Not too long ago, I was in the market for new car insurance. I hoped to find a more affordable rate than what I was currently paying, though I wasn’t sure what to expect as I had never purchased car insurance on my own before.
So I did what any millennial would do: I went online to find several insurance quotes to compare. I quickly felt overwhelmed with all of the different options and a few questions came to my mind.
Which insurance was the best and most affordable? Why is it a law that we all have car insurance?
Thinking about cars, my mind continued to wander.
Will I ever be able to afford a Tesla? Will Elon Musk ever make it to outer space?
Then I finally found what I was looking for! A company that would compare multiple insurance rates for me. I tired of putting in my information on every website, so I decided to try this out.
This company asked for my phone number. And because it was late at night and my thoughts were still stuck on a Tesla rocket ship going to outer space, I entered my personal cell phone number.
Well, they say hindsight is 20/20. It’s certainly true in this case. Looking back, I should have put in a fake number because the very next morning I woke up to a phone call from an unknown number.
I quickly ignored the call and went back to sleep. When I woke up at a more reasonable hour, I noticed I had a voicemail AND a text message from the same number asking when I could chat.
I felt like the company had stalked me until I realized I had voluntarily given them my phone number. I was in a rush to get to class, so I ignored the initial message. Then I promptly forgot all about auto insurance quotes.
That is, until the next morning when I awoke to another text message from the same sales rep. Nothing quite says “Good morning” like yet another message from a sales rep! They gave me a gentle reminder to give them a call, but with my busy schedule, I moved on from the message.
Later that night, I received another text. Much to my dismay, it wasn’t from a cute girl asking me out. It was the same sales rep asking when we could chat. Now I felt upset! Not only would I not be going on a date, but I had been called once and texted three times within a 36-hour period from the same sales rep. Talk about overkill! That’s not how to nurture a lead…The Search for New Car Insurance: How to Not Nurture a Lead
This company didn’t use proper texting etiquette and essentially tried to smother me into paying for their services. No longer interested in their auto insurance quotes, I asked for them to stop texting me. If they had used a better timeline to contact me, I most likely would have set up a call as I really did need new car insurance.
Unfortunately, their texting strategy to nurture a lead turned me off from their company. On top of that, the messages definitely weren’t personal. Rather, it seemed like the sales rep was trying to hit a quota – at my expense! And now if anybody asks me how they should go about getting an auto insurance quote, I will not be recommending this company.
When it comes time to nurture a lead, make it personal. Don’t nag or “overwater” your leads. Know that you aren’t the most important thing in the world to a lead (unless they explicitly say so). Be respectful. Put yourself in the shoes of a lead and follow the Golden Rule. “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” And know that when you optimize your lead nurturing, you help your entire business.
