How to Market Medicare Advantage Plans

Selling insurance may get you a bad rap, but you can prove your detractors wrong by making plenty of sales and doing so ethically. When selling Medicare Advantage insurance, you need to pay extra attention to rules and regulations because of the federal government's heavy policing of marketing fraud. While some of your marketing options may be limited, there are plenty of ways to market a plan successfully.

Instructions

• 1

  Keep up to date on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Service's regulations on what kind of marketing is allowed. Marketing outside of these guidelines can be considered marketing fraud and may result in fines or the stripping of your insurance sales license.

• 2

  Market in approved areas only. Avoid health care centers, educational events or anywhere that meals are provided for free.

• 3

  Give away gifts as an incentive to sign up. However, be sure the gifts are valued under $15. These gifts also should be made available to the general public and not exclusively to people with Medicare.

• 4

  Call, email and visit potential buyers in their homes or nursing homes, but be sure that you have their explicit permission before doing so. Unsolicited visits, emails or phone calls are against regulations.

• 5

  Use customer endorsements or testimonials on promotional materials or when talking to a potential customer.

• 6

  Be clear with the customer that you are not with Medicare or that you are not a Medicare agent. It is fraudulent to give such impressions or to imply that you are calling on behalf of Medicare. Be clear that you are with a private insurance company.

• 7

  Host a seminar. You can supply food to attendees and teach them about Medicare Advantage. You can plug your plan at the end, and this is a completely compliant marketing approach.

• 8

  Set up a table at a senior citizen center or another non-medical facility where seniors may congregate. Check out the bulletin board at the senior citizen center for ideas.

• 9

  Focus on educating the potential buyers and supplying them with information instead of selling your plan. Answer their questions about Medicare, and then as they leave, hand them your card and tell them to call you if they have any more questions. If they follow up with you, proceed to market your plan more aggressively while complying with the regulations.

• 10

  Follow up with satisfied customers. Just because a sale is finished doesn't mean customers are an empty resource. A customer will have friends who may be interested in your Medicare Advantage plan. Ask your satisfied customer to refer them to you.