Your MGA Must Keep You on Top of Current Marketing Trends Like Social Media Marketing or You Could be Left Behind

In the past ten years we have seen significant changes to the way that people communicate. This is true across every industry, the insurance industry included. Digital marketing has created the ability to network with others like never before, and it is crucial that the company you work for is ahead of digital marketing trends and that they are keeping you in the loop, especially given the competitive nature of the insurance industry. 

Digital marketing is essentially online marketing and is one of the most affordable and effective ways that an insurance advisor can market themselves in this day and age. Some forms of digital marketing are more expensive and complicated than others. Social Media Marketing is an example of digital marketing that is both affordable and easy to grasp, whether it is something that you do yourself or something that you hire a company to administer.

Social Media Marketing is not just about putting out content through blogs or tweeting or posting to your social media presence. Social Media represents significant benefits outside of the obvious goal to get your phone to ring. Some of these benefits include:

1.       Increasing online brand (you) awareness, credibility and authority - If you are constantly releasing strong content then those individuals in the networks where you post will begin to recognize you and your authority on the subject matter you release.

2.       Increased customer retention – In the insurance industry it is vital that you keep connected to your clients so that if life changes, you are only a click away. Because Social Media involves connecting to prospects or referral sources, once connected you can continue to market to them and remind them that you are there for them if they need you.

Well this all sounds great, but many insurance advisors still struggle with the learning curve associated with Social Media Marketing and that is why it is crucial to work with an MGA that is on top of emerging digital marketing trends and one who can give you the necessary insight.

The biggest problem that insurance advisors run into when trying to use this powerful networking medium is not knowing how to use it properly. Engaging in Social Media is about give and take. Some advisors use Social Media only to blast out self-promotion. This is one of the quickest ways to alienate an online community. Others have accounts but are not sure how to leverage them or find coming up with content to share challenging. Some advisors have no experience with Social Media at all and have not even gotten started.

If you are an insurance advisor who wants to engage in Social Media Marketing, your MGA should be equipped to provide you with training in this regard. In addition, your MGA should be engaging in Social Media Marketing themselves because this adds to your credibility. It is so affordable for your MGA to do so that you should expect it. Your MGA should have presences on the major social platforms and should be releasing blog content on their Social Media that you can in turn discuss within your own social networks.

Social Media Marketing is not like conventional marketing where you post an ad in the newspaper and then your phone rings. Engaging in Social Media Marketing takes time because it involves building up a vast network of prospects and referral sources. With good support from your MGA and a solid and consistent effort, you will find that Social Media Marketing will reduce your overall expenses and connect you to far more prospects and referral sources than ever before.

IFCG is hosting a FREE seminar, “Making Social Media Marketing Translate into ROI,” on October 12^th from 12pm – 2pm. Courtney McElroy, CEO of Marketing Force, will be there to teach you how you can use Social Media to expand your networks and grow your portfolio. This session is open to all advisors no matter which company you work for and is intended to provide you with the basic tools and skill sets that will be needed to self-maintain your own Social Media Marketing campaign. You can register for the free seminar here http://joinifcg.com/seminar-schedule and don’t forget to bring your laptop.