Property and casualty (P&C) insurance is a hot area, growing steadily every year. In 2019, for example, the P&C insurance sector wrote nearly $709 billion in gross premiums, an uptick from the $678 billion written the previous year.

No matter how good your P&C insurance agency is doing, you could always do better. Good news: If you’re looking to grow your P&C insurance agency, you’ve come to the right place.

This post provides an overview of six ways you can take your P&C insurance agency to the next level without breaking the bank.

How Can You Grow Your P&C Insurance Agency?

Every insurance agency is different. But these six ideas for growing an insurance agency apply to businesses big and small in all markets. Your agency may very well be using a tactic or two from this list already, but by incorporating as many of these tips as you can, you’ll be well on your way toward supercharging your agency’s growth.

1. Increase your marketing efforts 

In the digital age, it comes as no surprise that more and more consumers are comfortable buying things online. Believe it or not, this trend is moving over to the world of insurance, too. A 2019 Google study, for example, found that mobile searches for “insurance near me” increased by more than 100 percent over a two-year period.

With this in mind, one easy way to grow your P&C insurance agency is by doubling down on your marketing efforts. By publishing a steady stream of content—including blog posts, e-books, case studies, infographics, and podcasts—and sharing that information over your social media accounts, you can increase your organic SEO rankings and social reach to connect with a wider base of consumers online.

Keep in mind that your content marketing efforts can be repeatedly repurposed over time. For example, you can send out a quarterly newsletter to your prospects and existing clients that highlights recent content you’ve published. 

Wondering where you’ll find time in the day to email all of your clients and prospects? This is where robust email marketing automation comes in handy. With the right solution in place, the technology will take care of all the heavy lifting for you.

2. Invest in P&C agency software

According to a recent report from Deloitte, 79 percent of insurance decision makers say that the COVID-19 pandemic has revealed digital weaknesses in their businesses. Because of this, 95 percent of respondents are looking to bolster their digital transformation efforts, essentially enabling their organizations to become “pandemic-proof.”

One easy way to do this is by making smart investments in P&C insurance agency software. For example, investing in a customer relationship management (CRM) platform enables you to keep all of your client-specific information organized in one place. As a result, you’re able to take your proverbial file cabinet with you wherever you go, accessing relevant data even when you’re on the go. Leading CRM systems also feature powerful email marketing automation tools that enable you to engage your audience with a “set it and forget it” approach.

In addition to CRM systems, your agency should also consider investing in comparative rater technology, or P&C rater software, that enables clients to easily compare different plans from different providers at their own leisure. As a result, they are able to buy insurance from you around the clock—even when your entire team is sleeping.

3. Hire the right people

Unfortunately, you can’t just increase your marketing efforts, invest in technology, and expect transformative results. The success of your agency is ultimately built on the backs of the people you hire. That being the case, it is critical that you do your due diligence to ensure you hire the right people. But your job doesn’t stop there. You also need to train them well and make sure you compensate them competitively to reduce the likelihood that they start looking for a higher-paying opportunity.

At the end of the day, happier workers create happier customers. So do what you need to do to make sure your team stays excited to show up to work each day. Investing in technology can help here, too. By making an outward investment in tools designed to make work easier for your team members, you take work off their plates and prove you are committed to helping them reach their full potential.

4. Create a strong company culture

The happiest teams don’t just materialize out of thin air. They come into existence because they’re the product of a robust company culture that workers actually want to be a part of.

Whether you’re a brand-new agency or you’ve been in business for a decade, one of your top priorities needs to be doing what you can to cultivate an engaging and supportive culture. 

The best cultures are characterized by honesty and team building. Everyone knows what’s expected of them because there are clearly established goals and responsibilities. Leaders understand they are hiring adults to do specific jobs, so there isn’t any micromanaging, either.

5. Launch a referral program

If you’re looking to grow your insurance business, you may want to consider launching a referral program to incentivize employees and customers alike to sell your products on your behalf.

For example, you might give your three top-performing agents a cash bonus you think is fair. Or you might decide to give your best referral agent an all-expenses-paid trip to somewhere like Hawaii. Either way, you are encouraging your agents to work harder because you’re giving them something extra to work toward.

In the same vein, you can offer your existing customers discounts or other gifts (e.g., Amazon gift cards) upon each successful referral they send your way. When it boils down, your most enthusiastic customers may very well turn into your best salespeople, because 92 percent of us trust word-of-mouth recommendations from the people we know.

6. Offer top-notch customer support

The most successful P&C insurance agencies don’t get there by accident. They position themselves as trusted advisors—to the point that their existing clientele would never think about going somewhere else to solve any of their insurance needs.

How does an agency become a trusted advisor? It starts with anticipating your clients’ needs and doing what you can to proactively address them. For example, if one of your small-business clients has a few employees who are aging into Medicare, you may want to start educating your contact about the available options a few months before it’s time to make a decision.

To be a trusted advisor, you also need to deliver personalized experiences to your clients. Using purpose-built P&C insurance agency software, including CRM solutions, makes this process a whole lot easier.

It's Time to Accelerate the Growth of Your P&C Agency

Whether your agency is just starting out, has been growing steadily over the years, or has been more or less stagnant in recent memory, there are always ideas and processes you can implement to put more wind in the proverbial sails of your organization.

If your agency has been relying on the same tools and workflows for several years, chances are that your infrastructure is long overdue for an upgrade. 

We might be a bit biased, but we believe that one of the easiest ways agencies like yours can acquire new customers and expand their reach is by making shrewd investments in insurance agency software. Request a demo of AgentCubed today to learn more about the critical role insurance software plays in the success of agencies of all sizes.