Video: Do Life Insurers Get Social Media?

We've been looking at the role of social media in breaking life insurance's stalemate for quite some time. The product is largely off the radar of consumers — LIMRA and the LIFE Foundation report that more than three in 10 consumers are underinsured, and many say that they aren't even being marketed the product.

Social media is seen as the right kind of channel for life insurance marketing — it allows companies to connect with their prospects and customers often, staying visible and keeping the product top-of-mind. And life carriers are taking notice: Securian Financial Group recently released metrics from a social media initiative where it shared videos on its several social sites with the goal of increasing user engagement.

“We knew that if we waited for ideal conditions to launch a social media campaign we’d fall behind the curve,” said Angela Schema, communications manager for the company, in a statement. “Our results show that our long-term value proposition is resonating and we can build a social media community around our brand.”

The company increased Facebook likes by 27% and Twitter followers by 19%.

These and other examples offer a model for other life insurers. I spoke with Ian Lundahl, senior analyst for life insurance at Corporate Insight, last fall about best practices for social media in life insurance, as well as some specific examples. Below is the first in a series of videos from that conversation, which also featured the company's president, Mike Ellison, and its P&C analyst, Lauren Wistrom. Be on the lookout for more social tips and examples over the next few weeks:

Nathan Golia is senior editor of Insurance & Technology. He joined the publication in 2010 as associate editor and covers all aspects of the nexus between insurance and information technology, including mobility, distribution, core systems, customer interaction, and risk ... View Full Bio