This post was originally published on the Engagex blog on January 29, 2021.
Updated with new info and republished on September 19, 2022.
Conducting customer insurance reviews will help build the value of your agency over time, but the meeting is only half the process.
One of the most important things to remember is that the review meeting is NOT the time to push a sale.
Why You Shouldn’t Sell During a Customer Insurance Review Meeting (and what to do instead) (3 min. read)
The purpose of the review is to investigate and educate.
If you do the investigating and educating right during the review, sales opportunities will present themselves and you'll be able to follow-up to close those sales.
You’re missing sales opportunities if you don’t follow up on action items to educate your customer.
The review meetings set the stage, but following up is key to landing the sale.
Taking proper notes during the customer review meeting and having your customer fill out the needs assessment worksheet will arm you with valuable information for follow-up.
Here are the steps you need to take immediately after the meeting is complete:
At the end of the meeting, tell your customer you'll be following up on action items discussed.
Check with them to see about a time-frame, but if you need to, suggest a week or so out.
Warming them up for the follow-up will result in a higher likelihood that they review the material you provided them with and will prepare them for the sale.
Immediately following the meeting, update your customer’s file with any additional information you collected during the review.
This could include their spouse’s name, employment details, or life changes.
Update any changes to their policy as discussed in the meeting.
If you need to change their coverage, make sure you take the necessary steps to get that done immediately.
Along with updating the customer's file, set a reminder in your calendar for follow-up.
Next, complete any action items or tasks requested or brought up during the meeting.
These could be things like sending the customer a copy of their policy or checking on the status of an open claim.
From your notes, you will be able to identify educational content to send your customer that relates to their needs and interests.
One Week After the Meeting:
One week after your meeting with each customer (or the timeframe requested), give them a call to see if they have reviewed the educational materials you sent with them.
Ask them if they have any questions about it.
Give them a quote for that specific line of business and give a recap of how it applies to their life.
This is where new policies will naturally be sold. Some sales might require another appointment, others might not.
Don’t forget to let them know about your referral program as well!
Remind your customers that you will invite them back for another appointment in about a year.
Say something like, “Mrs. Jones, how about I give you a call next September so we can schedule our next appointment to meet again in October.”
This way, it’s no surprise to your customer when you try to set up another appointment.
Remember that consistency is the key to having a successful customer insurance review program.
You will need to meet with your customers each year to grow your agency over time successfully.