Marketing Wow Your Clients and Prospects
by Ken Doyle

You have about as much time to catch a prospect's attention as I do in keeping yours beyond this first paragraph -- about 16 to 24 seconds. People donÕt want to wait in lines, navigate through voice-mail, or listen to a 15 minute sales pitch on which benefit plan is best. From the moment they answer their phone, you have only seconds to catch their attention or risk losing them forever. What can I say to keep you interested enough to read more how about some proven techniques to have your clients saying "wow" and to differentiate yourself from the other 100 brokers in your neighborhood? You need to create an emotional hook to grab someone's attention while so many others are vying for it.

The average Baby Boomer had been hit with more than 300,000 advertising messages by age 21. It's no coincidence that women who were given Tylenol after childbirth have a deep connection with the product throughout their lives since it is linked to one of their happiest moments. You can create an emotional hook for your client by tapping into their lifestyle and building a rapport based on what they like or what you have in common. All of the times that you or your agency encounters a client or prospect are opportunities to wow a customer.

The phone is the first contact point. Do they get a live voice when they call? Does the greeting put a smile on their face or is it the uninspired greeting that every other that agency has? If you don't have a person answering the phone, leave an inspirational voice message. If your agency uses a script, change it every other week or so and say something that catches a person's attention. Instead of "Hi, you've reached ABC Agency, we're not in right now, please leave a message," try, "Thank you for calling the ABC agency. How can we provide you with exceptional service and make your day a little better?" People will pay attention to an opening like that and if you do give them exceptional service, they will most definitely tell for or five other people.

This brings up an interesting side note. Did you know that, if you make a positive impression on someone, they will tell four or five people, but if you make a negative impression, they will tell nine or 10 people? E-mail is the next contact point. Few people really know how to use it effectively. If you don't make your message concise, it won't get read, especially when people are using Blackberries or Treos. Your e-mail should link to your Website to make it easy for customers to get back to you. Send them to your Website's promotional area, if it has one. Your e-mail signature should have a call to action, such as "Did you know more people are choosing HSAs than any other health plan? Ask me about finding the right HSA for you today." Your Website is another important contact point. It should create a warm experience instead of being just an online brochure.

The longer you keep prospects on your site, the better chance you have of converting them into customers. Keep your Website simple, easy to navigate, and interactive. It also needs to stay fresh, so change the information frequently and try to provide value added benefits like wellness information. Put yourself in the customer's shoes. Does your Website just talk about how great you are, how many years you've been in business, and your alphabet soup of designations? These are important facts, but they make up just one piece of the pie.

Allowing your customers to run online quotes will differentiate you from the broker down the street. The walk-in is the last and maybe the most important contact point we will discuss. After all, you're in front of a person who is interested in your product. I was horrified when I visited a friend's agency in Ventura County. Desks were everywhere with papers stacked up to a foot high. Phones were ringing off the hook. Filing cabinets were bursting with enough paper to fill the Los Padres National Forest and the staff was running around frantically as if competing for Olympic medals. After finally wending my way through the clutter to the receptionist (who was juggling no less than three calls), I introduced myself and asked for my friend, Jim. Several minutes went by and Jim walked out looking frazzled and told me, "We're a little busy, today, sorry." I looked at Jim and said, ÒIf I was your client, which pile would I be in?" Jim just chuckled.

Jim and I discussed ways to create an environment that wouldn't send clients running for cover. Over the next couple months, we consulted over the phone and I went back to visit few months later. Wow! Gone were the sheets of paper overflowing from every crack and crevice. Instead, a receptionist met me and led me to an area with Pottery Barn colored walls, wall hangings, a sofa, and coffee table for conversation. This was experiential marketing at its best. I felt as if I could have stayed all day in Jim's living room, I mean office, and it was a place I would want to return to time and time again. There are hundreds of ways to wow your customers. The phone, e-mail, Internet, and your office are just the beginning. Once you create an emotional bond with your customer, you will have them for life and they will tell their friends. As a famous TV ad once said, "I told a friend and she told two friends, and she told two friends...." Get creative and see how creating a little wow for your clients can create a lot of wow in your book of business.

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Ken Doyle is director of Marketing for Warner Pacific Insurance Services and based in the company's Westlake Village office. He can be reached at 800-801-2300 or at kend@warnerpacific.com.