3 Barriers to Connecting with Prospects

3 Barriers to Connecting with Insurance Prospects

In today’s world of insurance, it is increasingly difficult to get the attention of a prospective buyer after only a few outreach attempts. We are all busier than ever before, with multimedia coming from every direction. So, how do you stay consistent (and persistent) in your outreach with a prospect while remaining sensitive to their daily lives and the distractions they face?

It has always been a difficult task for producers to reach the prospects they call and email each day. They call…and they email…and they keep following up, wondering if anybody will ever do one of two things:

1. Answer the phone.
2. Return a voicemail or reply to an email.

While certainly not a new development in selling, engaging with prospects has become increasingly and dramatically more difficult. If we go back to 2009, it took around 8-10 outreaches on average to engage with a prospect. In today’s world, that number has risen to 16-18 attempts. Keep in mind that these are averages; sometimes it takes even more attempts to get the prospect to pay attention to you.

Why has the number of outreaches required more than doubled in the last decade? There are three main reasons:

1. Distraction: Prospects are busier than ever before and constantly battling numerous distractions. Their mobile device buzzes, and they have to look. The email notification on their phone or computer sounds, and they can’t resist. Some estimate that the typical person picks up and puts down their mobile device more than 100 times each day.
2. Competition: There is more of it than ever before, and it’s fiercer than ever. In insurance sales, competition from other agencies is only a small portion of the battle. With online financial services and non-traditional providers, competition can be, and is, literally any company.
3. Commodity: Unfortunately, in some industries, including insurance, the prospect believes that the vendor calling them and the vendor they currently use are essentially the same. The prospect just doesn’t see any meaningful difference. To them, an insurance broker is an insurance broker, and a technology provider is a technology provider.

Of these three reasons, #3 is the most concerning (or it should be). Here’s why: If you don’t differentiate yourself from your competition by providing value, your prospect will do the differentiating for you. But they won’t use a measuring stick of value; they will more often than not use a measuring stick of cost or premium.

Here is another sobering statistic about the world of modern-day selling. While the average number of needed attempts has increased to at least 18, most salespeople quit after fewer than 5 attempts. Maybe they think the prospect is being rude by not replying. Maybe they think that, in the past, people used to return calls. Regardless, the world has changed. Producers must be proficient at breaking through these three barriers, standing out from other agents, and being memorable.

Tips for Breaking Through the Barrier with Voicemails

Here are a few tips that will help get your prospect’s or customer’s attention.

Tone, tonality, and pace

• Slow down. If you practice, you will feel more at ease. If you are at ease, your pace will be slower. Do you sound like someone your prospect wants to talk to? You can have energy and still not talk fast. Stand up when leaving a voicemail (at the very least, sit up straight in your chair). Smile (yes, smile) while leaving your voicemail.

Say your name and then pause
If you want to get someone’s attention, use silence. Think about this approach: “Hey Fred, it’s Jack Smith… (count thousand one, thousand two).”

Get rid of the fluff, especially if it’s a prospect
This is a typical and ineffective voicemail message: “Hey Joe, it’s Susan Smith. I hope you are doing well or having a good day” or anything else that isn’t relevant to why you’re calling.

• You’ve got seven seconds to get their attention. Avoid filler language and get to the main point.

Get to the point
“Joe, it’s Jack Smith (pause). I’m calling you because… or, I have two questions to ask… or here are some trends in your industry.”

• Make it about them. And note: your desire to schedule an appointment with them isn’t about them; it’s about you.
• The purpose of the message is to show that you understand their industry, business, and challenges, making you worth speaking to.

Brevity is best
As Charles Emerson Winchester III from MASH* said, “Be brief and be gone!” Your message should be between 15-20 seconds. This is why practice is so important.

Recognize they are not calling you back…
It’s not their job to call you back; it’s your job to be interesting and keep calling them. Skip the “Please call me back at your earliest convenience.” Here’s a better alternative: “Mary, I don’t expect you to call me. On the outside chance you would like to, I can be reached at XXX-XXX-XXXX.” Pause, then repeat the number. Then schedule a time on your calendar to call the prospect back.

Using the # key on the keypad
When you are finished leaving your message, press the # key on your keypad. When you do, you have the option of sending the message, listening to it, or deleting and re-recording it. Listen to yourself… how many “uh’s” and “um’s” are in your message? Did you sound rushed or speak too fast? The # key helps you leave a clear and concise message.

Calling and leaving messages is never easy. If you follow these steps, your ability to break through at least one of these three barriers should improve.

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