Possible Effects Of Continued Healthcare Reform On Insurance Leads

Posted on July 25, 2012 by

It’s been almost a month since the Supreme Court ruled to keep Obamacare in place and many people are still unsure as to what this could mean. One thing is clear though. It will still impact the B2B insurance market and might even alter the eligibility of some businesses as qualified leads. This video from FoxBusiness tries to present these effects and whether or not you believe it, there are some things you can still do in case it proves true:

The following effects mentioned in the video are as follows:

Changes in Insurance

Both the effects on private consumers and on businesses are spelled out here. Now, should there really be a significant change in your plans, you would obviously watch out for reactions from the business community. If this is right, this might cause them to change their minds. Leads qualified previously are now bust because the changes of have made your offers ‘uneconomical’. Still, maybe that’s just their perception. Try and set an appointment with the insurance prospect with the offer of showing how your business isn’t as compromised by the law as they think.

Rising Premiums

The rising costs of healthcare is becoming less and less disputed. However, there’s still a possibility that some forms of it will only get more expensive. These factors may not be within your control as a health insurance provider but that doesn’t mean there aren’t costs within your control at all. For example, start outsourcing non-core functions that seem to take up too much money. If your own business just can’t afford the time and money to invest in processes that aren’t close to its core, then you’ll save more if you just let a more experienced company take the wheel.

Big Changes in 2014

The so-called big changes here appear to only affect your market but then again, that should only give you more reason to make it your concern. Fortunately, this simply means you have a sort of deadline to find as many leads as possible. And not only that, you should be ready to pursue them and close the deal before the penalties start to hit. Try to coordinate with your prospects and use the set appointments to help plan things out.

“A Whole New Ball Game”

Last but definitely not the least, you have the possibility put forth by the coming elections. Should Obama’s political opponents succeed and repealing the healthcare reform is the natural consequence of that success, then you need to prepare for that as well. At this point though, it does beg the question on how much your plans should depend so much on the political atmosphere. On further reflection, isn’t it too unstable? Given that, perhaps the best course of action for marketing is one that’s willing to adapt without necessarily changing anything integral. Granted, there might be some changes provoked by these plans that should be mentioned in your marketing messages. Despite that, perhaps all you need is to simplify the other three adjustments mentioned above into a more consistent model:

Use appointments to set things straight.
Outsource non-core processes.
Have a deadline when generating and pursuing leads.

Make An Accounting Lead Out Of A Growing Business

Posted on July 12, 2012 by

No matter how slow it would seem, small businesses will eventually grow. In fact, isn’t growth one of the primary measures with which everyone measures success? It is evident in the way more word gets out about what the business provides. It’s evident in the way a good business is making more money each year. And from each year, the more determined businesses strive to make that growth monthly, and some even further into daily!

You can also see it in the way they use the money they’ve gained to expand. Some move to bigger offices or improve the way they manufacture products or serve customers. Others seek to develop the products and services themselves and introduce more innovations to the world.

In either case, both strongly have to do with what lies at the heart of their business. However, a business cannot rely on just its core. A lower priority for a certain process does not automatically mean that a need for it is nonexistent.

Such is the case with processes like accounting. When companies are in the midst of growth, it sometimes gets harder to manage accounts, organize financial data, and produce relevant information from it at any given time. It’s no coincidence then that it’s at this stage that growing companies consider outsourcing. Therefore, this makes them a good target for your lead generation campaign.

But first, here is a more detailed list to help you identify these growing businesses as possible B2B sales leads:

Focus on core functions – Obviously, a company that is growing seeks to only focus on what helps it grow and helps define its role in the industry and the rest of the business world. On the other hand, these same companies might not consider accounting close enough to those core processes so their chances of outsourcing can be quite high.
Expansions of core functions – This includes research and development for better products and services. It also includes also the improvement of product delivery and customer service. But again, this gives them a lower budget for non-core functions like accounting. It’s a good idea to offer your services as a cost-efficient solution.
Lack of knowledge – This can be the most critical so far. While they lack the capacity to invest, they can still spend some effort evaluating themselves. Save them this trouble and offer your own insight to show just how fast you can deliver.
In the midst of struggle – Of course, another obvious sign is that they’re growing a little too fast for the capacity of their current accounting services. Spot these companies right away so at the very least, they’re aware that your firm exists and will consider you as an option.

Growing businesses can’t really be blamed for focusing on their core. Often times, it’s the reason for that growth in the first place. Losing sight of what defines their business can have consequences which could damage that growth. Offering your services when they’re at that stage can help maintain that focus by giving expert insight and offering your services as an option.

3 Steps For Addressing Insurance Concerns (And Benefit Business Lead Generation)

Posted on June 28, 2012 by

It’s popular opinion that the insurance industry is rife with complications and loopholes. Then again, it’s not like it’s entirely untrue. That’s why it’s always good to address the concerns of confused clients and have things clarified. This goes for insurance as well as any other industry. Good customer service will always benefit any type of business relationship whether it’s between a business and a consumer or between businesses themselves. (In your case, it could be both ways!)

Bad customer relations could mean bad referrals and bad referrals only spell trouble for future marketing efforts.

Therefore, here are three steps to address the insurance concerns of your prospect that can also prove beneficial to lead generation.

Step 1 – Improve the system that receives inquiries. These inquiries can come in many forms and from different parties. These could be current clients wanting clarification about your coverage. These could be new business prospects who want to know more about your business. They could even be complaints from companies whose workers in turn are complaining about the insurance policy! A system that does a poor job of receiving these inquiries does so by limiting the options of the inquirer. Don’t force these people to file only through the phone, email, or online forms. Don’t force them to walk all the way to one of your offices either! They could have other things on their schedule! Allow them to contact you in the way that best suits them.
Step 2 – When you receive these inquiries, you obviously have to pay attention to them! On the other hand, a swarm of complaints can’t be handled by a single person. Make sure that you work together with your people and properly assign certain inquiries to the right areas. Beware of tossing them back and forth. You’ll be keeping the inquirer waiting!
Step 3 – Set an appointment when you clearly need more time to discuss all the questions and concerns. Some incoming prospects might not just have one question but several! However, since they’re busy, it’s wiser to set an appointment that they can fit into their own schedule. It’s the same with complaints. If some things need clarifying and re-negotiating, give your client a time and place to meet so you can hear the whole story. There are just some problems that cannot be relayed through regular channels of communication.

Given the complexity of insurance, it should give you more reason for your business to have more dialogue with both current clients and inquiring prospects. You don’t have to worry about costs if you’re afraid that expanding your customer services will demand more phones or more call center agents. You have telemarketing services to outsource for that. There’s a lot of good that a positive referral can accomplish for your lead generation. It can spread the word to more promising clients. It reinforces the integrity of your business. It also shows that you acknowledge how confusing your industry can be at times and you’re willing to help guide everyone through it.

Connecting With A Sales Lead – When Does The Real Conversation Start?

Posted on May 3, 2012 by

People think that with new, faster, and more automated means of communications, B2B companies like those dealing in finance find themselves with expanded horizons. However, an excess dependence on new technology really does have its negative consequences (cliché they may be). First off though, it’s only fair to cite a few reasons why people prefer contacting and communicating with potential finance leads en masse.

It cuts the costs of labor.
Covers a wider range.
With a wider range, there’s a higher response rate.
It’s also a forced alternative when older methods have suffered recent restrictions across the world.

These all sound like good reasons but just how long can the stay good? You’ve cut the cost of labor by just having fewer people receive your clients but your clients now have to wait in a virtual line just to get in touch with a real person. You’ve got a wider range but does that really help when you’re just going to stuff them in a long line? How do you know if those responding are truly genuine? Does it really just take a simple, generic email response to make sure? Finally, no matter how many controversial issues you’ve read about (from the rise of anti-marketing groups in the U.S. to laws restricting telemarketing in Australia, Canada, India and increasingly more places), what makes you think email isn’t without its own stigmas?

Before you realize it, the only thing email blasting got your company is the label of corporate spammer. It’s not very flattering title to have on the internet (especially when internet marketing is all the rage).

That is the result of too much dependence on what’s new and not being open-minded enough to try something else (even if that something else turns out be to allegedly obsolete like telemarketing). Furthermore, perhaps the one reason why people find the use of these new tactics more and more frustrating is that there’s really no conversation going on.

Remember, you’re a B2B business and you need lead generation to not just provide you with opportunities but also information to succeed with those opportunities. Financial management is not something you can discuss over a mere exchange of emails or chat. There’s just so much that you need to cover (from investment and upcoming projects to all the way down to maintenance and payroll). Yes, it’s true that email has its advantages at times but that doesn’t eliminate the fact that you need a real person behind them, not a set of links to your company website.

Speaking of which, not everyone can afford to lose time on just generating leads. If you’re one of those people then email is definitely not recommended because it’s too slow for qualification. Here’s, what you need to do: try attracting prospects with email first but once you get a response, start doing everything to direct them towards calling your firm, and eventually get them an appointment so that you’ll have an entire meeting to have everything covered. Don’t just dump emails on everyone and force them to browse your site. Be active and learn when to start a real conversation!

B2B Leads – Don’t Let New Methods Make You Idle!

Posted on April 26, 2012 by

With internet marketing, even B2B insurance companies can benefit from increased online exposure. Corporate packages are a strictly required staple for any company, big or small. A demand for the service is already a given. Putting up a webpage can come both to your convenience and to the convenience of your prospects who use the internet as a fast means to locate solutions. You can also invest in a bit of email marketing and seemingly replace old direct-response methods like telemarketing.

However, if you think that things will be completely smooth sailing from here on, think again. You’d be surprised at how many obstacles have risen along with the birth of the online frontier. This may sound pessimistic but no matter how new an approach seems to be, it’s not without its own flaws and its own obstacles. On the other hand, that’s doesn’t mean you should discard new methods either. You just have to make sure they don’t make you idle and closed off from different ideas.

Still, what are these supposed obstacles faced by those marketing online? Ironically, these obstacles have strong parallels with that of the previous ones (email marketing in particular). Whereas professional telemarketers used to deal with gatekeepers and voice mail, email marketers find similar situations risking the blockage of spam filters. There’s also the threat of unfeeling programs tracking their activities and labeling them as such. And even if you do manage to engage a prospect, what’s stopping their messages from getting swamped out of the dozen other inquiries you’ll be getting? It’s not surprising to find that people find SMS still slower than a live conversation (be it over the phone or face-to-face).

Exposure on the internet also exposes you to hackers just as much prospects. If they hit your website, your lead generation might suffer from the lack of activity (however brief). You should be prepared to have a back up plan that doesn’t rely on the internet too much.

There’s never room for idleness when it comes to getting B2B leads. Do take note that your prospects aren’t just regular people who need insurance for themselves. It’s for every person of their entire department. Planning for even a small business organization takes time. They need to be contacted, qualified, and then set with an appointment. If your appointment setter is exclusively internet-based, you’ll run into the problems cited above because there’s no other way to inform your prospect (or yourself for that matter).

Cost shouldn’t even be an issue. The issue is not allowing new methods be an excuse to lose vigilance. You don’t even have to invest in two separate methods for it. There are telemarketing companies out there who also know how to use email marketing to their advantage (and vice-versa). If you want to get the whole package without breaking the company piggy bank or just want to focus on you main tasks, then just outsource them. Goodness knows you might not regret that you did (especially if you don’t have a lot of experience knowing how to combine the two methods effectively). Again, don’t let new methods be a cause of idleness!