How Many Times Should You Touch A Lead?

If every time you picked up the phone you could get a hold of a hot lead, selling insurance would be a no-brainer. But no matter how good a sales person you are, you will spend time quoting people who just aren’t ready to buy — yet.

A big mistake agents make is to throw these “cooled” prospects into the “follow up with later” pile… and never touch them again. You’re busy, and it’s tough to tackle that heap of dusty contacts. But if you don’t do something to stick in your leads’ minds, you can’t count on them remembering you when they’re finally ready to buy.

You have to touch leads repeatedly to make the sale… or risk losing out to another agent. So what’s the right number? And what’s the best way for a busy agent to squeeze follow-ups into their schedule?

And The Magic Number Is…

“Seven.”

Whispered by marketing execs and experts around the country, seven is considered the magic number of times a person must see your message before they’re ready to buy. Some people go so far as suggesting 10 touches are needed before money exchanges hands.

This doesn’t mean you have to log in seven phone calls to every lead you get. Your marketing materials can do the touching for you, whether it’s a letter thanking your lead for the opportunity to quote them, a promotional postcard, an email autoresponder or a copy of your newsletter with a note saying, “I thought you’d be interested in this.”

Each time your prospects’ eyes land on your message, you’re building the connection between your name and “insurance” in their minds. You never know when one of them will suddenly decide it’s time to purchase a policy, so your message better be in front of them again and again!

A basic rule of thumb: for the first four to six weeks, touch your prospects once a week. After that, touch them once a month. Expect your campaigns to last a year or more — buying insurance isn’t a snap decision for a large percentage of people.

Create A Follow Up Campaign… And Stick To It!

The biggest challenge you face when it comes to following up leads is finding the time to do it.

If you’re already mailing out postcards and newsletters, adding new names to your list is simple — all you have to do is reevaluate your timing. Make sure you’re touching people the most during that first month and a half, and then slow down to a monthly schedule.

If you don’t have the time and money to invest in a mail campaign, consider email autoresponders. This handy tool sends personalized emails to all your incoming leads for you. You only have to set it up once, and your prospects will be subscribed to your persuasive marketing messages for weeks, months or even a year at a time.

Most importantly, your follow-up campaigns must be consistent. If you stop and start touching leads (and it’s tempting to do when your agency is overflowing with work) you won’t see a payoff. Establish a follow up routine, stick to it, and then you can count on commissions from your older leads during both the crazy and slow times.

Jeremiah Desmarais is the award winning Vice President of Marketing at ProspectZone. He and his team have won 3 awards in 2006 for their marketing initiatives that touch ProspectZone’s client base and carrier relationships on a daily basis. He is author of several white papers, and has been a contributor to the Agent’s Sales Journal, Health Insurance Underwriter as well as a guest speaker at various carrier events and workshops. He is a member of the Society of Industry Leaders. He welcomes feedback at jdesmarais@prospectzone.com

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