A Penny for Your Blog?

Weblogs (or blogs) have been around for more than 15 years, although you probably wouldn't have recognized them as such back in the early '90s. During those initial days, the sharing of your thoughts and opinions took on various forms, a lot of which appeared very similar to discussion threads, although in a clunkier format. This was mainly because the technology and infrastructure hadn't caught up.

In fact, it wasn't until the end of 1997 that the term “weblog” was first coined. Then, 2 years later, the shortened version “blog” was first used by Peter Merholz, founding partner and president of Adaptive Path, who jokingly broke the word “weblog” into the phrase “we blog” in the sidebar of his own blog, www.Peterme.com.

As you can imagine, the first main use of blogging, which continues as a major category of blogs today, is to share personal thoughts and information online. Unlike the book diaries of old, with the little lock wrapped around the side to prevent prying eyes from unacceptable access, the purpose of personal blogging isn't to keep your musings a secret, but to share your innermost thoughts with everyone.

Personal blogging was, and sometimes still is, mostly one-way communication, with the blogger sharing opinions and experiences through their daily life.

Soon bloggers and many followers found personal compositions too self-indulgent and of limited interest. The exceptions, of course, are those celebrity blogs that seem to have a huge fan base and following. Also, friends and families often might blog on their recent vacation and attach photos or videos. There are thousands of niche blogs that straddle between personal and business, like blogs for moms or people that enjoy spelunking.

Over the short life of blogging, it took on a more subject matter focus, opening up the environment to anyone with an opinion on anything. All of a sudden there are literally tens of millions of bloggers, writing hundreds of millions of blogs, covering every topic you can imagine and much more that you can't.

In the past couple of years, business started exploring the potential of blogging. For many companies the purpose was twofold: to get their messages across and to listen to their customers. For many, the latter has proved the more important.

As expected, the demand grew and the technology and infrastructure to support it grew as well. Today there are free blog platforms and those that cost nominal fees; whole Web sites are built around blogs or are just linked to them; and blogs that link to other blogs. This interconnectivity is what the Web is all about.

The evolution of blogging has not only brought about new ideas on how to use the blog environment, but also a re-evaluation of the purpose of blogging. One answer some people came up with resulted in the creation of Twitter, or “micro blogging,” a similar purpose but smaller delivery mechanism with an instant messaging feel, that reaches multitudes of people.

If you read blogs, you'll find they come in all shapes and sizes. Some of the differences have to do with the author's style of writing; some are due to the decisions made in designing it; and some have to do with what the purpose is, who the audience is, and the capabilities of the platform.

Adding a blog

Let's look at a variety of insurance industry blogs from different sources to give you a sense of what you might want to do. The blogs listed below are in no way being endorsed by American Agent & Broker, Summit Media or myself, but are included solely for the purpose of demonstrating different styles.

1. www.Insuremeblog.com/ This blog is tied to the InsureMe Web site, which
   refers visitors to insurance agents and is written by sales and marketing experts targeting insurance agents. The posts are educational and are, for the most part, one-way communications. There are very few comments back from the readers.
2. https://www.faia.com/default.aspx/ This is the home page for the Florida Assn. of Insurance Agents. If you are a member, you can access a series of agent blogs from your fellow members.
3. http://blog.agentmethods.com/ This blog is part of a Web site for a company that builds sites for agents. In researching this article and reviewing a post from this blog, I have to say that one of its points of view was very valid. For some agents, rather than leaping into their own blogs or Twitter accounts, a better approach might be to follow other blogs and tweets and comment on their posts. This can provide a similar online presence with a broader exposure through a variety of vehicles as well as minimizing the resources you would need to commit.
4. http://www.progressive.com/understanding-insurance/ Progressive created a blog to help customers understand insurance. Many of the posts are very conversational in tone and yet convey valuable information. For example, a recent blog post relayed the experience of the author, whose windshield was hit by a clump of snow, causing it to shatter beyond the minimal crack that occurred earlier. The lesson learned was that she should have fixed it from the very beginning. Why? Because repairing is a lot cheaper than replacing and most coverages will easily deal with one and not the other.
5. http://agent-for-change.com/ AA&B editor Laura Toops' blog reflects on industry, business and social trends that affect independent agents and brokers. One of the most recent posts on cold calling generated healthy input from readers.
6. http://nusamsoapbox.com/ This blog is by Sam Friedman, National Underwriter's P&C editor in chief. His focus is not just on P&C insurance issues, but politics and policies that potentially impact the industry. He's very passionate about what he posts, as are the hundreds of readers and dozens of those who post comments back. It's rare when his post doesn't solicit comments. This blog is a true example of a dialogue in action, an exchange of ideas, and an opportunity to sway opinion.

As you can imagine, the blogs identified above represent a minuscule sampling of what's out there. But even this small sampling illustrates a variety of uses.

So are you going to add blogging to your social media communications and marketing tools? If so, how?

For some, blogging is not so much a platform for sharing ideas but for serving as a library of documents. The posts are a means of drawing people to the site. In fact, many blogs operate with a similar purpose, which is why they are tied to Web sites and more deliberate marketing pitches.

I always have believed that the purpose of blogging is to present opinions and engage in dialogue. It's not so much to “change public opinion,” but to share your own and hear those of others. Too many bloggers treat the platform as an opportunity for a one-way communications and I find that a waste of energy.

Even among those bloggers who use the environment as a means of education, the best classes I had were those where teacher and student discussed the issues and ultimately learned from each other.

As you explore the world of blogging and consider implementing it in your agency's marketing plans, think about what your goals are and who your target audience is. As I've said in the past, regardless of the tools you use, social media shouldn't focus on touting your products and services or it becomes just another online advertisement. Rather, it should demonstrate your understanding of your readers' needs; it should position you as a valuable and knowledgeable resource and one that does more listening than talking.

If you decide to blog, there are numerous platforms from which to choose, many free and simple to work with. Just Google “free blog platforms” and you'll find dozens of options. And don't get overly stressed about what to say. Keep it conversational and think about how you talk about insurance to your friends and family. If you keep in mind the old adage–KISS (Keep It Simple, Stupid)–you'll do fine. In addition, other sources of content are the news, the weather and other topics that you find interesting. There aren't a lot of issues that don't have an insurance angle to them.

And don't forget to ask your readers their opinions. Don't feel you have to carry the full conversation, that's the whole idea.

To quote a very good friend of mine, “What do you folks think?”