Text a new insurance lead in the same minute you call, from the number you're calling from. Say who you are, name the quote they asked for, and ask one question they can answer in a word. Keep it under 160 plain characters. Then follow a set schedule of calls and texts for the first day.
Why the First Text Goes Out With the First Call
Most people don't pick up for a number they don't know. In a Pew Research Center survey of 10,211 U.S. adults (July 2020), 8 in 10 said they generally don't answer their cellphone when an unknown number calls. Only 19% said they do.
Your agency's number is an unknown number. The first text puts a name to it. And if you bought a shared lead, yours isn't the only unknown number calling, because shared leads go to several agents at once. A text that names a person and the quote stands out from the rest. When it lands a few seconds before the call, the lead sees your name and the quote they asked for, then sees the same number ringing.
Waiting costs you, too. The Lead Response Management study, a 2007 study of more than 15,000 leads at six companies over three years, found the odds of qualifying a lead fall 21-fold when the first response slips from 5 minutes to 30. The odds of reaching the lead at all drop tenfold after the first hour. The study measured calls, not texts. So the text doesn't replace the call. Its job is to get the call answered.
Before the First Text: Consent and Registration
Two things have to be in place before you text anyone.
The lead's consent. The wireless industry's Messaging Principles and Best Practices (CTIA, May 2023) sort texts by purpose:
- A text that answers a request the lead made, like a quote, is informational. CTIA says it should have the lead's express consent, which can be given on a form.
- A text that promotes a product or offer is promotional. CTIA says it should have express written consent, such as a checked box on a form.
- Every text needs a way out. Honor STOP and plain-language requests like "stop" or "unsubscribe," send one confirmation, and then send nothing else.
CTIA says plainly that its guidelines aren't legal advice, so run your consent wording past your compliance team. If you buy leads, ask the vendor for the exact consent language the lead agreed to, and keep a copy with the lead.
A registered business number. To fight spam, businesses that send texts in the US and Canada have to register and get their texting campaign approved. The review checks your opt-in form, your terms of service and your privacy policy. In Callingly you do this once from the Business Profile page, and approval takes 7 to 14 business days, so start before the leads do.
What Insurance Agents Should Put in the First Text
A good first text answers the three questions a lead has when an unknown number texts them: who is this, why are they texting me, and what happens next. Five rules cover it:
- Your name and your agency. A person, not "Quote Team."
- The request, in their words. "Your auto quote," not "your inquiry." One detail from the form (the address, the car) shows you read it.
- The call that's coming. Say you're calling from this number, so they know the ring is you.
- One question they can answer in one word. Asking them to confirm the address from the form gives them an easy reason to reply.
- How to opt out. "Reply STOP to opt out" at the end.
Keep it under 160 characters, in plain text. That's the limit for one text message. One emoji, or one curly quotation mark pasted in from a word processor, cuts that limit to 70 characters, according to Twilio's SMS character limit guide. A longer text goes out in parts, and Twilio bills each part, and so does Callingly. So write templates in a plain text editor.
5 First-Text Templates for Insurance Leads
Each one stays under 160 characters with short names filled in, and uses only plain characters. Swap the parts in braces, then check the length with your own names. If you go over, drop "it's" or "this is", or shorten the agency name. Never use an emoji to save words.
1. New auto quote request
Hi {first name}, it's {your name} with {agency} about your auto quote. Calling you from this number now. Is {street} still right? Reply STOP to opt out
2. New home quote request
Hi {first name}, {your name} at {agency} about your home insurance quote. Calling from this number now. Is {street} right? Reply STOP to opt out
3. New life insurance request
Hi {first name}, this is {your name} with {agency} about your life insurance quote. Calling you from this number now. Still {coverage}? Reply STOP to opt out
4. Lead arrives after you close (send before 9 p.m. their time)
Hi {first name}, {your name} with {agency}. Got your {line} quote request. We open at 8. Should I call at 9 or 11? Reply STOP to opt out
Then don't call tonight. Start the schedule below the next day, with the first call at the time they picked.
5. After two calls they didn't answer
Hi {first name}, {your name} from {agency} again. Just tried you about your {line} quote. Want me to try back at {time 1} or {time 2}? Reply STOP to opt out
A First-Day Schedule for a New Quote Lead
Use this as a starting point and adjust it to what your own numbers show. Most steps come from the Lead Response Management study. Skip a row if its time has already passed.
| When (lead's local time) | Text | Call | Why then |
|---|---|---|---|
| The minute the lead arrives | First text (templates 1 to 3) | Yes, right after the text | The sooner the call, the better the odds (see the study above) |
| Within the first hour | No | Second attempt | The odds of reaching the lead fall fast after the first hour |
| Right after the second missed call | Template 5 | No | Tells them who called and offers two times |
| Between 4 and 6 p.m. | No | Third attempt | The study's best window for reaching leads |
| Next morning, 8 to 9 a.m. | Template 5, reworded for the morning | Fourth attempt | One of the study's two best hours for qualifying leads |
Two limits apply to every step. Stop the moment a lead replies STOP. And keep texts and calls between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. in the lead's time zone, the window federal rules set for telephone solicitations. If a lead arrives after 9 p.m. their time, hold the text until 8 a.m. State rules can be stricter, so check the rules for the lead's state.
Use the city, state or ZIP code from the quote form to tell the lead's time zone. If the form doesn't have one, our free area code lookup shows the time zone and local time where their number was issued. Treat that as a first guess, since people keep their mobile numbers when they move.
How Callingly Sends the First Text and Call
Doing this by hand means someone watches for new leads every minute of the day. In Callingly, you set it up once in the team's call and SMS sequence:
- Text before the first call. Turn it on for the first step, and Callingly sends your first text, then the AI Agent dials. Since the AI makes the call and nobody from your team is on the line yet, sign the text with the agency, not a person: "Hi {first name}, it's {agency} about your auto quote. We're calling you from this number now. Reply STOP to opt out"
- One number. Check that the team's lead-facing number and its texting number are the same, so the call comes from the number that just texted.
- The call. The AI Agent asks your qualifying questions and warm-transfers the live lead to an agent on your team, or books a callback when nobody is free.
- Later texts. Texts after missed calls go out at the steps you set, with the lead's first name or any custom field you track, such as the line of insurance.
- After hours. If you turn on after-hours AI calls, the AI Agent can call an evening lead right away, up to 9 p.m. in the lead's time zone, depending on your settings. Then you only need template 4 if those calls are off.
- Calling hours. By default, Callingly won't text or call a US or Canadian lead before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. in the time zone it reads from the lead's phone number. You can set it to use your account's time zone instead.
Keep quoting and binding with your licensed producers. The AI's job is to reach the lead first and hand them to a person while they're still on the line. For the after-hours side of this, see how agencies handle after-hours insurance leads.
What to Track Each Week
Track the same three numbers you'd track for any lead, split by lead source: the median time to first call, the share of leads called within 5 minutes, and the leads never called. Our guide on how to measure lead response time shows how. For the texts, add two more:
- Reply rate to the first text. If a template gets few replies, change its question.
- Opt-out rate per template. Compare templates within the same lead source. If one still draws more STOP replies, it's too pushy or too vague. Rewrite it.
Reach New Insurance Leads in the First Minute
Callingly calls new leads within seconds during your team's call hours, texts them when your sequence says to, and warm-transfers the live ones to your agents. Book a demo, or start a 14-day free trial with no credit card.