Digital Marketing for Insurers
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24 PAMIC.ORG • WINTER 2017 TECHNOLOGY Although most insurers understand the importance of digital transformation, (many are implementing self-service features, agent access and mobile apps) one area that is often overlooked is digital marketing. In this article, we will see why digital marketing is of strategic importance not only for direct writers, but also agency writers and what they need to accomplish to receive the best results out of their digital marketing budgets. The Financial Times defines digital marketing as “an umbrella term for the marketing of products or services using digital technologies, mainly on the Internet, but also including mobile phones, display advertising and any other digital medium.” It is an umbrella term because it encompasses several marketing strategies and channels including search engine optimization (SEO), search engine marketing (SEM), pay per click, social media marketing, content marketing, display advertising (advertisements in websites), messaging (SMS, push notification), e-mail, etc. The facts are very clear: • Most consumers find information using digital technologies (namely by web searches, mobile applications, social media, e-mail, etc.) • Web searches from mobile devices (smartphones and tablets) have exceeded those from a desktop. • People spend about four hours every day online out of which 30% is spent on social media sites. Responsive design is Google’s recommended design pattern and therefore, the search engine ranks responsive websites higher in web searches on mobile devices. And yet, the websites of several insurers are not responsive and are not taking full advantage of SEO, SEM and social media marketing. These insurers do not have a well-developed content marketing strategy and they have not established clear KPI’s (Key Performance Indicators) to track and optimize digital marketing plans. While the value of a great digital marketing strategy is obvious for direct writing carriers, it is also significant to agency writers for three reasons: Digital marketing generates quality leads for their agents. Good content creates, and more importantly, retains business. To quote Andrew Davis, author of Brandscaping, “Content builds relationships. Relationships are built on trust. Trust drives revenue.” Agents need help in improving their digital presence. Carriers win by helping their agents win. Mastering digital marketing is not easy. However, a clear step-by- step approach and commitment ensures success. Let us take a brief look at some of the steps carriers need to take to create a strong foundation. SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION (SEO) SEO is the process of generating traffic free of cost by providing keywords and meta information to the search engines. An audit of keywords and metadata can lead to improving these “tags” to better reflect the carrier’s products and unique strengths, which can then generate the right traffic. MAKE THE WEBSITE RESPONSIVE It is also important for carrier’s websites to be responsive so that content appropriately can be viewed on all devices. When searched from a mobile device, Google prefers responsive sites. Therefore, it is important to make at least the public website responsive as soon as possible. SEARCH ENGINE MARKETING AND PAY-PER-CLICK Search engines (Google, Bing, etc.) display advertisements relevant to the user’s search. These sites do not charge for showing the advertisement, but do charge if a user clicks on the link (pay-per-click). The search engines apply criteria to maximize the probability of the user clicking on the ad. Understanding this helps in designing ad campaigns to include carefully selected ad words, pilot projects to determine the optimal bid amount and KPI’s to track and adjust the campaigns. Google for example, provides tools to track and understand the complete user behavior by combining ad campaigns (Google AdWords) with web analytics (Google Analytics). CONTENT MARKETING STRATEGY Content marketing is not the creation of brochures or direct marketing material. It is the creation of content that is intended to simulate interest and interaction such as videos, blogs, and social media posts. The focus of the information is not the company, but instead the consumer. This could be an informative video instructing the consumer as to what to do to prepare for emergencies. It could also be a positive experience shared by a policyholder or agent. No matter if it is a video, blog, or social media post, it provides the customer the opportunity to engage with the carrier or agent via a comment or like, or share with others, thus generating more opportunity for the Digital Marketing for Insurers By Sundar Vallinayagam 1 2 3
Transcript of Digital Marketing for Insurers
24 PAMIC.ORG • WINTER 2017
TECHNOLOGY
Although most insurers understand the importance of digital transformation, (many are implementing self-service features, agent access and mobile apps) one area that is often overlooked is digital marketing. In this article, we will see why digital marketing is of strategic importance not only for direct writers, but also agency writers and what they need to accomplish to receive the best results out of their digital marketing budgets.
The Financial Times defines digital marketing as “an umbrella term for the marketing of products or services using digital technologies, mainly on the Internet, but also including mobile phones, display advertising and any other digital medium.” It is an umbrella term because it encompasses several marketing strategies and channels including search engine optimization (SEO), search engine marketing (SEM), pay per click, social media marketing, content marketing, display advertising (advertisements in websites), messaging (SMS, push notification), e-mail, etc.
The facts are very clear:
• Most consumers find information using digital technologies (namely by web searches, mobile applications, social media, e-mail, etc.)
• Web searches from mobile devices (smartphones and tablets) have exceeded those from a desktop.
• People spend about four hours every day online out of which 30% is spent on social media sites.
Responsive design is Google’s recommended design pattern and therefore, the search engine ranks responsive websites higher in web searches on mobile devices. And yet, the websites of several insurers are not responsive and are not taking full advantage of SEO, SEM and social media marketing. These insurers do not have a well-developed content marketing strategy and they have not established clear KPI’s (Key Performance Indicators) to track and optimize digital marketing plans.
While the value of a great digital marketing strategy is obvious for direct writing carriers, it is also significant to agency writers for three reasons:
Digital marketing generates quality leads for their agents.
Good content creates, and more importantly, retains business. To quote Andrew Davis, author of Brandscaping, “Content builds relationships. Relationships are built on trust. Trust drives revenue.”
Agents need help in improving their digital presence. Carriers win by helping their agents win.
Mastering digital marketing is not easy. However, a clear step-by-step approach and commitment ensures success. Let us take a brief look at some of the steps carriers need to take to create a strong foundation.
SEarCH ENGiNE OpTimizaTiON (SEO)
SEO is the process of generating traffic free of cost by providing keywords and meta information to the search engines. An audit of keywords and metadata can lead to improving these “tags” to better reflect the carrier’s products and unique strengths, which can then generate the right traffic.
makE THE wEbSiTE rESpONSivE
It is also important for carrier’s websites to be responsive so that content appropriately can be viewed on all devices. When searched from a mobile device, Google prefers responsive sites. Therefore, it is important to make at least the public website responsive as soon as possible.
SEarCH ENGiNE markETiNG aNd paY-pEr-CLiCk
Search engines (Google, Bing, etc.) display advertisements relevant to the user’s search. These sites do not charge for showing the advertisement, but do charge if a user clicks on the link (pay-per-click). The search engines apply criteria to maximize the probability of the user clicking on the ad. Understanding this helps in designing ad campaigns to include carefully selected ad words, pilot projects to determine the optimal bid amount and KPI’s to track and adjust the campaigns. Google for example, provides tools to track and understand the complete user behavior by combining ad campaigns (Google AdWords) with web analytics (Google Analytics).
CONTENT markETiNG STraTEGY
Content marketing is not the creation of brochures or direct marketing material. It is the creation of content that is intended to simulate interest and interaction such as videos, blogs, and social media posts. The focus of the information is not the company, but instead the consumer. This could be an informative video instructing the consumer as to what to do to prepare for emergencies. It could also be a positive experience shared by a policyholder or agent. No matter if it is a video, blog, or social media post, it provides the customer the opportunity to engage with the carrier or agent via a comment or like, or share with others, thus generating more opportunity for the
Digital Marketing for InsurersBy Sundar Vallinayagam
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content to be seen by other customers or another identified target audience. However, there must be a strategy in place to continuously generate and publish stimulating content to build and maintain customer engagement.
SOCiaL mEdia markETiNG aNd diSpLaY advErTiSiNG
Statistics show that 30% of time online is spent on social media, including Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, etc. Carriers and agents can use these mediums to engage with customers and create a following. In addition, it is possible to post relevant ads on these social media sites. Creating and managing the social media ad campaigns is similar to search engine marketing and will require gaining some expertise in order to receive the best ROI (return on investment).
Digital marketing is an exciting and growing field that will benefit insurance carriers tremendously. Compared to other types of marketing, digital marketing delivers measurable results. However, like any other technology, in order to achieve the best results, both patience and commitment are required. This is a brief overview of a vast subject that we can continue to explore in future articles. Please feel free to send your comments and questions to [email protected].
Sundar Vallinayagam is the CEO of Jarus Technologies. He is an expert in Insurance and technology and has architected solutions for a large number of insurers. His company, Jarus Technologies, specializes in core system replacements, automated underwriting solutions, self-service portals and mobile applications for small and large insurers. Sundar has a bachelor’s degree in electronics and communication
engineering and a master’s degree in computer science.
