Close Rate
The percentage of contacted (or delivered) leads that result in a sold policy — the primary profitability driver in insurance lead generation.
Full Definition
Close rate is the percentage of leads that convert to a sold policy. It can be expressed as closes ÷ contacts (close-on-contact) or closes ÷ total leads delivered (close-on-delivered). Close-on-delivered is the more honest comparison across formats because it bakes in contact rate differences. Industry benchmarks (close-on-delivered): live transfers 15–30%, inbound calls 20–40%, exclusive real-time web leads 5–15%, shared real-time 2–7%, aged leads 2–6%, preset appointments 12–25% (depending on show rate). Close rate is driven by lead quality (intent, exclusivity, recency), agent skill (tonality, objection handling, product fit), and operational factors (speed-to-contact, dialing cadence, offer).
Example
An agent's 90-day report: 300 exclusive Medicare web leads delivered, 210 contacts (70% contact rate), 31 enrollments. Close-on-contact = 31/210 = 14.8%. Close-on-delivered = 31/300 = 10.3%.
How Agents Apply This
The fastest lever on close rate for most agencies is not hiring better closers — it's tightening speed-to-contact and dial cadence. Measure close-on-delivered (not close-on-contact) because that exposes the leakage agents hide behind "the lead never answered." Break the metric down by lead source, day-of-week, agent, and time-of-day; the variance across those cuts almost always reveals a systemic issue worth $30K+/year of found revenue. The other high-leverage move is product fit — agents running four carrier contracts close 20–40% higher than agents with two, because they can solve for underwriting edge cases (tobacco, height/weight, recent rx changes) without referring out. Close rate is a compound metric; improvements usually come from fixing five 1-point issues, not finding one 5-point breakthrough.
Related Terms
- Contact Rate — The percentage of leads an agent successfully reaches by phone — the first-stage conversion metric in any outbound program.
- Set Rate — The percentage of contacts that result in a scheduled appointment — a key metric for consultative sales like IUL and annuity.
- Show Rate — The percentage of scheduled appointments where the prospect actually attends (answers the call or shows up).
- CPA (Cost Per Acquisition) — Total lead spend divided by policies written — the true per-customer acquisition cost, factoring in contact and close rates.