Posts Tagged ‘ICMG’

Is Social Tech going mainstream in insurance in 2013? It feels like it to me.

10 Observations in 2.5 Weeks

1. At ICMG, a large, international, health insurance company asked me to lead a Social Tech Boot Camp for their Marketing Executives in Abu Dhabi in March [pictures].
2. Someone else that attended one of my sessions last year asked me to come speak to their team about Social Tech “as soon as possible”so I’m going down to Miami on a Saturday in March.
   

   WebWisedom Blog Stats, Feb13

3. Another asked me to come speak on Social Tech at their Fraternals Annual Meeting back in Miami in April.
4. Several folks asked about Social Tech Boot Camp individual seats. And several others started dialogs about private and sponsored Social Tech Boot Camps. (One even said she wanted to come on her own dime using a vacation day because, “my boss doesn’t get it but I won’t be left behind because of him.”)
5. Meanwhile, work continues on a Web site re-launch for a savvy insurance broker using the “measure twice, cut once” Constituent Based Design approach I speak about in the Social Tech Boot Camps.
6. PIMA followed at the Hotel Del in San Diego – including, shock of all shocks, several attendees actually using the #PIMAAssn hashtag. With a record attendance, the buzz was quite incredible compared to meetings of the past [pictures].
7. Several of the new members are savvy about the importance of technology in insurance marketing.
8. A bunch of the veterans are starting to migrate to these new methods for sales and marketing.  Case in point: Sam Fleet, President elect, shared that he got a significantly large piece of business within hours of posting a guest blog on an industry site. Sam tweets himself as well, in case you wondered – @SamFleetSays.
9. Several want to come to Social Tech Boot Camps. A few also asked about private sessions for their teams.
10. And virtually every single speaker referenced Social Tech in some way, some actually saying it was critically important.

So maybe 2013 really IS the year that Social Tech goes mainstream in insurance.

Finally, I spent 2 full days with my mentor, Scott Klososky, in OKC – in a snow storm! Scott has a series of new courses that I’m adapting to the insurance marketplace.

Scott Klososky, Future Point of View
on Technology and Leadership

The new stuff:

1. Technology in Leadership
2. High-beam Leadership
3. Digital Plumbing
4. Business Intelligence / Big Data
5. Adaptive Culture
6. White Collar Lean
7. Digital Marketing with Social Tech

This Technology Infused Leader series will begin in July/August and run every other month for about a year. Whoever takes it, and implements the concepts, will have a dominating 2-year lead on their nearest competitors – a gap that will be VERY hard to close.

Oh! I almost forgot about Jive Software in the middle of all this. Now this is REALLY REALLY cool: Internal Social Networks, already in use in several savvy insurance companies. Jive could be THE solution in insurance. By that I mean it could be the ignition switch that will educate insurance peeps on Social within the gated community of their enterprise, AND solve systemic problems in a big way – at the same time. I’m excited about Jive. Cool cats, too.

All this to say… Social Tech is gaining serious momentum. Really, technology-driven business, Social Business is taking off like wildfire – for those that are paying attention and not continuing to snicker it away. As Scott said in typical mid-western understatement, ”Those who learn technology well will prosper. Those who do not will struggle – regardless of industry.” I’ll go further than that – It’s survival of the fittest.

What do YOU think? Will historians of the future identify 2000-2020 as a unique time of tremendous change on the scale of the Industrial Revolution, the computer age, and the Internet? Why or Why not? Thanks. The more you share, the more you learn.

Marriott Vinoy, St. Pete

So the headline begs the question. I’ve got some ideas, but I really want to hear from you!

First it was e-Commerce. I remember coming to ICMG for the first time in 2004 at Aventura. E-business!!! Web sites with online quoting, e-Applications, Agent Portals, Agent Contracting, Online Policy Maintenance – all that stuff. Everybody SAID they were doing it. But very few people were ACTUALLY doing it. And the ones that were doing it weren’t doing it very well!

Fast forward 10 years. Most people are doing all those things, and doing them pretty well.

But now the same comments apply to Social Tech, don’t they? Everybody SAYS they are doing it. But very few people are ACTUALLY doing it. And the ones that ARE doing it aren’t doing it very well!

So what are we going to be talking about next? What’s beyond Social Tech??? Prognosticate in the comments below.

Btw, my 30-second commercial for this year’s Member Introductions.

“I’m helping insurance companies and large agencies understand how to leverage Social Technologies. So things like Crowdsourcing, Online Reputation Management, Organizational Voice, Linkedin, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Blogs, Video’s, Podcasts, Measurements – all that. I help folks develop the strategy that suits their organization. I’m also running public and private Social Tech Boot Camps for Insurance Executives. I’ve got 5 public ones scheduled for the next 10 weeks. Lastly I’m working on a video of this conference. The question? What’s your favorite part of ICMG? And what’s your favorite movie line? Social Tech – there’s a ton of low-hanging fruit if you know what you’re doing.”

So what’s next??? Mobile? Wearable technology? Implantables? Thanks in advance.

I’m hopeful that the 150 or so attendees of the ICMG2012 Annual Meeting who also attended the Breakout on Social Tech will collaborate on a creative twist to a recap of the session. I know many of you are here simply to download the preso, but consider spending an extra cycle right here for the benefit of the group.

Your part: Please post a note in the Comment form below stating your one or two Top Take-Away’s from the Social Tech Breakout Session.

It could be anything. I’ll not review of the main points Jim McDaniel, Ken Smith, and I made, or the insightful and helpful questions throughout – really good stuff.

Rather, I’d like readers to hear what the attendees thought and, thereby, possibly develop an interesting mosaic of comments, reflections, and helpful ideas.

Please participate. Like Jim said, “Don’t Lurk!” Even if a previous Comment is on the same theme as yours, add your idea as a reinforcing or expanding sentiment.

Based on the subsequent conversations I had with people on the 18th tee of the golf course as well as the next morning, and with over 150 session attendees, this might be a VERY interesting and fruitful discussion.

Thanks in advance.

Presentation Download

PS. The Social Tech Boot Camp for Insurance Executives I’m hosting in March is filling up. A 2nd one is now in the works, possibly hosted by Nationwide, in Columbus, in May/June. I’ll likely do a 3rd in the Fall in Chicago or K.C. You’ll be glad you and/or your boss came – Crowdsourcing, Organizational Voice, Rating Systems, Online Reputation Management, Socially Facilitated Selling (see video), Socially Directed Buying, Tools, Measurement Systems, Rivers of Information – A LOT to cover in 9 hours straight. Get your spot – this isn’t an unlimited opportunity. (Private Boot Camps for your team are also available.)

Thanks again.

Mike

…

I recently shared a breakfast at the home of a high-powered, very successful friend of mine. My good friend has a long track-record with a top accounting firm solving all kinds of financial-related business issues for a wide variety of Fortune 1000 companies. But my friend is an executive who is intentionally NOT engaging in any kind of Social Technologies.

Wise Road, Pompey, NY - Named after my Great-Great-Grandfather

Following the conversation on family and personal stuff, we turned to work. Knowing my pursuits, my friend shared thoughts about Social networking. After listening to his perspectives on Linkedin, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc., I asked him, “I heard you refer to ‘Social’ in the midst of everything you were saying. Let me ask you a question. When you said ‘Social’, describe what you had in mind? What concepts did the word ‘Social’ bring to mind as you were talking about it?”

He said, “The noise, the clutter, non-important things… you know, Social.”

I clarified, “So water-cooler-type talk… weather, sports, family life, community – that kind of thing?”

“Yes, exactly. I just don’t have time for all that. Like I said, when I’m in work mode, I need to stay as focused as possible on work – no distractions. I see my wife and daughter spending a lot of time on Facebook, and frankly that concerns me. Now I know they might say I spend a lot of time watching TV or playing golf. But I can’t see myself spending my precious free time on Social networks. I hear people talking about Linkedin at work, but it doesn’t seem to be productive. I also know I’ll be asked to help people – not that I don’t want to help people, but if they want my help, all they have to do is call me. I see people using Social Networks to relive the past or trying to get the next new job. Since I don’t want to do either of those, I just don’t see a need to do Social networking.”

Does that sound familiar? The conversation went on from there. I explained that unfortunately, while understandable because of the traditional use of the term, thinking of ‘Social’ Technologies as ‘personal’ or ‘non-essential’, non-business related, etc. etc. is perhaps one of the biggest misnomers in the executive ranks.

[Curious: Do you agree? Are many executives under an incorrect assumption about ‘Social’ technologies as being more about personal, non-essential stuff? Especially in the insurance vertical?]

From a business perspective, Social is NOT ‘Social’. Think UGC – User-Generated Content and all the implications therein – “Crowd” solutions (e.g. Crowdsourcing, Crowdvertising, Crowdfunding), Ratings, Online Reputation Management, professional communities, Social CRM, Rivers of Information, Customer Intel, Revenue on Demand, e-Word-of-Mouth to name a few.

I made a case that in his position, at a bare minimum, he wants to consider what’s called Online Reputation Management. What do people find when they search for him?

Going further, he wants to be thinking about what’s next, what’s beyond the brand and title on his business card? No doubt about it – no matter how successful, both brand and title will inevitably change, won’t they? And when they do, perhaps quite suddenly, will he benefit from a steady effort to build a Social network? Will he correctly understand his Social relevancy in business? And will he be in a position for broader long-term business influence, again beyond his immediate circle with the current brand and its client base?

Lastly, like the MBA process he went through a few years back that lifted his IQ substantially in a short time-span, he wants to consider tapping into brilliant content creators, peers of his that are beyond the faceless Wall Street Journal writers, his preferred info-source. Sure, WSJ writers are no doubt great writers creating a steady stream of great stories. But what about peers of his who are sharing insights and creating dialogs via blogs and Social networks? Could these insights and conversations lift his IQ in a very meaningful and practical way – directly relating to his field?

What do you think? Are Social Technologies a ‘waste of time’? Do many executives in your experience feel that Social is purely Social?

Next up:

ICMG in Phoenix. #ICMG2012 (You heard it here first: I’m facilitating a 1.5 hour session on Linkedin on Wednesday morning before the Meeting starts. Yeah, I’d rather be playing golf as well, but I was asked, so what could I say.)

PIMA in Palm Coast, Florida. #PIMAAssn Rolling out the rebranding work Bill, Al, Shannon, Denise, Mona, Ed, me and a bunch of others have done in the past year…

Hope to see some of you there.

After a mind-blowing October and November, I’m finally getting back to the Series on how to leverage Linkedin from an enterprise perspective. However, technically-speaking, the last post for ICMG was really along the same conversation. A popular post in terms of views, that post amplified the specific activities for a typical professional to influence and impact their professional environment. Yes, Online Reputation Management (ORM) and Organizational Voice (OV) are both REALLY BIG deals.

Speaking on eWOM at World Usability Day - funny image!

You can look at this enterprise topic from multiple angles. Two angles for sure are:

1. How do we as Clients, Partners, and Fans engage WITH the Brands we do business with?
2. How do we as Brands earn, foster, and build engagement FROM our Clients, Partners, and Fans?

I’d like to shine the light on the latter. Restated, what specific activities can we as the enterprise do to earn engagement and interaction from our Clients, Partners, and Fans, specifically within the Linkedin environment. And how will these efforts payoff in measurable ROI.

A note to readers. If I may be quite direct, as I’ve been saying for the last three years, “Lurking is Lame”. I’ll go further than that now – it’s quite unacceptable to consume only, never Comment, never Share, never add value. Here’s the thing: If you’re going to take the time to absorb content, and if you find it helpful, don’t you see how just walking away without contributing is a bit off? It would be like attending in person a session that someone put effort in to develop, and that you paid for in either time or money, finding value in it, and then simply walking out without even taking the time to acknowledge, stop and thank the speaker, perhaps grab a business card for follow-up, or asking a question or making a comment during the session. So please consider some sort of action – do something with the content you consume. At a bare minimum, if you like the post, Share it. It only takes a few minutes to add value. Make a habit of it. (Btw, that adds to YOUR ORM and OV, right???)

First, what does it mean to “earn” engagement FROM our Clients, Partners, and Fans? I’ll use the analogy of the conference again. Suppose you are a new member of an association and you go to the first couple association meetings. At those meetings, you (and probably your boss) are so excited to be in the presence of all these new, targeted prospects, and driving so hard to justify the expense, that you go up to everyone you meet, introduce yourself, and immediately launch into a pitch about your products and services. So for two meetings in a row, you done nothing but “sell”. No listening to what others do, no volunteering to help the association in some way through your talents, no fostering conversations at the breakfast tables, instead “just sell baby”. Obviously an extreme example (though not really, I’ve seen this recently as I’m sure you have as well), but you get the point. If this were the case, would you reasonably expect anyone in the association to give you any positive props or mentions at any point at all? Probably not.

Now contrast that with the flip side. All you do is listen and volunteer and never mention exactly what you do. So everyone ‘Likes’ you but no one has any idea why you’re there or what you do. Also an extreme example on the other end of the spectrum. Also not appropriate.

Relative to the concept of ‘earned media’, the holy grail lies somewhere in between. That’s the goal, that’s the target. How do we do enough selling/marketing so that people know what we do and we stay top-of-mind for that function (and rank high in search along the way), but we also listen, help, and add value along the way? And what is that balance? I’ve heard it said that you can think of it in terms of a 10:1 ratio – 10 acts of added value for every 1 act of selling.

It’s critically important to understand this point. Earned media is/will be an essential element in the near future of sales and marketing.

What does “Earned Media” look like inside of Linkedin? Here are the spots to look for earned media and mentions. Once you understand the locations, and then combine that with the a for-mentioned concept of sales-versus-valueadd, you’ll quickly get the point. Again these are all Linkedin spots:

1. Company Page Recommendations
2. Company Page Status Updates
3. Individual Recommendations
4. Individual Status Updates
5. Group Mentions
6. Answers Mentions
7. Company Buzz Mentions
8. Twitter-integration Mentions
9. Of course, Employee Mentions
10. Employee Activities

These are a few of the hot spots. If you know any others, please Comment.

So what to you do with these and where does earned media come into play?

Company Page Recommendations:

Obvious caveat: The brand must do a great job in adding value and servicing its clients. “Astroturfing”, or getting your brother-in-law to say something nice about you in spite of poor service, inflated prices, etc., will be discovered and exposed, and will further exacerbate the original problems. Trust that.

Sample Linkedin Product Recommendation on a Company Page (click to enlarge)

Once you have the Company profile in place on Linkedin, be sure to add the tabs that allow you to feature your products and/or services. At that point, in these early days of Linkedin, it’s a simple matter of asking some of your Clients, Partners, and Fans to hit the page and make a Comment. Here’s a great example from HubSpot. Notice the inherent Linkedin functionality associated with the Recommendation and how it reinforces the relevance and influence of the Recommendation. Notice also that there is a Share button on the page. Did you know that brand advocates are 83% more likely to Share a page, all the more so when they’ve engaged with the content in some way, put their personal virtual fingerprints on the page? Do you see how these things work together to create earned media and viral marketing? (see more stories on this here)

Company Page Status Updates:

We all know that personal Status Updates (aka Shares on your Linkedin Homepage newsfeed) have the potential of being seen by your network. Going further, most know that if your network Likes or Comments on something YOU shared, THEIR network has the potential of seeing it and sharing it – and so on. (I saw one guy who posted a bet he made with his boss that his boss would give him $1 for every Like and Comment he got on a post about the utility of Linkedin. At that point, the guy had the usual couple hundred Connections. Well, his update went viral inside Linkedin. I’m not sure I remember exactly what I last saw or where it sits today, but after a few weeks the guy’s boss owed him SEVERAL THOUSAND bucks.)

As with personal, the same functionality applies to Company Status Updates. The Status Updates are obviously not earned media, but Likes, Comments, and Shares of those updates are. When the Status Updates appear in Followers Newsfeeds, if people are fans of the brand and appreciate the content of the item, there’s a good chance they will Likes, Comments, and/or Shares, especially if they’ve advanced in their Social maturity beyond the previously mentioned lurking stage. Those actions then become the earned media, the holy grail of Social Media Marketing. Nuf said.

Well, that’s all I have time for at this point. I’ll continue the dialog on the finer points of the other seven items next time.

Meantime, I’m greatly looking forward to ICMG first week of February, PIMA the next week, perhaps the ACT Conference, perhaps SWSX in March, and a VERY exclusive Enterprise Social Tech day-long Boot Camp for C-level insurance executives, also in March in Charlotte – a busy Q1.

Again, please Like, Comment, and Share. Let’s see if I can earn some media myself! Thanks in advance. Merry Christmas!!! Emmanuel.