As an insurance producer, LinkedIn offers you an excellent outlet to promote your business and expertise and connect with customers and prospects. Here are four ways to use LinkedIn to generate leads and increase sales.
1. Optimize your profile
Start by considering what people are searching for when they are looking online for an insurance agent or product that you offer. Create a list of keywords and phrases. Then, be sure to include these in the professional headline, summary, and experience sections of your profile so users can find you.
These 12 free keyword tools from Internet Marketing Ninjas can help you get started.
Many people particularly have trouble including keywords in their professional headline. Think about this. Does "President, ABC Insurance" or "Insurance Agent, Health Insurance, Travel Insurance, Life Insurance" seem more likely to pop up in a relevant search? While it isn't a formal title, the second option will get your profile in front of more prospects than the first.
Next, add all of your information, including your email, website link, phone number, and links to your other social media pages. Include where you went to school, the degrees you earned, organizations you support, boards you are on, and any additional information that will enhance your credibility.
For your profile picture, choose a headshot that looks professional. If it's a picture of you on a fishing trip in sunglasses and you can see your wife's ear where you cropped her out of the photo, then it's not a good option for LinkedIn.
2. Build your network
If you haven't already, import your contacts to LinkedIn to start building your connections. Go to "Add Contacts" under "My Network" in the top navigation and then link to your email service provider or upload a CSV file. Never miss an opportunity to connect with someone you meet on LinkedIn.
You should also start using the information LinkedIn provides to gain valuable introductions. Each time you land on a user's profile, in the right column you can see who you are connected with who knows that person. Don't hesitate to ask your connection for an introduction.
3. Sign up for LinkedIn Sales Navigator
While the free version of LinkedIn offers a lot of benefits to insurance agents, including the ability to connect with, monitor, and communicate with prospects, Sales Navigator is even better. With Sales Navigator, you can:
- Get customized lead recommendations using LinkedIn's algorithm
- Use Advanced Search to find and connect with prospects
- Get real-time updates on your prospects activity, including job changes and other information
- See who is viewing your profile
- Use LinkedIn InMail to communicate with prospects
4. Position yourself as a thought leader
Start creating informative content and posting it on LinkedIn. You can publish directly through LinkedIn using the "Write an Article" button at the top of your feed, but it's also good practice to post links that bring users back to your website.
Join relevant groups (go to "Interests" in the top navigation, click "Groups" and then click "Discover" to search groups by keywords) and start posting your content in them so you can reach new prospects, as well as those with whom you are already connected.
Note that groups generally have rules about the type of content they allow. If your content is more of an advertisement than it is educational, a lot of groups won't approve it. They may even ban you if you continue to post heavily promotional content. The same applies if your content is irrelevant to the group's focus.
While posting your own content will help you promote your expertise, so will commenting on other user's posts. Monitor groups and your feed for comments and questions about your area of expertise and provide (compliant) insights.
