Buying leads has become a common strategy for the insurance agent trying to grow their Medicare sales quickly.
On the surface, it seems efficient. Lead vendors advertise fresh leads, exclusive leads, or even guaranteed leads. For agents new to the industry, it sounds like a simple way to get traction.
But many discover the hard way that purchasing leads isn't the best long-term strategy. They burn through their budget, waste time on cold calls, and end up stuck in the same place they started. If you're looking to generate leads that truly convert, it's time to consider a more sustainable approach.
Let's look at the pros and cons of buying insurance leads versus building your own lead generation funnel.
The Appeal of Buying Leads
Buying leads seems simple. A few clicks and you get names of people interested in Medicare supplements or Medicare Advantage plans. These are often marketed as exclusive leads or fresh leads, but that’s rarely the case.
Insurance lead vendors frequently resell the same contact data to multiple agents across different regions, and what appears to be a hot lead may have already received a dozen calls.
What You're Really Getting
Purchased leads are often shared leads—sold to multiple agents at once. You have no control over the source of leads, the interest level of the prospect, or whether they’ve already been contacted. Most aren’t ready to buy and may not even remember filling out a form.
This creates a major challenge for Medicare agents trying to build rapport and move the prospect forward.
Even with high-volume lead buying, there’s a limit to what you can do without meaningful connection or follow-up. The insurance industry thrives on trust, and cold outreach often does more harm than good.
The Hidden Cost Per Lead
Lead buying seems affordable at first, with many services advertising leads at $15 to $40 per lead. But when you calculate the cost per lead alongside your conversion rate and the time it takes to chase unqualified leads, the ROI drops fast.
One hundred leads may only turn into a handful of sales, if that.
Beyond the per-lead price, agents often pay in other ways: lost time, reduced morale, and missed opportunities for meaningful engagement.
Without an effective lead generation strategy that includes follow-up, brand visibility, and content, the effort rarely leads to sustained growth.
The Follow-Up Gap
With purchased leads, there’s no automated funnel, no branding, and no ongoing lead nurturing.
You spend time cold calling instead of growing your client base with a smart strategy. This lack of optimization means you’re always starting from scratch.
Once the list is exhausted, the number of leads dries up—and you’re forced to buy more. This cycle is expensive and keeps insurance agents from gaining control over their Medicare marketing.
Building a Lead Funnel for Medicare Marketing
Instead of relying on outside vendors, independent insurance agents can take control by creating an inbound lead generation system. It’s a proven way to generate leads consistently—and convert them at a higher rate.
Medicare lead generation strategies focused on inbound traffic help you get in front of people who are actively searching for Medicare help.
These prospects are more qualified and are often ready to make a decision. This is a key difference between building your own funnel and using insurance leads from a third party.
Why It Works
When prospects come through your own Medicare marketing funnel, they already know who you are. You’re not a stranger. You’re a trusted source of information.
That familiarity improves conversion rate and builds long-term relationships. Instead of competing with dozens of agents, you're the one they reached out to.
Having your own lead funnel also makes it easier to segment and personalize your content, whether through email marketing, landing pages, or follow-up phone calls.
You can respond to where the lead is in the sales funnel and tailor your approach.
One Funnel, Many Benefits
With a single lead generation funnel, you can:
- Get leads through search engine optimization and social media
- Offer lead magnets like a Medicare video course or downloadable guide
- Automate email marketing and follow-ups
- Promote webinars and Medicare events
- Link to your website and build your email list
- Track every stage of the sales funnel from contact to close
This kind of system builds your reputation, increases referrals, and creates a more predictable revenue stream.
The Pros of Inbound Lead Generation
Inbound marketing puts you in front of people who are actively searching for Medicare help. These are qualified leads, not cold names.
This method is considered inbound lead generation because prospects are finding you through channels like search engine queries, educational content, or social proof.
You build trust, grow your client base, and reduce the cost per lead over time.
Best of all, the system keeps working—even when you’re not. Once set up, your sales funnel continues to generate leads and move them through the decision-making process with minimal manual effort.
An effective Medicare lead generation strategy includes SEO, content marketing, webinars, email campaigns, and social engagement. These tactics work together to improve your overall ROI.
The Cons of Buying Insurance Leads
Buying leads might give you quick volume, but it doesn’t give you control.
You can’t track lead behavior, adjust your messaging, or create a follow-up strategy. And once you stop paying, the flow of leads stops too.
You also risk damaging your reputation. Cold calls to uninterested or overwhelmed prospects can hurt your brand and make it harder to earn trust.
In contrast, the best lead generation strategy keeps your pipeline full with high-quality leads who already trust your brand.
Whether you’re a seasoned agent or new to the Medicare insurance market, investing in your own platform is the way to grow your business.
Final Thoughts: Why Insurance Agents Should Build Their Own Funnel
When you buy insurance leads, you’re renting access.
When you build your own Medicare funnel, you own every piece of the process—from your content to your email list to the source of leads.
It’s a smarter, more effective way to generate leads and grow your business. You gain better insight into prospect behavior, improve your conversion rate, and establish yourself as a reliable expert in the insurance market.
Ready to take control of your Medicare marketing? Schedule a Demo or Sign Up to launch your own lead funnel in just a few days.
