An Introduction to Insurance Lead Generation

It is vital that insurance salespeople have a steady stream of leads. Often, people dont even know about a particular type on insurance and it is up to a salesperson to explain it to them. The salespeople must have good leads in order to know who may be more open to purchasing certain types of insurance.

Insurance lead generation is done in a couple of ways. One common strategy is the use of a list service. A list compiling company generates the leads by gathering extensive information on people and then selling either the entire list or individual leads to the insurance salesperson. Insurance companies also offer free quotes in order to create awareness and interest in their services. Of course, advertising is another insurance lead generation technique.

List compiling services sell their lists to insurance companies. These lists often have pretty in depth information. For example, if someones address is located within a known flood area, the insurance salesperson could offer him or her flood insurance. The list services sell the leads in a number of ways. They sell the leads individually, sell the entire list once, or allow the insurance company to subscribe. When companies subscribe, they get a new list with fresh leads at certain time intervals.

Free quotes are a great form of insurance lead generation. People become interested in the prospect of saving money when the insurance company offers free appraisals and quotes. Often, the insurance company will offer their rates along with the rates of some of their competitors.

Advertisement is a major insurance lead generation technique. It seems that all media, including TV, radio, and print are flooded with ads for insurance companies. These ads create awareness and consumer interest in the company. These ads come in a variety of forms, from serious to comical.

Everyone needs some types of insurance. It is vital that insurance companies capitalize on the need that people have for insurance by capitalizing on leads. Insurance lead generation guarantees that the insurance salespeople have a steady stream of potential customers.

Why Do Companies Make Customer Service So Complicated

By: Vic Pichette owner of Eye on Success, a customer service consulting agency located in Rhode Island.

I like to take a few minutes to talk about some of my recent customer service issues that I’ve been involved with. I hope that someone who works with customers reads this and understands that this is not acceptable.

I am a huge fan of bold flavored coffee, and I really like this one national coffee chains coffee. The problem is their customer service is absolutely horrific. I have called the company several times and tried to find out if there was somebody I could talk to about helping resolve some of their customer service issues, but so far no one is interested. Let me tell you what I am talking about.

On two occasions during the same week I pulled up to this locations drive through. There was one car in front of me and one car parked outside. There were approximately 4 people inside working. The car in front of me ordered his drink, and I proceeded to order my medium regular coffee cream only. Let me make another note about this company. If you say the word medium coffee and not the ridiculous word that they use, they will correct you, which I find really disturbing that the actually take the time to correct you.

The car front of me moved up the line to the window, and we both waited approximately 7 minutes for him to get his coffee. If thats not long enough, when I got to the window my coffee wasn’t ready. I had to wait another minute or two to get my coffee. They ended up giving me and the person in front of me our coffees for free because it took so long.

I have no idea why it took so long, I have no idea what the person in front of me ordered, but it took almost nine minutes to get a coffee. This has actually happened to me on two different occasions during the same week.

So there is one simple and basic question that I as a customer need answered. Please tell me what was going on inside that coffee shop that could possibly take this long? Was it because they were brewing a new pot of coffee? Was it because they were really busy inside? What was the reason that it took that long that they had to give us free coffees?

Let’s take a look at the possible reasons and see if we can come up with a solution. If it was because they were brewing a new pot of coffee, they should’ve said to me and the customer front of me this very simple line. “Im sorry it’s going to take a few minutes were in the middle of brewing a new pot of coffee, would you like to wait or would you like something else?” How difficult would it be to say this? Instead they made us wait almost nine minutes for coffee, and then end up giving us our order for free.

On several other occasions when I went inside to get a coffee and I have been the only person in line, it can take you anywhere between four and six minutes to get your coffee.

While I’m on my high horse, let me tell you about one of my biggest pet peeves.
This applies to all companies that deal with customers directly. If you have customers in a line waiting and you have an employee whose cleaning, training, or doing something other than helping the customer, that employee immediately needs to drop what they’re doing and assist in getting the customers through the line quickly. Banks are famous for this. I guarantee if you do this, your customers will appreciate it big time. And once the rush is over, you can get back to doing what you doing. This is a very simple concept, but hardly ever done.

Getting back to my coffee shop experience. I am honestly concerned about this company survivability long term if they do not start taking customer service seriously, especially when their biggest competitor is extremely concerned about getting the customers out quickly. I believe that this is or will affect their bottom line. Quite frankly if I’m complaining, then many others are complaining about the same problems.

I tried contacting the regional manager, and told her that I would be very happy to do a free video shop so that they can see and hear everything that I see and hear when I purchase products. To date, I’ve gotten no reply.

Small business phone service still accomplishing far better

To a person who is thinking of placing a business that is both realistic and lasting, she or he does not have to look far as telecommunications is right now sought after more than ever before. In spite of the surge and also swift development of the internet as a cutting edge medium of communication, still people and businesses work with the telephone to make contact or perhaps transactions.

And so, entrepreneurs who intend to make their mark in the telecommunications industry should evaluate going into the small business phone service business. This is simply because it appears that the telephone won’t be going the way of the dinosaur just yet. Although a lot more people are now wired to the internet even in a backward city in the most third world country, still the telephone has its own practical use and much of people, especially those who’ve not been sold out to the internet, are still making it their preferred tool of communication.

The nice thing about putting up a small business phone service is that todays telephone system has become more complex when compared to fifty years ago. Telephone systems in this modern day are utilizing digital lines, a vital progress from the analogue phones that persisted several years ago. In truth, almost all of the online connections all throughout the world like those in the developing nations are still influenced by the telephone lines for its connection to the global network or maybe the worldwide web. No need to explain that the telephone remains vital seeing that a telephone and internet can also work together in bettering not just the line of communications among peoples on this planet but in the sending and receiving of all types of electronic data, voice and video transmissions.

Being an owner of a small business phone service, you have to make confident that the sizeable telephone company that you are doing business with will produce you with the very best services so you can even serve your clients in the best possible strategy. In addition, if a telephone company supplies you as part of the package more features that will make utilizing the phone so convenient to both the caller and receiver, then by all means add it into your phone lines. There are numerous of big named telephone companies functioning in the usa that simply focus on great cities and towns. If you are intending on having your small business phone services in a small town that substantial telephone companies cannot reach, then it really should be a chance for you.

Double Bottomline Entrepreneurship

Today, I spoke with Dr. Ken Gibson, Founder of LearningRx, and listened to quite a fascinating story of an entrepreneur. Ken was an Optometrist, with a strong interest in business, and at some point, provided business consulting to over 300 Optometrists, before developing the methodology for training people to learn that is now at the heart of LearningRx.

LearningRx provides cognitive skills training that improve the brain’s ability to process information. The LearningRx training programs go beyond the symptoms of academic struggles to attack the root problem – the limitations to the student’s ability to learn. The training enhances underlying cognitive skills required to learn effectively – auditory processing, attention skills, comprehension, visual processing, memory, and problem solving. Once strengthened, these skills enhance the student’s capacity to learn.

Ken stresses, It’s training, not teaching or tutoring. It’s like giving a lecture on Piano versus training someone to play the Piano …

The best competing reading & learning program called Lindamood provides 2.3 years worth of improvement in 142 sessions. Ken’s program provides 4.8 years worth of improvement in 72 sessions.

In 1989, Ken started licensing this methodology to doctor’s offices and such, but soon realized that he needed a franchise infrastructure to reach more people. In 2002, he opened a Colorado Springs center, which within 4 months of existence threw up $225,000, with about 70 students participating over 3-6 month average duration.

Ken believes, engineers, not necessarily teachers, make his best trainers. Many engineers work at his centers, wanting to make a difference. Ken doesn’t allow any trainer to work for more than 15-18 hours a week, or 3 hours at a stretch. The process is intense, hence the precaution.

The first franchisee opened in 2004. Today, LearningRx has 32 centers around the country, with about 50 average active students bringing in anywhere between $250k-$500k / year. The number will surely go up, as the franchises mature! All franchisees have been recruited by Word-of-Mouth. Customer recruitment has been through a mix of newspaper and radio ads, although now moving largely toward direct marketing.

Our VCs invest money in so many incremental businesses … Ken Gibson’s bootstrapped jewel is one that makes a difference in many lives, and in my opinion, is worth scaling!