You’ve finally done it. You’ve analyzed your productivity over the last two years and realized you want to transition your business to remote. You’re not alone.
Earlier this year, a report from Insurance Journal found that a majority of insurance agents preferred to work from home or use a hybrid business model, while only 15% want to operate in an office full-time.
Over the past two years, as more and more people moved to work remotely, insurance professionals realized that it's possible to work independently, collaborate with team members and get quality work done more efficiently while working from home.
Being a remote agent sounds awesome, as long as your pipeline and closing rates stay strong The question is, what does an insurance agent need to effectively manage their business from home? There are a few essential areas that can help an insurance agent be successful when transitioning to a remote business model: an effective and dedicated work area, plans for networking and community engagement and a combination of digital tools to fuel client acquisition and retention.
Read on to learn three helpful ways to grow your agency, and set up your clients and business for success, as you continue to work remotely for the remainder of 2021. Optimizing your remote work strategies can help you close out the end of the year on a high note, and prepare for an even better 2022.
Don’t confuse working remotely with propping your laptop up on the couch and hoping for the best every day. Start by making a list of the essential items and tools you typically rely on when you are in a physical office setting. Invest in the proper tech including multi-line phones systems, wi-fi with high-speed bandwidth, printers, scanners and web cameras. Also, consider what your background looks like. You may need to invest in banners or signage to add some branding to your space.
Beyond your supplies, be sure to evaluate how you often work your best. When designing your space consider noise levels, light sources, room temperature and the size of the area.
Once your home office is ready, you are on the path to becoming a successful remote-based insurance agent.
Insurance is a relationship-based business. Strong relationships often positively impact client retention rates. Often, one of the concerns of WFH is that it can become a bit easy to forget to interact with others. When transitioning to a WFH model, it’s important to make time for networking and making fostering connections with your prospective clients and your existing book of business.
To be successful working from home, remember to make networking part of your marketing strategy. Review your marketing budget and business goals. Then determine what events you can participate in throughout the year. At a minimum, you want to aim for at-least one meaningful community, regional, or industry networking event each quarter.
Here are some examples of key virtual and live events you might want to add to your 2022 calendar:
Check-in with the towns and municipalities where you want to do more business. They likely have a series of community events that happen during specific times of the year that allow for sponsorships or vendor tables. Consider the type of clients you want and determine if these events would be of interest to those segments.
Many consumers are prioritizing working with businesses that give back. In fact, according to Forbes, “81% of millennials say they want to support brands with corporate citizenship.” An easy way to get involved in your community and also participate in corporate philanthropy is to become a sponsor or donor with a local charitable group or cause. Aim to incorporate social responsibility into your calendar at least twice per year. Depending on the opportunity, you might be able to work side-by-side with other consumers in your local area or put your branding on an event, give-aways or donations that can increase your brand awareness. Posting photos and videos of your involvement on your website, social channels and emails can help your clients and prospects identify you for your social responsibility efforts.
It’s easy to spend more time at home once you’ve transitioned to a remote office. Don’t let this disconnect you from the industry. At minimum once per quarter, aim to attend or participate in an industry event, trade show or conference. Whether these opportunities are in-person or virtual, these are great chances to build rapport with industry partners that can help you grow your referral business and connect with new clients. The other benefits of industry events is the opportunity to learn best practices and industry insights that you can apply to your own business.
Review the calendar of events promoted by your local chamber of commerce and research business meet-up groups. Often these groups have monthly or quarterly gatherings that could be as informal as a breakfast at a local diner or as formal as a luncheon with guest speakers at a hotel or similar corporate venue.
In addition to in-person networking, be sure to add virtual networking as a task to your weekly schedule. This can include dedicated time to contribute to groups on Facebook or LinkedIn or even time to host a live chat or presentation for current and potential clients. Treat your social media channels as if it were your brick-and-mortar office. For many consumers, this could be the first place where they interact with you.
While working from home has its perks, there are some areas that can be impacted when working remotely like walk-in traffic. It can be harder for referrals, or new insurance seekers to find you, so you should have a strategy in place to solve for this issue. An effective way to maximize connections with your target audience is to invest in technologies that help fuel your customer acquisition efforts. While you spend your time connecting with your current book of business, there are platforms that can help connect you with high-intent prospects. Finding the right marketing technology partners can seriously help your conversion efforts and time spent vetting leads. Your digital platforms should be proven and powerful for their lead generation capabilities. You’ll also want to be sure your digital platforms are known for their understanding of compliance and lead quality.
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