How (And Why) Health Insurers Are Using Social Media Marketing to Earn Patient Trust

TL;DR: Patients use social media to research coverage, care options, and local agents. With the right structure, field social can help insurers build trust, connect with communities, and support enrollment — all while staying compliant.

Social Media in Healthcare

In most healthcare organizations, social media is managed at the corporate level: a central team creates and publishes content focused on promoting the brand. That approach is essential — but it’s only part of the picture.

Field social fills in the missing human touch by empowering local healthcare insurance agents to post directly on social media under the brand umbrella. When done right, this approach brings the brand to life through real people in real communities. It helps organizations build trust, show up with relevance, and connect with patients in a more personal way.

For insurers, this matters more than ever. Agents aren’t just salespeople; they’re often the most trusted guide a patient has when choosing coverage.

Social also plays a growing role in influencing AI search visibility, a trend that is expected to accelerate as algorithms evolve and AI pulls from a broader set of content sources. For example, Meta now allows brand content shared on Instagram to appear in search results outside the app.

Why is social media — and more specifically, field social — valuable to healthcare insurers today?

We recently hosted a webinar featuring Senior Director of Financial Services Value Consulting, Tim Rickards. During the event, he shared what years of helping firms build successful field social media marketing programs has taught him about managing distributed social media in a regulated industry — and what healthcare marketing leaders can learn from it.

He explains, "You're empowering hundreds, if not thousands or tens of thousands, of individuals to communicate and market as a representative of the brand. So the brand comes through the individual in an authentic way."

Organizations with the right support and technology in place can use field social to:

• Build trust through local presence
• Show the human side of care and coverage
• Increase visibility in local and organic search
• Drive engagement and enrollment
• Support reputation and patient preference

And, scale marketing without overloading the corporate team.

A familiar challenge: Balancing compliance and personalization

For many insurers, the biggest roadblock is compliance. Agents want to connect with their communities, but marketing and legal teams are (rightly) cautious.

Rickards says, “The initial challenge is straddling that line between compliance and regulatory concerns and then, it’s managing personalized marketing.”

By allowing program and compliance leaders to pre-approve content, set custom guardrails, and review original posts in-platform, insurers can use Yext Social to empower agents without putting the brand at risk.

"We call it a warm blanket of compliance,” Rickards says. “And it lets you scale the activity of an individual showing up on a network as a person."

Real-world use cases for insurance field social

Independent or semi-independent insurance agents often operate under a national or regional healthcare insurance brand. These agents need to build trust in their communities, especially during high-stakes moments like open enrollment.

With field social, insurers can:

• Share open enrollment reminders tailored to their local market
• Educate patients on plan options or deadlines Promote in-person events or community partnerships
• Share testimonials or explain coverage in plain language

Example post: “Medicare open enrollment is around the corner! If you have questions about your plan options here in Asheville, I’m happy to help. Send me a message or stop by our local office.”

Rickards explains, "If you're one of the 72% of consumers who are influenced by Instagram content when making purchases and you see me, I'm going to be more than just a talking head. I become someone you can actually imagine working with. These moments transform an agent from ‘someone selling coverage’ into “someone I trust with my family’s care decisions.”

Customizable guardrails deliver safer, scalable social

The key to making this model work is having flexible controls built into the platform. Every organization has different processes and risk tolerance.

By using tools specifically designed to support field social programs, insurers can:

• Flag posts that contain specific keywords
• Create custom approval workflows
• Set content permissions by region or user group

Rickards adds, "It creates a situation where when we do it correctly, there's a wonderful balance where compliance realizes its needs are being met, and marketing and the individual contributors’ needs are also being met."

His advice?

Start with what your organization is ready for

"You have to start at the beginning, and it can take a while to ramp up,” says Rickards. “But realize that down the road, your efforts can absolutely drive visits, preference, and sales."

Not every insurer is ready for full-scale field social rollout — and that’s okay. Some may start with a small pilot group. Others may choose to keep most content centralized at the corporate level with limited field access.

What matters most is starting with the right tools and mindset. Every local post is an opportunity to build trust.

Ready to get started? Explore scaling local connections with field social. Field Social for Health Insurers:

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FAQs

• What’s the difference between corporate social and field social? Corporate social media is managed centrally, with content designed to promote the overall brand. Field social empowers local agents or providers to share authentic, community-specific posts under the brand umbrella — helping connect with patients on a more personal level.

• How does field social help with compliance? With Yext Social, organizations can set pre-approved content libraries, keyword flags, custom approval workflows, and region-specific permissions. This ensures agents can post authentically without putting the brand at regulatory risk.

• Do agents need prior social media experience to participate? Not necessarily. Field social platforms can provide ready-to-use templates, content suggestions, and built-in brand guidelines to make participation simple for agents at any skill level.

• How can field social impact enrollment? By showing up in local feeds with relevant, timely, and human posts, agents can build familiarity and trust — which increases engagement, encourages patients to reach out with questions, and ultimately drives enrollment decisions.