Insurance is important. Commercial, car, house, no matter the type, people need it. And they deserve to have it so that they're covered financially if something goes wrong.
So why does it feel so daunting to sell it? Especially with a cold call?
Maybe because it feels that you're constantly being told ‘no' by disgruntled, unsuspecting prospects. Especially after the first call. (Although the research shows that if you're consistent, that “no” can become a “yes.”)
Maybe because there's an element of improvisation to cold calling that isn't there when you send an email.
But that's where we come in.
Because with a great cold call script, you'll already have the guide work set out for a successful cold call, so you can focus on being the brilliant insurance agent you are and not the specifics of what you need to include.
So strap in; throughout this article, we'll give you the scoop on
Let's begin!
What is cold calling? Something of an art form. It's calling up leads that have no prior connection with your company and trying to convince them to purchase the desired products from your company, agree to speak with you again if you reach back out, or lead you to Key Decision Makers (KDM).
That being said, there are some aspects particular to cold calling and/or insurance cold calling. Some of those aspects include:
Something that can be unique to insurance cold calling is that you know going into the call that you won't likely have to convince your prospect that insurance is an important thing to have. In all likelihood, your prospect already thinks that.
However, you have to convince your prospect that the insurance plans you'll be offering are the best options for your prospect. You also may have to deal with money sensitivity surrounding those who cannot afford insurance, which brings us to our second particularity.
Insurance discussions can be sensitive for some, particularly for those who maybe cannot afford the type of insurance they would like. So, when you're walking into a cold call situation, and you don't necessarily know your prospect's financial or insurance status, make sure you express yourself with tact. It's essential to be direct, but you're going to chase your prospects away if you come across as insensitive, unfeeling, harsh, or overly blunt.
If you're going to hook a prospect on a cold call and get him/her/them to listen to you, you need to build trust quickly. This is an aspect of dealing with cold leads in general, whether through call, email, or some other method.
You need to establish who you are, why you're calling, and why your prospect should listen to you right away. Without trust, a prospect is not going to listen to you. And if you call again to follow up, he/she/they may not even pick up the phone.
Approaching cold leads can be challenging no matter the circumstances because you have to be direct, but you also need to avoid any stereotypes about salesmen. Everyone knows the picture of the sleazy, slimy snake-oil salesman. But what does the data say about what people think of salesmen?
Mainly that they're pushy.
According to HubSpot, half of the prospects find salesmen pushy, while only 17% of salesmen identify as having been.
Something that is unique to cold calling is that you are speaking to a prospect in real-time but without the benefit of body language.
Did you know it's been reported that over 50% of communication is done nonverbally?
Not on a phone call.
So you need to make sure you're listening to your prospect so that you can make an accurate read on him/her/them because all you have is the words he/she/they say(s) and the way he/she/they say(s) them.
While having this conversation in real-time with no body language to aid you, you also need to make sure that you still provide all the information you need to and that any information you do provide (including in response to questions) is accurate.
This differs from an email exchange where you have the time in between to fully plan out and edit what you're going to say and research any questions asked before answering.
And this is where a cold call script comes in. Because you can do some of this work ahead of time.
An insurance cold call script is your map to making sure you hit all the points you need to hit on a cold call. You can write it out as an entire script, or make sure you have your initial speel, plus points to address common obstacles and pain points, and other important information you need to include.
However, you'll have to be ready to improvise and engage with the prospect in an organic, human way while remaining informative and professional.
A cold call script may be laid out something like this (a similar table can be found in our article Cold Call Script [Examples, Templates, Tips & Tricks]:
|
Element |
Description |
|
Introduction |
Introduce yourself, your company, and the purpose of your call, while also allowing the prospect to introduce him/her/themselves and hopefully find the KDM |
|
Value Proposition |
Establish what your company stands for, and what insurance packages you believe sound like a good fit for your client |
|
Addressing Obstacles |
Answer any questions the prospect has, making sure you have a solution to any obstacles he/she/they may have (while also acknowledging the obstacle as legitimate) |
|
Establishing a Follow-Up |
Ensure by the end of the call you know who you should be speaking to next, how to reach that person, and if a meeting isn't already scheduled, you have a method and timeframe of best contact |
The layout of the script reads almost like a speedrun of the sales cycle's stages:
Steps 1 through 3 are done in the introduction. Step 4 is the value proposition. Steps 5-6 address the obstacles, and step 7 is the equivalent of establishing a follow-up.
Obviously, they aren't the same, but the comparison can help you set up how the script should function in your mind so that you can visualize it.
Exactly what your script looks like may vary depending on whether you sell insurance targeting businesses (B2B) or more personal types of insurance that target individuals (B2C). Companies and individuals have slightly different needs, and they may have different tolerance levels for cold calls in general.
Keep in mind what your target audience is when creating your script.
Obviously, insurance sales can be quite a broad term when discussing sales because there are different types of insurance. Therefore, there are different types of insurance cold call scripts that will have their advantages and disadvantages. We have some of them listed below.
The definition of life insurance is insurance that will be paid to a designated person (a beneficiary) upon someone's death.
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Advantages |
Disadvantages |
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The definition of auto insurance is insurance that protects motorized vehicles in the case of damage and destruction.
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Advantages |
Disadvantages |
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The definition of commercial insurance is insurance for businesses so they can be protected in certain situations.
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Advantages |
Disadvantages |
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The definition of home insurance is insurance covering your house and what's in it in the case of damage or destruction.
|
Advantages |
Disadvantages |
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We've briefly gone over the outline of a good insurance cold call script previously. But now, let's elaborate on that to understand how the script comes together to create a cohesive outline for you to play with your prospects.
Before you begin writing your script, establish your goals for the call. Realistically, you probably aren't going to make a sale on the first cold call. Smallbizgenius cites Velocify to say that it takes about six calls to make the sale.
So, if you're not getting a deal, what is your purpose for the call?
Maybe it's to:
And so on. There are several goals you could have for cold calls. Whatever yours are, make sure they're realistic. They should focus on making sure you get your prospect to the next step rather than trying to establish a sale. You don't want to come across as too pushy or desperate to make the sale. At least give your prospect the illusion that they have plenty of time to think about what they want.
Just as a note, as we mentioned previously, whether or not you're selling insurance B2B or B2C may affect your prospects' wants, needs, and challenges. It's essential to keep in mind when considering your goals and the language you'll use for the rest of your script.
Writing the introduction of your script may seem deceptively simple, but there's more to it than that initial “Hello, my name is ...”
You'll want to make sure you immediately establish a warm, inviting (albeit professional) atmosphere, while also engaging the prospect to open up a bit so you can find out more information about him/her/them.
So, don't ignore the “Hello, my name is” section. It's still essential. But after that, allow your prospects to introduce themselves, too. Ask them questions to find out more about the insurance they currently have, what's covered, what's not, what their budget is, whether or not they're satisfied with their insurance, etc. You're on a fact-finding mission to better establish what you can offer your prospect (i.e., what insurance packages would be the best fit).
However, getting this information can take a soft touch. You don't want to come across as pushy or intrusive. As a salesperson, you'll forever be trying to dodge the impression of being pushy or aggressive in your sales tactics. This can be especially important in the sales call opening when you're setting the scene and establishing the tone.
This is where you want to make sure you're delivering the goods in your script. This is your sales pitch.
Typically a value proposition is a concise statement. HubSpot defines it as one that indicates why a buyer should buy from your company.
Your value proposition may not follow the usual definition of a T. You'll want to make sure you communicate why they should purchase insurance from you. But, if you have more than one insurance plan that could be a good fit for your prospect, you may want to introduce the advantages (and disadvantages) of more than one plan.
Do try to keep it simple and easy to understand. Don't use a bunch of industry jargon if you're unclear on whether or not your prospect will understand it (which means when it comes to creating a cold calling script, leave it out). Just be clear about your options and why they'd be a good fit for your prospect.
As an insurance provider, you'll likely be at the advantage that you won't need to convince your prospect that he/she/they need insurance (as mentioned previously). Most people know that insurance is essential. Instead, you just need to convince your prospects why they need to buy insurance from you (or your company, anyway).
Now, this part can be a bit trickier to script out. We recommend scripting acknowledgments or responses to any common questions or obstacles that come up and any other that you can anticipate.
However, you may not be able to guess every potential question a prospect will have or hole a prospect will pop in your sales pitch, so other than making sure you're very knowledgeable on the insurance you're selling. In the insurance industry as a whole, make sure you have comforting and transitional phrases available to turn the conversation into a solution (that you'll hopefully be able to find).
These phrases could be:
You get the point.
However, if you don't know the answer to one of a prospect's questions, don't be afraid to tell him/her/them that you'll look into the issue and get back to him/her/them.
This can be a way to lead into our next step, which is establishing a follow-up in your script.
If you have a perfect lead-up to establishing a follow-up, as we suggested in the previous step, then take that opportunity and don't worry about following your script to the letter.
However, it's essential to establish a way to follow up, whether it's through an official meeting, an agreement on a time where you can call again, email follow-up, etc.
So make sure you have a way to bring it up in your script if no perfect opportunity arises.
Be direct. Ask your prospect directly when a good time to call him/her/them back would be. Or suggest a time, and if it doesn't work, ask for a time that would be better.
Or, if your prospect is ready or wants to have a direct meeting, schedule it together. Whether or not the meeting will be virtual, send your prospect a calendar invitation, if possible, so you know the meeting will be on his/her/their calendar.
Whatever the method for follow-up is, make sure you include ways to navigate into it in your script (maybe you'll have a couple of different options so you can pick depending on the follow-up method you think will be most effective for that particular prospect).
Your script is a vital tool for your cold calling success. It outlines all the points you need or want to hit and gives you a guide on the type of sensitive language you may want to use when discussing what can be a sensitive subject for people.
However, never forget to listen to what your prospects are saying and engage and respond to them directly. You may need to improvise at times and almost abandon your script entirely. That's fine. Just make sure you're getting your points across and touching base with your script when necessary.
Your script can go from a tool to a crutch to actively working against you quickly if you only read off your script and are unwilling to listen and improvise.
“Hello, *name*. This is *name* calling from Generic Insurance to discuss your insurance needs. Is your car currently covered if … ”
“It's important that we get you the best coverage within your budget. We've got three different plans you may be interested in with what you said. Two are well within the price range you gave us. One's slightly outside of it, but here's why I've still included it … ”
“Yeah, I hear that. That can be a huge problem with committing to other car insurance packages like this one. However, a solution for that could be … ”
“I can tell that you're digesting all this new information, so why don't we leave it here today, and I'll call you again next Monday, say around 3:00 pm so we can discuss this more once you've had time to think on everything… ”
Not all insurance agents will necessarily need cold calls. However, cold calling should be a part of every insurance agent's sales team's strategy.
The statistics show that GetVoIP cites a RAIN Group study that says 69% of buyers accepted calls “from new companies” (aka cold calls).
Some insurance providers may have salespeople (or insurance agents) whose sole job is to cold call potential prospects.
A good cold calling script outlines important information, turns of phrases, and obligations to make sure you include in your call. However, it also allows you to listen and adjust your speech depending on what the prospect says to you.
A good cold call script will include:
Also, the same Smallbizgenius article previously cited states that the average successful call is just under 6 minutes in length and includes 37 seconds of a sales pitch with no interruptions.
Besides making sure you include the parts listed above, it's also important to ensure you're firm but not pushy. Try to have an agreeable, understanding aura, so you don't come across as the stereotype of a greasy, slimy salesman.
One of the ways you can do this is to make sure you're listening, engaging, and sympathizing with your prospects. Be respectful of any questions they have. Acknowledge that you understand why they'd be confused or worried about their concerns. And so on.
So, in summary, an insurance cold call script is a good tool to keep in your tool belt if you want to start having successful cold calls. It should include an:
That being said, make sure you're still listening to your prospects, and keeping the conversation relatively natural.
And to keep track of your cold call scripts and any information about your prospects, consider using a CRM like Ringy. Interested? You can request a demo to see how it works.