Though the methods are being used by insurers, they still have yet to do it properly to generate results.
The insurance industry has shown that it is getting on board with the use of the latest online techniques for marketing, including social media, but until now, it hasn’t been using it properly.
Insurers are now taking the time to try to get it right when they are attempting to communicate with consumers.
The Insurance Information Institute (I.I.I.) president, Robert Hartwig, explained that social media is an important way for the insurance industry to be able to communicate in a meaningful and relevant way with consumers, particularly those in the younger age groups. When discussing an A.M. Best video, he said that “It’s about very targeted marketing and segmenting audiences.” He pointed out that social media is central to being able to communicate with younger consumers who may not even be aware that they require coverage.
Social media gives the insurance industry the chance to communicate with all consumers, not just some.
According to the CEO and president of Aartrijk Branding and Communications, Peter Van Aartrijk, who spoke in the video, social media doesn’t just target younger consumers, but gives insurers the chance to connect with consumers of all age groups. It can help them to better understand the issues and the products that they may not otherwise be aware even exist.
For example, Twitter could be used by the insurance industry to spread catastrophe preparedness information or to help to share stories regarding the ways in which policyholders are being assisted by companies following a claim. This was only a brief and yet a highly relevant example of the way in which insurers could take advantage of what social media has to offer as a tool for communication, said Aartrijk.
Executive director, Tom Wetzel, from the Insurance Marketing and Communications Association, said that “The next challenge for (companies) is to do it right.” However, it was also pointed out by the XL Group senior marketing manager for North America, Steve Ryan, that the insurance industry needs to recognize that social media is not the same as the one-way strategies for communications that have existed in the past, and that it should be seen as “just another tool” that needs to be used properly.
