Ever so slowly, insurance agents are waking up to the potential of social media marketing and are trying to wrap their heads around how they can expand their referral base with some of the social media channels, such as Facebook. It seems so easy - everyone is on Facebook, right? However, without a Facebook strategy one could fail miserably. It is important to understand that there is a right way and a wrong way to market on Facebook.
Why Having a Facebook Strategy is Important
Check out some of these Facebook Facts and Figures:
71.2% of all US internet users are on Facebook In 20 minutes 1,000,000 links are shared on Facebook In 20 minutes 1,851,000 status updates are entered In 20 minutes 10.2 million comments are posted Average user has 130 friends Average user is connected to 80 community pages, groups and events More than 650 million active users There are over 16,000,000 Fan PagesMarketing on Facebook can get your product or service noticed by a wide audience. This audience extends far beyond your local marketing area which is why having a Facebook strategy is important. The potential to influence the buying decisions of your friends and their friends is what makes this a powerful tool.
You have more ways to get people you encounter online to tell the people they know about what you do, the insurance advice and products you offer and how you can improve people's lives. It used to be just word of mouth, now it is online word of mouth that can work for you.
Why Insurance Agents Don't Engage a Facebook Strategy
Whenever I ask an insurance agent where they get business they will tell me referrals. They have no problem asking their clients or networking acquaintances for referrals, but feel strange about using Facebook in the same capacity. Some of them even feel weird about letting their Facebook friends know that they sell insurance. I had this conversation with a Financial Services producer who was setting up a blog with me for personal branding and social media marketing. He barely used Facebook and had a hard time seeing how it would work for him. I believe that is the case for the older generation of insurance agents. They do not realize that on Facebook friends share information that they feel is valuable and when they "like" something it is the same as a personal referral.
A Facebook strategy is all about friends and fans. The more friends and fans that you have the greater exposure you receive when you offer value and engage with others.
Facebook Strategy #1 - Create a profile page with pertinent information about you and your business. If this is your personal page, then provide your employer, your email and what your primary business is along with some interesting personal information about you that they can know you better. If you are an insurance agent for someone else this is all that you need to do.
If you are a business then it would be appropriate to set up a Facebook Fan Page. This may be the first contact that anyone has with your business so be sure that it gives a professional look. It is very important not to make this "salesy", but should slant towards helping people and businesses with insurance decisions. Your Facebook strategy has to go from selling people to providing help, resources and information.
Facebook Strategy #2 - Get Fans & Friends! To make your Facebook strategy work you must increase the number of fans daily and also your friends. With social media marketing it is a numbers game, the more fans, the more widespread your reputation can be. To do this, start with your existing clients and ask them to "like" your page. Connect with people that you meet at networking events with their social media. Ask your existing friends to "like" your page, too.
You want to make sure you can give these people a good answer why they should like your page. If you are just going to focus on selling insurance then not many people are going to be interested. Your postings need to be varied - some on insurance topics, but most on helping people save money or provide information that they can use. Educate and engage with your fans, solicit comments and feedback.
Facebook Strategy #3 - Promote your community events and business partners. You can use this for business to business networking. Invite your customers to post offers to your fans concerning their services. Give recommendations on services and products you have used from your local businesses.
People want to see that you are giving out information that will help them. What a great chance to partner with your customers and share their services with your friends and fans.
Facebook Strategy #4 - Create good content that has value. If you have already started a blog then you should post your articles to either your Facebook Wall or your Fan Page. There is such a wide variety of topics that can be covered that would be helpful for consumers. People like stories so a story on how you saved someone money or help prevent a loss would be of human interest. Plus, it would get your point across that you are an insurance professional. While reading the article from your blog they will be able to explore more topics and come away with the feeling that you are the insurance expert.
It is also permissible to share articles that are informative on other subjects. You can always comment with a slant on insurance. A good example of this is weather related article and how they might need to review their insurance policies or, you could offer a free consultation.
Facebook Strategy #5 - Capture reviews from satisfied customers for both your blog and your Fan Page. These are very influential on Facebook. Invite a satisfied customer to leave a short post.
Facebook Strategy #6 - Brand YOU as the insurance expert and ask for questions on insurance matters. Become their "go to" person.
Facebook Strategy #7 - Listen to your friends and fans. The great thing about insurance is that it responds nicely to changing events in people's lives. Watch for births, marriages, promotions, illness that you can build upon. It is not an opportunity to sell, but a door opener for a conversation to build a relationship.
The hardest thing for an insurance agent to grasp is that they actually have to do some self-marketing and they have always just built their leads on referrals. The way that people shop for insurance is changing and many agents are looking to see how they can jump into Social Media Marketing. Just understand that this is simply another channel of networking that is just done a little differently.
Schedule your time for posting and commenting on a daily basis. My recommendation is to treat this like another prospecting or networking event. This needs to be done consistently and should only take about 20 minutes once you get the hang of it.
Integrating a Facebook strategy with a blog will create a powerful presence of branding you as the Insurance Expert. If you are looking to get started with the process and like the idea of becoming that "expert" to grow your book of business, then please feel free to contact me for a free consultation. My Branding System offers a complete package for getting started with a step-by-step system that is easy to follow.
GIC's Offer Predictable Investment Returns - And Some Have Insurance Benefits Too Useful Tips for Selling Insurance 3 Mistakes to Avoid When Contacting Insurance Leads How A Bank Took Over The Relationship From My Financial Advisor
0 comments:
Post a Comment