Creating an Effective (and Dominant) Online Marketing Strategy for Insurance Agents

Creating an Effective (and Dominant) Online Marketing Strategy for Insurance Agents

Presented at: Norvax University ConferenceNovember 19-20, 2009 | Atlanta, GASpeaker: Rey Villar

Social Media Marketing: the New Frontier

Why online marketing?

Reynaldo Villar | LinkedIn: #reynaldovillar | Twitter: @reyvillar | Atlanta, GA, 2009

Nine out of every 10 individual health insurance plan sold in 2011 will be initiated or completed online.

- Celent Research, 2008


Why online marketing for health insurance?


Middlemen (and women) are an endangered species in the internet age

Consider: there used to be as many travel agents as insurance agents

There’s a reason why newspapers, traditional printers and direct mail providers are going out of business

That’s where your customers already are – or soon will be!


Pillars of online marketing for agents


Generating Traffic - SEO: search engine optimization - SEM: search engine marketing

Website Conversion Email Marketing Social Media Marketing?


Search engine optimization (SEO)


Onsite SEO affects about 40% of your search ranking Keyword research Keyword-infused content Page and website structure Quality content Usability and optimal UX


Social engine optimization (SEO)


Offsite SEO currently has greatest weight on your rankings Links, links, links! Relevant directories Press releases Social media links Organization and association links


SEO resources


Google Adwords – keyword research Yahoo Site Explorer – backlink reserch SERPrank.com – ranking Google Analytics - tracking Google Webmaster Tools – onsite health Raven Tools – SEO tracking SEO Moz – SEO tracking


SEO realities


Very competitive for top keywords Relatively low volume – unless you get top rankings

on page #1 for top keywords Link-building and quality content takes time Great ROI… until your time is considered


Website design and conversion


Beware of artistes (who don’t know sales) Prioritize your products Build trust Understand online shoppers Calls to action! Multiple contact options


Website design and conversion


Low-hanging fruit – that can produce results quickly Requires maintenance and updates Tastes change – so you’ll need to update designs and

online functionalities every two or so years Each website is different – so always test

benchmarks, best practices and new ideas


Email marketing


Nurture Your Leads Know the law List-building tips Open rates vs. click-through rates Use a nurturing funnel


Email resources


ESP: MailChimp, Constant Contact, iContact, aWeber Internet leads are foundations of your mailing list LeadMiner


Email marketing realities


Investment of time and money Requires content and a plan Your permanent record


Social media realities


Consumers are using the Internet to research products and businesses – before they buy

Very dynamic – but still in development Community involvement and building Heavy marketing is frowned upon…communities

demand sincerity and trust-building It’s a long-term project


Insurance agent suggested game plan


1. Start (or start) with your website – and make it the focal point of your online strategy

2. Create your email marketing program

3. Develop an SEO campaign

Creating an Effective (and Dominant) Online Marketing Strategy for Insurance Agents

Presented at: Norvax University ConferenceNovember 19-20, 2009, Atlanta, GASpeaker: Rey Villar