Spinfield: Web marketing trends today, tomorrow, and beyond…

When insurance carriers or marketing organizations put together newsletters, whether hard copy or .pdf for electronic distribution, there are typically content creators, designers, and in some cases I.T. personnel involved in creating it and disseminating it to the field.  A blog on the other hand, once set up, allows the content creator to post his/her article directly without going to a designer or a technical resource.  A blog (a contraction of the term “Web log”) is a Web site, usually maintained by an individual, with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video.1

Some key advantages of implementing a blog to communicate with the agent sales force.
1.    Marketing can upload its own content
2.    Articles become a body of knowledge
3.    Agents can respond directly to any posts
4.    Save money

Allow marketing to upload its own content
Increase the speed and efficiency of publishing by eliminating the need to send articles to a designer.  Blogs allows marketing to quickly publish articles as they are relevant.  It also allows for the dissemination of information more frequently and in more digestible quantities.  If you decide to blog, be sure to commit to making regular posts.  Develop a strategy before you begin as to what types of articles you will publish, who the authors will be, and when they will post them.  Spend the time and resources to give your blog a design that is attractive and promotes a good user experience from the outset, for both you and your agents.

Create a body of knowledge
By categorizing your articles and archiving them you create a virtual library for your agents, allowing them to easily find information regarding sales strategies, product info, underwriting tips, etc.  Keep this in mind when you are starting your blog and take previously published material and re-release on the site.  This will ultimately lead to better educated and more self sufficient agents.  Blogs can be set up with a secure log-in, so only your agents have access to it.

Engage your sales force
Agents can respond directly to any posts via the blog site, allowing for instantaneous feedback. This is one of the greatest advantages of starting a blog and typically one of its main goals.  Be prepared for this and it can provide a level of connection to your audience better than most any other form of communication.  Keep in mind that you are giving your agents a chance to “let ‘er rip,” so understand that you are probably going to hear plenty of criticisms (some positive, some negative, probably a lot unfounded).  Pay attention and the comments will give you the chance to recognize real issues in the field and address them.

Save Money
Another big plus for the blog is that it will save you money over the long run because there is no ongoing cost to continually publish new material.  No print costs, graphic design cost, postage fees, etc.

Do you see any reason not to switch to a blog?

1Source: Wikipedia; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blog

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