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Presented by:

Gideon F. Mukwai, CEM, MAXtraMile Solutions

Leveraging the Power of Social Media in Insurance Business

Leveraging the Power of Social Media in Insurance Business

Introduction

Research shows that 60% of Facebook friends and 79% of Twitter followers are more likely to buy a

brand recommended by their friends or followers after their virtual relationship than before. This is an

indication of the depth of what is in store for you if you sharpen your understanding of how to leverage

social media.

Social media is no longer a fad. 62.2% of Singaporeans use Facebook. Given its growing significance in

our lives, insurance business owners and professionals must learn to use this language of the masses

better. As you may know, without a good command of a language, you can’t fully connect with its users.

You owe it to yourself as a business person to learn this new language, just like a missionary does before

traveling to work with a foreign tribe. Success depends on how well you can master and use this

language which by the way is a favorite with “Digital Natives or Milenials” entering the workforce today.

Part I - Define Your Tribe# 1 ! Know your Mission (What are your Goals)The first critical step is to determine the mission of your journey. In other words, what are the goals of

your missionary work in somewhat quantifiable terms. This is a vital because when you know your mission, you can sharpen your vision. Without this, you may wander about in despair.

Ideas:

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2. ...................................................................................................................................................

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# 2 ! Know your Tribe (Finding the Social Technographics Profile of your Clients)

Before going on a missionary journey, you must understand the tribe you are going to work with. It is

important to know if they are compliant or non-compliant. Who are the opinion leaders, critics and other

influential members of the community? By knowing their profile, you ‘d better dial into their needs.

Ideas:

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2. .....................................................................................................................................

3. .........................................................................................................................................

# 3 ! Listen & Learn about your Tribe (What are the issues within the Marketplace?)

Do not assume that you know them well enough until you understand their fears, issues and aspirations.

You can do this by joining their groups and listening carefully to learn more about their concerns and

fears. Leaning their aspirations, gives you legitimacy to sell them life solutions.

Ideas:

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2. .....................................................................................................................................

3. .......................................................................................................................

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Part II - Engage Your Tribe

# 4 ! Build Bonds and Bridges (Who are the Key Influencers?)

In order to be ready for duty, you must build social bonds and bridges that will breed trust. Without trust

and social goodwill, you will be unable to accomplish your mission, not withstanding how noble your goals

may be. In the virtual world, your trust is the bridges that allows you to sell your products.

Ideas:

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2. ..................................................................................................................................................

3. ...............................................................................................................................................

# 5 ! Collaborate (What partnerships and Groups can you Join?) One way to build trust with your tribe is to collaborate with some members of the community in donating

of your time to causes that matter to them. This earns you goodwill. It allows them to know you cherish

their aspirations. Collaboration builds goodwill and goodwill yields social capital.

Ideas:

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2. .................................................................................................................................................

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# 6 ! Engage and Edutain (Can you Offer Something of Value in a Fun & Quirky Way?) In your quest to bring the “good news or the gospel” to the people, don’t forget that you are competing for

their attention. If you want to win their attention, mix education with entertainment. By doing this,

you engage and connect in ways that congenial and if you are lucky, you could go viral.

Ideas:

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2. ...............................................................................................................................................

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# 7 ! Reach-Out (Crowdsource ideas and Opportunities) Reaching out to your tribe or groundswell, enables you can tap into their fears and concerns to craft a

more relevant or captivating message that meets their needs. In the virtual world, you can tap into your tribe ‘s mind, by mining their feedback through the use of Web 2.0 tools.

Ideas:

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Part III - Develop Your Tribe

# 8 ! Empower & Energise Them (Give them the Power to Help your Cause) Another way to empower your tribe, is to give them tools, so they they can give you leads. By so

doing, you empower and energise your community members not only to be beneficiaries, but also to be

promoters. This can earn them recognition or rewards that multiply your influence.

Ideas:

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2. ......................................................................................................................................

3. ...................................................................................................................................

# 9 ! Take Stock of your Work (Benchmarking and Metrics) How far you go, depends on where you start. Before setting your sights on a new destination or goals

for your mission, it is important that you take stock of where you are today in terms of resources,

strengths, weaknesses, threats and opportunities.

Ideas:

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# 10 ! Getting Started (Do you Have a Social Media Plan?) You are now at crossroads. If you are going to succeed in your mission as a missionary, you must come

up with a plan that reflects your goals, current position, current resources and the strategies that will

enable you to reach your desired destination. When you fail to plan, you plan to fail.

Ideas:

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2. ........................................................................................................................................................

3. ................................................................................................................................................

ConclusionIf you are willing to embrace social media as a missionary embraces a new language, the chances are,

you will do very well in growing your business because millions of Singaporeans are already using these

tools daily to connect with one another.

To boost your business, learn these new language, edutain, empower and energise your followers, fans,

and connections to become your clients or at worse to be conduits or promoters of your good name and

good work. Every single connection matters because it adds to your reservoir of social capital.

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References:1. Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies by Charlene Li and Josh

Bernoff.

2. Cognitive Surplus: Creativity and Generosity in a Connected Age by Clay Shirky.

3. Linked: How Everything is Connected to Everything Else and What It Means for Business, !Science

! and Everyday Life.

4. Take Charge of Tomorrow and Change it by John Thomas.

5. Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organising by Clay Shirky.

6. Social Capital and Information Technology by Huysman and Wulf.

7. The Ultimate Guide to Electronic Marketing for Small Businesses by Tom Antion.

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Notes

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About the Trainer and Facilitator - Gideon F. Mukwai, MA, CEM

Gideon is an award-winning speaker with over a decade of both local and international

experience from Asia, Middle East, Africa and North America. He has

presented training programmes to over 13,500 executives from

organisations such as Oracle, Siemens, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, Dell

Computers, Shell Eastern Petroleum, National University of Singapore,

DBS Bank, Gillette and many professional associations and institutions

of learning.

In 2004, he founded XtraMile Solutions in Singapore as a dedicated training company that

specialises in providing training solutions for both corporate and community organisations. A

former Senior Officer and Instructor with the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF), Gideon

recently earned an Masters of Art Degree in Social Media Communication from the Reynolds

School of Journalism, University of Nevada, Reno.

Gideon ‘s forte is his ability to communicate complex issues with practical narratives and

examples, without compromising on his ability to inform, influence and inspire action. He

combines his journalistic storytelling skills with rigorous academic and professional insights in

helping participants understand new concepts.

In his spare time, he writes non-fiction. He is the author of Facing Adversity with Audacity and a

self-taught musical flute player who cannot even read a single musical note.

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