Whether we like it or not, the insurance industry is facing a millennial revolution. The average age of an insurance professional currently stands at 60 years old, and only a mere 4 percent of millennials are interested in pursuing a career in this business.

Aged 18 to 34 years, millennials have been proclaimed lazy, narcissistic, and entitled. But these negative stereotypes signify the very barriers that are misguiding focus on the great opportunities young consumers present to businesses in the future.

For years, the insurance industry has been discussing ways to target the millennial candidate gap, and now the issue is ever-present. Millennials are becoming your clients, moving into their prime spending years and demanding innovation. To maintain a competitive advantage in the digital age, here are three ways to adapt your insurance company in 2018:

1. Content is currency

Forty-five percent of millennials don’t find today’s marketing content compelling enough to share, and this is not surprising, considering the content strategy developed is often far removed from the very presence of millennials themselves.

Bridging the chasm between your brand and the millennial audience is the first step to creating engaging content. Defining your business content strategy starts by researching first-hand how the modern consumer shops, and the type of content and tone of voice that captivates them.

Content marketing for SEO

Simply put, if your brand does not show up on Google, millennials will not take you seriously.

Content that is highly shareable, drives links and increases your website traffic will grow your brand’s presence and ranking online, making your content strategy all the more important to develop in co-ordinance with what young consumers are searching for.

Timing is everything

In a technology-driven society, analysing current trends on social media relating to your industry is a great way to understand the relevant and current content millennials are engaging with.

For example, if you are a travel and health insurance agency, search hashtags on the best destinations to visit during the new year, or vlogs (video blogs) on things to do and places to visit at *insert travel destination here*. Or conversely, if you are a firm specialising in home insurance, search the top hipster locations to live in the UK or even best smart home devices.

From this stage, developing monthly blogs and advice pages on your site will more likely fit the interests of young consumers. No matter the kind of insurance your agency specializes in, the goal is to keep your content up to date with the millennial needs of today.

2. Mobile is money

As many companies are already aware, having a website nowadays is just not enough.

A quarter of millennials spend over five hours every day consuming, searching, creating, and shopping on their phones. The simple fact is, if your site isn’t optimised for mobile, you risk your business of the millennial population.

Millennials make real-time decisions. Thanks to the vast amount of information they consume, they can instantly decide whether a brand is worth their time and money. Satisfying an expectation defined within seconds seems daunting, but brings great opportunity for businesses in insurance that set themselves apart from traditional desktop marketing.

Multiplatform is no longer an option, it is an essential step towards digital that some businesses are still failing to establish.

3. Browsing experience

Millennials crave the experience of shopping more than purchasing a product or service, which is why successful companies know that young consumers just want to have a fun online browsing experience.

Nowadays, it is important for a business to have an easy-to-use, visually pleasing and interactive website. These important elements are a potential customer’s first impression of your site, and if executed properly, will gain their interest in your services for the long-term.

If your website looks outdated, is unresponsive, and hard to navigate through, a much-needed redesign and analysis of your business goals and strategies will optimise your user experience and business sales for potential customers.

The future is Millennial

The trends mentioned in this article are certainly not exclusive to the insurance industry. There is no doubt that offices of the future are being driven by millennial preferences, with insurance arguably facing the biggest challenge to change. The plain fact is that businesses in insurance need to recognize the growing presence of brands, old and new, that are adapting their business approaches to fit the needs of young consumers online.