Gartner has a new report that suggests that social media websites could decide to start selling insurance and financial services in the near future. It would be a new way for social media companies to make revenue. Would you feel comfortable buying insurance from Facebook?
Gartner, according to their website, is “the world’s leading information technology research and advisory company”. They deliver “technology-related insight” to their clients, in order to help their clients to make decisions. They offer objective insight on every area of information technology.
Gartner has compiled a report called “Gartner Predicts 2012”. The report says that there is the potential that social media websites, (such as Facebook, Twitter, and others), will decide to start selling insurance to the people who use the social networking site. In other words, you might soon have the option to buy an insurance policy from Facebook.
This could open up a new revenue stream for websites like Facebook. It wouldn’t be that difficult for Facebook to find consumers to sell different types of insurance policies to. People who use social media tend to post that they have gotten married, that they have become a parent, or that they have bought a nice, new, vehicle. All of these situations require changes to a person’s existing insurance policies.
Right now, there are several insurance companies that have their own Facebook pages. Most of the big insurance companies can be found on Twitter. Insurers use social media websites as a way to promote their brand, and to encourage consumers to check them out.
Not all insurers really make good use of their social media website presence, but some do. I’ve seen all kinds of freebies from free ringtones and wallpapers to an offer for a free t-shirt. Gartner estimates that less than 10% of all insurers that are on social media websites actually make good use it.
Would you buy health insurance, or car insurance, from Facebook or Twitter? I think that some people would consider doing it. On the other hand, there have been a lot of questions about how secure your information on Facebook really is, which could be problematic. Insurance companies need to keep their customer’s information very secure.
There will be plenty of people who won’t buy insurance from Facebook because they are more familiar with the big name insurers. However, if Facebook can one day offer a better policy than the other insurers can, it could turn into a new way of generating revenue for social media websites.
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