Last year brought about many changes to the way people connect. With face-to-face interactions suddenly off the table, we all looked for ways to go about our lives more remotely. The Internet was everywhere, but it wasn’t commonplace for folks to rely on it for… well, just about everything.

As shoppers sought online alternatives, those companies with strong digital footprints found themselves at a distinct advantage. What had previously been viewed as innovation, was suddenly table stakes.

As a result, new habits were formed, and we all enter 2021 with a completely revamped set of expectations. That’s across all industries, including insurance.

Are you prepared to meet customer expectations in the new year? Here are three areas worthy of strong consideration.

Your Website is Your Agency

If you haven’t already, you must stop thinking of your website as your agency’s online image and start thinking of it as your agency. (Because it is.)

If your website doesn’t provide a true online shopping experience 24/7, prospects are likely to move along to the next Google result down the list that does.

Visitors are there because they need to buy insurance, so that’s exactly what your website needs to deliver:

• Explain your insurance offerings
• Demonstrate what sets your agency apart
• Guide them through their options
• Provide the means to “Get a quote instantly”

We live in a world that no longer differentiates a business from its website. Make sure your agency—and not just some information about it—truly exists online.

Online Customer Self-Service

Successful companies are upping the customer experience. And among shoppers’ ever-growing list of expectations, not having to wait is near the top.

Online customer self-service satisfies the customer immediately, any time of the day or night. Even during normal business hours, customers have been found to prefer the online option. It just feels more convenient. (Because it is.)

With a customer portal, insureds can access policies, submit change requests, view their ID Cards, and generate certificates from anywhere—even on the side of the road.

If your agency doesn’t already have a customer portal, what are you waiting for?

If you do have a customer portal, make sure you’re promoting its use to all your clients. Even better, have a plan to expand its functionality in 2021.

Social Selling

When 2020 began, people were already living their lives in front of their computers, phones, and tablets. Now, more people are living even more of their lives in front of them.

Social media is a huge component of this trend, but how does your agency capitalize?

Social Selling refers to leveraging social platforms to find, interact, learn about, and build relationships with your pool of prospects. There’s both an art and a practice to Social Selling, so it’s fortunate that there are countless resources available online to help. Depending on your appetite, there are also firms that specialize in delivering these types of results.

It’s about networking and increasing your visibility with your target audience online. By putting yourself out there and becoming a part of the conversation, you establish yourself as an option when the time comes to buy.

Be willing to add value to people’s lives in ways that don’t involve a commission. That engagement today will plant the seed for sales tomorrow.

Final Thoughts

While we’re all eager to put 2020 in our rear-view mirror, many of our shifted buying habits are here to stay.

With so many customer touchpoints now digital, it’s more important than ever that we leverage them to the fullest.

• Automated touchpoints can still feel personal.
• Digital touchpoints should amplify your agency’s value, not diminish it.
• Find opportunities to inform your clients about new offerings.
• When you look to round out your clients, lead with concrete benefits and how they might be missing out.
• No matter how noisy the world gets, if you deliver value, it will be consumed.

Customers crave digital convenience, easy access, and speed. In 2021, choose to make these ideals—and the platforms that deliver them—a core ingredient of your value proposition.