Unreturned voicemails — they’re the worst! Yet, it’s pretty common that in the insurance business we don’t get many return calls when we leave a voicemail.
Today we’re sharing 5 techniques that give you the best chance of getting your voicemails returned.
๐ง๐๐ฃ #๐ญ. ๐๐ผ๐ปโ๐ ๐น๐ฒ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐ฎ ๐บ๐ฒ๐๐๐ฎ๐ด๐ฒ!
Sounds strange, right? The truth is the best prospecting technique is perseverance. You should call three to five times before leaving a voicemail.
The key is trying different days and times, always be staggering your attempts.
Didnโt answer Tuesday morning? Try Wednesday afternoon. No luck? Thursday mid-day may be the answer. Scared of calling on Fridays? Donโt be. Friday is the day most people are relaxed and willing to talk.
If you are thinking that once this person does pick up and may be annoyed by seeing your number but no message, be prepared with a script for that tooโฆ
โI didnโt want to bother you with several voicemails, so I decided to try to catch you live instead. I hope that was okay. Anyway, I am glad we are speaking nowโฆโ
Too many sales reps will make one call and leave a VM the first time and move on. I promise you will have far greater results by using the โperseveranceโ method of 3-5 different call times before leaving that message.
๐ง๐๐ฃ #๐ฎ. ๐๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ ๐๐ผ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฒ๐บ๐ฎ๐ถ๐น ๐บ๐ฒ๐๐๐ฎ๐ด๐ฒ ๐๐ฐ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฝ๐๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ผ๐๐ ๐ถ๐ป ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ
Nothing will get your message deleted faster than sounding unprofessional and full of โuhsโ and โums.โ
Your VM should contain these three elements:
- Put the focus on your prospect โ NOT on your product or service.
- Donโt ever say โIโd like to take some time to learn more about you (or your insurance or whatโs important to you etc.)
- Always leave your number โ SLOWLY โ two times.
A message all about YOU never works. Many believe a message wanting to โlearn more about themโ makes it seem like youโre putting them first โ WRONG! It makes them not want to waste their valuable time to educate YOU on how to sell them something.
And finally, leaving your number too quickly so they cannot jot it down is frustrating. They donโt want to listen to the VM twice.
๐ง๐๐ฃ #๐ฏ. ๐ง๐๐ฟ๐ป ๐ฎ ๐ฏ๐ฎ๐ฑ ๐ฉ๐ ๐ถ๐ป๐๐ผ ๐ฎ๐ป ๐ฒ๐ณ๐ณ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ป๐ฒ.
Here’s the wrong way:
โHi, this is Scott from State Farm and Iโm calling to see if I can help improve your insurance plan. The reason for my call is to learn a little about your current situation to see if I can save you some money. If you would call me back at 315-555-1212 that would be great. I look forward to hearing from you soon.โ
This one checks all of the โnot to doโ boxes. Instead, try this:
โHi John, this is Scott with your local State Farm Agency here on West Main Street. Iโm calling today because we are seeing a recent trend here in the community that people are paying way too much for their auto insurance. We are not only able to save our customers money, but we improve their coverage and offer the best customer experience in town. To find out how much we can save you just give me a call at 315-555-1212.
Once again, my name is Scott and my number is (read slowly) 315-555-1212. If I donโt hear back from you in a couple of days Iโll try you back again. Talk to you soon!โ
This VM is effective because it focuses on the prospect and what you can potentially do for them, your offered local value and left the number twice (and even let them know youโd try again if they donโt call you first).
๐ง๐๐ฃ #๐ฐ. ๐๐ผ๐บ๐ฏ๐ถ๐ป๐ฒ ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ ๐ฉ๐ผ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฒ๐บ๐ฎ๐ถ๐น๐ ๐๐ถ๐๐ต ๐-๐บ๐ฎ๐ถ๐น ๐๐ผ ๐ฐ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐บ๐ฎ๐ ๐ถ๐บ๐๐บ ๐ฒ๐ณ๐ณ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐๐ฒ๐ป๐ฒ๐๐.
Rule #1 in marketing is rep-e-ti-tion. Heck, we do it nationally. I’m pretty sure every human alive has heard of State Farm, right? So why is it that we still spend over a billion dollars each year to advertise? Top of mind awareness. Repetition works!
First: Try to reach them 3-5 times without leaving a VM
Week 1: Leave a VM and follow it up with an e-mail that same day. Then, leave a second VM later that week.
Week 2: Send e-mail #2 and a VM later that week.
Week 3: Leave a VM early in the week and late in the week with an e-mail in the middle.
Week 4 send the โShould I stay or should I go e-mail?โ Here’s a quick outline:
Subject Line: (Prospects first name), should I stay or should I go?
Dear______,
I havenโt heard back from you and that tells me one of three things.
-
- You have chosen to keep your insurance as is or already moved to another company.
- You might be interested but havenโt had the time to get back to me yet.
- Youโve fallen and canโt get up. In that case, please let me know ASAP and Iโll call 911 for you.
Please let me know which one it is because Iโm starting to worry!
Honestly, all kidding aside, I understand you are really busy, and the last thing I want is to be a pain in your neck once a week. Whether your schedule is just too demanding or youโve gone another direction, I would appreciate it if you would take just a second to let me know so I can follow up accordingly. Thank you in advance, I look forward to hearing back from you.
Kindest regards,
Scott
๐ง๐๐ฃ #๐ฑ. ๐๐ณ ๐ฉ๐ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ฒ-๐บ๐ฎ๐ถ๐น ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ปโ๐ ๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐ธ๐ถ๐ป๐ด, ๐ด๐ผ โ๐ผ๐น๐ฑ ๐๐ฐ๐ต๐ผ๐ผ๐นโ
Whatโs old is often new again. In this digital age, you can stand out by utilizing the lost art of handwritten greeting cards. This is really going the extra mile but rememberโฆthe extra mile is never a crowded space.
Send a greeting card with a real stamp. Make it a “just checking in” card and handwrite a personal note to your prospect along with your business card.
Greeting cards will separate you from the herd and show prospects you are different or better than everyone else and you are serious about wanting to earn their business. Think about it, don’t you love getting a personal handwritten note in your mail?
For more “old school” tips, check out the Insurance Agency Optimization book or Mastermind Membership.
