Newspaper ads. The Yellow Pages. Billboards. TV commercials. Magazine ads.<\/p>\n
If you\u2019ve ever watched the show \u201cMad Men,\u201d you may have some nostalgia for the Golden Age of advertising. In the 1960s, ad copy and television were the kings of marketing. In 1967, AT&T introduced the 1-800 number and phone call marketing changed forever. For the next 30 years, insurance agencies across the country utilized newspaper ads, phone book listings, billboards and local ads to drive phone call traffic to their agencies.<\/p>\n
If you\u2019re old enough or have been in insurance for long enough, you probably know this. You may even remember when the Big \u201cI\u201d partnered with actor Raymond Burr to market independent agents. And you may remember insurance companies offering co-op money for billboards and signs at local sporting events.<\/p>\n
These efforts led to a sense of branding and marketing for independent agencies that made them a strong presence in their communities. But in the late-1990s, the world changed when the internet took hold. Websites began to move from being something new to something every insurance agency had to have. The rise of search engines meant that agents had to be found online, whether in their community or by others looking for them regardless of location.<\/p>\n
Even as this landscape changed, independent agents understood that relationships and referrals were the key drivers for their businesses\u2014and they were right. The independent agency channel grew and thrived, despite lagging other professional service providers in marketing strategy.<\/p>\n
For years, the mantras that \u201cOur clients aren\u2019t getting insurance online\u201d and \u201cCommercial insurance can\u2019t be done online\u201d remained true. People looked around online but ended up talking to an agent for their business insurance or high net-worth personal insurance needs. The consumers that did buy online were often nonstandard auto, renters or standard personal lines clients who were price-based shoppers. But then the world changed again.<\/p>\n
In 2020, the coronavirus pandemic changed how we all do things\u2014likely forever. The way we live, work and shop has changed. People who never did something in a certain way completely changed their habits. This includes buying insurance. As many as 73% of small business owners surveyed said they were extremely or somewhat likely to purchase insurance online in the future, according to a 2022 study by global research firm Celent.<\/p>\n
While businesses aren\u2019t buying complex insurance policies online, they are researching who to work with and what they need online. But what are they finding about your agency? Stellar Google reviews? Relevant content on your blog? Social media content that helps them get to know you? Testimonials that help them feel comfortable trusting you?<\/p>\n
If you\u2019re not used to enhancing your digital footprint, it can be a daunting task. Or, you may simply feel that you don\u2019t have the time to do it. But there are easy steps you can take to get started and almost instantly improve your presence.<\/p>\n
Here are four ways to propel your agency forward online:<\/p>\n
1) Claim and update your Google Business Profile.<\/strong> When people search for your business, around 90% of them are using Google. Whether they search for you specifically or for insurance in your area, you need to show up in the results. To be effective in enhancing your search ranking, your Google Business Profile needs to be up to date. If you haven\u2019t done so already, you should:<\/p>\n A. Search for your agency name.<\/p>\n B. Find your agency\u2019s Google profile.<\/p>\n C. Select the \u201cOwn this business?\u201d link on the profile and submit a claim for it.<\/p>\n D. Once activated, follow the prompts to update all the relevant fields.<\/p>\n 2) Develop a plan for blog content.<\/strong> Blogs don\u2019t have to be massive technical and informational pieces of novel-worthy literature. Content like FAQs and updates on the insurance marketplace are extremely beneficial. While 500-1,000 words are ideal for SEO, any valuable information for your clients can be a blog post.<\/p>\n If you already have an agency newsletter, are those articles on your blog? Are you sharing carrier articles? Add them to your blog with thoughts from one of your agents<\/u> about why they\u2019re important.<\/p>\n