How insurance companies can build trust using content marketing

Do policyholders trust you enough to buy an insurance policy and repeat purchases? Are they convinced that your policy will deliver the kind of value that’s worth its price? Do they also trust you to solve their problems and respond to their needs?

According to an IBM survey, about 43 percent of consumers trust the insurance industry.  In the Ghanaian economy, low public confidence and mistrust are major challenges facing insurance companies in Ghana.

In this blog, I’ll explain how you can build trust with both potential and current policyholders through content marketing. But first, let’s understand why some Ghanaians find it hard to trust insurance companies.

Why do consumers find it hard to trust insurance companies?

It’s said that a lack of understanding leads to distrust.

Common reasons why customers mistrust insurance companies include:

• Lack of clarity about insurance documents and policies
• High expectations of potential policyholders
• Perception of insurance companies in general
• Bad claims

The ability to build and develop meaningful relationships with customers relies on trust. If a customer can’t trust your brand, it becomes hard to buy from you. No business means no sales and soon, your business will become obsolete.

But here’s the thing, insurance isn’t a very appealing industry. That means that some consumers don’t want to buy or use insurance policies. According to a report from the EY Global Consumer Insurance Survey, trust in insurance companies has dropped over the past years.

There’s however, a huge potential for insurance marketers to engage with policyholders. Some insurance companies only interact with their customers when they want to sell a policy.

That shouldn’t be so! Insurance marketers should educate consumers on the different policies and risks involved.

Why trust is important?

Building trust is the key to customer loyalty.

For an insurance company, trust is everything. For a prospect to feel comfortable handing over their personal information and money, they need to trust you.  A contract between an insurer and the insured can’t be effective without trust and transparency.

We can agree that trust is the glue that binds relationships together. This same principle also applies to the insurance marketer-policyholder relationship. It’s almost impossible to build a meaningful relationship without trust. Today’s Ghanaian consumers expect insurers to educate and engage them in a friendly, personal and seamless manner. When consumers trust your brand, they will feel more confident in your products and services.

With so much negativity surrounding the insurance industry, building trust may seem difficult. But, it’s possible.

How can you achieve this?

Enter Content Marketing!

What is content marketing?

Content marketing is a marketing approach that involves creating and sharing relevant and valuable content to attract, convert, and retain customers.

Here are some eye-opening stats about content marketing:

• 61% of consumers say they feel better and are more likely to buy from a company that delivers content
• 73% of consumers believe organizations that provide content are more likely to build good relationships
• 90% of consumers find the content useful
• 60% of consumers feel more positive about a company after reading content
• Companies with active blogs receive 97% more leads

Content marketing impacts a prospect’s opinion about your company. It also helps to tell your story, educate your audience, keep them informed, and build trust. The goal is to create consistent and valuable content for your audience.

What content marketing seeks to achieve is to build TRUST among your audience.

Your content can take the form of emails, checklists webinars, infographics, guides, blog posts, articles, brochures, videos, podcasts, newsletters, tutorials, and case studies.

“Content”, they say, “is king”.

Your customers have needs and you have the solutions. They have questions and you have the answers. Creating content that meets their needs and solves their problem is a sure way to build trust and loyalty. 

You must remember that choosing an insurance plan is not easy. The Ghanaian consumer needs to be well informed and made aware of the risks. Convincing him or her to buy a policy can take time. But, with an arsenal of content, you can increase website traffic, gain their trust, and establish yourself as a thought leader in your industry.

Content is critical because your potential policyholders care about their problems much more than they care about your products and services.

Building trust is the key to customer loyalty Click To Tweet

As an insurance marketer, it’s your job to educate them on insurance policies. In doing so, create opportunities to gain more loyal brand advocates and new policyholders.

[Read our blog on Introduction of content marketing to Ghanaian Businesses]

Benefits of content marketing

Here are 10 important benefits of content marketing to keep in mind:

1. Higher visibility in search engines
2. Higher domain authority
3. Increase website traffic
4. Increase conversion potential
5. Brand Reputation
6. Develop lasting relationships with your customers
7. Provides value
8. Positions you as an expert in your industry
9. Improves brand awareness and recognition
10. Builds trust

The more quality content you share, the more valuable and trusted you become.

When you establish meaningful relationships with policyholders, they’re likely to return with future insurance needs. Also, they are more likely to refer friends and family to buy from you. This, in turn, creates a snowball effect of business that can keep your pipeline full.

No matter what insurance policy you sell – auto, life, home, or health, your content must be educational, informative, and valuable. 

Content marketing is an intentional approach.  You don’t give a sales pitch in your first contact. You first attract customers to your website by providing valuable content; then you move them further into the buyer’s journey by offering more valuable and educational content. The trick here is to keep providing value until they’re interested and ready to buy from you.

What to look out for when creating content for your target audience

To come up with the right content for your target audience, here are some questions to guide you:

• Who are my clients?
• What are their demographics and behavior patterns?
• What motivates them?
• Which online platforms do they use most often?
• What problem can I solve for them?

Good content marketing practices focus more on value than pushing a product to consumers not ready to buy.  Content is a general term that entails everything you create on your website. Whether you just wrote a blog post, shot a video, or recorded a podcast, you’ve created content.  

Selecting an insurance company can be confusing and stressful for consumers. By implementing content marketing into your marketing activities, you can educate them and gain their trust. Differentiating yourself from other insurance companies can be difficult but possible when you have a rich plan for content marketing.

Some insurance consumers already know what they want and understand every insurance policy and term. However, some don’t know what they want and are unable to tell the difference between premiums.

They just know they need coverage. Your challenge is to provide the right amount of information to everyone. Both those ready to buy and those seeking information. 

It all begins with having a content marketing strategy in place.

How to create a content marketing strategy

1. Set your goals – what do you want to achieve with your content? More website visitors? Brand awareness? More sales? Your goals must be SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound).
2. Establish your key performance indicators (KPIs)
3. Know your audience – who do you want reading your content?
4. Assess your current content – how well is your content performing? Are they meeting the set goals?
5. Determine your content type (blogs, infographics, videos, webinars). Know what your audience likes and do more of that
6. Create a content calendar: map out weekly/monthly/quarterly/yearly content. How often do you want it?
7. Distribute, measure, and improve – distribute your content consistently and then measure and improve

Trust is a process and a rewarding one at such. Build it and everything about your business will become easier.  Companies that focus on informing their audience are off to a great start in establishing greater levels of trust.

Content marketing acts as a bridge between your insurance company and your policyholders. It’s a way of reaching out and providing something valuable to them, without pitching for sale.

Over to you,

How are you using content marketing to build trust with your prospects, clients, and policyholders? Share your experience in the comment section below.

If you’re ready to grow your business and learn more about insurance agency marketing, we’re here to help.

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