Episode Summary
This podcast episode focuses on grassroots marketing strategies for insurance agents looking to grow their businesses by building relationships and trust within their local communities.
The expert guest, Evette Rodney, defines grassroots marketing as going directly into the community, identifying leaders and influencers in your target demographic, and establishing engagement through conversations that build rapport. The goal is to become a trusted resource that people turn to for insurance needs.
Some tips covered for effective grassroots marketing on a budget include:
- Hosting fun games, giveaways, or activities at places like grocery stores, food banks, and community centers. Spinning prize wheels are inexpensive but interactive.
- Partnering with health clinics, doctor's offices, and senior centers to offer educational workshops and your expertise. Lead with compassion and resources rather than aggressive sales pitches.
- Volunteering with organizations like food banks. Great way to network and get referrals.
- Creating a networking circle of financial advisors, realtors, etc. who can refer clients to you.
It's important to focus on relationship-building and lead generation rather than instant sales or applications. Be patient and take the long view. Not every event will produce immediate sales but you are planting seeds and cultivating trust over time.
Some examples covered of successful efforts:
- An agent volunteered at a county clinic, built rapport with social workers, and got permission to come speak directly to patients.
- Another hosted a voucher event at a grocery store, partnering with a carrier who helped fund $15 vouchers. Generated leads and connections.
- One found success networking with the social worker at a county clinic through volunteering. Led to referrals.
- An agent leveraged her connections as a pastor's wife to connect with that community.
The key is finding a niche that fits your unique skills and connections. Reframe sales as leading with resources and compassion. Stay persistent and keep focusing on relationship-building over time to grow your pipeline. Grassroots marketing is about people, not sales.
Additional tips:
- Focus on the long game of leads and cultivation over immediate sales
- Tone down the sales pitch and lead with resources and compassion instead
- Don't get discouraged. Keep planting seeds and nurturing relationships.
- Create a networking circle for referrals. Leverage connections.
In summary, grassroots marketing is a powerful way for insurance agents to build community trust and referrals by providing value. It takes consistency and patience but pays off exponentially. What has worked for you?
Timestamps
(0:00:00) - Evette Rodney teaches you guys about grassroots marketing with ACA and Medicare
(0:01:31) - A grassroots effort is an effort where people go out into the community
(0:02:58) - Training helps agents prepare for specific engagements, presentations, or event
(0:05:45) - You can partner with carriers if carriers want to do kind of creative activities
(0:09:54) - Every activity that you host is not going to always produce an application
(0:12:22) - Building relationships can turn into leads for you, Yvette says
(0:13:41) - Not every agent is a good fit for every strategy
(0:21:03) - One of the things is volunteering at low-income clinics or nonprofits
(0:28:09) - How do you get started with the Brokerage Inc.
