In the past couple of months,  word about the importance of social media has definitely reached the ears of those at the top of the insurance and reinsurance markets.

Many may not understand the ins and outs of it all, but a growing band of CEOs and marketing executives are starting to dip their toes into these unknown waters – take as an example, Munich Re America, which is now on Twitter.

For those of us who are carefully trying to find the best use for social media in our part of the corporate world, helping remove scales from their eyes is a big part of our job. We come in and look to see if this would work as part of their overall PR strategy and then help work out a digital strategy. Then we can help implement it.

This is how we do it:

1. Watch what others are doing in this space. Showing examples of just how well it can be done and how it can be used is a great way of converting the uninitiated. But there are very still few out there with an implemented plan – reinsurance brokers Guy Carpenter (for blogging), US attorneys Goldberg Segalla (especially on LinkedIn)… Us folks at rein4ce… Erm. That’s it (bar a few good publications and individuals).
2. Working out a digital PR strategy. A lot of what is out there already is all based on business to consumer, on engaging and talking with customers, which is fine if you are Confused.com (who, by the way, spend just 10 to 15% of its PR budget on  digital, which seems surprisingly low). But for the brokerages, London Market, Bermuda Market (click through and that will take you to a good PwC survey on the Bermuda Market) and other global reinsurance giants, this model does not work.
3. Keep it corporate – and legal. Remember the old adage of don’t put anything online that you wouldn’t want your mum to read or your boss to see. Corporate guidelines need to be set. And by having a properly run campaign, you can minimise the risk of litigation by rogue employees blogging about your company in their own time – as it ring-fences your corporate brand and identity under your own umbrella, which is controlled by you.
4. What is it worth? In our world, social media cannot be measured by a straightforward “ROI” as so many claim. It is much more intangible than that. But some if it can be measured – by the number of clicks on your website, by how many people log on and read your blog, by how many people follow you on Twitter, by how many mentions you get online. When helping our clients in this world, we have to show the pitfalls. There is the thorny issue of moderation – who monitors and reports what is being said. And implementing the resources required to feed an audience that is hungry for content can be costly, especially because the key point about social media in this sector is about providing quality content.
5. Keeping it up. Consistency is also important. Many fail to keep up with the idea once the decision has been made – you cannot set up a Twitter feed or a blog and not keep it updated. Generally, a lack of resources can stop the best laid plan in its tracks.

Mairi Mallon heads up the niche PR company rein4ce and blogs and tweets as reinsurancegirl – rein4ce is also on facebook if you’d like to join the group type in rein4ce on facebook’s search box.