blog posts
- Videos
- Infographics
- Guides
- E-books
Pro Tip: The key to creating effective content is to answer leads' questions and address their pain points.
Social Media Marketing
Social media marketing is another impactful way to build your online presence.
Start by ascertaining where your target audience hangs out, and focus on growing your following and engagement on these platforms.
Digital Ads
Digital ads are an integral part of online marketing. They also have an attractive ROI.
According to Google, marketers generate roughly $8 for every $1 they spend on Google Ads.
Whether you're selling final expense insurance, Medicare, or annuities, digital ads can help you reach new leads and draw them into your sales funnel.
Email Marketing
As mentioned above, email marketing has a fantastic ROI. It can also be a highly effective method for lead nurturing and relationship building.
Some of the key tips to implement are:
- Automating your email marketing
- Segmenting your list (eg new leads and repeat clients)
- Creating strong subject lines
- Personalization (eg addressing leads by their name)
- Having the right cadence
- A/B testing things like subject lines and CTAs
Pro Tip: To grow your email list, you can implement things like opt-in forms on your site, lead magnets, etc.
Online Seminars
Seminars have long been popular in the independent insurance agency industry for generating leads. Nowadays, you also have the option to hold online seminars.
These typically have better reach as you can target people in multiple physical locations.
Pro Tip: Be sure to keep your seminars engaging, otherwise, attendees will be quick to click away.
How to Incorporate Vetted Telemarketing Leads Into Your Online Strategy
If you want to start selling annuities online, this doesn't mean that you should ignore telemarketing. If you purchase high-quality telemarketing leads, you can draw these into your sales funnel.
A lot of online marketing methods take time to build and generate results. With telemarketing leads, you can tap into a source of sales to supplement your growth while you wait for your online avenues to mature.
Here at TR King, we offer agents who contract with us access to pre-screened telemarketing leads who have asked to be contacted about annuities.
By zeroing in on leads who have requested appointments, you can streamline your telemarketing efforts.
Instead of calling hundreds of aged leads who have already been contacted by various agents, you can speak directly to leads who are waiting for your call.
Whether you are selling Medicare insurance, final expense, or annuities, we can supply you with premium-quality telemarketing leads.
The Value of Training for Selling Annuities Online
As you can see, there is a lot that goes into successfully selling annuities online. If you want to start making sales fast, the best thing to do is invest in training.
One of the easiest ways to do this is by contracting with the right insurance marketing organization, also known as a field marketing organization, or FMO.
TR King is one of the country's leading annuity marketing organizations, and we are passionate about helping our agents succeed and grow their sales. Therefore, we offer VIP access to extensive, on-demand training and support.
Our training includes:
- Guidance on how and where to get licensed
- The basics of annuities and life insurance
- Information on what tools you need to succeed
- Lessons on advanced marketing and sales techniques for annuities
- Free resources and discounts
- Business best practices and the steps to starting an independent insurance agency
Because our training is on-demand, it's convenient to access and consume.
We are also a Medicare FMO, so if you want training on Medicare-specific areas we provide this as well.
Do You Want to Start Selling Annuities Online?
If you want to start selling annuities online, you have come to the right place.
The first step to success is partnering with the right insurance marketing organization.
Here at TR King, our agents' success is our main priority. We offer high-level contracts with all of the main carriers, and compensation is paid directly to you.
Carrier releases are quick and easy, and you also gain access to free contracting software, training, and many other discounted tools and resources.
TR King also gives its clients access to discounted, high-quality leads, and offers some of the best support in the industry.
Click here to get contracted today.
