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Transcript of Tweet, Tweet, Ping, Ping Social Media Strategies For Insurance
Session # 276Tweet, Tweet, Ping, Ping: Social , , g, gMedia Strategies for Insurance
Monday, June 73:30 – 5:00 PM
Introduction
Housekeeping Items Turn off cell phones, pagers, etc.R b fill i Remember to fill out your session surveys
Q&A at the end of the session
Today’s Topic Tweet, Tweet, Ping, Ping: Social Media Strategies for Insurance
Jennifer Overhulse‐King, Principal Owner – St. Nick Media ServicesJennifer Overhulse‐King is the principal owner and founder of St. Nick Media Services. She is a writer, as well as a marketing and public relations expert, with more than 20 years of journalism background and expertise. Jennifer began working with the insurance industry as a copywriter for The National Underwriter Company, and she subsequently held various marketing leadership positions with National Underwriter, Tech Decisions, Claims Magazine, and Florida Underwriter. As principal owner of St. Nick Media Services, Jennifer works with vendors and insurance companies alike to tailor marketing, PR, advertising and sales messages/efforts specifically for constituent groups important to the insurance industry. She has recently published expert articles in Insurance & Technology, Tech Decisions, Best’s Review, National Underwriter, Insurance Networking News, AT&T’s Networking Exchange, IASA’s Interpreter and the Journal of Insurance Operations. She is a member of the Insurance Marketing Communications Association (IMCA), the Insurance Accounting & Systems Association (IASA) and is editor of IASA’s Interpreter.
June 7 June 7June 7Agenda What is social
June 7(continued) Where do I start?
media? Why is social
media
How do I manage and maintain it?
important to the insurance industry?
Can I measure it?
What are the Do I need it? How can I use
it?
Wh t thdangers?
What is it?What is it?
Social media is…
…user‐generated content distributed through socialthrough social interactions facilitated on an almost real‐time basis by the Internet or other forms of electronic distribution.
What else is it?What else is it? It’s a vehicle for electronic
advertising
It’s a market research tool
It’s a customer feedback mechanism
It’s a networking platform
It’s a thought leadership forum
It’s a way to stay in touch with remote offices or workersremote offices or workers
It’s a relationship builder
It can also be…
…a great waste of time, money and resources!
Some statistics to considerSome statistics to consider… More than 77% of all employees today have a Facebook account.
More than 61% of employees access their account during work hours.
A recent study by researchers at the University of Melbourne –Australia indicates that workers who took the occasional “mental break” at work by engaging in cyber‐socialization actually increased productivity by approximately 9%. Do you believe it?
Whether you believe this or not, do not give employees carte blanche with social mediacarte blanche with social media.
Why should you monitor social media use by employees?
Potentially increase productivity
Protect your company’s network from dangerous downloads
Reduce cyber‐slacking or time wasted by employees online during work hours
Prevent data leakage
Ensure downloads are free of viruses and other malware
Do I need it?Do I need it? The short answer is…YES!
Sheer numbers tell us that social media is not a fad, it’s here to stay.
LinkedIn has over 60 million members in over 200 countries, plus executives from all Fortune 500 companies are LinkedIn members.
In March 2010 alone, Twitter recorded 1,500% growth in the number of registered users, and over 70,000 registered apps have been created for the micro‐blogging platform to date.
K i i dKeep in mind… It’s the way the next generation of consumers prefers to
communicate.
Your competition is using it…
Your prospects and current customers are using it…
“Social media is like teen sexSocial media is like teen sex. Everyone wants to do it.
b k hNobody knows how. When it’s finally done, there is surprise it’s not better.”bette
‐Avinash Kaushik‐Avinash Kaushik, Analytics Evangelist – Google
OK OK social media is obviously the greatest thing sinceOK, OK…social media is obviously the greatest thing since sliced bread…but how can I use it?
Brand recognition
Tech support
User group/forum User group/forum
Customer feedback mechanism
Thought leadership
Reinforce messaging
Network with peers
Different strokes for different folksDifferent strokes for different folks… Agents
Community involvement
Lead generation
Carriers
More effective underwritingMore effective underwriting
Pre‐employment screening
Fraud detection
V d /S i P id Vendors/Service Providers
News portal
User groups/forums
Advertising/marketing channel
Where do I start?Where do I start?
Set a policy in place.Set a policy in place.
Resources:
1. Agents Council on Technology or ACT (www.iiaba.net/act)
2 I M k l S d d A i i IMSA2. Insurance Marketplace Standards Association or IMSA (www.imsaethics.org)
3. (Insert shameless self promotion here.) St. Nick Media3. (Insert shameless self promotion here.) St. Nick Media Services
If “l li ” i l i !If you “legalize” it…you can regulate it!
Where do I start?Where do I start?
Take time to gather competitive intelligence
Listen Lurk LearnListen. Lurk. Learn.
Examine available options
Determine your comfort level
“B f j i i h d d f h l l di “Before jumping into the deep end of the pool, always dip a toe in to test the water. If we’re talking about having children, that means get a dog. If we’re talking about involvement in social media that means get a blog ”media, that means get a blog.
Define your purpose and goals
Why do you want to participate in social media?
Are there hard dollar targets tied to your goals?
Where do I start? (continued)Where do I start? (continued) Identify internal resources
Employees/SMEs
Partners
Industry Analysts
Collaboratively set strategyCollaboratively set strategy
Involve the right internal groups or individuals
Decide what vehicles will you use
D id hi h t l ill b t ff ti i h l i hi Decide which tools will be most effective in helping you achieve your goals
How do I manage/maintain it?How do I manage/maintain it? Reinforce/Reuse Content & Messaging
Make it consistent
Take an outside in approach
Deconstruct long complicated messages
Repurpose content
Implement an integrated plan
Tie new social media efforts back to Tie new social media efforts back to existing tools
Pick a single starting place and own it
B ild t t l d Build a content calendar
Recruit contributors
How do I manage/maintain it?How do I manage/maintain it?
How do I manage/maintain it?How do I manage/maintain it?
Can I measure it?Can I measure it? Common measurements
# of followers
Oft‐overlooked measurements
Upsell opportunities
# of friends
# of fans
Positive feedback provided
Click‐throughs to website or link
ReferralsPositive feedback provided
Customer interactions Conversions
Activity/engagement level
Brand mentions Brand mentions
Virality (retweets, sharing content, etc.)
What do I do with the information I gather?gather?
Analyze your measurements
Test new strategies Test new strategies and ideas against benchmarks
Set new goals on a Set new goals on a regular basis
Keep adding to your mixmix
What is the downside? The Dangers of Social MediaWhat is the downside? – The Dangers of Social Media The biggest danger is inaction or lack of participation.
Social media can also result inSocial media can also result in…
Legal implications/liability
Regulatory concerns/privacy
U d f i d /f ll Unwanted friends/followers
Negative comments/feedback
What is the downside?What is the downside?
Questions?
Jennifer Overhulse‐KingPrincipal OwnerSt Nick Media ServicesSt. Nick Media Services15695 Glencoe‐Verona RoadVerona, KY 41092
Phone: 859‐803‐6597Email: [email protected]
www.twitter.com/stnickmediawww.facebook.com/stnickmediawww.linkedin.com/in/stnickmedia
And now, our next speaker, Craig Lowenthal of Glatfelter Insurance.
Craig Lowenthal, Social Media Strategist – Glatfelter Insurance Group
Craig Lowenthal has been a technology professional for 25 years, and focused in the insurance industry for more than 21 years. Prior to joining Glatfelter Insurance Group, Lowenthal was the CIO for NYMAGIC, INC. in New York City. Before joining NYMAGIC, he was the Managing Principal and Chief Information Officer for the startup, Integro Insurance Brokers. Prior to joining Integro, Lowenthal was with Hartford Financial Products, a unit of The Hartford, where he was Vice President and Chief Information Officer. During his tenure there, he led the effort to reestablish Hartford Financial Products business after the offices at 7 World Trade Center were lost on September 11, 2001. Before joining The Hartford, he held a senior leadership position with Reliance National Insurance Company, where he was Managing Vice President and Chief Technology Officer for eleven years. He earned his BS in Accounting from the State University of New York at Albany and is a CPA licensed in New York. He is an active member in the Insurance Accounting & Systems Association (IASA).
Most of the following content is basedon the research and findings fromg
The Customer Respect Group21 Market Street
Ipswich, MA 01938
www.customerrespect.com
Social Media
Can’t ignore itCan t ignore it OR
it’s the biggest load of hype since…
Reasons to ignore social media
Reasons to ignore social mediag
How many of you have said this?
Social media is full of noise and confusionSocial media is full of noise and confusion
…but the numbers are compelling
Facebook has in excess of 400 million active users on global basis. Twitter now has 75 million user accounts.
Li k dI h 60 illi b i f d 1 b th
g
LinkedIn has over 60 million members, an increase of around 1m members per month.
Facebook claims 200 million users log on every 24 hours The average Facebook user has 130 friends. 70% of bloggers are organically talking about brands. 38% of bloggers post brand or product reviews. 5 billion pieces of content (web links, news stories, blog posts, etc.) are shared each week on
Facebook. The average number of tweets per hour are 1.3m.
More than 700,000 local businesses have active pages on Facebook. Purpose-built business Facebook pages have created more than 5.3bn fans. More than 250 Facebook applications have over a million combined users each month.
..who are these people?
Have you been influenced by customer review of a product, a
movie, or a restaurant?
Who is using social media?Facebook Statistics
YouY f il Your family
Your friends Your employees
YB t th i t t d i Your target prospects Your customers
But are they interested in insurance?
..but are they interested in insurance, surely this is about sharing pictures?
Company FansUSAA 77,734
Allstate Insurance 17,797
AAA 15,439
State Farm Insurance 14,409
American Family Mutual Insurance 10,185
Progressive Insurance 9,459
Nationwide Insurance 5,156
Progressive Motorcycle 2,981
Liberty Mutual Insurance 2,582
Low in comparison (but growing fast)
Verizon Wireless - 866,000 * Coca Cola - 5.7 million * Starbucks - 7.4 million
Isn’t social media a minefield?
We’ll get sued We’ll lose control ofWe ll lose control of
the brand Employees will waste
time People will say bad
things about the brandthings about the brand Employees will give
away corporate y psecrets
The coordinated attackThe coordinated attack
Customers will say bad things about the brand
Losing control of the brand
Even if you understand social media,you need a complete strategyyou need a complete strategy
Even if you understand social media, you need a complete strategy again it’s not about technologystrategy, again it’s not about technology
Even the best can get it wrongEven the best can get it wrong
I i f i k b dIs it worse to forget to register a key brand on Twitter or leave a prototype iPhone in a bar?
Social media is a minefield – none of these pages are ‘official’
Social media is a minefield
Allen Nelson, general counsel, chief administrative officer and executive vice president at Crawford & Co. (a $1.1 billion claims administrator in Atlanta Ga ) started taking a look at social media because he wasAtlanta, Ga.), started taking a look at social media because he was concerned that the company could be the subject of disparaging comments on the Internet. Once he began looking around, Nelson was surprised to find multiple Facebook pages with the company name on them, set up p p g p y , pby employees who were using them to communicate.
Jon Bidwell, chief innovation officer of Chubb. "Businesses are tapping that , pp gpower to enhance their brand awareness and deepen their engagement with customers and other constituents. This continuous dialogue also creates substantial risks, which companies are wrestling with throughout their organizations, from HR to IT to legal and marketing."
So what can/should you do?
Just 19 percent of insurance companies have an official Facebook page
Over 60 percent have some Facebook presence
So what can/should you do - DefenseSo what can/should you do - Defense
Build an Inter-departmental team• Compliance, marketing, customer service, web-
development, sales, public relations, corporate affairs
• Senior level appointment to lead the teamSenior level appointment to lead the team
Create social media guidelines and policy• Cover all compliance considerations• Internal and external (agent) training( g ) g
Listen and learn• Don’t jump in to respond too quickly
Take stock of existing assets and sitesTake stock of existing assets and sites
The Offense – strategy firstgy
• What are you trying to achieve?• Build brand awareness and familiarity• Brand reputation• Enhanced trust• Create and manage customer engagement – it
is a dialogue• Use greater personalization and develop a
customer recommendation and referral process
Create a goal• Create a goal • Understand progress measurement• Do not focus on the technology (but
keep an eye on Facebook)keep an eye on Facebook)
The Offense – distribution
The distribution model • Carrier web strategies have
suffered for years trying to fit into existing agent and agency models
• Agencies and agents have a big g g grole to play in social media but it needs to be complimentary
• Both carrier and agents will:• have a dialogue with customers• have a dialogue with customers• recruit fans and followers• Own Facebook and other social
media pages
The Offense - tactics
Image, brand and content strategys a egy
• Must accept the role of content creator
Fan and follower recruitmentWho do you want to recruit• Who do you want to recruit
• How many do you want to recruit• Extend reach beyond traditional
marketing
E t d di l Engagement and dialog• For what purpose• Grow customer recommendations
and referrals
Website Examples
Social Media Examples
Progressive – engaging customersg g g g Reach out to customers on
Twitter Quick switch to more robustQuick switch to more robust
channels – telephone, email TwitService is available in travel,
telecommunications, high tech, and other industries
Progressive has a conversation index (one to one messages) in the 70% 80% rangethe 70%-80% range.
Provides an alternative channel for mobile users in natural disasters
Effective use of Twitter Background
Liberty Mutual – Brand Extension Be “where the customer
already is”
Blogs containing extensive content
Create a dialog and beCreate a dialog and be associated with a subject area – Responsibility
Provide interactive extension to commercials
Attracts high numbers of mid–Attracts high numbers of midage female consumers
GEICO – enhancing a brand image
A range of video content• Company commercialsp y• Informative education content• Customer service • Careers• Viral video – Warren Buffett plays AxlViral video Warren Buffett plays Axl
Rose
New content developed specifically for online viral growthspecifically for online viral growth
GEICO channel has 3 million views of video contentviews of video content
Nationwide - extending reach
Interesting content can reach a much wider audience
Social media makes it really easy to spread information
Nationwide • 2 000 Twitter followers• 2,000 Twitter followers• In a recent 3-day period the iPhone
tweet reached at least 25,000 people through “Re-Tweeting”
Some will become followers other Some will become followers, other will re-tweet another level
• One tweet we followed recently reached at least 1 million followers through redirectionthrough redirection
Target demographic groups
Chubb – Crowdsourcing
Fan recruitment
Attract with content Use dialog to engage Widen your reach through
redirections Narrow your focus to the friends
f fof fans Fans are opt-in, self-
maintaining, loyal and visible recommenders of yourrecommenders of your products
Referrals and recommendationsThe all powerful LIKE button
Tells a Facebook user whichTells a Facebook user which of THEIR friends LIKES (and recommends) a brand
It is from someone YOU trust
If a person selects to ‘LIKE’If a person selects to LIKE a product or brand, all of their friends get a message to say that
YOUR friends that like this company
Recommendations – the next stageg
• Now extended across the webthe web
• Personalization of the web will intensifyy
• Social media will be integral to every aspect of the businessof the business
• Retail will create customer expectations, insurance will follow
Retail we get, but insurance?
• User reviews have been highly successful for retail companies for while
• Proven to increase purchasing
• Can it work for insurance?
Platform statsLeading Insurers by fan count
• USAA 77,734 • Allstate Insurance 17,797
Growing support of native applications making Facebook an ultimate destination
• AAA 15,439 • State Farm Insurance 14,409• Progressive Insurance 9,459
(Interesting correlation to the brand reputation data)
Greater levels of core business functionality
Growing dialog fan to fan and fan to company (Interesting correlation to the brand reputation data)
Most Comprehensive Facebook Sites• American Family
company Industry fan base increasing 6% per
month Increasingly sophisticated fan
i • Liberty Mutual Insurance • AAA • Allstate Insurance • USAA
recruitment Facebook fan base runs on average
about 4 to 1 over Twitter follower count • USAA
Facebook’s platform use has been central to personalization and social experience
Platform statsLeading Insurers by Follower count
• USAA 9,311• State Farm Insurance 5,973
A driver to content on blogs, YouTube, Facebook, website
Growing importance on ‘re-tweets’• Allstate 4,789• Progressive Insurance 3,720
Most active tweeters (per month)• State Farm 175
Common topics includes NASCAR, golf, tennis and other events
Business topics include mobile apps safety tips motorbike season
• Progressive 149• Liberty Mutual 62• Allstate 55• Esurance 51
apps, safety tips, motorbike season, website updates
Has a role as alternative service channelI d t id t t ti it Most engaged with customers (Conversation Index)
• Progressive 77%• GEICO 58%• Esurance 48%
Industry wide average tweet activity – 1 per day
Industry follower growth rate has decreased since last summer, now Esurance 48%
• State Farm 41%• Amica 40%
about 8-10% per month
Other odds and ends…
RecruitinggPer a recent study conducted by the National Association for Business Economics, Social media recruiting is on the radar screen of 31% of the surveyed insurance companies Most insurance companies using socialsurveyed insurance companies. Most insurance companies using social media to help recruit are mainly using LinkedIn, followed by Facebook. But most companies do not have a strategy for using either platform to recruit.
Riv Data Corporation – provides employers with the tools to monitor and evaluate employee online behavior. Companies now have the ability to review and evaluate information to assist in both hiring decisions and the mitigation of existing employee riskmitigation of existing employee risk.
They provide active monitoring of the online behavior of an employee or potential hire by collecting reviewing and filtering user‐generated datapotential hire by collecting, reviewing, and filtering user generated data found throughout the internet. This includes social networks, blogs, message boards, and anywhere people share information online.
Embedded Twitter Functionality in U ifi d C i ti W b Cli tUnified Communications Web Client
7 things to stop doing now on g p gFacebook
1. Using a weak passwordg p2. Leaving your full birth date in your profile3. Overlooking useful privacy controls3. Overlooking useful privacy controls4. Posting your child’s name in a caption5 Mentioning that you’ll be away from home5. Mentioning that you ll be away from home6. Letting search engines find you7 Permitting youngsters to use Facebook unsupervised
As published in June 2010 issue of Consumer Reports
7. Permitting youngsters to use Facebook unsupervised
What now? Accept that social media is important
to your business• Appoint a senior leader and team• Provide a budget
M d f Manage your defense • Develop guidelines and policies• Provide training
“Social media WILL be Plan the offense
• Develop a content plan to attract the right fans
Social media WILL be integral to your business”
Look past the noise and j k i l• Build a recommendation strategy
• Build, grow and evolve• Let it simmer, do not rush
junk, ignore your personal feelings about Twitter and
get on with it
Thank you for your time and attention. If you have questions specifically regarding this portion of the presentation, please contact:
Craig LowenthalSocial Media StrategistGlatfelter Insurance GroupEmail: [email protected]
Download The Customer Respect Group’s latest “Insurance Social Media Digest” atwww.customerrespect.com/IASA2010.htm
And now, the Q&A portion of today’s presentation.
Q&A with Today’s Speakers
Jennifer Overhulse-King, Principal Owner – St. Nick Media Services
Craig Lowenthal, Social Media Strategist – Glatfelter Insurance Group
Thank you for coming!
f ld l k f h lIf you would like a copy of this presentation, please contact:
Jennifer Overhulse‐KinggSt. Nick Media [email protected]‐803‐6597859‐803‐6597