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Marketing Is
Not Optional
Marketing is an
essential
tool for the success of every business! What matters is not what
you do! What matters is that you communicate what you do,
so that people will take interest in it, buy it, support it,
join it, and tell their friends about it.
Not To
Market Is A Crime
Highly effective marketing
is a make-or-break necessity for all small businesses. It's
really impossible for you to be successful without good
marketing techniques... that's what brings the people and
dollars in the door. If you are indeed working to make the lives
of your clients a little better, then you need to be actively marketing what you do!
Marketing is more than simply letting people know about your
products or services. First, you need to know who your customers
are. You need to get so close to them that you can anticipate
their needs and desires. You need to be able to communicate to
them exactly why they need what your business can provide. And,
then you have to reach them with that message.
There are many strategies
for marketing, and there are many means to execute a marketing
campaign. It can be expensive or not, effective or not. And
price and effectiveness are not necessarily connected.
The point is that you have
no excuse not to be marketing, and doing it well!
If you don’t know where to
begin with this, then
start with the proven marketing plan template below.
Also Note: If you
have spent a lot time and money in the past on marketing, with
lackluster results, then
the information below
is critical!

Marketing Plan Template: Exactly
What To Include
To grow your insurance business and keep it
growing, you need a marketing plan. The right marketing plan
identifies everything you need to do to be successful.
-
Who your target clients are.
-
How
you will reach them.
-
How you will retain your customers, so they
repeatedly buy from you.
Done properly, your marketing plan will be the
roadmap you follow to get unlimited clients and dramatically
improve the success of your organization.
Below are the 15 key sections you must include in
your marketing plan.
Section 1: Executive Summary
Complete your Executive Summary last, and, as the
name implies, this section merely summarizes each of the other
sections of your marketing plan.
Your Executive Summary will be helpful in giving
yourself and other an overview of your plan.
Section 2: Target Customers
This section describes the people you are
targeting. It defines their demographic profile (e.g., age,
gender), psychographic profile (e.g., their interests) and their
precise wants and needs as they relate to the products and/or
services you offer. Being able to more clearly identify your
target clients will help you both pinpoint your advertising (and
get a higher return on investment) and better “speak the
language” of prospective clients.
Section 3: Unique Selling Proposition
(USP)
Having a strong unique selling proposition (USP)
is of critical importance, as it distinguishes your company from
competitors. The hallmark of several great companies is their
USP. For example, FedEx’s USP of “When it absolutely,
positively has to be there overnight” is wellknown and
resonates strongly with customers who desire reliability and
quick delivery.
Section 4: Pricing &
Positioning Strategy
Your pricing and positioning strategy must be
aligned. Example: If you want your agency/firm to be known as
the premier brand in your community, pushing low product
prices/fees might dissuade people from working with you. In this
section of your marketing plan, detail the positioning you
desire and how your pricing/fees will support it.
Section 5: Distribution Plan
Your distribution plan details how clients will
buy from you. Example: Will customers purchase directly
from you on your website? Will they buy from the agents your
recruit/hire? And so on. Think through different ways in which
you might be able to reach prospects and document them in this
section of your marketing plan.
Section 6: Your Offers
Offers are special deals you put together to
secure more new customers and drive past clients back to you.
Offers may include free trials, moneyback guarantees, packages
(e.g., combining different products and/or services) and
discount offers. While your business doesn’t necessarily require
offers, using them will generally cause your customer base to
grow more rapidly.
Section 7: Marketing Materials
Your marketing materials are what you use to
promote your business to current and prospective customers.
Among others, they include your website, face-book page, videos,
print brochures, business cards, and catalogs. Identify which
marketing materials you have completed and which you need
created or redone in this section of your plan.
Section 8: Promotions Strategy
The promotions strategies is one of the most
important sections of your marketing plan and details how you
will reach new customers. There are numerous promotional
tactics, such as television ads, trade show marketing, press
releases, online advertising, joint ventures, seminar,
workshops, and client appreciation events. In this section of
your marketing plan, consider each of the alternatives and
decide which ones will most effectively allow you to reach your
target customers.

Section 9: Online Marketing Strategy
Like it or not, most customers go online these
days to find and/or review new products and/or services to
purchase. As such, having the right online marketing strategy
can help you secure new clients and gain a competitive
advantage. The four key components to your online marketing
strategy are as follows:
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Keyword Strategy: identify what keywords you
would like to optimize your website for.
-
Search Engine Optimization Strategy: document
updates you will make to your website so it shows up more
prominently for your top keywords.
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Paid Online Advertising Strategy: write down
the online advertising programs will you use to reach target
customers.
-
Social Media Strategy: document how you will
use social media websites to attract customers.
Section 10: Conversion Strategy
Conversion strategies refer to the techniques you
employ to turn prospects into clients.
Examples:
-
Improving your
fact-finding / questioning techniques.
-
Improving your sales scripts can boost
conversions.
-
Increasing your social proof (e.g., showing
testimonials of past clients who were satisfied with will
nearly always boost conversions and sales.
In this section of your plan, document which
conversion boosting strategies you will use.
Section 11: Joint Ventures & Partnerships
Joint ventures and partnerships are agreements
you forge with other organizations to help you reach new
customers or better monetize existing customers. For example, if
you working with seniors, it could be quite lucrative to partner
with senior center who had a list of thousands of clients work
with. Many of the companies who work closing with your ideal
prospects, could be good partners. Document such companies in
this section of your marketing plan and then reach out to try to
secure them.
Section 12: Referral
Strategy
A strong customer referral program could
revolutionize your success. For example, if every one of your
customers referred one new customer, your customer base would
constantly grow. However, rarely will you get such growth unless
you have a formalized referral strategy. For example, you need
to determine when you will ask customers for referrals, what if
anything you will give them as a reward, etc. Think through the
best referral strategy for your organization and document it.

Section 13: Strategy for
Increasing Transaction Prices
While your primary goal when conversing with
prospective clients is to secure the sale, it is also important
to pay attention to the transaction price. The transaction
price, or amount clients pay when they buy from you, can dictate
your success. For example, if your average customer transaction
is $100 per month, but your competitor’s average client
transaction is $250 per month, then they will generate more
revenues, and probably profits, per client. As a result, they
will be able to outspend you on advertising, and continue to
gain market share at your expense. In this section of your plan,
think about ways to increase your transaction prices such as by
increasing prices, creating product or service bundles/packages,
and so on.
Section 14: Retention Strategy
Too many organizations spend too much time and
energy trying to secure new customers versus investing in
getting existing customers to buy more often. By using retention
strategies such as a monthly client newsletter or a customer
loyalty program, you can increase revenues and profits by
getting clients to purchase from you more frequently over time.
Identify and document ways you can better retain customers here.
Section 15: Financial Projections
The final part of your marketing plan is to
create financial projections. In your projections, include all
the information documented in your marketing plan. For example,
include the promotional expenses you expect to incur and what
your expected results will be in terms of new clients, sales and
profits. Likewise include your expected results from your new
retention strategy. And so on.
While your financial projections will never be
100% accurate, use them to identify which promotional expenses
and other strategies should give you the highest return on
investment. Also, by completing your financial projections, you
will set goals (e.g., your goals for your referral program) for
which your company should strive.
So, for the sake of your
insurance business, please spend the time and energy to really
get inside the head of your clients. Find the intersection
between your offer and their needs and wants. Answer... Who is
your client? What do they value? Isolate those specific
factors that actually drive behavior for them. Realize they are
not buying what you are selling, they are only buying what is of
value to them. And, by all means, use THAT in your marketing
communications.
You’ll be very glad you
did.
______________________
Note: Everything
you need to complete this marketing plan and make it work is in
the
Insurance Marketing and Sales Resource Center™,
with our specialized
life insurance and
annuity sales tool kits.
Jeremy and Lew
Nason
Trainers, Coaches & Mentors
'The 9 Out Of 10
Guys'
__________________
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