What clients value: A 10-year analysis of insurance customer sentiment

At ClientCircle, we love data. As an insurtech leader with more than a decade of experience in the industry, we’re continually collecting insights to help guide us in building innovative solutions that make consumers happy and help agencies grow.

What clients value, by the numbers

Recently, we analyzed 10+ years of customer retention metrics across thousands of insurance agencies, both independent and captive, looking back at more than 30 years of policy data.

Our analysis included 3.8 million pieces of client feedback, accounting for approximately 1.5% of the U.S. adult population, and examined more than 40,000 multi-channel marketing campaigns sent by insurance agents to their clients.

This data, spanning 2013 to 2024, offers a deep dive into the pulse of client satisfaction and agency performance.

The result? A list of actionable insights that shed light on what clients value most from their insurance agents.

Here’s what we learned

• Positive feedback. Happy clients (also known as promoters) most frequently mention that the service their insurance agency or agent provides is both good and consistent. Reliable, consistent and positive service is a key driver behind client satisfaction. In fact, the most frequently mentioned words by satisfied clients are "always" and "service.”
• Negative feedback. Unhappy clients (also known as detractors) consistently mention poor service or lack of service altogether. Unreliable, inconsistent and poor service is a key driver behind dissatisfaction. Interestingly, when looking at the word frequency in these customers’ surveys, they most frequently use the words "service" and "never" in their feedback.

• Relationship. Customers cited their relationship with their agent as the most significant factor influencing satisfaction. An overwhelming 62.25% of promoters emphasized the importance of the relationship, while 38.7% of detractors mentioned it. This demonstrates that strong relationships play a crucial role in positive customer experiences.
• Responsiveness. Responsiveness was a notable factor in determining satisfaction, with 31.7% of promoters highlighting it as a key element. However, only 9% of detractors mentioned responsiveness as a major concern, suggesting that while important, it might not be the primary focus for dissatisfied customers.
• Communication. Communication was more significant for detractors than for promoters. While 22.3% of promoters noted communication as a factor, 35.4% of detractors pointed to it as a key issue. This indicates that breakdowns in communication might lead to negative customer experiences more frequently than positive ones.
• Price. While cost of premiums was mentioned by both happy and unhappy customers as a factor affecting their satisfaction with their agent—the significance of its impact was relatively low, with only 11.5% of promoters and 14.8% of detractors mentioning it as a primary factor.

• Referrals. Happy clients are four times more likely to provide referrals compared to those with lower satisfaction scores, with 95% of all referrals coming from the promoter group. Cultivating strong, meaningful relationships with your clients will ensure your referrals will take care of themselves.
• Policy ownership. Promoters own 17% more policies than detractors and 10% more than neutrals (clients who are satisfied but not enthusiastic enough to actively recommend your service), highlighting the correlation between satisfaction and policy engagement. Furthermore, people who have more products with you are more likely to renew and remain a customer.

• Churn rate. Detractors are 18.27% more likely to leave within a year following a low satisfaction score. Keeping clients happy and resolving their concerns in a timely manner is a sure way to reduce churn.
• Retention. This one will surprise you. Clients who shift from detractor to promoter status exhibit greater long-term loyalty than those who have never been unhappy with you. This is because when clients experience you fixing a problem, they develop increased confidence you’ll be able to solve future problems should those arise—something they can’t be confident will happen with another agent should they switch.

What this means for insurance agents

It’s clear: client feedback is more than a feel-good metric. It's a direct reflection of your agency's health and growth potential. If you’re not actively seeking feedback, you're missing out on invaluable insights. The findings from our analysis highlight the importance of proactive retention strategies and service improvements in line with feedback collection.

Here are some actionable strategies agencies can implement:

• Establish feedback systems. Clients will share their thoughts if you ask. Implementing automated systems to collect and analyze client feedback in real time can help agencies quickly identify and address areas of concern, thus preventing churn.
• Target promoters for growth. A focused marketing strategy targeting promoters through appreciation initiatives and referral programs exponentially increases happy customers’ lifetime value.
• Turn detractors into an opportunity. Transforming detractors into promoters has proven to be more than a service recovery tactic—it’s a strategic growth area. Investment in service recovery should be viewed as a proactive approach to increasing both immediate and long-term revenue.
• Personalize everything. Tailoring communication to meet the specific expectations and preferences of clients can elevate ordinary client interactions into positive client experiences, fostering loyalty and advocacy.

Do this next

How do you accomplish all that? Here are some practical steps every insurance agency can take to maximize client satisfaction, reduce churn and cultivate loyalty:

• Implement NPS® surveys. Regularly collect client feedback and track satisfaction over time with the Net Promoter Score survey system. You can automate this process.

• Take care of your promoters. Let your happy clients know you appreciate them with regular communications, loyalty cards, birthday greetings and even occasional gift cards. Here’s how to do this at scale and still keep that personal touch.

• Call your unhappy clients. Calling detractors within 48 hours of receiving a negative NPS response increases the likelihood of retaining that client by 55%. Here’s what to say when you call.

• Personalize all communications. And we don’t just mean put their name at the top of a message. Make sure all communications are relevant to that contact. Don’t send one generic newsletter to your whole book of business and don’t try to cross-sell mortgage protection to a client who rents. You can personalize communications at scale with the right tools.