Insurance Agent Guide To Instagram

It's 2021 and you and everyone you know are most likely already on social media for personal reasons. Social media platforms have always been touted as an excellent way to connect with friends and family. But now more than ever, business owners, including insurance agents, can not overlook bringing their businesses into the action as well simply because a social media presence makes you more accessible to prospects and current clients.

You may think that YOUR business doesn't have a need for social media or that maybe it won't yield any results, but more people are using social media for e-commerce and you don't want to miss out on all the opportunities that it could bring to your business. Facebook and Twitter are amazing for this, but Instagram is where we're focusing today. Here are some great tips to get your business going on the 'Gram.

GET YOUR BIO RIGHT
Your bio is the first thing people are going to see when they visit your profile, so you obviously want it to look great and have the most important information about you and your business.  Make sure all of the info you post there is correct and that all of your links go to the right place. Also, keep in mind that your bio description is limited to 150 characters, so you're going to have to be strategic in terms of how you decide to introduce yourself and your business there.

HASHTAGS ARE VITAL
Ok, so hashtags tend to confuse people but really, they're a great resource to help you find content and to help your audience find you! Hashtags are simply words that describe your content so users can view it easily with a simple search. Instagram also has a feature where users can follow specific hashtags, so your post could potentially end up in someone’s feed even if they don't follow.

Instagram limits the number of hashtags to 30 per post. Keep an eye on hashtags your competitors are using if you aren't sure what the best ones are. Make sure your hashtags are relevant and not spammy. Use a good mix of high competition, medium competition, and low competition hashtags.

POST A LOT OF RELEVANT CONTENT
The great news about Instagram is that it's image driven. This means that you don't really have to worry about wowing your followers with what you write in the caption - although that is still important. You'll want the images that you post to be high-quality and professional while having a direct link of some sort to what it is you do or sell. 

Keep an eye on how and what other insurance businesses are posting if you need a guide. This can help get the creative juices flowing if you’re stuck on what to post. Make sure to post AT LEAST once a day so you can always keep a steady flow of new content for audience engagement.

SPEAKING OF ENGAGEMENT - BE ENGAGING
An easy way to boost engagement on your posts and to get them out in front of more users is to reply to comments that people leave on your posts. These comments also appear for other users to see, which could lead to more comments, likes and follows. You should also aim to follow and engage with other brands like yours so that you can create a community of peers on Instagram. 

SHOULD YOU ADVERTISE ON THE 'GRAM? HECK YES.​
Advertising on social media is excellent for nailing down your target audience. As you build up your following, ads are a. great way to continually reach out to the right people for your brand. We will say it takes some getting used to and some time to play around and make sure you're using the back end Ads Manager properly, but essentially you'll be promoting a post that’s already in your feed. Choosing one that's been performing well is an easy way to start advertising. Instagram also lets you target your audience lots of different ways so you can switch your efforts up as you go.

We know that starting out on social media can be intimidating, especially when you need to have a strategy behind it, but these tips should help you get started. You'll be able to learn as you go and try new things to see what works best for your brand and/or audience.