1. A unique look at UK Insurance companies
via Social Media

2. This study takes a close look at the Insurance Industry of the United Kingdom- Europe’s largest, and the third largest in the world.
Using the Digimind Social Media Monitoring tool, we studied six major insurance companies in the UK, analysing the social media
presences of Aviva, Bupa, Prudential, Cigna, Direct Line, and Zurich Insurance.
Amidst an influx of industrywide challenges from capital shortage to tightening regulation, social media plays an increasingly
important role for firms differentiating themselves in a highly saturated market.
This analysis is not exhaustive, but rather a focused, comparative look at the industry through various social media platforms.
The study is comprised of data collected from the Digimind Social Media Monitoring tool, from 11 November to 9 December.

3. The third largest in the world, and the largest in Europe, the United Kingdom’s Insurance industry is a crucial part of its economic
strength, contributing nearly 12 billion pounds in taxes to the government. The Insurance sector also generates 22% of total EU
Premium income and is responsible for investments of 1.8 trillion (equivalent to 25% of the UK’s total net worth). It is estimated
that approximately 90% of the 26.4 million households in the UK carry at least one insurance product.
The industry currently faces a range of challenges, including tightening government regulation, capital constraints, and
operational efficiency. However, the industry benefits from global, regional, and local presence. Approximately 30% of premium
income comes from overseas business, and UK firms have a growing footprint in high growth economies of Asia, Latin America,
and Africa. Diversity of talent is also a competitive edge for UK insurers; employees possess a highly developed skill base that
operates across a range of sub-sectors (general insurance, life, wholesale, and reinsurance). Approximately one-third of all
financial services jobs are in the insurance industry, employing around 320,000 people yearly- more than electricity, gas and
water supply sectors combined.
INTRODUCTION

4. A breakdown of online mentions surrounding the six firms indicates that Aviva is mentioned most frequently on social media, comprising
62% of total online conversations. Direct Line comprises 1%, with 497 mentions since November 11th.

5. Where are mentions
coming from?
A media breakdown based on volume of
mentions shows that 63% of total mentions
are coming from Twitter. Not surprisingly,
Facebook comes in second with 12,148
mentions. Most social listening tools similarly
monitor the volume of mentions, but it is
important to note that this type of breakdown
focuses primarily on quantity of mentions
over the quality of their sources. For example,
a given tweet might carry the same weight as
a New York Times article. All mentions are
treated equally, regardless of their overall
impact. In this case, news media is
underrepresented at 6%, while Twitter is
overrepresented at 63%

6. Who is actually seeing
these mentions?
This is where Digimind’s “potential audience”
metric comes in, allowing us a more accurate
view of a brand’s online influence, beyond the
sheer volume of mentions. A media
breakdown by potential audience indicates
that news actually accumulates the most
conversation, with a potential reach of 108
million people. The “potential audience”
score, which is calculated by multiplying the
number of mentions by the visitors or
followers to a certain platform, represents
everyone who could have seen any given
mention. Second to news are web and
Twitter, each comprising 21%.

7. Breaking it down further by type of insurance, we can compare the volume of mentions for each company by sub-sector. Conversations
about insurance, both online and offline, typically involve health, life, or auto insurance. On social media, AVIVA is mentioned most
frequently in conjunction with life insurance. Pet insurance, though mentioned less frequently, is still a topic of discussion with Direct
Line discussed most frequently in this category. Zurich Insurance is notably mentioned across all insurance sectors.

8. In the last three weeks alone, Aviva became especially newsworthy amidst a potential £5.6bn merger with Friends Life. The initial announcement
was made on November 21st. This is clearly indicated on the graph, showing a steep incline in the number of mentions on the 21st. Mentions
continue to increase through to the 22nd, but experience a sharp drop by the 23rd.
On November 24th, shares in Aviva fell 4.5 percent as investors reacted to news of the merger. Sentiments were mixed, as some analysts could not
identify the benefit for Aviva, but others were positive about the combination, finding value in that it would create UK’s largest life insurer. The
graph reflects this widespread conversation, exhibiting another spike in mentions- nearly 2,000 on November 24th. And finally, on December 2nd,
Aviva agreed terms for a $8.8 billion takeover of Friends Life, closing the deal. Mentions on the graph peaked on this date, surpassing 2,000.
Aviva merges with Friends Life

9. Bupa shows an interesting spike in mentions on November 26th. Clicking into the graph to view these mentions, we found that on
November 26th, Australia was sending their best wishes to cricket player Phil Hugues, who was severly injured the day before at a Bupa
Sheffields Shield Match. Bupa Insurance took over sponsorship for the competition during the 2011-2012 season. After news of Hugues’s
critical injury, Round 4 of Bupa Sheffield Shield was abandoned. Unfortunately, Phil Hugues passed away on November 27th.
Cricket player, Phil Hugues, Tragically Dies
at Bupa Sheffields Shield

10. A sentiment analysis of each brand shows us that social media mentions are primarily positive for all six firms. Bupa is leading with 87%
positive sentiment.
How Does Social Media Feel about Insurance?

14. In addition to gathering organic social mentions about your brand, it is just as important as a marketer to monitor company accounts
and evaluate social media ROI. Digimind Analytics allows you to retrieve useful metrics on your brand pages and see how they are
performing alongside those of your competitors. Using the tool we are able to discover which publications drive engagement and how
effectively these social media accounts are contributing to the brand’s online presence.
The Analytics of Insurance
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15. This graph represents a comparative breakdown of Facebook fans to each brand page. Aviva takes the lead, with 665,570
followers. Standard life and Bupa have much a smaller presence in comparison, comprising 1% and 2% respectively.

16. Looking at Facebook publications and interactions side-by-side, we can compare how brands are engaging fans on
Facebook. Publications refer to posts made by the company itself, while interactions are likes, comments, and shares from
fans. The charts show that Zurich Insurance most actively posted in the last month, comprising 35% of total publications.
Prudential performed notably well in terms of user engagement. The brand page had 37 publications since November 11th,
and received 1030 interactions. Conversely, Cigna shows a significantly higher rate of publication than interaction, indicating
a lower volume of traffic or influence on their page.

17. An overview chart brings the previous insights together in one place, allowing us a comparative look at Facebook activity for
each company. The chart also exhibits growth trends for each competitor compared to the same previous period. Standard
Life, although comprising a lower share of fans, exhibits the most growth, with a 158% increase in interactions and 100% in
publications.

18. Analysing similar data for Twitter, we can see that Prudential takes the lead in terms of follower volume, with 43.21K subscribers to
their page. The brand appears to be more active on Twitter, with a 21% share of followers on Facebook vs. 50% on Twitter.
Standard Life, which has 6.73 followers to its Facebook page, does not show up in this graph because the brand is not present on
Twitter.

19. Publications on Twitter refer to tweets the company puts out, while interactions refer to retweets, favourites, or replies.
Prudential again exhibits a high level of engagement. The brand’s 22 publications in the last month received 126
interactions.

20. An overview chart for Twitter activity reveals a sharp negative growth trend for Aviva. The brand experienced a 92%
decrease in interactions, and 85% in publications this month compared to the last.

21. Social media is today a key component of marketing, as brands are required to have more transparency than ever before. The
real-time activity on social platforms is both useful and frightening for brands. This is where social listening comes in, giving
marketers the constant intelligence they need to stay on top of their brands.
In the UK Insurance sector, companies are received positively overall on the web. As consumers are granted more visibility
through a variety of social platforms, firms have become more transparent with their offerings. If leveraged properly, the
insights obtained from social media monitoring will help brands better serve customer needs and more efficiently meet
business goals.
POSITIVE VISIBILITY FOR UK INSURANCE FIRMS
ON SOCIAL MEDIA
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