I recently read an interesting article on CNN.com—“Hotels connecting dots to online reviewers” by Christopher Elliott.

It talked about how more and more hotels are trying to connect anonymous online reviews to past guests, with some hotels even rewarding past guests for positive reviews and contacting guests who wrote negative reviews. The article mentioned how some hotels were rewarding those who wrote positive reviews with things such as gift baskets or discounts, while negative reviews could “generate an e-mail inviting the guest back for a free stay or offering frequent-stayer points as on apology.”

However, some hotels are going over the edge by sending emails to encourage past customers to “reconsider” a negative review, or put a note in their files to alert staff to difficult or disgruntled customers.

Although the story didn’t shock me, I still shake my head at what some managers will do to give the “perception” that the services and accommodations provided are superior to the rest. Why not start with focusing on providing a better experience in your hotel? I say instead of bullying people after a bad experience, focus on making sure they are happy during their stay.

Has anyone ever been contacted by a hotel because of a review (positive or negative)? Tell us about your experience.

Thank you to everyone who attended my webinar yesterday on the impact social media is having on insurance marketing. If you missed the live webinar but you’d still like to download a copy of the slides and/or recording, click here.

Listeners asked a good number of thought-provoking, intelligent questions so I’ve answered them below. Please, if you think of any further questions, feel free to contact me at dhayes@mintel.com or visit www.comperemedia.com.

Where is Allstate in the flow of Social Media?

Allstate has developed its presence as well. I chose to focus on State Farm because they captured my attention with their focus on both the young and Spanish-speaking markets. Allstate actually has more followers than State Farm on their Facebook page. And Allstate is doing a good job of placing information on their page to keep followers informed about hurricane Alex.

Are social media comments posted by the public on insurer websites considered to be advertisements by insurance regulators? If the answer is yes, does it apply to all posted content or just the ones that the company might use in its advertisements?

Good question. Since social media is generally an open forum when someone says they think a product is great, it’s somewhat out of the control of the company. Yet these comments could be considered testimonials and should be restricted. I’m not aware of any rules on this. At this point I think most companies are being cautious by monitoring what is posted and may be taking down comments that are too specific.

How do companies define and manage the risks associated with SM? Most employees don’t attempt to do direct mail, for example, but many of us are on SM.

Companies are starting to develop guidelines for the use of social media. The basic rule of thumb right now is to “act professionally.” You are right, once an employee puts the company on their Facebook or Linkedin page, they will be viewed as a representative of the company and that could present problems. So they should be reminded that they should not do anything that they would not do in a presentation to clients.

Do you feel the Humana independent social media development is a good idea?

It’s a way for them to control who has access to their content. It could have the same familiarity as traditional social media tools. A drawback to limiting access is the loss of exposure to potential new clients.

Do you see social media connecting toward business offers just like direct mail does? Or avoiding “to much” of a business approach?

For now I recommend avoiding a direct sales pitch as the best approach on social media. The use of social media is still primarily entertainment and keeping connected with friends and family. But behaviors change. As the use of social media tools become more sophisticated, consumers may become more accepting of a sales message.

What tracking matrices do you see happening or being particularly effective?

The number of unique visitors, where they come from, how long they stay, and certainly if they request a quote are all important stats to capture.

How are SM efforts well suited to “going green” vs. DM?

Unless someone is printing all of the posts they write and receive, and assuming that people properly dispose of old devices, there is no doubt that social media lowers the carbon footprint of marketing.

How is State Farm leveraging Social Media at the agency level? How can they control the content from their exclusive agency force?

I see a lot of State Farm agents with their own URL listed on the direct mail piece. I’ve noticed that State Farm agents are often part of community boards and volunteer efforts. I think these same skills are easily transferred to social media behavior

How can an insurance company that markets through a business/association entity use social media?

You can help support the business/association by providing content to support their efforts to create a presence through social media tools. If the insurance company wants to maintain a behind the scenes role the best thing it can do is help make their representatives as relevant as possible. You should do all you can to help build up the social media reputation of your producers to get noticed on the internet. The best way to do this is to feed them fresh and interesting content for them to post on their site.

When do you expect Health Care reform to impact DM volumes? Early 2011 or yet this year?

I definitely think a change is going to happen this year. Medicare is going to change the mailing cycle around enrollment. But for individual health policies, I don’t think there is going to be a major change this year or next.

How costly is it to “develop your own tools”?

Developed tools can vary from an iPhone app to an entire new internet presence. The costs can range from what is required to customize a vendor’s standard product to ground up development. There is also the consideration of maintaining the new tools with current staff, additional staff or outsourcing.

Could anyone explain any best practices observed in types of direct mail (postcards, letters) and what would be a good way to using this channel in order to direct traffic to social media?

There is an easy first step. Put the fact that you have these tools available and how to get to them on the direct mail piece. I’m still surprised how seldom this information is printed on the mail piece. I think direct mail is going to remain very important, but it can also be used to drive consumers to a website and social media tools. Make the information in the mail interesting, something the recipient may want to hold onto. Not too much detail is needed. Let the details become something the consumer will be curious about and a reason they will want to visit your Facebook page or website. And if you can, incorporate some type of participation. If they can vote for a charity or personally get involved, they may spread it around to their friends.

How do you guys see companies best using Twitter?

This is why I liked the example of New York Life tweeting about the Big East Conference. This is a way of creating an event—something for people to participate in that gets them to associate your brand with an event they will remember.

Please join us for a webinar entitled “Insurance Marketing Mix: Social Media’s Effect on Direct Mail” with Daniel Hayes, Vice President of Insurance Services at Mintel Comperemedia.

June 30, 2010
2pm CDT / 3pm EDT
Register Here: http://bit.ly/bMwxY2

Mintel Comperemedia—which tracks direct mail, email, online and print advertising—has seen insurance companies and producers beginning to participate in social networking for business gain. Insurers are trying to catch their customers and potential customers in the right place, at the right time…and right now, they’re finding them on social media networks.

During this webinar, Daniel Hayes will examine the use of social media by insurance companies and the effect it will have on the role of direct mail as a trusted marketing tool. Expect to:

- Explore the way social media is changing insurance direct marketing as a whole
- Identify how insurance companies and producers are changing the way they communicate with customers
- See examples of how insurance companies are mixing direct mail, email, print and online advertising
- Examine marketing messages that are designed to strengthen brand value

Mintel Comperemedia’s PR team recently put out a press release about how insurance providers are inching their way into social media. Read that release here: http://bit.ly/bOJ209

To learn more about Daniel Hayes, please read his biography and some of his recent blog posts: http://www.comperemedia.com/blog/daniel-hayes/

For me the highlight of the Digital Marketing Days Conference held in New York this week—Mintel Comperemedia was a sponsor—was listening to Thomas Hoehn, Director, Interactive Marketing and Convergence Media at Eastman Kodak. In his session entitled “Your Brand Deserves More Conversation,” Thomas showed how Kodak is a leader in social media marketing. As financial services companies grapple with social media, they could do themselves a big favor by looking at Kodak for an example of best practice.

Kodak has transformed itself, in recent years, from being a traditional “film” company into being a “digital” company. This was primarily an issue of consumer perception. After all, when we think of Kodak we think of a “Kodak Moment” – a phrase first used in 1961 which was meant to represent a special memory captured on Kodak film.

However, not many people know that Kodak was a pioneer of the digital camera business and actually invented the first digital camera in 1976. Fewer people know that, because of Kodak’s digital technology, it was able to provide the only television pictures of the Tiananman Square Protests in 1989.

A key part of the Kodak strategy involves social media, and the company stands out as one that has truly welcomed social media into its marketing mix. Kodak produces four blogs—it has been blogging for four years—and is always seeking new and creative ways to utilize the full range of social media tools.

Thomas Hoehn passionately believes that the worst thing consumers can say about you is nothing. Positive and negative comments about your brand, products or category abound in social media and both can provide marketing opportunities.

He handed out a color booklet entitled “Social Media Tips” which has been produced as a guide for vendors and partners of Kodak. The booklet includes Kodak’s social media policies as well and an outline of the company’s “Convergence Media Tactics.” It provides fascinating insight into Kodak’s approach to social media. He also handed out a booklet entitled “Mobile Marketing Tips.” You can download both booklets and review Kodak’s social media marketing efforts at http://www.kodak.com/US/en/corp/ourCompany/index.jhtml?CID=go&idhbx=followus.

To see how Kodak has recently updated its “Kodak Moment” campaign for social media, go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HA9puP2f6Fs.

I’ve been thinking about whether social media sites deserve all the attention they get from insurance marketers. I don’t mean that social media isn’t important. I’m just wondering if there is a need for urgency in the insurance sector.

Many insurance companies have created, or are in the process of creating, a profile on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. More and more insurance direct mail and email pieces captured in Comperemedia have social media icons on them, and ask the recipient to friend and follow the company. I’ve noticed that one popular company’s Facebook fan base has grown by about 26 percent in a little over a month.

Yet, fan numbers on Facebook for insurance companies are small, and followers on Twitter and LinkedIn are even smaller. For example, one leading auto insurer has around 14,000 Facebook fans, less than 100 LinkedIn connections, and nearly 6,000 Twitter followers. Given its market share, this insurer is not going to see social media influencing sales performance.

The focus of most social media sites is entertainment and information, so it is not considered proper to post a sales pitch to your followers. Marketers generally recommend that companies using social media for business reasons develop a dialog in which they become an expert advisor.

While I agree with this, I’m left wondering: how is the effectiveness of social media efforts being linked to sales? The measures talked about—inbound links, site visitors, clicks, followers, SEO—don’t necessarily tie to a new policy sold.

Please add your thoughts to this post. I’d like to avoid the hype and discuss what companies are developing as best practices. Let us know if you think social media is important today to a comprehensive insurance marketing campaign, or when you think it will be: 5, 10 or more years into the future. And when social media becomes established in insurance marketing, how would you recommend measuring its impact?

Thank you everyone for attending my webinar yesterday on 2010 Banking Predictions, and thank you for submitting so many questions. I’ve answered most of your questions below, so let me know your thoughts!

If you’d like to download the slides or listen to a recording, click here.

Also, if you’re interested in learning more about Mintel Oxygen’s Finance Reports, please email Zach Leahy at zleahy@mintel.com. You can see a list of past and future titles here.

Q. Have you noticed a penetration difference between the $15 incentive and the $50 incentive. What is the optimal figure?

A. The $15 and $50 cash incentives were for increasing debit card usage. Typically on an acquisition campaign we see about $100, although amounts are increasing. For loyalty campaigns, the amounts are lower. The optimal figure is dependent on the total cost to increase debit card usage and the long term profit. Each bank is going to differ in that equation.

Q. As it relates to incentives, do these predictions still apply to non-traditional banks, like Schwab bank and other asset managers looking to acquire new clients and assets?

A. Investment firms are struggling right now with an image crisis. As a result, most investment marketing is focused on regaining trust or convincing consumers that the firm is focused on the customer rather than just on selling products or services. Investment firms typically don’t rely on incentives to acquire customers. Instead they rely on free seminars, webinars, education, etc.

Q. Do you predict any differences in these trends between banks, credit unions or other types of financial institutions?

A. Credit unions and smaller banks are less likely to use cash incentives and more often offer merchandise or the offer to buy back unused checks and debit cards. Across the other trends, however, we see similar types of things. We tried to incorporate examples from all types of banks to illustrate that point.

Q. Who’s going to win, regional or big banks?

A. Big banks are always going to win on the national level. However, while it’s almost impossible for a regional bank to compete with Chase, for example, on a national level, they can certainly compete with the Chase branch across the street.

Q. What banks do you see as having best practices in social media at this point?

A. Since banks are doing so little in social media, none of them really have developed a “best practice.” Certainly Chase was successful in its Community Giving Program that it moved to Facebook. It was a program that existed offline, but in an effort to make consumers part of the decision, the company moved it online. More importantly, Chase did it in a way that allowed Facebook members to participate in a meaningful way.

Q. Have we seen debit card promotions targeted at non-customers?

A. Absolutely. Debit cards are being aggressively marketed in acquisition campaigns. We see this mainly through rewards programs, since rewards are earned primarily through debit activity. But we also see cash incentives for opening a new account tied to a debit card and debit usage.

Q. Any predictions on credit cards as stand-alone products outside of a banking relationship?

A. Companies have recently moved away from this, so I don’t expect a return anytime soon. MBNA was bought by Bank of America and Capital One obtained its banking charter so that it could use deposits to fund its lending activities.

Q. Can you explain how the deposit money app works on the iPhone?

A. The feature works through an iPhone application that customers download from the iTunes Store. When the user accesses the application they are asked for their user name and password. To deposit a check, the customer touches “Remote deposit.” The check must be placed on a dark surface. Then the customer takes a picture of the front and back of the check. While in this mode, green lines are visible so the customer can line up the check correctly. Once both sides are captured, the customer clicks submit and the transaction is complete. A video of the process is available here:

Q: Have you developed any predictions for the future of credit cards?

A. My colleague Andrew Davidson conducted a webinar last September titled “Seven Predictions for the Future of Credit Card Marketing.” If you’d like a copy of this presentation, please email press@mintel.com. His predictions were:

1. Direct mail is coming back
2. There will be more integrated marketing campaigns
3. The brand message will become more important
4. The CARD Act will lead to creative new products
5. The national wallet will shrink
6. The subprime segment will redefine itself
7. The card industry will adapt to the environment

Today (Wednesday, May 5th), Mintel Comperemedia is hosting a webinar on “Seven Predictions for the Future of Banking.” Join Susan Wolfe, Vice President of Financial Services, as she explores seven key predictions for banking in 2010, using research and examples taken directly from Mintel Comperemedia and custom consumer surveys.

You can register and learn more here: http://www.mintel.com/us-email/compere_sevenpredictions.htm

This presentation will examine:

–The return of banks to “relationship banking” and how they will promote this
–Incentives and their importance in acquisition marketing campaigns
–Use of financial literacy programs by banks as they rebuild from the financial crisis
–Mobile banking as the “new” online banking
–Use of social media among financial institutions

Date and Time: Wednesday, May 5th, 2010 2:00pm-3:00pm CST (45 minute webinar, 15 minutes of Q&A)
Cost: Free

Some recent research suggests that executives have grown leery of Web 2.0 and are returning back to “the basics” of marketing. A survey in Marketingcharts.com and conducted by Anderson Analytics for the Marketing Executives Networking Group (MENG) found that the number of members stating they were “sick” of Web 2.0 and related concepts like blogs and social networking doubled between 2008 and 2009.

Unfortunately, online social networking is not just a fad. According to a new Mintel study, Word of Mouth and Viral Marketing—April 2009, respondents aged 18-24 were twice as likely to mention online communities (43%) and video sites (40%) as generating information that led them to mention a product or service to others.

Web 2.0 is becoming more and more interactive. There are a number of new platforms that marketers can take advantage of to generate buzz and create dialogue with consumers:

“Gifts with Benefits” is a Facebook application that users can install to send others branded icons along with a product discount or free sample. Both the giver and receiver score a reward, so it’s a win-win.

Influencer Ads has expanded traditional banner advertising with “social networking functionality” that allows people to forward the ad on to others in their social networks.

Companies such as Whole Foods Market now use Twitter to respond to customer questions and comments. An examination of Whole Foods’ Twitter account reveals that customers (as well as media) utilize this resource to ask questions, and the company responds quickly.

Whether you like it or not, Web 2.0 isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. Might as well play nice.

Thank you to everyone who attended my webinar on February 25, 2010 about the future of insurance communication and marketing. I hope you found the information useful and relevant to your business, and please don’t hesitate to reach out to me with any questions or comments.

If you missed the live webinar but would like to view the slides or a recorded version of the presentation, click here.

We received many interesting and thought-provoking questions, which I’d like to answer here for you:

Do you think advertising iPhone apps in direct mail would be useful?

Absolutely! I think advertising apps in direct mail, in print ads, on websites and on TV is the best way to market them. The key is to get people connected. Why build an app and just hope people will find it? Make them find it. Then, after people check out an app once, marketers should give them reasons to check back. Use online events, announcements, advice, anything that you can to grow the bond between your market, your brand and your customers.

How should a company respond to criticisms of its products or service that it finds on a social media website?

First, don’t be defensive. Find a positive way to frame the situation. Accept what is being said, then start to manage the issue. Most customer complaints come from the frustration of a customer feeling he or she is not being heard. A response directly to the customer is often a surprise, going above expectations. This can mellow a situation quickly and often favorably change the customer’s opinion.

You mentioned high unemployment rate leading to consumers seeking their own insurance. Which companies are targeting consumers best? Aetna?

Aetna is a good company. So are the Blues, United Healthcare, Wellpoint, Humana and Kaiser Permanente, to name just the ones that come immediately to mind. It is difficult to target the unemployed. Most companies use aggregators who email people comparisons of health insurance rates. Insurers are also putting more information on their websites to educate consumers on how to make a choice.

Why do you think auto insurance mailings were down? Are other channels more attractive?

I don’t think this was a trade-off from one channel to another. With the economy weighing down on marketing budgets, cost control could have played a role in the slight decrease in direct mail. Given that life and health insurance mail increased, I feel confident insurers will continue to use direct mail as a primary marketing medium.

Can you shed some light pertaining to health insurance. What are the recent trends? Are consumer driven products here to stay?

With healthcare reform still up in the air, it’s difficult to determine where individual health policies are going. For instance, I’ve heard health savings accounts discussed as nearly extinct, but I’ve also heard them talked about as an integral part of healthcare reform. The future is still unclear.

What is happening now is that health insurers are finding more individuals looking for policies for the first time. These are people who don’t know how to shop for health insurance, so they need to be educated about their choices and how to evaluate their own needs. This is an opportunity for companies to become trusted advisors.

How would you recommend companies start using social media to communicate? Which network is most important if you only have the resource to do one?

If I had to choose one, it would be Facebook, because it is the largest. And I would not be afraid of the size. Social media is still a developing environment, it is better to get in and learn how it works and its advantages now with everyone else. Otherwise, you’ll find yourself behind the curve trying to catch up.

Direct mail was still important in 2009, but what do you see looking 5 years out?

Direct mail will be important for how insurers market products for a long time. Life and health insurance direct mail has increased since 2008. While there was a small decrease in P&C, auto and homeowners mail in 2009, this was more likely due to budget constraints than to a long-term change in strategy.

What I would like to see is an increased use of mail to build a brand, to become more integrated with other marketing channels. It can be so much more than price promotions.

We’re hosting a free webinar today on the future of insurance marketing communication. You can register by clicking here.

The current economic slump, mixed with new technologies evolving in the world of social media, has caused drastic changes in the way insurance companies choose to communicate with their consumers. People are conscious about saving time and money—now more than ever—and insurance companies are faced with the challenge of how best to reach prospects and clients and how best to position their messages in this ever-changing era of new media.

In this webinar, we will discuss:

– The current state of insurance communication and messaging
– Social media outlets that can be used for insurance communication
– How people perceive insurance and their growing need for education
– How insurance providers can use emerging technologies to connect with customers