Seriously?… you can’t market and insurance agency on Facebook?..

Have you heard this before?

I know you have because it is everywhere.

Personally, I am really getting tired of it.

I hear and read a lot about people talking about it and it is sad that they are misleading you..they can not understand it so they assume and try to make you believe that it is impossible.

Then you have some people who say, the now and future, is some other social site.

They will also tell you that it is the other sites that are bringing in business.

Whether they are right or whether they are wrong, that is not what I am here to discuss…even tho I think they are full of crap

Let’s discuss what is the difference between LinkedIn, Twitter, Google plus, and Facebook…. these in my opinion, as an insurance agent, are the 4 best out there and most talked about.

Understand that I believe in all the social sites out there..they are all great but should be used for one particular areas of the sales process…except for one who encompasses it all

As far as getting to be part of the conversation, creating relationships, finding prospects, and turning them into clients, most social sites are good…but only one is great..

Let’s take them one by one….

LinkedIn

LinkedIn is good for a number of reasons. I personally,  like to use it for prospecting.

LinkedIn gives you an aerial view of your connections and allows you to connect with other people that would fit your business, your niche, or your target client through others you already know

People use it to be in groups. They are part of the conversation and able to interject when they have a product that will fill the need of someone in the discussion.

It’s kind of like fishing

There are a couple other things you can use LinkedIn for but these two mentioned are the greatest use for any agent out there.

Twitter

Here’s what I have to say about Twitter…..It is a decent communication tool.

Think of standing in front of your building with a megaphone and announcing to your followers (prospects and clients) important items about the agency or community events/ news….

That is what Twitter is.

As an insurance agent, you are very limited to the uses of twitter…this is just my opinion…things can change.

If you are not in a big city (75,000 plus) few people are using it….Making it hard for you to market effectively.

But…

You can use it as a communication piece with your clients during disasters or big announcements about the office, an example being, “Closed for the Holidays.”

In my overall opinion, Twitter should be the least used as an insurance agent.  In other industries, it no doubt works, but it’s not that great for insurance.

Google plus

G+ is a different and weird social site all in itself….it’s hard to explain in a few words.

It is a very useful tool to market your agency…..yet there is a lack of good prospects and clients who are actually using the site ….most people there today are other marketers sharing ideas.

But…with that said,

My belief is that in the near future it will be one of the most powerful social sites and useful tools for communicating and marketing to your clients. There is no doubt that you need to be a part of G+ today.

It is a very useful tool in making sure that people looking for the answers to an insurance need can be met by you providing valuable content to the communities and people in your circles…this is why/how G+ is a great way to get your content found online.

Google being the leader in search, is using people in G+ to build authority…. those agents who are providing valuable content on a consistent basis to their clients are building their stature inside of Google….right now…

Check out G+ community Insurance Inbound Marketing

Google is and will remain one of the most dominant companies America has ever seen, especially in the way of search….therefore, you need to be a part of G+ because the power Google gives your insurance agency is and will continue to be huge.

Facebook

You are going to notice (if you haven’t already) that when I discuss Facebook I may seem a little biased.

I hope you will realize that this biased outlook exists because I have had GREAT success with Facebook marketing my insurance agency on Facebook and communicating to my prospects and clients.

Prospecting…

to creating the relationship…

to educating…

to turning them into a client…

to keeping in touch with them…

by deepening and creating a stronger relationship with them…after the sale…that means retention.

Facebook by far covers the whole spectrum unlike any other social site out there

and..

Ever hear,”Go where the people are.”?  When it comes to prospecting, there is no larger group of people using one social site in America than Facebook…take the other three mentioned and combine their users and they are still half of Facebook.

The three social sites I mentioned before are strong in some areas but weak in most…Facebook is strong in most areas and weak in some.

Think about it…many…many people/business owners use Facebook but don’t use the others.

So why do agents not use it?

A lot of agents use Facebook re-actively and not pro-actively and this is why they don’t like it….and when they do use it pro-actively, they try to sell.  You can sell, but there is a time and process  for that.

They don’t understand Facebook ads and the power of them.  Targeting  and directing a prospect into your sales funnel can not be matched by any other site.

Agents say that Facebook is good for personal lines but not commercial insurance, yet the vast majority of business owners are on Facebook. Just in a personal way….see above mentioned.

Agents have not been told about the power of not just marketing to your client, but communicating to them as well through Facebook.

In today’s world outside of business, email is not used. Many do not watch TV nor listens to the radio, so how do your prospects communicate? Answer..Facebook Newsfeed!

What if I told you you could communicate ONE on ONE with each client in your office right through their newsfeed??

Think if you could cross sell and deliver policy information directly to their Newsfeed?

Well guess what you can…

The Wrap

As you can see  there are a couple good social sites to use as an insurance agent

but when it comes to using a social site that is all encompassing to the sales cycle,

can be used as a communication and marketing tool,

and for both personal and commercial lines…

None is better than Facebook.

This has been Jason Cass with the GROW team