We spent this past weekend camping at Sunshine Campground – a small primitive campground Southwest of Telluride, CO. The experience reminded me of how important it is to keep life in balance.

Much of my professional life revolves around technology – rather the transformations taking place in our society that are being fueled by new technology. I know many can feel overwhelmed by “work” and talk about escaping and getting “off the grid”. For me, that wasn’t it at all. I really enjoy what I do. I like being on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and even email. I like keeping in touch and sharing experiences with family and friends and that includes business associates. Hiking in the Colorado Mountains is very special but it is also fun sharing my adventures on Twitter and Facebook.

Clearly, the social web is helping blur the line between our business and personal lives. I think that is a good thing. This past weekend helped me clear out the “cobwebs” and reminded me that it’s the journey not the destination that is important.

Clearly, there is an ongoing surge in social networking use within the insurance space. That is the good news. The bad news is that many are using (or more accurately abusing) social networking platforms to amplify their sales message. As I see it, this is the biggest mistake being made, especially by those new to the social networking.

I know that many of you reading this blog fully understand this point. Yet, I think it significant enough to the ultimate success of anyone expecting to benefit from social networking that there is reason to revisit the issue.

Just because you can doesn’t mean that you should.

There is a fundamental difference between the old push or interruption type of marketing and social marketing. When using social networking it is expected that before you try and sell someone you first build a relationship with them, Or said another way, consumers in the social space expect to have a relationship with you and a certain level of trust before they buy. Be present so that when they are ready to buy they can find you. Just as you the first words out of your mouth at a chamber mixer would not be, “I sell insurance – please buy from me”. The same holds true on Facebook, Twitter or any other social app for that matter.

Spend time building and nurturing your relationships with friends, fans/likes and followers. You do that by being a participant in the conversation. Comment on others posts, provide subject matter expertise, and be transparent and honest. Remember, there is no quick fix here. Building relationships (online or offline) takes time and effort. Be a good social community citizen and be patient – success will find you.

What other mistakes do you see being made?

Lots going on and I know you are all very busy. So, just in case you didn’t see these -  here are some links to resources I think you will find interesting, informative and educational.

Agents Council for Technology (ACT). There are all kinds of great resources on this site including recorded webinars. The Best Web Marketing Strategy You’ve Never Heard is the most recent article and gives a step-by-step guide on setting up local search on Google, Yahoo, Bing and others. Local search is an important component to any agency’s social web strategy.

Insurance Journal “On Point” Podcast. I host this along with Peter van Aartrijk. These are conversations with interesting and informative industry experts on a wide range of industry topics. I think you will find the two most recent conversations with agency owners about their social media initiatives particularly interesting. McClain Insurance owner Claudia McClain’s discussion is here. The podcast by David Pullman from Parker, Smith & Feek can be found here.

I recently asked agencies and other insurance folks who were blogging to list their blog under the Discussion Tab on my Facebook Fan Page. Over 35 have now done so. There are some really good ones and if you are considering starting a blog I would highly recommend that you check some of these out. You can also access a list of industry blogs from the “Links” tab on this blog.

Also, here are a few resources that I think were particularly good in offering advice on how be more successful with social networking.

10 Ways to Grow Your Facebook Page Following

6 Ways To Use Video As A Small Business Owner

10 Social Media Best Practices for PR Pros

Finally, before I forget…. If you are not familiar with the Personal Lines Growth Alliance please go here and join (its free).

If you have recently found an article or video that has helped you transition into a Social Business, please share it with us. Just post it as a comment. Thanks.

Back in July 2008, I wrote the article, “Is There a Blog in Your Future?” for The Agents Council for Technology (ACT).  At the time, many questioned whether or not the insurance industry (let alone agents and brokers) would ever embrace the idea of writing a blog. So, here we are a little over two years later – Is the industry blogging?

Last Friday, I posted this on Twitter  asking anyone interested to go the discussions tab on my Facebook Fan page and post their blog URL. As of this morning, 22 insurance people have listed their blogs. No, this is not a comprehensive list – but clearly our industry is blogging.

Are you blogging? If not but are thinking about it, check out the blogs that are listed here. There are some really good ones and you will learn a lot about how to go about blogging by watching these bloggers.

If you have a blog it is not too late to add your Blog URL to the list or leave a comment on this post with your blog URL.