Welcome to the 21st century.

Gone are the days of simply knocking on doors and cold callingpotential clients. Today's agents have access to a wide range ofnew marketing channels to get their name and message out to thepublic, including social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter andLinkedIn.

But how can agents make use of these new tools and actually turnthem into referrals? Marketing firm Outbound Engine recently tookon this question on its blog, laying out several best practices for agentslooking to move into social media marketing.

Here are their tips.

Choose your channels

“First things first– if you haven't already, spend sometime creating an account and exploring themajor social media channels. As of writing, Facebook, Twitter,LinkedIn and Google+ seem to be the major outlets but others suchas Youtube, Pinterest, Tumblr, Flickr and Instagram may be ofinterest to you also. At the very least, set up your account on themajor outlets and begin familiarizing yourself with the services,rules and etiquette of the sites.”

Not all social media platforms are craeted equal, however, so itpays to spend some time getting to know your audience on each. Forexample, LinkedIn users tend to be focused on professional matters,while Facebook is usually more personal and consumer-focused. Makesure your message fits the outlet.

Master the “soft sell”

“The goal of your social mediamarketing should be to nurture a community, not to push the hardsell, which is almost always a turnoff. It's called social mediafor a reason so use it to be social and buildrelationships. Balance your postsabout business with others that are truly interesting to you. Byposting things that are inspirational, informative, and helpful tothe whole community, you won't come across as impersonal and peoplewill be more interested in reading what you have to say on aregular basis.”

This is a common pitfall for manynew social media marketers. They're so eager to cash in on the newmedium that they focus exclusively on sales messaging, which onlyserves to drive away potential customers. Social media is notexclusively a sales channel. It's social. Make sure you find yourplace in the community before trying to leverage your contacts intosales.

Stick with it

“Like any good marketing strategy,it takes consistency and persistence over time to see the results.Though you can post 2-3 times per week, set aside at least one hourto post on your social media channel. You can spend that hourfinding relevant articles to post, informing your audience aboutdevelopments in the insurance industry or even writing personalposts to engage people. Regardless of what you decide to post,scheduling the time so that your site is consistently active goes along way to establishing the relationships that result in futurereferrals.”

Another common pitfall: New socialmedia marketers get burned out when they don't see quick resultsand stop participating. But social media (like pretty mucheverything else in online marketing) is like going to the gym. Youwon't see results in a week, but after a few months you'll start tonotice the impact. Stick with it; it will pay off in the longrun.

Get creative

“There are lots of ways to creatively engage with your audienceso it isn't just a one-way conversation. If your company has anofficial referral program, social media is a great way to promotethat program. To increase Facebook fans, you can run a promotionthat donates a dollar to a local charity for every new follower.End your posts with a question to elicit answers from youraudience. By engaging your audience, you are building a bond thatwill yield referrals in the future.”

This isn't a one-way street. Nothing is more boring onsocial media than a user who just pushes out their own agendawithout interacting with others. Spend some time on your followers'feeds each week, retweeting their comments and participating inconversations. Not only will it build your “social cred” on thenetwork, but it's a fun way to get to know fellow professionals andfind your place in the industry.