Cold leads are a drag on time and resources. You must spend time determining who might be a fit and deciding whether to invest resources in a phone call, an email to the inbox, or a social media post, asking, “Okay, what now?”
So why bother with them? They responded to you initially for a reason, so there’s more to it than a cold call with a phone number in a phone book.
It’s challenging to turn a cold lead back into a warm prospect. It isn’t about slick scripts or spamming inboxes with canned messages. It’s about building trust before selling.
Let’s discuss how to do that in the most efficient way, using your time and resources.
Do Your Homework and Sound “Real”
Agents need a little context about a lead, so looking at their recent social media posts or checking out neighborhood trends goes a long way toward telling the lead’s possible perspective. Are they a small business owner who might benefit from an ICHRA or a new parent who just bought a house?
Mentioning something relevant to their current circumstances makes you sound less like a stranger and more like a real person trying to help. For example, a good conversation opener can be, “Hey John, I saw your shop just expanded and wanted to congratulate you! I work with a few small businesses nearby and thought I could get you some information about different options neighboring small business owners use that don’t crush you financially.”
Lead With Value, Not a Quote
Nothing turns a lead colder than, “Can I get you a quote today?” This lead isn’t ready, and you haven’t earned their attention to request a quote.
Instead, lead with value, like:
- Sharing a short story about helping someone like them
- Offering a quick tip relevant to their situation
- Ask a simple, open-ended question.
For example, you can say, “I just helped a contractor in your area set up health coverage, saving him $500/month and giving his team better benefits. Are you still managing all that yourself?”
It invites a conversation about what the lead is doing and details about what the contractor did that could be relevant to the lead. It’s not a sales pitch but an offer to start a conversation relevant to the lead.
Use Follow-ups as Check-ins, not Endless Nags
Most cold leads don’t respond the first or second time, and that’s normal. The secret sauce is not following up with “just checking in” or “Did you get my last email?” but with a light, helpful tone on a relevant insight for the lead:
- “Hey, I know inboxes get crowded, so I’m circling back in case this got buried. I thought you might have missed this change that is relevant to you.
- “A quick follow-up about this change in [regulation, SEP, tax credit, etc.] I saw that might apply to you.”
- “I wanted to share a thought based on our last conversation.”
Follow-ups should be a friendly nudge about something the lead can find helpful and a possible solution to a problem they face.
Be Relatable, Not Robotic
You don’t want to write like a corporate email machine but like a real, honest person trying to help a friend with a text. Use short sentences in a casual tone, and add a little humor when appropriate.
You’re not selling insurance but trying to help someone solve a real problem. What can this look like in reality?
Bad:
“I’d love to schedule a call to review your current insurance offerings and determine potential areas for improvement.”
Better:
“I know this is confusing. Can I talk with you sometime this week to see if this makes sense for you?”
Use Timing to Your Advantage
People pay attention when something in their lives changes. A move, a new baby, turning 65, or starting a business are moments when cold leads most likely become warm if you catch them at the right time.
Tracking birthdates, anniversaries, and other significant events is a good way to do this, especially during your initial lead intake. If you haven’t done this, ask them about upcoming major events or changes:
“Are you expecting big changes this year, like business growth, new hires, or retirement? That’s usually when I can be most helpful.”
Many of the activities discussed above can be automated using AI and other automation tools, particularly for sending birthday wishes, anniversary messages, and other major life milestones.
You’re Not Chasing. You’re qualifying.
Cold leads shouldn’t drain your energy and resources, so if they’re not interested or ready, move on and let your automation tools handle them. Your job isn’t to convince everyone but to find the right fit.
The key is to initially treat your cold leads with curiosity, not pressure, by being helpful and human. Over time, using the approach we discussed above, the right ones will warm up because people buy from people they trust.
Need help building systems that warm up leads? Agility market managers and product specialists have experience turning cold leads into warm ones. They’re ready to share this expertise with each of you to develop warmer prospects from cold leads.
Contact the market manager near you or the Agility ACA, Medicare, Life, and Supplement product specialist you need. You can also contact Agility at (866) 590-9771 or email support@enrollinsurance.com to reach the agent support team.
Let Agility use our sales peers’ experience in turning cold leads into warm prospects on your behalf to maximize your book of business.
