There’s Facebook, there’s Twitter, there’s Instagram, and Pinterest. In fact, there are so many different ways to place your insurance agency on social media that you’re starting to get a little overwhelmed. Take a deep breath. You don’t need to be on every social media venue imaginable, but you do need to use the ones you choose more effectively.
Focusing on Facebook
When you think about social media, your mind likely jumps immediately to the big one: Facebook. While you may use Facebook in your private life, do you use it as a part of your business? Starting a Facebook business page is free, and you don’t need to use fancy images unless you want to do so. According to Postplanner, there are more than 1 billion user accounts on Facebook, and at least a few of these users will be interested in your insurance agency. If you’re considering adding a single social media account, by virtue of its size and reach, Facebook is the likely candidate.
Use Facebook as part of your business branding. Choose a consistent tone for your posts, and remember to be diverse, asking questions, offering suggestions, and posting photos. Remember to value the images in your post just as much as the words: you can also add a few select words to your images in case they get shared without the original post.
Remember that Facebook isn’t just about being social online. You can also use it to gather leads so that you can bring your marketing to your clients in other ways as well. For example, you might provide tips from your upcoming newsletter and encourage people to join.
Taking to Twitter
If you have the time and energy to extend your reach to other social media sites, what can Twitter do for you? Twitter is a succinct text-based medium. One advantage of Twitter over Facebook is the fact that Twitter is a constant stream of information that’s relatively unedited. While Facebook prioritizes what users see, Twitter does not. This allows newer and smaller businesses to pop up in a user’s feed just as easily as large, established businesses. If you love to share content and interact with others and you have a niche that people will seek out, Twitter is an excellent way for your agency to establish itself. For instance, if you’d like to spend a day promoting a series of information pieces focused on getting your home ready for the winter storm season, this could be overwhelming on Facebook but will fit right in on Twitter.
Images on Instagram
Isn’t Instagram a site focused on vacation photos or photos of well-plated food? Not always: Instagram is also a home for savvy business people. It’s focused on images, so you’ll need to think in a visual medium if you want to promote your business here. You don’t need to post pictures of insurance certificates, though. Use Instagram to show your employees receiving an award for the top insurance agency in town or to educate your customers and build a safer, healthier community.
If you’d like your audience to participate in creating and sharing photos, Instagram is probably a better choice than other visual social media sites. For instance, you might develop a “500 ways to bike to work safely” campaign for bike-to-work week and challenge your audience to add photos of themselves on their bikes.
Pictures on Pinterest
Pinterest is another image-based social media site, but it sets a different tone than Instagram. Pinterest is focused on curated image boards that focus on a specific theme. Its audience is a little older and skews more females than Instagram, which is most popular with men and women in their late teens to early thirties. If you have an infographic of someone biking safely that you’d like to link to blog content, Pinterest is a great venue for this information. While Instagram is more focused on ephemeral images, you can place visual content on Pinterest and people will refer back to it again and again.
What is the best social media platform for your business? That entirely depends on how much time you have to spend and where your focus lies. If you love a stream of written dialogue, Twitter might be a good choice for your agency. If you enjoy creating carefully-curated reference images, Pinterest would be an excellent way to share.
Whatever option you choose, the American Agents Alliance is here to provide education, networking, and IT support for your business. Contact us today to learn more about how we can support your insurance agency.
