This guest blog post was written by Gillan Boyer, Digital Marketing Manager for The Brokerage, Inc. (TBI). TBI connects insurance agents and agencies to the most expansive consumer product offerings in the market to help them sell more, earn more, and stay independent. For more on this topic and other insurance marketing strategies, head over to The Broker Link.
As an independent agent, you know how important it is to generate a referral pipeline for your insurance business.
While there are many ways to find insurance leads, one method that we teach at The Brokerage is provider marketing.
Consumers usually trust their medical provider’s advice when seeking health coverage, but CMS prevents them from making recommendations.
That’s where you come in.
Provider marketing is a win-win-win. You win by having a continuous pipeline of qualified leads. Providers win by having a resource to take care of their patients’ insurance needs. And clients enjoy a relationship with both their provider and their insurance broker.
Identifying Partnership Opportunities
The first step in a successful provider marketing strategy is identifying partnership opportunities. Using your agency’s quote engine, choose a target zip code and research which health plans are most popular there.
Once you have chosen a few health plans, log in to the carrier’s directory and pull a list of doctors, medical groups, hospitals, clinics, and other medical professionals in the plan’s network.
Pitching Your Services
Now that you have a list of prospects, it’s time to visit their offices. We recommend that you speak with the office staff in person.
You can say something like: “Hi, my name is Your Name with Popular Carrier Name, and I like to recommend doctors to patients in this area. I wanted to verify that you are in this network.”
From there, you can ask questions like, “Are these doctors all still in this office? Are they still accepting patients? Do you have any problems with this plan/carrier that I could help resolve?”
The important thing to remember is that you are not trying to sell them anything. Provider marketing is all about building long-term relationships.
Below is an example letter that you could offer:
4 Ways to Generate Leads
Medicare 101 Sessions
For consumers who are new to Medicare, you can offer educational presentations both in person and through a live video stream.
Health Plan Seminars
Since health plans change every year, providers often worry about their patients staying in the network. You can host annual seminars that explain these plan changes and ensure that each client has the right coverage.
Individual Patient Consultations
You can offer one-on-one help with Medicare education and health plan information. This is also a great way to generate future referrals.
Health Plan Growth or Disruption Management
A provider’s focus is on giving quality care to patients, so keeping up with all the annual changes with health plans is not something they have the time or resources for. You can offer to be the solution to this problem.
Conclusion
Provider marketing can be a great strategy for lead generation. Remember to focus on long-term relationships rather than instant sales. Even if there isn’t an opportunity today, you are planting seeds for the future.
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Posted
by Gillan Boyer
on Tuesday, September 21, 2021
in
Automated Lead Routing & Assignment
- data management
- prospecting