6 best practices to build or boost agency social media marketing
Discover how to boost your social media engagement to build your book of business.
Over the course of the last few decades, the way people work, shop and conduct business has unquestionably changed. We’ve increasingly begun to move aspects of our lives online. From Zooming and streaming to shopping and swiping, our world is continuously becoming digital. One of the primary examples of this shift is social media. For many, it’s an invaluable part of their personal lives. For business owners, including independent insurance agents, it can be key to attracting and retaining customers and in turn, growing profits.
Social media is changing how business owners reach prospects and customers. In fact, 77% of social media marketers surveyed in 2021 by HubSpot reported their social media efforts have been “somewhat to very effective.” Marketers stated they used social media to promote and raise awareness of their products and services.
Most independent agents have started using social media to engage with prospects and existing policyholders. According to the 2021 Big I and Reagan Consulting Best Practices Study, 88.9% of agencies with revenues under $1.25 million are on Facebook and 77.8% are on LinkedIn. As for larger agencies, 79.5% of agencies with revenues of more than $25 million are on Facebook and 97.4% are on LinkedIn.
While we’re making progress as an industry, there’s more we can do to make the most of this valuable marketing tool. By focusing on the following six best practices, you can boost your social media engagement to build your book of business, whether you’re logging in for the first time or you’re a social media veteran.
1. Build a plan
Between LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and others, it may be difficult to know where to begin. First, you’ll want to research where your audience spends their time and participate on those channels. Next, build a plan. Focus on one platform and build out from there.
In the plan, determine the channels to which you are going to post and the frequency. While similar content can be posted across different channels, it is recommended to adjust the content for the channel you plan to use. Create a calendar that lays out rough content ideas for the next several weeks or months ahead.
2. Post regularly
Over-posting can be annoying to your followers, yet posting too little isn’t good either. Balance and consistency are key to developing a posting cadence. Try out different schedules to determine what works best for your audience. Consistency is essential and will directly impact your success with social media.
3. Use quality content
Create well-thought-out social media posts that are useful to your audience. Doing so demonstrates your knowledge of the industry and the issues that impact your clients and community. Even though the objective is to promote your agency, it is best not to take a hard-sell approach. The intention should be to educate and provide a level of value for your followers.
Original content demonstrating your expertise in a subject area is what users want. Consider repurposing content you may already have distributed in a newsletter or via marketing materials. Or simply highlight your community involvement, your best employees or new job openings in a post.
Also, consider posts that include graphics, visuals and video where you can as these are proven to attract additional views.
Another important part of the social media landscape is reposting or sharing other people’s posts and content, and always with credit given. When someone in the industry posts something your audience may find helpful, share it along with your thoughts on the subject.
4. Mind your tone
While posts should be an authentic mirror of agency culture, it is important to maintain a professional and positive attitude. It is best to stay clear of any inflammatory topics, or anything others might find offensive as it could reflect poorly and alienate potential clients. Keep your business pages for business interactions. That said, social media marketing is more personal than other types of marketing. People want to connect with individuals, not just a business. Posting occasional personal information makes an agency and its employees more relatable.
5. Build engagement
To get the most mileage out of your social media use, you’ll want to build engagement. One way to do this is by tagging and interacting with others. Respond to or repost valuable content. They may respond to you by sharing or reposting your material.
When you post, be sure to tag relevant parties and use hashtags that could help your post appear in more searches. Also, encourage employees, prospects, clients and others to follow you on your social media channels by including your handles in marketing materials, email signatures and your website.
6. Track your progress
It’s difficult to advance your progress if you don’t know what’s working in terms of your social media tactics. Keep track of which posts are getting the most likes, comments and reposts. When you know what content is catching the eyes of your social media followers, you can create more along those lines.
Social media can prove very beneficial to the independent insurance agent – if you know how to use it. Make 2023 the year you commit to a social media strategy or to improving the one you have. Follow these best practices and soon you will be successfully marketing your agency on social media like a pro.
Doug Coombs is the executive vice president and chief marketing officer of SIAA. He can be reached at douglas.coombs@siaa.com.
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