In a fast-paced, hyper-competitive industry, insurance companies require powerful marketing tools to engage, grow and build long-term brand loyalists. To meet this need, many insurance brands are turning to marketing automation.
Let’s say an insurance company noticed someone browsing their website and looking at specific aspects of a home insurance policy. Now imagine if that person received a perfectly timed email detailing the coverage they had been reviewing and its benefits.
Put simply, marketing automation technology analyzes customer behavior and sends customized messages crafted to garner the attention of an individual. Personalization and timeliness are the power of behavior-based marketing automation technology, and they’re a major reason insurance brands are leveraging it to set themselves apart. Let’s look at three ways insurance brands are supercharging engagement by using marketing automation.
1. Behavioral data
To better connect with their audience, insurance companies must have a deep under-standing of their audience’s preferences and interests. As consumers navigate a company’s social media, website and apps, insurance brands can study their behavior to learn more about their interests and needs.
By doing so, businesses can develop a strong grasp of who’s visiting their channels and what coverage offerings they’re looking for. They can then leverage the insights in conjunction with powerful marketing automation solutions, like email and SMS, to craft personalized communications that reach their audience in a meaningful way.
2. Email marketing automation
Email marketing automation is a phenomenal lead-gen tool in an industry dependent on new policyholders. Once a person has given a company permission to message them, marketing teams can send automated emails designed to resonate with a lead wherever they are in the sales process.
It’s essential that insurance brands under-stand their customers, their behavior and their preferences so they can send messages that are relevant. Marketing automation can even send emails or text messages at the time that someone is most likely to engage.
Marketing automation plays just as big a role in retention and upsell as it does in acquisition. Automated messaging can be used to help insurance brands stay on top of upselling and renewal activities by sending personalized, policy-specific emails to auto-renew, bundle or purchase additional products.
For existing policyholders, marketing automation can send information about how to lower rates, promote new discounts and offerings, and maintain a high level of communication with customers. When executed well, these communications are a powerful tool in creating positive experiences with policyholders.
3. SMS marketing automation
Most consumers are on their phones for more than five hours a day. As such, insurance brands are strategically using SMS marketing to reach people in the place where they spend all their time: their mobile devices.
SMS marketing is a highly effective way for insurance companies to instantly share information with their audiences, strengthen the value exchange and create positive brand experiences. Companies can use it to send surveys, important policy updates, promotional offers, alerts and reminders.
For example, if a customer is eligible for a discount on their insurance due to years of good driving, an insurer could send them a message congratulating them and inviting them to reduce their rate. This technology empowers brands to maintain high-level communication with their customers.
Like all marketing strategies, SMS is not limited to communicating with existing policy- holders. Acquisition-oriented communication is key to sustaining a pipeline of new business, especially with younger consumers. If a consumer has opted in to receive notifications, insurance brands can use SMS to entice them to purchase a policy for the first time.
In a competitive market, insurance companies must engage their leads and existing policyholders with optimal messaging – at the best time and through the right channel. With automated marketing, companies can remove the guesswork and optimize customer communications at the same time.
David Greenberg is the chief marketing officer at Act-On Software, where he oversees the company’s marketing and growth strategies. He has more than 20 years of leadership experience in high-growth marketing tech organizations.
