The conversation about price vs. cost continues. We’ve covered a few different points of view in several posts here and here.

Ryan Hanley over at the Insurance Marketing Professional blog shares his feedback here.

The key takeaway from his post is the insurance professional’s role as an educator. Although many prospects may be focusing on price per month, it’s up to you, the insurance advisor, to illustrate the sheer cost of inadequate coverage.

Need some tips for tailoring the perfect package for your prospects? Join us for our free webinar this Thursday at 2pm central. Click here to learn more!

According to a recent study by Vitrue (a company that creates social media management tools), the most effective time to post content to Facebook is Friday mornings. They measured a 65% increase in engagement by posting on a Friday morning.

They also found that images, overall, are more “consumable” than videos because viewing images is not as time consuming as watching videos.

This is a great little statistic to keep in mind as you post new content to your insurance business’ Facebook fan page.

If you haven’t bookmarked Albany Insurance Professional Ryan Hanley, take a second and go save his RSS feed. Hanley is an insurance agent in Albany, New York and who runs a blog about his experiences as an insurance professional.

In one of his most recent posts, Hanley shares how he personally uses Twitter to market his insurance business. Here’s a quick overview of why he encourages tweeting about your insurance agency:

1) Directing traffic to your insurance blog.

2) Staying up to date on local and national news headlines.

3) Fostering connections with clients and prospects.

4) Connecting with other insurance professionals.

5) Following other insurance industry leaders and staying on top of industry trends.

Thanks for sharing Ryan! Click here to read the full post.

If you’re in Michigan and you’re looking for a career in insurance, Allstate wants you.

According to Insurance Journal, Allstate intends to open 40 new Allstate offices in Michigan and expects to hire around 200 insurance sales professionals by the end of 2011.

We’re always looking for insurance pros to connect with our consumer network in all 50 states, so this is great news! Whether you’re a captive insurance agent or independent, we can create a custom Internet lead strategy just for you and your area.

We’ve shared several blog posts in the past about the importance of building a web presence for your insurance business.

Two industry authorities, Steve Anderson and Rick Morgan, have recently shared their points of view when it comes to online branding for your insurance agency. Here are their key messages:

Steve says – “Having an agency Web site is just not enough anymore. Creating a comprehensive strategy that integrates all aspects of your online presence will help you become more visible to prospects and to retain clients.”

Rick says – Your website is your “home” – the center of your digital existence. It is where you add substance and display your subject matter expertise.”

Is your online branding consistent? Have you created a strategy for marketing your business online?

Farmers Insurance has devised a clever online branding & marketing strategy. Starting Monday, players of the online game FarmVille will be able to place a virtual airship (which resembles the actual Farmers Insurance Airship, a 246-foot long Zeppelin) on their farm and get free “wither protection”, which will protect their crops for the 10 days of the promotion.

With more than 60 million players per month, FarmVille certainly offers brands a unique opportunity to reach more prospects & customers in a non-invasive manner.

I hope Farmers releases statistics and/or a case study after this promotion. I’m looking forward to hearing the results from this initiative and I commend them for the creative thinking.

To read the full article about this promotion, click here to head over to Insurance Journal.

Remember our post last week about price versus coverage? I just read a great post from the Insurance Goddess who urges prospects to weigh the costs associated with the risks. Here’s her closing paragraph:

“Cheapest price does not always mean the best coverage. Yes, there are many out there that will still want rock bottom premium, no matter what. But, for those that have livelihoods and assets to protect, I think the cost of not choosing wisely far exceeds any additional premium paid. And a trusted agent is the person that can provide the guidance and advice to help you make a sound financial decision. I still think this saying holds true- “you get what you pay for.” Don’t find out the hard way.”

Everyone’s situation is different. As an insurance professional, it’s your responsibility to listen to prospects’ needs and navigate them towards coverage that will give peace of mind. Whether you’re looking for the price-conscious consumer or the coverage-conscious consumer, we can help. Click here to connect with an insurance lead specialist and learn about who we can connect you with in your area.

Most people don’t like talking about insurance. Insurance discussions typically involve health issues, death, life, monumental purchases (a new home) and so on.

What are you doing to make these interactions and conversations fun and engaging?

We recently came across another entertaining insurance-related video:

While we don’t work with actuaries, we appreciate this light-hearted approach to explaining what an actuary actually does. If you missed yesterday’s video clip from Jason Cass over at JDC Insurance, click here to view it.

Your prospects are looking for that human connection. Find a way to use humor to engage others and make insurance fun. You won’t be sorry.

Do you specialize in a particular type of insurance? Are you passionate about a particular cause? Are you funny? As you build your insurance business, finding your points of differentiation is key to connecting with and retaining more prospects and customers.

Insurance agent Jason Cass knows how to use humor AND he’s not afraid to show it. Watch his most recent commercial:

Kudos to Jason for sharing his personality in a unique, memorable way. What makes YOU different?

Over at his blog Ask Tim, independent insurance agent Tim Dodge provides his view on the price versus coverage debate.

This is a popular topic for most insurance professionals. In our “Closing The Deal” webinar, HometownQuotes co-founder and CEO Hunter Ingram encourages insurance agents to ask prospects, “What’s most important to you? Price or coverage?”

If the prospect responds that coverage is most important, Ingram encourages insurance pros to deliver the best coverage options available, regardless of cost. If the prospect indicates that price is most important, Ingram recommends building a customized insurance policy based on what the prospect says is most important to him or her.

All prospects are different, so providing coverage options for both types of consumers is key to growing your business.

If you’re looking for a way to connect with qualified prospects in your coverage area, we can help! Click here to get more information.