Do you want to be part of the club? When your customers or leads interact with your insurance business, they become a part of your insurance team. They have the essential role in your business: your customer. Your agency cannot afford to leave clients sitting idly, resting assured that everything is hunky dory.  You may need to prompt your customers to interact with your agency from time to time. That's where transactional emails come into play in your insurance marketing. 

What is a Transactional Email? 

According to MailChimp, "It is an email sent to an individual based on some action." Some people call these emails triggered or personalized emails. Whatever you call them, they are based on an interaction that people have had with your company. Transactional emails can look like the following: 

• An email welcoming people to your insurance company 

• An email reminding them of an event 

• A note letting them know about upcoming events or products that are similar to the event they attended or the purchase they made 

• A reminder to renew their insurance or update their information 

• A thank you for a renewal or a registration of some kind 

• A receipt 

• A re-engagement notice for those who have lapsed on their renewals 

The Importance of Transactional Email 

Transactional email is part of your ongoing customer relationship. In fact, most people expect to receive some of this email, and they would be worried if they did not. A welcome note, a receipt, or a thank you are just part of doing business with your company. 

Over time, transactional email builds your relationship with your customers. It develops that personalized feeling, making sure that your customers know that you're looking out for them and that you're sending them material that meets their needs. For instance, a payment reminder is not only a way to ensure that your customers pay, it's also a way to be polite and thoughtful and remind people to renew before their insurance lapses.

Why Bother Making the Effort? 

Yes, you know that you need to have a receipt for your insurance clients. However, that doesn't mean that it needs to be more than a receipt, does it? 

No, but if your receipt could serve to build bridges between you and your customers in the future, wouldn't that be helpful to your business? According to Business to Community, "Transactional emails have 8x more opens and clicks than any other type of email and can generate 6x more revenue." That's not an email to ignore: that's an insurance marketing opportunity to cultivate.

Don't discount those emails that have the potential to further build your relationship. Transactional emails are part of your insurance marketing strategy. 

• Make sure that they are branded in the same way you brand your company.

• Focus on design for action. If you send out a reminder about events at your insurance agency, treat it seriously and focus on your call to action.

• Be polite, and express your company's culture in your email reminders. 

• Make them look professional. Add the same graphic design and get the same editor that you have for your website materials. If your website is beautiful but your receipts look primitive, you could instill doubt rather than confidence.

• Be personal. After all, a transactional email is based on a past transaction that has allowed you to segment your audience, and you can follow up on this transaction specifically. Use this opportunity to offer personalized support or connection. 

At American Agents Alliance, we want to help you connect with your insurance clients. Contact us today to learn more about our services for independent insurance agencies and our many membership benefits.