Regaining Control of Shared Insurance Leads

Regaining Control of

Shared Insurance Leads

http://insuranceleadsguide.com/insurance-leads/state-

shared-insurance-leads-quality-driven-correction/

When it comes to shared leads the most

important factor for a buyer is lead quality.

Pretty obvious statement, right?

As obvious as it might seem the industry

is in the process of a correction simply

because lead quality did take a back seat

to other factors in recent years.

Before we look at the correction, let’s

take a look at how it all happened.

A Fever Pitch

The 2000’s were a decade of extreme growth for internet

based lead companies. High speed access was readily

available, and people were starting to shop for and buy

insurance online. An industry was born. Traditional and

newly formed lead companies began racing to get their

piece of the pie.

A ping/post system was created to allow lead

companies to sell leads to each other when they

did not have a buyer.

This “ping tree” model is a solid method to ensure

consumers requesting a quote actually get a

response.

Everything works well as long as there are some

controls in place.

As the decade wore on, the race for market

position among lead providers intensified.

The focus was quickly shifting to lead volume

and scaling operations.

Access to the ping tree was loose.

Each lead company could allow affiliates and

partners the ability ping leads into the system

which lead to an eventual lack of control.

A bogus lead sent into the system and

directed through multiple “partners” became

very difficult to track and people started to

take advantage.

Adding to the problem was a lack of oversight over

affiliates industry wide. In order to get volume and scale,

many programs allowed anyone to start selling leads

with no approval process at all. While most sellers have

sophisticated lead scrubbing filters that can prevent leads

from Mickey Mouse and John Doe from being delivered,

nefarious affiliates took things to another level. Bulk

leads started coming in with real user info that passed

scrubbing filters. Leads from real people who never

requested an insurance quote. This problem was one that

filters could not weed out. It was a problem that

required more oversight in general. http://insuranceleadsguide.com/insurance-leads/state-

The Fall Out

By 2009, the industry was starting to feel the impact of a

focus on quantity over quality. Agents were lashing out

publicly. Bogus leads and low contact rates had drastically

changed the value proposition of internet leads. Even

though most sellers provide credits for fake leads, they still

cost agents time and lost productivity.

Bad leads going into the system drove lead prices down

for sellers.

In response to the lower payout, many quality lead

sources began to seek alternative channels to monetize

their leads.

It was a downward spiral.

By mid 2010, the industry had a tarnished reputation, and

it became very clear things needed to change quickly.

Regaining Control

The shared insurance lead industry was reeling, and action

had to be taken. Lead vendors had to regain control and

take more accountability for both leads they generated and

purchased.

By the summer of 2010, changes started happening.

Companies realized they had to focus on servicing their

own customer bases.

In order to retain agents, lead quality had to improve.

The first visible shift was a focus on cleaning up the

affiliate base.

Access to the ping tree became much more difficult.

Affiliate programs were adding more approval

requirements and payouts were placing more emphasis

on quality.

Companies started pulling offers from low quality CPA

networks which typically have a higher percentage of

incentivized, low quality leads. http://insuranceleadsguide.com/insurance-leads/state-

Soon the focus shifted to market consolidation.

The ability to own multiple brands with separate agent

bases became appealing as it would allow for an internal

ping across brands and provide more control over lead

quality.

BankRate, who had purchased InsureMe in 2007,

spear headed the market consolidation starting in July

2010 with an acquisition of NetQuote. AllWebLeads

followed suit in February of 2011 with its purchase of

InsuranceLeads.Com. This evolution continued as

BankRate brought InsWeb (Agent Insider) into the

company in late 2011 and also acquired rights to

InsuranceAgents.Com in March of 2012. Six industry

leading brands in 2010 consolidated into two companies

in less than two years. These companies still have separate

agent customer bases and products for the most part. All

of this to have more control and influence over lead

quality. http://insuranceleadsguide.com/insurance-leads/state-

The agent’s desire to have a higher contact rate on

purchased leads was also a point of emphasis.

Live transfer add-ons which allow agents to have

prospects sent to them via phone transfer have become a

featured option.

Additionally, several companies started offering limited

and exclusive pricing alternatives to limit competition

and offer a better opportunity to make a sale.

Expectations Moving Forward

The recent market corrections appear to be gaining

traction. With a significant shift in focus among lead

providers, there are a few changes agents can expect

heading into 2013 and beyond.

First and foremost is an improvement in lead quality.

This is a win for both sides as it will make agents happy

with the product they are buying and will allow lead

companies to retain customers for a longer period of

One change we have not really seen to date is an increase

in shared lead pricing.

Lead acquisition costs are higher than ever.

The emphasis on quality equates to a lower profit margin

for most lead sellers.

I personally expect shared lead pricing to start shifting

higher within the next year.

Based on feedback we have received, most agents

are willing to pay more for a higher quality lead.

We firmly agree.

It appears the industry is moving in the right direction.

We hope to see more competition in the marketplace

driven purely by lead quality.

Taking a lesson from recent history, it certainly appears

that a focus on quality is the best path to a win-win

relationship for both lead sellers and buyers.

Let’s hope the trend continues.

Regaining Control of Shared Insurance Leads

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