Selling Life Insurance by Mail (1,175 words)

by Don Jackson

It's odd. The creative for insurance direct marketing is not known for winning awards. It is seldom pretty. It operates on different principles than, say, the publishing industry or traditional continuity programs. It is regulated, and specific words and phrases are prohibited or subject to interpretation by lawyers.

All in all, it's an uphill battle for those designers and writers specializing in this field. You see, unlike The DMA's Echo Awards, insurance direct marketing creative does not answer to the standard of "response." In fact, response, per se, is irrelevant. The only measure of success is if the paid response meets or beats the marketing allowance. Marketing allowance is the sum of money you can afford to spend to acquire a customer. Insurance direct marketing profit studies (the basis for setting the cost of the insurance coverage) automatically calculates a customer lifetime value and it is factored into the marketing allowance.

One more thing: Keep in mind the whole notion of insurance marketing is truly intangible marketing. You are selling a promise that money will change hands due to a catastrophic event that may or may not happen in the future.

And, the event is truly distasteful. It's a tough sell for even the most accomplished writer. The one sure way you can identify a "control" is to count the number of times it is mailed. And in both these cases, the multiple appearances of these direct mail packages qualifies them as true "controls."

Gerber Markets Increasing Benefit Life Insurance

The Gerber "Grow-Up" plan offers life insurance for children. The example shown here is a classic presentation of juvenile life insurance. And the key element of the package is the offer.

$5,000 life insurance today doubles to $10,000 for your child at 21 with no increase in premium.