Insurance Agents Are Losing the War in Social Media
I’ve seen it hundreds of times, and I’m sure your social media looks the same—the boring, bland corporate-sponsored marketing propaganda pushed out through HearSay or some other weak social media dashboard.
Oh, and let's not forget the LifeHappens.org stuff that every life insurance agent thinks is valuable, when in actuality the only people who engage in these types of posts are other insurance agents. Not really the market you are going for, now is it?
The purpose of social media is often lost to the everyday insurance and financial services professional, largely due to the fact that agents are completely clueless on the way social media works and stick to what their corporate marketing department wants to see them do.
Guess what? Corporate doesn’t pay your paycheck. Customers do and customers don’t give two sh**s about the newest info-graphic on how great your term life product is.
The focus of social media is the word “social”, not “advertising”; otherwise, it would be called “advertising media”. People go to social media for information (that they care about), entertainment, and interaction. It’s about relationships. It’s about building value in you and your agency through digital dialogue, not a monologue.
How would you receive it if I came into the office and just started blabbering about McDonald’s and the new sandwich they have and crammed pictures of it in your face? Probably not very well and you probably wouldn’t have much to say to me again in the future. Might even tell me to GTFO and never come back. It works the same way.
You are a real, live human being who is in the industry to help others (I assume, otherwise you need to rethink your purpose) and people want to know YOU, not your carrier. What makes you different? What makes you more valuable than the other agent down the road who writes for the same carrier?
It’s all about engagement and interaction. Those are the human elements needed in this business. Without them, you are an order taker poised to be replaced by Insurtech.
The social media solution is simple. Be real. Be human. Be honest.
This article is accurate and true to the best of the author’s knowledge. Content is for informational or entertainment purposes only and does not substitute for personal counsel or professional advice in business, financial, legal, or technical matters.
