NAIFA Blog

Social Media Can Humanize Adviser Marketing - InvestmentNews

By Lavonne Kuykendall

"Few advisers have a robust presence on social-media websites such as Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter, experts said, largely because of questions surrounding compliance and uncertainty over what to say or do. While advisers with a specialty or niche practice may have an advantage in terms of social-media content, advisers and online experts said that having a marketing niche isn't essential to stand out."

Read the rest at www.investmentnews.com.

FINRA Proposes New Social Media Content Rules

"A few days ago FINRA submitted to the SEC proposed rule changes regarding communications to the public.  The goal of the changes is to simplify and consolidate many of the existing rules.

"The good news for those considering a move to social [media] is that FINRA clarifies you do not need prior approval for communications posted on social sites as long as they qualify as interactive electronic forums."

Reblogged via blog.socialware.com

Insurance Customers Want to Buy From Agents

Almost two-thirds of U.S. and Canadian consumers want to work with an agent when purchasing or renewing insurance products, according to a survey by Accenture. Even among 25-to-34-year-olds, who are more comfortable shopping for insurance products online, six out of ten would still prefer to consult a qualified agent.

The number one thing customers look for when choosing an insurance provider is the ability to have problems resolved quickly. Other top considerations are cost and the availability of products that meet their needs.

Still, technology has emerged as an important tool for consumers. More than a third of those aged 25 to 34 said they would consider using social media to research insurance products. Across all age groups, 21% would use social media for research.

Even with the growth of technology, the Accenture survey shows that the role played by insurance agents remains important to a large majority of consumers. Clients want skilled professionals to help them sort through complicated coverage options and help resolve their questions and problems. These are services online distribution channels simply can’t provide.

 

 

CEO Susan Waters Discusses Innovation

NAIFA CEO Susan B. Waters appears in the April 2011 issue of Associations Now magazine and answers the question: “Why is innovation important to you as CEO?”

Susan explains in the magazine’s “CEO to CEO” column that NAIFA, like many associations, is adapting to the times and implementing new communications strategies to fit the needs of members who more comfortable with technology. She highlights the electronic town hall meeting at NAIFA’s 2010 Career Conference, which encouraged members to text their comments and questions for NAIFA leaders to answer on the main stage. NAIFA also streamed Conference general sessions on the web and used social media to keep attendees informed and engaged.

Life Insurance Industry Looks to Technology, Young Producers, and the Middle Market for Growth

What are the keys to future growth in the U.S. life insurance market? According to a panel of industry executives at the 2011 annual Life Insurance Conference hosted by LIMRA, LOMA, ACLI, and the Society of Actuaries, they include:

• Reaching middle-market consumers
• Appealing to younger clients using social media and “a strong dot com space”
• Attracting a new generation of younger producers to the business

The panel consisted of J. Eric Smith, president of USAA Life Insurance Company, Thomas M. Marta, president and CEO of Symetra Financial Corp., and Gary “Doc” Huffman, president and CEO of Ohio National. The panelists acknowledge that the industry faces challenges, but each is optimistic about its future.

Social Media's a Hit on Main Street, Too

A new article from Financial Planning explains the importance of social media to financial advisors pursuing the business of an emerging market of young, newly wealthy clients. From the article:

From the broker-dealer and financial advisor perspective, getting at these coveted clients requires not only an appreciation for the social media in which they're so deeply entrenched but a willingness to actively participate in it.

"You have to be where they are," Stacey Haefele, president and CEO of HNW, Inc., said. "Be on LinkedIn and Facebook. They're telling you a lot about themselves in these channels. These are great resources for building up a prospect pool and finding out how you're already connected to them."

Financial advisors who may be spooked by FINRA's guidelines for social media participation need to get over it and just make sure they have the IT platform in place to monitor and save all their social media dispatches.

Of course, the take-away message here applies to consumers across the income spectrum, including those in the middle market who make up the bulk of NAIFA members’ clients.

Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn have more than 800 million accounts, so it’s obvious that not all of these users are Gen Y entrepreneurs — the nouveau riche Financial Planning refers to. In fact, most are regular people — families, young professionals, retirees — with a broad spectrum of financial and insurance needs. And more and more, social media will be an important tool as they look for professionals to help them in these areas.

2010 Was an Amazing Year for Insurance, Life & Social Media

One of our favorite insurance bloggers is Ryan Hanely, whose Albany Insurance Professional Blog is "Dropping Insurance Knowledge on Upstate New York and the World!" The following is his end-of-year post and highlights a number of his articles.

GUEST BLOGGER Ryan Hanley is a New York State licensed life, health and property/casualty insurance broker.

2010 was an amazing year for me and that I truly hope that you can say the same thing.

The reason 2010 was an amazing year is very simple, in both my personal and professional life (which when you work in a family owned insurance agency are essentially the same thing), I dedicated myself to building meaningful relationships with as many people as I could and learning something new every single day.

Relationships

Many of the new relationships I formed this year started in Social Media but all of them started by being social in life. Besides my online activities I try to attend at least one networking function (i.e. Chamber of Commerce, Professional Groups), and get coffee with two to three people a week.  Always remember, no matter how interactive the Internet gets, nothing beats a face-to-face meeting for developing a relationship.

Learning

I dedicated myself in 2010 to learning something new every single day.  I focus on Insurance, Marketing, and Investing (investing to personal use, I’m not a financial advisor). By signing up for RSS Feeds, Email Newsletters, Twitter Lists, The Albany Business Review, The Times Union, and a few Insurance trade magazines I was able to inundate myself with sources of information. I also bought a Kindle 3 which has drastically increased my book reading. I’m very passionate about learning because it leads to personal and professional growth.

10 Most Popular Posts of 2010

Without further ado here are the top 10 Most Viewed Post that were written in 2010:

1. 5 Ways I Use Twitter as an Insurance Agent
2. Insurance Community Rocking the Social Web
3. 10 Tools I Use to Harness My Online Presence
4. When Do I Drop Collision Coverage?
5. My Thoughts After Presenting on Social Media to Young Insurance Agents
6. I Hate This Life Insurance Question
7. Sue Your Spouse for Bad Driving
8. Our Future is in the Agent, not the Agency
9. Insurance is a Scam
10. But I Just Sent Her Out For Staples

My Favorites That Didn’t Make The List

These posts did not make the Top 10 Most Viewed List but I personally think are pretty cool:

• Insurance is NOT Set It and Forget It
• Why I Created a Professional Online Presence
• Insurance Policy Forms and the Gross Ignorance of the Commodity Perception
• My Motivation is Mine… What is Yours?
• Renter Insurance vs Six-Pack of Beer

The Rub

I hope everyone has a very Happy New Year and Successful 2011!  I look forward to connecting and discussing insurance and digging deeper into how we all can become more informed insurance consumers.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposely only. There is no legal advice being suggested or proffered and the author assumes no responsibility or liability for the actions take or not taken by the readers based upon such information.

Ryan Hanley, a New York State licensed life, health and property/casualty insurance broker, writes the Albany Insurance Professional Blog. Follow him on Twitter at @AlbanyInsurance

Social Media and Financial Professionals: Not-So-Big Business... At Least For Now

 Financial professionals have yet to fully embrace the likes of Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube and MySpace as business tools, but recent surveys show that social media may be gaining a toe-hold in the industry. A poll of U.S and Canadian financial planners, brokers and registered investment advisors by American Century Investments found that 73% use social media, either professionally or socially. And while only 26% say social media is valuable to their businesses right now, 44% recognize it as a growing trend with business potential.

Almost half of the advisors who responded to the poll said regulatory or compliance worries may be the biggest obstacles to increased social media use. Additionally, 21% cited privacy concerns and 14% cited home office restrictions as potential limiting factors.

Additional Notes:

• In a separate study, 94% of financial advisors polled have Linkedin accounts.
• NAIFA maintains a social media presence using Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Flickr, Ning and, of course, the NAIFA Blog.
• NAIFA's Advisor Today magazine has released a new podcast, "15 Minutes a Day to Social Media Success."