Tips for Insurance Agents on Effective Cross-Selling

Blog, Sales

Selling to existing customers is always easier than generating business from a brand-new source. It’s less expensive, too. Once they’ve bought from you once, customers are more willing to spend money with you again—they’ve already proven they trust you. And while there might be better deals out there, it takes time to shop around—and many customers are more than willing to stick with what they know.

Cross-selling is selling additional lines of insurance to your customers. If you have a customer who’s bought homeowners insurance from you, you can cross-sell them auto or a personal umbrella. If they own a business, you can help them analyze their current coverage and offer the options you have available. The possibilities are limited only by the types of insurance you sell—and if you carry multiple lines of insurance, cross-sales should be an integral part of your business. Here are a few ideas for more effective cross-sales.

Know what coverage your customers need. You’re working with existing customers—people you’ve already sold insurance to. Chances are you already have a good idea about their coverage needs; if not, it’s never too late to ask.

One way to do this is to get in touch with existing customers and offer to take some time over the phone or in person going over their existing coverage, identifying areas where they might be able to save money, and helping them update. During the appointment, ask questions to determine their other coverage needs—and introduce them to the full range of insurance products you carry. Remind your customers of the money they could save by getting all their insurance through you.

Use your agency management software to find more opportunities. Do a search for clients who already have insurance coverage for luxury items such as boats or motorcycles. These are people who may have more than one luxury vehicle, a vacation home, antiques and artwork, and other expensive assets that could benefit from coverage. Design a marketing program targeting these customers—or get in touch with them individually.

Know your goals. What lines of insurance are your priorities when it comes to up-selling? Which customers are they the most natural fit for? Are there product lines that would be ideal for cross-selling or up-selling your existing customers, but which you don’t carry now? Your options for reaching out are endless—from designing a targeted social media campaign to developing a direct-mail postcarding strategy or just picking up the phone and calling.

Successfully cross-selling additional insurance products to existing customers puts you in a strong position with them. It makes you the primary source for all their insurance—and basically makes their relationship with you indispensable. Getting to that point takes a certain amount of investment, however. By proving yourself to be knowledgeable and trustworthy, and by developing an in-depth understanding of your customers’ needs, you can move closer to that point—and strengthen your business.

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