You cannot mention top companies with an efficient CRM strategy without mentioning State Farm. Against all odds, they have been to win and capture the heart of their customers with simple yet phenomenal CRM strategies.
So, who then is State Farm?
State Farm is arguably the largest group of mutual insurance companies in the United States. Founded in 1922, State Farm has more than 19,400 agents and approximately 53,400 employees servicing over 87 million policies and accounts.
The company’s mission is to help people manage the risks of everyday life, recover from the unexpected, and realize their brands. All of which they achieve by providing premium auto, fire, life, health, and commercial policies insurance.
This State Farm CRM case study will teach you some customer relationship management strategies that catalyze their growth. Without further ado, let’s get in!
Our success in serving our customers will ultimately determine the opportunities available to all of us.
– Michale Tipsord, State Farm.
History of State Farm Timeline and Facts
1922: Walmart is founded
1926: City and Village Automobile Insurance Company, their subsidiary was formed
1944: State Farm had one million auto insurance policies in effect
1966: An sophisticated computer system was installed, linking regional offices to headquarters in Bloomington.
1971: State Farm made headlines with its $30 million refund to policyholders as a result of high earnings in 1971.
1993: Natural disasters such as earthquakes and hurricanes left the Insurance industry scrambling to get back on track.
1994: State Farm took $23.2 billion in premiums and returned $206 million in dividends
1998: State Farm entered the financial sector with State Farm Financial Services F.S.B. delivering mortgage loans, deposits, and auto loans.
2001: State Farm recorded a net loss of $5 billion
2005: The company regained its market share and exceeded its sales quota by a large margin.
State Farm’s CRM Case Study: 3 Ways State Farm Uses Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
1. Unifying Customer Experience
Have you ever wondered how State Farm has maintained a consistent growth level since its inception? Well, you are not alone. I have wondered too.
But here’s the thing. State Farm is big on customer relationship management. Maintaining and improving their customer experiences is at the core of their business. This is why they use Salesforce to unify customers’ experiences.
“Salesforce provides State Farm agents and employees a holistic view of our customers,” said Ahmad. “From a single screen, we can more efficiently manage a customer’s information and interactions, making it simpler to do business with us. In addition to the personal agent-customer relationships we’re built on, this improved customer experience ultimately drives loyalty.”
Despite having over 90,000 facing associates, Salesforce CRM helps State Farm agents to delight their customers better.
A typical scenario is when a customer’s car is involved in an accident or a minor fracture. All the customer needs to do is log into their State Farm account via the mobile app, take a picture of the dent, and submit. The app’s AI capability will immediately assess the damage, give an estimated repair cost, and ring an agent.
And within a couple of minutes, and sometimes hours, the assigned agent will contact the client, and everything will be sorted. Now, this is amazing. Salesforce helps State Farm to get needs-based lead-scoring and insights, seamless policyholder claims process, unlock data across core systems, personalized claims journey, etc.
Editor's Pick: Walmart CRM Strategy: A Decade-Long Secret You Never Knew
2. Creative Marketing Tactics
State Farm’s creative genius in advertising is one of its most vital points for improving customer loyalty. In fact, they were named a 2020 Marketer of the year by Ad Age.
Overall, State Farm is fond of producing witty and creative commercials that resonate and connects deeply with its customers. We can see this evidently in the Coneheads and Drake TV commercials.
“If she’s not gonna protect her stuff with State Farm, how’s she gonna protect your heart,” said Jakes in the epic Not the One State Farm commercial that went viral. Not just that, the commercial got people talking and generated lots of free PR for the brand.
The thing is that customer relationship management has gone beyond internal administration and processes. And State Farm understands this. Customers want to feel that brand connection in every marketing and branding material. It’s what inspires customer loyalty and genuine affinity.
“As ‘empathy with action’ was driving more proactive perceptions about State Farm, we also had to be driving new behaviors and actions,”
Harbert
3. State Farm Loyal Program
Without mentioning its loyalty program, we cannot conclude this State Farm CRM case study. The State Farm Loyalty Rewards Program is primarily for customers with the State Farm Rewards Visa or State Farm Rewards Visa Signature Card.
Customers earn points when they use their State Farm Loyalty Rewards Credit Card to make payments like insurance premiums, fewer returns, chargebacks, and adjustments. You will earn 1 point for each $1 spent on Net Eligible purchases. For instance, if you spend $100 in Net Eligible purchases, you will earn 100 points.
This program is a way of encouraging customer loyalty through rewards. You will agree with me that customers love rewards. No matter how small. As far as they are saving something off their purchase – it’s enough reason to come back. If it worked for State Farm, it could work for you.
In Conclusion
State Farm has created a CRM strategy playbook for customer loyalty. The core secrets of their sustainability and continued growth have been summarised in this article.
Pick a few or all and run with them. Additionally, replicating their strategies is optional. You need to be creative with them. If you want to explore other CRMs, you could check Pipedrive CRM, Zendesk, and Zoho CRM. Try them out. It’s a shortcut to replicating some of the strategies listed here.
If you have questions, kindly ask in the comment below.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
What CRM does State Farm Use?
Well, State Farm uses Salesforce to unify its customer experiences and communication. Not just that, State Farm also uses Salesforce in a way that betters both the customers and the agents. None is left out. Try Salesforce for free here.
What is the slogan for State Farm?
Initially, the slogan for State Farm was “Like a good neighbor. State Farm is there.” But they recently changed their slogan, which most people do not realize. Their new slogan is: “Here to help life go right.” This new slogan is encompassing and would capture all of State Farm’s divisions.
Is State Farm only in the Us?
Yes, for now, State Farm is only in the 50 states of the United States of America. They are significantly represented across the United States.
