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An Insurance Agent's Guide to Finding Final Expense Life Insurance Leads

Lead Generation
May 3, 2022
7
minute read
Nectar Team
An Insurance Agent's Guide to Finding Final Expense Life Insurance Leads

Insurance agents have a prime opportunity to help clients by introducing them to final expense life insurance. What is your clients’ confidence level in their savings when they die? Are there adequate funds to cover costs for funeral expenses? Will there be something left over for their spouse, children, and grandchildren?  

Baby boomers are the second-largest age group after their millennials. By the year 2030, every baby boomer will be over the age of 65. With the median retirement savings for baby boomers just over $200,000, very few have large nest eggs to fall back on. That means there's a large market for final expense insurance. As an agent, you just have to know how to tap into it.

What Is Final Expense Life Insurance?

Final expense life insurance is designed for seniors. It pays a death benefit to their beneficiaries to cover funeral costs and other expenses, giving your clients confidence that they have eased the burden that end-of-life activities bring.

As an insurance agent, the simplest way to explain final expense insurance is to label it as a permanent life insurance option with a small benefit paid upon death. Some clients may refer to it as burial insurance or funeral insurance.

To understand the true value of life insurance, consider the sky-high cost of funerals. The median funeral expense in the U.S. is $7,360, but it can be much higher. Here are the most expensive states to have a funeral:

  • Hawaii: $14,975
  • California: $11,777
  • New York: $10,799
  • Oregon: $10,418
  • Massachusetts: $10,216

Most seniors who had life insurance through their employer no longer have that benefit once they retire. They may also not have enough savings to leave behind to cover funeral costs. Beneficiaries can use the final expense payout to cover anything they need, such as:

  • Burial services or cremation
  • Special vacation or trip
  • Nursing home care
  • Medical bills
  • Charitable donations
  • Inheritance for grandchildren or a child

Ultimately, final expense life insurance provides peace of mind that your clients' families won't need to worry about the burdensome costs of death when they're already dealing with its emotional difficulties.

Who Needs Final Expense Insurance?

The ideal client for a final expense insurance policy will be advanced in age or dealing with health conditions that make it difficult to qualify for any other type of life insurance policy. Individuals who always had life insurance through their employer but lost it in retirement are also ideal candidates for final expense insurance.

Final expense life insurance comes with a much lower premium than a typical term life insurance policy, due to lower coverage amounts. The amount of final expense coverage can range from around $5,000 to $35,000, but usually not much more. For your clients between the ages of 50 and 85 who want an affordable way to give peace of mind to their loved ones, final expense insurance is a great option.

How To Find Final Expense Leads

As an insurance agent, it is clear there is a big market for final expense insurance. How do you tap into this potential revenue stream? As always, it starts with finding good leads. Here are a few tips for finding them.

1. Use Facebook and other social media

There is a lot of potential on social media, whether it's, Facebook, Instagram, or other social networks.  According to Pew Research, 73% of users between ages 50 to 64, and 45% of those over age 65 use social media. To target these users for final expense insurance, it is best to use the platforms they visit most often (Facebook).  

On Facebook, it can start with simple posts about final expense insurance to get folks talking. Try to generate interest by posting data on funeral expenses and costs. You also want to think about how you could make use of Facebook advertising to get in front of clients as they scroll their feed. Try a few different angles and see what kind of traction you can get. You may be surprised to see the high hit rate a social media presence can bring.

2. Advertise on search engines and abroad

Every insurance agent needs a decent advertising and marketing fund. We already hit on social media ads, but Google Ads is another angle worth trying to boost your visibility in search engine results. You can target specific customers and geographic regions to try and get your ads in front of users. All your campaigns should be focused and targeted so you can easily analyze the results. Check and see what is working, what is not, and be ready to adjust along the way.

3. Cold-calling can still be effective

Cold-calling isn't as popular as it used to be, but there is still a place for it in insurance sales. Grabbing a listing of phone numbers and then hitting on them one at a time can be worthwhile for a few reasons. One, you can work on your final expense insurance sales pitch and see how prospects react. Second, you may come across one or two new clients in this glorified training exercise that can lead to an eventual sale. It may not be the most glamorous sales tactic, but cold-calling can be helpful.

4. Purchase leads from lead-generation providers

One of the best ways to get strong final expense life insurance leads is to purchase them from lead-generation providers. The key, though, is finding the right partner. Many lead-generation providers offer free leads online. These "free" leads usually come with requirements for what you need to sell, when you need to sell it, and so on. Plus, the leads aren't unique, meaning you're competing with many other agents who are seeking free leads.

The best lead-generation providers will cost something and include features such as:

  • Real-time leads, meaning potential clients looking to buy final expense insurance now, not a month ago
  • Unique leads, where the lead exists and has not yet been purchased by another insurance agent
  • The ability to target by geographic location and demographics
  • A feature to set a schedule for when you want or do not want leads

Purchasing leads is going to come at a cost, but it can also bring a much higher success rate when you work with the right partner.

5. Lean on referrals from existing customers and word-of-mouth marketing

There is nothing better than getting a call from a brand-new prospect who was sent your way by another client. Commonly known as word-of-mouth marketing or referrals, this is one of your best assets in the insurance industry. Your existing clients are your best marketing team — they can speak on your behalf, talk about how you take care of them, tout your great customer service, and more.

You can generate many leads from your existing customers. Talk to your client base regularly and build great relationships. Let them know you are accepting new clients and offering final expense insurance. As you post on social media, see if you can get them to interact with you in the comments. All this can lead to new clients coming your way without any advertising dollars spent.

Tips for Closing the Sale

Of course, getting leads is only half the battle. Insurance agents need to close the deal and sell their final expense policies, too.

To close the sale, talk up the benefits final expense insurance brings to the table. Highlight the fact that it's not only about paying for funeral costs and burial expenses. Your clients' beneficiaries can use final expense insurance for anything. Understand your prospects' needs and use that to close the sale.

Some things to consider when trying to close a final expense insurance sale include:

  • Talk to your clients about all the different ways their beneficiaries can use a final expense insurance payout. A loved one or grandchildren can even use the benefit to go on a vacation in their memory. The other thing to consider is that it can be a form of inheritance to pass down from one generation to the next.
  • Funeral costs are sky-high. When you consider the fact that most final expense insurance policies will have monthly premiums of $30–100, comparing that to a $10,000-plus funeral bill seems like an easy decision.
  • An older senior with health issues may think they don't qualify for final expense life insurance. Talk them through the easy application process. There's usually no medical exam required, and qualifications typically include simply providing information about yourself, your beneficiary, and paying the premium.

There are a lot of ways to make final expense insurance an easier decision for your client base.

Start Selling Final Expense Insurance Today

Now is the time to start to tap into the final expense insurance market. There is a lot of potential out there with your existing clients' networks, as well as what lead generation providers like Nectar can offer. If you want to get a head start on selling life insurance, we can help.

Nectar's real-time, unique lead generation software allows you to target life insurance customers in your area. You can control the type of leads you get and when you want to receive them. Get a jump on selling final expense insurance today with real-time life insurance leads from Nectar.

This article reflects the features of Nectar as of the date of publication. Features are subject to change at any time. This article is meant for informational purposes only, it is not a guarantee that using Nectar will help you achieve specific business or financial results and is not intended to serve as the sole recommendation for any business financial decisions.

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