Prior to setting down roots in Greeley, CO, insurance agent Kaan Inceoglu was a man on the go. After graduating from Ohio State with a finance and international business degree, Kaan was drawn to the insurance industry. He became a claims adjuster and eventually joined the catastrophe team, a role that took him all over the country.
During his years traveling from state to state, Kaan also earned a master’s degree in insurance management from Boston University. Tired of living out of a suitcase, Kaan and his family settled on a college town in Colorado where he was able to start an insurance agency of his very own at the beginning of 2020.
Despite starting a business during an economic recession, Kaan and his team have managed to thrive. We caught up with Kaan to learn his secrets for getting started on the right foot and his best insurance marketing tips.
Melon Local: Hey Kaan! So, we’re curious, how did you kick off your new business? What kind of marketing did you do in the first, say, six months?
Kaan Inceoglu: I took over the core of an existing book of business from another agent who was moving on to another position. Having the insurance knowledge that I do, I felt it was necessary to step in and pick up where that agent left off. I made sure those customers were still receiving service and insurance expertise as they would from a seasoned agent. One of the first things I did was hire a team with insurance knowledge. Between the four of us that started out, we had over 25 years of experience which is very rare for a brand-new agency getting off the ground.
As far as marketing, I tried to control what I could control. I reached out to each customer individually. We sent out a flyer to say, “Hey, this is who I am, this is my background,” to establish a rapport with my customers from the onset. We were also looking for various ways to get engaged in the community but, as we all know, in March 2020 everything shut down. I had to get really creative at that point. We put an emphasis on online marketing, which is how I got connected with Melon.
ML: Which three insurance marketing initiatives do you think were most effective?
KI: To start out with, I would say Google Business Profile reviews. I try to be the one who responds to those in a personalized manner—I even have the application on my phone. I believe the last time I looked, we earned more than 40 reviews in about a year’s time. We try to be consistent with that. It’s something I can monitor, and I feel very strongly about that.
Also, I would say working with Melon Local. They manage our online presence and that’s not something I’m super well-versed in. I enjoy my monthly talks with my account manager and having the resources available if I do have questions in that space, like about my monthly spend or trying something different. We work on that together.
The third thing is that I’m partnered up with a sports talk radio station here that’s popular in Northern Colorado. I’ve done radio advertising with them and an ad on their website. We see some visibility from the community and return in that space as well.
ML: That’s a really well-rounded approach! Can you tell us a little more about your experience with Melon Local?
It’s been great and very personalized. I have my account manager’s cell and she has mine. We can text. I don’t have to worry about anything. I can tell we’re seeing a return in terms of traffic and with our online presence.
I just went through our online clicks and page views, things of that nature that I have access to through Melon’s online analytics portal. We’ve seen a steady increase. I feel like the spend that we have out there is helping us get clicks and we have people calling our office.
ML: We may be fishing for compliments here, but what’s your favorite thing about working with Melon?
KI: The personalized nature of it. Being able to work with my account manager has been great. They also put me in touch with other agents who have offered advice for first year agents. It’s helped me build that mentoring community in the agency space that I might not have had if it wasn’t for Melon.
ML: What would be your advice to other agents, new or established, for generating more leads?
KI: I think just being present in your marketing. If you have a customer call in or request information via email, make sure to follow up with that. Don’t let it just go to a generic inbox. The other thing is the speed in response. Oftentimes, when customers are looking for insurance, they’re looking for today. They’re in a position to buy. Make sure that you and your team are available to handle these inquiries.
I’ve recognized that and grown my team. I have five team members as a new agent. It’s a big team, but I want to make sure customers are serviced and we’re able to grow. It’s paid off. For the year 2020, we’re #1 in our territory for new vehicles added. Our techniques are definitely working.
Most of all, I would say make sure you are involved and you have a follow-up process and adhere to it.
That’s all folks!
Thanks for chatting with us, Kaan! We hope that other agents starting out will be inspired by your can-do attitude and marketing-savvy approach to business.
Do you have questions about Melon Local’s insurance marketing services? Get in touch with our team to see what kinds of strategies we used to help Kaan market his new insurance agency and how we can do the same for you.