How a Great Email Renewal Program Can Drive ROI

Many Insurance providers still view customer marketing as a ‘nice to have’ strategy versus a ‘must have’. Marketing to existing customers can drive significant returns; whether from revenue realized from cross selling additional coverage or trust developed by managing the complexity and volume of carrier driven updates through critical bulletins or from return on investment from personalized and right-timed renewal programs. Return on investment (ROI), is typically measured with lead generation efforts, but can also be driven by customer marketing where the returns can be significantly impacted by the lower cost of marketing to existing customers. By using a marketing automation platform to build and execute email renewal flows, the investment of both human and fiscal resources can be balanced to maximize returns and make these programs even more successful.

Here are some examples of how a great email renewal program can result in additional revenue without requiring huge investment:

  • Maximize Customer Retention

    In today’s Insurance market, retention cannot be taken for granted. A Broker’s job is to ensure customers are getting the best coverage for the best possible price upon renewal by “shopping” the portfolio around to different insurance markets in order to secure or confirm the best coverage for a fair premium. Both Personal and Commercial Lines customers are looking at their coverage in more detail and often taking on their own shopping process, which can be very time consuming. By getting in front of a customer and reassuring them of the Broker’s commitment allows Insurance providers to engage with customers early in the decision making process. Setting up a multi message campaign automatically triggered by renewal date and sent as early as 90 days prior ensures that every customer gets that reassurance and can reduce the likelihood of them from shopping around on their own.

  • Optimize the Process

    With more complex coverages (commercial, multi-property personal or high networth for example), certain information may need to be confirmed prior to renewal terms being confirmed. Segmenting customers based on line of business or policy type, Insurance providers can use email to ask questions relevant to each group. Landing pages can be used to easily capture the answers and funnel directly to a Producer or CSR, fast tracking the entire process. Consider adding a scheduler to your response process for renewals that require a more detailed conversation as customers appreciate when they can book a time to speak with you on that same user experience instead of playing phone/email tag. These steps also minimize customers’ time and improve the efficiency of how and where Insurance professionals spend theirs.

    “Your automated renewal program should reassure your customer that the “shopping” is happening, thus stopping them from taking the process into their own hands” – Jennifer Pugsley, VP, Customer Success, Goose Digital

  • Create Opportunities for Cross Sell and Upsell

    Renewal time is a great opportunity for recommending additional coverages. These will be most impactful when they are relevant to a customers existing situation – including current coverage, location or business type. Marketing automation platforms can integrate BMS data and then deliver personalized content and creative. Landing pages designed to reinforce the same cross sell or upsell message can capture customer interest and automatically alert a producer or sales team to that effect. This streamlined process benefits both customers and Insurance professionals by facilitating direct engagement at the right time.

  • Deliver a Personalized Message

    The impact of a well planned campaign will be at risk if the message delivered to the customers inbox feels cold and impersonal. A great solution for this is to send a text based email addressed to the customer’s name or company, with the assigned CSR or producer as the sender and signatory. When done through a professional marketing platform, most customers won’t even know there is an automated process in place but will instead see a personal note coming directly from a trusted advisor. This will increase the likelihood of the message being delivered and read.

Conclusion

The investment made in a renewal flow will have a significant impact on the return. Building a great email renewal program requires a data driven approach, with BMS data leveraged to send the right message to the appropriate customer at the right time. Digital technology such as marketing automation platforms allow Insurance providers to maximize the return from these programs, including revenue and retention while optimizing their overall investment.

Want to learn more about building a great renewal program? Watch our webinar where we show you how it’s done.