Insurance Leads for Sale: What to Look For Before You Buy

Buying insurance leads can be a great way to grow your practice—or an expensive mistake. The difference usually comes down to choosing the right vendors and knowing what to look for before you buy.

This guide will help you evaluate insurance leads for sale and avoid common pitfalls.

The Insurance Lead Market

Before diving into evaluation criteria, understand the market:

Who Sells Insurance Leads?

1. Lead Aggregators: Companies that collect leads from multiple sources and resell them
2. Direct Publishers: Websites that generate their own leads through content or ads
3. Lead Networks: Platforms connecting agents to multiple lead sources
4. Marketing Agencies: Companies that run campaigns and sell the resulting leads
5. Referral Services: Platforms that match consumers with agents

How Leads Are Generated

Understanding lead sources helps you evaluate quality:

• Quote engines: Consumer fills out a quote form
• Content downloads: Consumer downloads a guide in exchange for contact info
• Paid advertising: Consumer clicks an ad and submits information
• Organic search: Consumer finds a website through Google
• Social media: Consumer responds to a social post or ad
• Phone calls: Consumer calls a number seeking insurance

What to Look For in Lead Vendors

Essential Quality Indicators

Lead Source Transparency

• Where did the lead come from?
• What did the consumer think they were signing up for?
• Was the lead generation compliant with CASL and privacy laws?

Delivery Method

• Real-time delivery (immediate) is best
• Aged leads (1+ days old) require lower prices
• Batch delivery limits your speed advantage

Contact Verification

• Are phone numbers validated?
• Are emails verified as real?
• Is there duplicate checking?

Intent Signals

• Did they request a quote?
• What specific product were they interested in?
• What timeline did they indicate?

Pricing Structures

Red Flags to Avoid

• No refund policy: Good vendors stand behind their leads
• Vague lead sources: "Multiple channels" is not an answer
• High minimum commitments: Reputable vendors let you test small
• No geographic filtering: You need leads in your licensed areas
• Pressure tactics: If they're pushing hard, the leads might be weak
• Too good to be true pricing: $5 exclusive leads don't exist

Questions to Ask Before Buying

About Lead Quality

1. Where specifically do these leads come from?
2. What did the consumer see before submitting their information?
3. How do you verify contact information?
4. What's the average contact rate for these leads?
5. How old are the leads when I receive them?
6. Are these leads CASL compliant?

About Exclusivity

1. How many agents receive each lead?
2. Is there an exclusive option?
3. Are there different tiers of exclusivity?
4. How do you prevent overselling?

About Policies

1. What's your return policy for bad leads?
2. How do you define a "bad" lead?
3. What's the refund process?
4. Is there a minimum purchase?
5. Can I pause or cancel easily?

About Support

1. Do you provide conversion training?
2. Is there a dedicated account manager?
3. What reporting do you provide?
4. How quickly do you respond to issues?

How to Test a New Vendor

Never go all-in with a new vendor. Here's a systematic testing approach:

Phase 1: Small Batch Test (Week 1-2)

1. Purchase 20-30 leads
2. Track everything:
   • Date/time received
   • First contact attempt time
   • Number of contact attempts
   • Contact made (yes/no)
   • Lead quality (1-5 scale)
   • Outcome (appointment, quote, sale, DQ)
3. Work leads thoroughly: Minimum 5 contact attempts over 2 weeks

Phase 2: Analysis (Week 3)

Calculate key metrics:

• Contact rate: % of leads you actually reached
• Quality rate: % of contacts that were legitimate opportunities
• Appointment rate: % that agreed to discuss coverage
• Cost per contact: Total spend / leads contacted
• Cost per appointment: Total spend / appointments set

Phase 3: Decision (Week 4)

Phase 4: Scale Carefully

If metrics are good:

• Double volume for the next month
• Continue tracking
• Don't commit to long contracts yet
• Build volume gradually

Maximizing ROI from Purchased Leads

Speed Is Everything

• Call within 5 minutes of receiving the lead
• Text immediately if call goes to voicemail
• Email with value within the first hour
• Second call attempt within 4 hours

Multi-Channel Follow-Up

Don't rely on just phone calls:

1. Call (primary)
2. Text (if no answer)
3. Email (always)
4. Call again (different time)
5. Voicemail (leave one good one)

Lead Scoring and Prioritization

Not all leads deserve equal attention. Prioritize by:

• Speed: Fresher leads first
• Intent: Quote requests over information seekers
• Fit: Right product, right geography
• Value: Higher premium potential first

The Follow-Up Sequence

Day 1 (Critical)

• Call within 5 minutes
• Text if no answer
• Email with value
• Second call in 4 hours
• Third call in evening

Days 2-7

• Daily call attempt (varying times)
• 2-3 texts total
• 2 emails with different value props

Days 8-30

• Call every 3 days
• Email weekly
• Add to nurture sequence

Common Mistakes When Buying Leads

1. Not following up fast enough: Minutes matter
2. Giving up too soon: Most conversions happen after 5+ touches
3. No tracking system: You can't improve what you don't measure
4. Buying more than you can work: Quality follow-up beats quantity
5. Blaming the leads: Often it's the follow-up, not the lead
6. Long contracts upfront: Always test before committing

Building a Lead Buying Strategy

Diversify Your Sources

Don't rely on one vendor:

• 2-3 lead sources minimum
• Different lead types (some shared, some exclusive)
• Mix of price points
• Balance volume and quality

Budget Allocation

Example monthly budget: $2,000

• 40% ($800): Primary high-quality vendor
• 30% ($600): Secondary vendor for volume
• 20% ($400): Testing new sources
• 10% ($200): Reserve for opportunities

Long-Term Thinking

Purchased leads are a tool, not a strategy:

• Build referral systems simultaneously
• Invest in organic lead generation
• Reduce dependency over time
• Use purchased leads to build client base for referrals

Next Steps

Ready to evaluate specific lead types or generation methods?

• Read our comparison: Exclusive vs. Shared Insurance Leads
• Learn to generate your own: How to Generate Insurance Leads
• Download our Lead Vetting Checklist