A recent LIMRA study looked at how financial services companies are currently using social media networks to increase their engagement with their sales forces and the public. But what are their plans for the future?

The LIMRA report “Retweets, Likes and Shares: How Financial Services Companies are Using Social Networks” documented current strategies and results.  In addition, participating companies also shared how they plan to use particular social networks in the future. Not surprisingly, strategies varied based on the social network:

• Facebook: Companies say they are looking to increase the size of their community by improving the content they offer.
• LinkedIn: By increasing the use of company pages and thought leadership initiatives, companies hope to augment recruiting efforts.
• Twitter: Some companies plan to integrate their Twitter strategy with other social media and communications channels.
• YouTube: Companies intend to expand their use of video in general and YouTube in particular, for the remainder of this year and beyond.
• Google+: Companies say they want to understand the network better and use it more extensively in the future.

Several less well-known networks may find a niche in the ever changing landscape of social media.  Among the ones to watch:

WSJ Profile: A Wall Street Journal entry; Socl: Microsoft’s new social network; Medium: from the founders of Twitter; and Pheed: A platform for a wide variety of content, including live broadcasts and pay-per-view.

One safe prediction: social media networks will keep emerging and changing.