Walk-ins used to account for a good portion of new insurance customers. But this, and many other consumer behaviors, have changed through the COVID-19 pandemic. More customers search online, seek out reviews, and request quotes digitally before converting. In fact, 50% of insurance searches come from mobile devices. You’re losing future customers if you’re not actively improving your search ranking by generating Google Reviews.
Deloitte’s recent survey found that 79% of senior insurance executives (and 87% of operational managers) “believe the pandemic uncovered shortcomings in their company’s digital capabilities and transformation plans.” Learn what you can do to bounce back, gain more customers, and improve your reputation and search ranking by generating more Google reviews for your insurance agency.
Claim your listings on Google Business Profile.
Whether you’re an individual agency, broker, or parent company with several locations, you need to be listed on Google Business Profile to attract new customers. To start, search for each of your locations on Google. If you’re already listed, claim your account and update critical information—hours, website, phone number, address—and add high-quality pictures of your business. If your location is not listed, create a listing through Google Maps or Google Business Profile.
Once your listing is verified and updated, you can begin responding to reviews and engaging with customers and leads. The more positive and recent reviews your listing has, the better you’ll rank in search results and appeal to future customers. Nearly 70% of insurance consumers run a Google search before converting—and 68% have no specific brand in mind at the start of their search.
Realistically, customers are relying on reviews of your insurance agency whether you’re aware of it or not. The best-case scenario is to be proactive about your online reputation and use Google Reviews as a free platform to draw in new customers. Alternatively, insurance keywords are the most expensive category on the Google Ads market. You can spend a lot of money on cost-per-click ads with no guaranteed results or you can use a free platform that 70% of insurance customers rely on—Google Reviews.
Ask for reviews via text.
Many customers read reviews more than they write them, which can lead to a skewed portrayal of the customer experience. The goal is to have as many of your customers as possible reviewing your insurance agency, painting an accurate picture of your services. Frequent positive reviews tell the Google algorithm (as well as customers) that you’re trustworthy and show how you stand out from the competition. But it’s nearly impossible to get there without a good strategy for review requests.
Plus, some methods of asking are better than others. The tried-and-true, most effective way to boost the quantity (and even the quality) of your online reviews is to send review requests via text. Texting is the preferred channel for 90% of consumers to interact with businesses. And no email, direct mailer, or phone call is going to beat the 98% of texts that are opened within two minutes of being delivered.
Texting review requests is a modern, convenient, and seamless solution to implement in your business. See the conversation unfold:
Respond to reviews.
Not only should you ask for reviews, but you should also respond to each customer review. 97% of consumers who read reviews also read your responses. The way you respond can be as influential as the reviews themselves. If you respond with sincere thanks to each positive review, customers see that you care about providing positive experiences, even in follow-up interactions.
Responding to negative reviews is an opportunity to make right what went wrong and demonstrate your awareness of customers. Your responses show how much you value your customers and the efforts you make to ensure positive experiences.
Improve the customer journey.
Setting up your Google Business Profile listing and automating review requests is fairly simple. Meeting the growing expectations of modern insurance customers might prove to be more of a challenge. Consider the following suggestions to improve the customer journey and increase the likelihood of positive reviews:
- Optimize every step of the customer journey for mobile devices. Mobile queries containing “insurance near me” grew over 100% from 2017-2019.
- Convert your landline into a textable number from Google Business Profile (can be done through Apple Business Chat or Google Messages). Schedule consultations, collect feedback, send policy updates, and connect with customers on the channel they prefer.
- Use web chat to answer FAQs, resolve concerns, and help customers in real-time—no phone call/waiting on hold necessary.
- Convert leads online with an optimized landing page (delineate steps for opening an account, contacting an agent, renewing a policy, etc.)
See how the #1 State Farm Agent in Alberta used Podium Reviews to win customers.
Ready to take your Google Reviews to the next level? Download our free eBook, 33 Quick Tips to Dominate Google Reviews.
