Pinnacle Life Insurance
226% more policies. 41% lower cost to acquire. Here’s how.
“Our partnership has led to a remarkable 226% increase in policy sales, demonstrating the synergy between the changes we’ve made within our business and our marketing efforts.”
Gillian Vaughan, CEO, Pinnacle Life Insurance
The problem:
Life insurance is a category people intend to sort out and never do. Pinnacle Life — a digital-first challenger with strong fundamentals — had hit a wall. Sales were flat. Their messaging leaned on sentiment: lucky to have insurance, protect what matters. It wasn't landing. And they had no clear picture of why.
The insight that changed everything:
Through one-to-one customer research, we found the real reason people were stalling. It wasn't that they didn't want life insurance. It was that the process felt like more effort than they had capacity for.
The job customers were actually hiring Pinnacle to do:
“Get life insurance sorted quickly and simply, without speaking to anyone, so I can stop worrying about it and get on with life.”
The unlock wasn't better messaging. It was less friction — emotionally and functionally. Every part of the system needed to make "getting it sorted" feel easy.
What we built
We rebuilt the marketing and conversion system around that single insight. The work fell into 3 connected layers:
Research and strategy — customer research identifying the specific friction points in UX, trust signals, and messaging. A growth strategy rooted in how customers actually decide, not how insurers assume they do.
Conversion infrastructure — quote flow UX redesign, HubSpot implementation for automated nurture and conversion tracking, real-time analytics dashboards, and A/B testing via Varify to continuously reduce drop-off.
Acquisition and content — Google and Meta campaigns targeting first-timers and switchers, search-informed landing pages, SEO content answering high-intent queries, and explainer videos building confidence at key decision points.
Each layer fed the next. Better acquisition brought better-qualified traffic. Better infrastructure converted more of it. Better content reduced the effort of deciding.
The results:
226% growth in policy sales year on year. 41% reduction in cost per acquisition. A system that compounds — not a campaign that spikes.
“Unfold Digital has become an extension of our team, deeply understanding our unique challenges and opportunities. Their data-driven approach and technical expertise have been instrumental in building a robust marketing system, allowing the Pinnacle management team to focus on business growth rather than reactive marketing decisions.”
Gillian Vaughan, CEO, Pinnacle Life Insurance
