Getting Started with Social Selling for Insurance Agents
July 19, 2023
Categories:
Social Media
The insurance industry is still undergoing significant digital transformation. For the majority of the industry that goes to market through intermediaries, there is a laser focus on how this impacts the role of the independent insurance agent.
Even as more consumers shift to digital-first behaviors, their desire for guidance and advice from a trusted professional at certain consumer milestones stands strong. This means it’s more important than ever for insurance agents to put themselves in the path of digital interaction.
The role of the agent isn’t going anywhere. But the points in which this role adds value to the customer journey have changed. To ensure this trusted guidance is present when and where consumers need it most, agents must take their legacy of relationship building and thought leadership to the digital landscape.
This means thinking of social media as another place to nurture and build relationships, educate and guide. A place to do what agents have always been doing – connecting and building trust.
Finding Your Voice on Social Media
Agents see the value savvy marketing gives them in a competitive environment – and they want support from their carriers.
Being on social media is so much more than “posting to Facebook.” It’s about being discoverable to prospects doing social-first searches. It’s about building credibility through thought leadership. It’s about staying top of mind with digital-first customers as they navigate life changes. It’s about relationships.
Social Selling is a non-negotiable to drive a modern marketing strategy.
Social selling is just what it sounds like: Using social media to sell a product or service. It’s leveraging social to build personal relationships, showcase thought leadership, engage with prospects, interact with existing customers, and ultimately build trust and rapport that will eventually lead to sales. It enables insurance agents to add value to the customer journey where there wouldn’t otherwise be an opportunity.
Individuals have 10x the reach and drive twice the engagement compared to company brands on social media. This is essentially a digital translation of what we already know to be true about the majority of the insurance industry. Consumers are giving their attention to trusted individuals when making certain financial decisions that protect their families.
Social media is so much more than likes and comments. As an agent, social media is an opportunity to share your personality, knowledge and sincerity with others.
Research has shown that nearly 9 in 10 consumers base at least part of their buying decisions on authenticity. Social selling gives you a chance to amplify your key differentiators to generate more long-term relationships. Longer relationships translate to additional product sales. In other words, building and nurturing relationships with social selling is good for your bottom line.
Looking at social media through the lens of social selling will help you more easily weave it into everyday sales practices. Keep these three tips in mind as you get started with social selling:
1) Always Post Authentically
Your audience and the algorithms can tell when you’re posting like a real person. This means you need to put some thought into relevant and timely content. Your social media posts should always read and sound like they come directly from you. This doesn’t mean every post has to be serious or deep, though. Rather, every post is an opportunity for your personality to shine through.
For example, you could share behind-the-scenes footage in your office, photos from a business trip, or even your personal take on community news. It’s about building a social strategy that shows off the personal connections you have with your prospective and existing clients. Don’t be afraid to share your personal commentary on an industry topic, advice on how to navigate life changes, and the financial decisions that come along with them. You’re the expert, after all! That’s what clients want to see.
2) Check Out Social Selling Resources From Your Carriers
Don’t feel like you have to go it alone. Carriers are increasingly focused on digital enablement and social media and you may be surprised to learn they offer resources like social media content libraries or social media management tools.
For example, a carrier might give you access to a content library full of pre-vetted, branded and third-party content. This gives you material to power strong and diversified posts alongside the authentic, personal content. These posts are a starting point. You should customize them with your voice and take care to share things that matter to you, your business, and your clients.
3) Continue The Conversation
Posting on social media is just the beginning of your social selling journey. Authentic and relevant content is more likely to spur on engagement and conversation. Be ready to engage and you’ll enhance your visibility and strengthen relationships. Look for opportunities to take the social media conversation into the real world too. That’s really where you can find results.
As agents look to intersect customer’s digital habits, social selling can help them engage and deepen relationships. If you’re ready to learn more about social selling for insurance agents check out Denim Social’s latest guidebook. “A Guide to Social Selling for Insurance.”
