Life Insurance Producers Not Seeing Social Media Benefits

As many other previous experts, studies and polls already have indicated, the insurance industry is still slow to accept and adopt social media. Continuing this trend, new survey results show life insurance producers don’t believe social media is helping them to generate leads.

Mintel Comperemedia, a service that provides direct marketing competitive intelligence, recently polled 214 independent life insurance producers. Seventy percent use at least one social media site, but only half report using their accounts for business purposes.

Daniel Hayes, VP of insurance services at Mintel Comperemedia, says usage among producers could increase if insurers get on board.

“When more insurance companies cultivate a richer social network presence, complete with more attractive content, usage percentages should increase,” he says. “Insurance companies that are actually using social media today are still experimenting. Knowledge and talent must be developed to manage social media as it evolves into a predominant source of client interaction.”

Of the producers surveyed, only 14% believe social networks have generated word-of-mouth-type leads, and the same amount say social networks allow them to stay in contact with clients. However, a narrow 11% believe social networks give them more client opportunities.

Of insurance producers that use social media for business, 91% of Facebook subscribers are using the site to communicate with their customers, but only 22% are connected to their carriers.

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