The so-called soft skills are your secret superpower when it comes to insurance marketing. Yes, you can write exceptional copy or have a well-designed website, but if you receive a client question or complaint, it’s your ability to manage the social element of that interaction that will usually save the day.
However, while it’s easy to express empathy in person, it can be harder to do so if a customer complaint comes through social media. How can you express empathy effectively online? Here are some answers.
Reply to Customers Where They Are
Your insurance clients should not need to struggle to find you or have you listen to them. When you’re online, “listening” to your customers often means reading the comments in your social media feed. Sprinklr says that Paris-based insurance company “AXA uses Facebook to not just share new policies and links to informative blog content, but also to answer customer questions – even in the comments sections of posts.”
If a customer expresses a frustration online, you should be there to respond, even if their frustration is expressed in the comments section of a blog or social media post.
Be Responsive
People have high expectations about response time on social media. One of the other ways that you show that you’re listening to your clients is by trying to achieve quick response times. While you might not be able to monitor your social media feeds every hour, try to get the fastest response times that you can so that customer complaints don’t sit there on your social media feed accumulating other comments to go along with them.
Make Suggestions to Meet Customer Needs
Whether you do this publically or privately, responding with specific suggestions can really help your clients make informed decisions online. While occasionally you will have customers who just want to vent about your business, often your social media interactions will be focused on questions that people have about your insurance products. If you can quickly point them in the right direction, you meet their needs and make them feel like someone has heard them. When they experience your personal attention, they will be more inclined to buy from you now and in the future.
Offer to Talk Privately
Social media is a very public forum, but sometimes it’s the only way that people feel like they can reach out to your business. When you see a customer concern expressed on social media, offer to talk privately through DMs, email, or even on the phone if need be. That way, your clients can express their needs fully and get the answers they need, helping to increase their trust in you and your business.
Get Personal
That person-to-person connection is what makes storefront discussions an easy venue for expressing empathy. While you may not be in the same room — or even the same city — with a person, you can still connect with that person as an individual. For instance, when you use customer names in an online conversation, this helps the client feel more personally connected.
According to Fresh Sparks, “67 percent of consumers have engaged a brand’s social media for customer service needs.” Are you ready to address your clients’ customer service needs more effectively this year? Contact us at American Agents Alliance, and discover the many insurance marketing tools and other membership benefits we have to offer.
