Insurance is About More Than Premium Costs
If you sell insurance, you know that the right insurance is not always the cheapest insurance. But your potential customers may not see it the same way. That’s especially understandable with those who have never needed to file a claim; experience has not yet taught them that being properly covered will save them money in the long run. And for consumers in financial straits, it can be hard to see the forest through the trees when every penny counts today.
An important part of your job during the sales process is to help leads understand why it sometimes makes more sense to choose insurance with a higher premium. This can start with how you initially begin your conversation.
Framing the Conversation
“Before I ask any questions, I want to let you know that my goal is to help you find the right insurance so that you are covered the way you really should be. I’ll be able to present you with different options and can share my experience and expertise to help you make a great choice. Does that work for you?”
Adding just a few sentences like this at the start of your interaction can go a long way toward helping a customer get on board with a value-first approach. You haven’t mentioned price at all, you’ve only talked about them getting the “right insurance” and making a “great choice.” You’ve aligned yourself with them as an advocate. This helps set the expectation that value is what they are shopping for, and you are going to help them find it.
Starting with the Right Questions
Next, let’s say your customer is shopping for auto insurance. Instead of launching into the usual questions about make, model and year, try starting with an open-ended question like, “How important is this vehicle to getting around in your daily life?” For many, the answer will be “very,” and you’ve just gotten them to remind themselves of this fact. You are now set up to sell with a focus on coverage features as opposed to solely on cost.
If the answer is “not very,” that’s also good information to have. Do a little more probing and you may find that there is a sentimental attachment where you can attach a value proposition (“So this isn’t your primary vehicle, but it sounds like the car means a lot to you…”), or you could suggest using cost savings on this vehicle to offset adding value-based coverage on a different policy.
Continuing a Value Focus
As you continue your conversation, make it a point to talk about features and qualities that are not related to price. This could be mentioning how easy X company makes it to get insurance cards and file claims or how solid Y company is in terms of their reputation and financial stability or how quickly Z company sends out their adjusters and pays out claims.
This is not to say that you should avoid talking about price entirely. Price nearly always matters to consumers, and it’s important to honor that. It’s just that there are few instances when price should be the only reason someone chooses an insurance policy. Most important is that they are adequately covered so that if there is a loss, they will be able to resume their lives as quickly and fully as possible.
Many people will gladly pay a bit more for insurance products if they understand the value of what they are getting in return. Your job is to offer and explain what that value is, resulting in better coverage for your customers and a healthier bottom line for you.
Ready for some new prospects? Hometown Quotes has fresh leads for insurance agents all around the country. Give us a call at 800.820.8921 to learn more.
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