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How to Perfect the First 30 Seconds of an Insurance Sales Phone Call Sales Enablement
Aug 31, 2021
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10
minute read
Generating insurance leads is not always an easy task. You may spend a lot of time on the phone before you close a sale. Some days, you may do nothing but leave voicemails and wonder if you'll get a single call back.
Whether it's following up on website leads, cold calling, or making a follow-up call about a previous conversation, you will undoubtedly leave plenty of messages for your would-be customers.
As those voicemails are often your prospects' first impression of you and your insurance business, they can make or break your sales. That's why learning how to leave great sales voicemails is critical to your business.
According to a 2016 study by the Sales Development Metrics and Compensation Research Report by the Bridge Group, an inside sales research and consultation organization, sales representatives make 8.2 attempts per prospect when trying to make a sale. With all that calling, you are sure to be leaving voicemail messages.
Despite what you might think, voicemails are still relevant even in today's digital world. Statistics from Pew Research Center show even though a majority of people do not answer incoming calls from unknown numbers, 67% of them do check their voicemail messages if that number left a voicemail. So, you may not be having a face-to-face conversation, but your voicemail message is still getting through in the majority of cases.
In an ideal world, you would reach every person you called without having to leave a voicemail. But, unfortunately, a report by RingLead shows that approximately 80% of your calls will go to voicemail. With so many of your calls going straight to a recording, voicemails should be a key part of your overarching sales strategy.
Before we get into the nuts and bolts of how you leave voicemails, consider the creative ways you can improve the voicemails you leave for prospective clients:
If you are making multiple calls and, in all probability, leaving numerous voice messages to the same prospect, change it up. Don’t always leave the same voicemail. Here are a few ideas of how you can change up your voicemail messages.
Plan out how many times you'll follow up with a prospect and what your message should be each time. Of course, you can’t keep trying indefinitely, but you don’t want to give up without giving it a reasonable effort. Very few calls get a response on the first attempt, and only a few of those calls get an answer on a second attempt. Your goal is to get a yes or a no. If you get a maybe, you should keep trying.
And just a word of advice: Don’t keep referring to your previous failed attempts. Make each call a new effort as if you were trying to reach them for the first time.
If you haven’t been getting callbacks from your insurance prospects, it could be that you need to work on leaving better voicemail messages. Here are 9 tips for leaving better voicemails to help you get started.
No one wants to listen to lengthy voicemails to get the information they need. People are busy, and there are a lot of emails, text messages, and more competing for their attention. You should aim to keep your voicemail messages short and to the point, somewhere around 30 to 60 seconds. If you go longer, the person you called may not listen to your entire message.
When you leave a voicemail, the recipient cannot see your facial expressions to help them interpret how they should receive your message. All they have to go on is your tone.
If you don’t know how your voice sounds to others, try listening to your own prerecorded voicemail message when you are out of the office. Listen to see how your voice sounds to others. It may sound cliché, but you should aim for others to hear a smile in your voice. You also want to speak clearly and loudly enough for others to hear. Practice recording your voice and listening until it sounds like one you want to hear on the other end of the line.
You may need to practice leaving messages a few times until you get your tone right. You want the tone of your voice to come across as confident, friendly, and helpful. Rehearse with a close friend and see how they receive your message. Train your voice to reflect the correct sales tone takes practice.
If you have ever been in a conversation with someone who tends to ramble, you know it's not a pleasant experience. Before the conversation is over, you're looking at your watch or out the window. You lose interest long before the conversation ends.
The same thing happens when you leave rambling voicemails, so keep them short and sweet. If you have multiple topics you need to discuss, wait for the callback to do that. Stick to one subject and be clear and concise in your message.
When you leave a voicemail message for a prospect, it should be relevant to that person. Aim to answer a question, fulfill a need, or provide helpful insurance information to help your prospect with present or future insurance needs. Use the person's name to make the message more personal and direct. Remember, you asked for their time and consideration, so your message should be relevant to their needs.
The ultimate goal of leaving a voicemail with the prospect is to have them purchase insurance from you. You want to leave a call to action in your voicemail to invite future interaction between you and your prospective client. Make it clear that you're available to answer questions, address concerns, or meet with them to discuss and explain all their insurance options.
When you have to leave a prospective client a voicemail, it's the perfect opportunity to ask specific questions, giving them a reason to return your call. If you’ve had previous interactions with them, you can ask if they have any questions about anything you have discussed up to this point. If this is your first contact with a potential client, ask a leading question, such as, "Are you considering purchasing insurance in the near future? If so, I would like to offer you solutions to your insurance needs."
Nothing is more frustrating than trying to write down a voice message only to have to replay it multiple times to get the other person’s name and telephone number. Some people do not realize they speak in a muffled tone or too quickly for others to understand their message clearly. Speak slowly and clearly so others can understand your message the first time. If your message isn't clear, your prospect won't understand your message and won't respond.
A voicemail without contact information is no good to you or the client, so make sure the prospect knows how to reach you and what times you will be available. The best practice is to provide your contact information at the beginning of the voicemail and again at the end of the message if they didn’t get it the first time or are trying to write it down. Remember to speak slowly and clearly when leaving your contact information.
It's always a good practice to follow up a voicemail with an email. It shows professionalism and lets the prospective client know that you are very interested in having their business. Sending an email after a voicemail also allows you to present your message to prospects twice, making them more likely to remember it.
Voicemails are only effective if they result in a conversation with a prospective client. The goal is to make your voicemails clear and concise so you get a callback in return. Once you master the art of leaving an effective voicemail, you can turn those callbacks into new insurance customers.
Of course, the trick is to find insurance leads to call in the first place. Until you have your insurance business established, you can turn to Nectar to help you track down leads. We use the latest technology to produce fresh, real-time insurance leads who are always eager to talk to you about buying insurance.
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.