The Ontario Broker - August 2019 - 42

in
y
a
d
a
e
the lif

DAMOND RAWLS
MARKETING MANAGER
BUCKLEY INSURANCE

D

igital visibility is the idea
of building a strong online
presence so customers
looking for answers will be directed to
your content. Because the concept's
becoming more important every
day, many brokerages now have
in-house marketing, whether it's a
salesperson who runs social media, a
half-marketing/half-reception role or
a full-time marketer.
Damond Rawls has been the
Marketing Manager at Buckley
Insurance for a year. "Before working
here I researched the digital visibility
of Buckley, as well as many of their
top competitors. My research and
plan of action helped me land the
position."
One tip Damond would give brokers
considering their online presence is
to "... get started on digital marketing.
Achieving a significant share of digital
visibility within your industry will
take time, so it's best to start as soon
as possible."
Buckley has a team of three
marketers. Over the last 18 months
they've accomplished a lot, including
some key benchmarks:

AUGUST 2019

* Redesigned Buckley's website with
a focus on SEO, content marketing
and user experience
* Written and produced commercials
for TV and online platforms
* Grew social media accounts by
over 200%
* Implemented live chat on their
website to ensure ease of access for
current and potential customers
* Created and implemented
campaigns focused on customer
retention
As more and more brokerages are
recruiting marketers to join their
team, here's an idea of what Damond's
day in the life looks like. "I arrive at
the office at 9AM. When weather
permits, the marketing team holds
walking meetings where we each
focus on three initiatives for the
week. The walk usually takes less
than 20 minutes. During this time, we
discuss our accomplishments from
the previous week and our goals for
the upcoming week.
"Each day the team has a list of things
to do that are part of a larger agenda.
For example, one day last week we
ordered hamburgers as props so we
could shoot a stop motion video for a
current campaign we're running. The
video required the expertise of the
entire team, from shooting, editing,
composing shots and creating the
call to action to go along with the
campaign."
Ultimately having an expert in
marketing on your team will assist
your brokerage cater to all audiences,
old and new. "The best part of the
job is the ability to use and develop
a plethora of different skill sets from
copywriting and analytics to video
production and editing. In addition,
the market's always changing, so the
minute you think you've mastered the
skill of marketing, there's something
new to learn."

42

A NEW WIND
WHAT OBSTACLES HAS
SASKATCHEWAN'S BROKER
CHANNEL FACED IN ACQUIRING
AND KEEPING NEW TALENT?

It really depends on circumstance. In our
membership, we have 206 brokerages with
branch locations in 249 Saskatchewan
communities. The challenges you face in,
say, Saskatoon or Regina are not the same
as those you'd need to overcome in rural
parts of the province, which are often
geographically isolated with limited labour
pools. For example, in a larger city, the
issue may be turnover of front-line staff.
In a small town, four hours away from the
nearest Walmart, the issue may be finding
warm bodies to fill seats.
Regardless, the struggle to recruit and retain
qualified individuals is real-and it's not
unique to insurance. Every sector is fighting
to attract the best and brightest, often in
segments of the labour market where there's a
growing transferability of skills.
Take computer programmers. It wasn't
long ago they were proverbial unicorns in
Saskatchewan, pigeonholed to a few specific,
niche areas. Now, with rapid advancements
in autonomous farming, digitally enabled
manufacturing and data-intensive resource
development, not to mention a burgeoning
tech sector (earning the nickname Silicon
Prairie, which I really hope doesn't catch
on), companies are being forced to consider
expanding operations into other jurisdictions
simply to meet demand. So if you're a
brokerage looking to ramp up its digital
presence, you could be in for a tough slug if
you're trying to do it in-house. That's doubly
true when you're competing for talent with a
handful of well-established regional carriers,
including a Crown corporation.

WWW.IBAO.ORG
http://WWW.IBAO.ORG
The Ontario Broker - August 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Ontario Broker - August 2019
