Insurers have a lot to catch up on digital-wise if they want to retain customer loyalty. The first step is to go beyond the core services.
Insurers should be at least as digital as their customers are. The challenge lies in going omnichannel and still making it convenient and accessible without imposing too much complexity on the backend side.
For example, when a customer is on the insurer’s website and starts to apply for car insurance, a notification can be sent to the insurer who might then call the customer back and help them sign a policy or clarify any doubts. This results in the increased accessibility to buy insurance, report a claim or pay the premium.
The Open banking and PSD2 regulations provide a secure way of giving insurers access to customer information. This brings along new opportunities to analyze and make sense of deep pools of relevant data. Plus, with brands such as Amazon, Apple and Google launching financial products, it is likely that these tech giants will soon set their sights on large parts of the insurance market, using their vast stores of data on customer preferences. One of the ways in which they are seeking to do this is by becoming distribution channels for insurance products.
It’s high time to get insurers to analyze data with proper online tools to know customers better and give them exactly what they need.
Customer enablement
Insurers need to move away from focusing on their products and towards an emphasis on what the products enable customers to do. For example, customers may not necessarily want health insurance, but they do want help to stay fit and healthy to keep out of hospitals. Life insurers offer customers bonus points for staying active, and these points can then be exchanged for rewards, vouchers or charity donations. This has the two-fold benefit of bringing premiums down for those who lead healthy lifestyles as well as reducing potential future claims. It is a clear example of the move towards proactive prevention rather than reactive payments to cover loss.
If insurers were to offer more rewards and promotions to customers that are relevant to their needs, either through in-house initiatives or through partnerships with customer-facing organizations, this could provide more opportunities for engagement.
Educate and attract
One of the findings we’ve made in the “How insurers can build better relationships with their customers” report, is that there’s a large group of the uninsured who may be willing to buy insurance if attracted and educated properly. A large portion of those surveyed still remains uninsured, mostly the youngest adults. Investigating this target group may be an important strategic decision for the insurers. There are plenty of reasons why these people don’t buy insurance, from risk unawareness, offer mismatch to lack of funds. The uninsured require a specific approach, with understandable offers and attractive marketing communication via channels they use.
Insurance products and services need to be clear enough so that everyone will understand what they are dealing with, without having a PhD in finance. You can easily test customer knowledge by asking them basic questions. How much is the average pension for women or men? What is the cost of medical treatment? In most cases, you will not get the right answers – these should be provided by the insurers.
The game
The gamification mechanics, added on top of loyalty program rules, offer plenty ways to engage with your target audiences of all ages. Also, the mechanics enable an extra layer of personalization beyond the core insurance offering. Educational contests or some charity activities are just a few examples. Some customers might be motivated by activities that challenge them, such as quizzes, games, and duels. Some might love testing latest technologies, virtual or augmented reality, voice recognition tools, etc. Some might want to prove themselves as financial market experts. Some just want to be a good mom or a good grandpa. All of these scenarios can be used in a properly defined insurance engagement path.
If insurers do it right, they will be able to go from a very low-frequency interaction scheme to many positive experiences that will end up in a vast loyalty customer database.
Building meaningful, personal customer relationships digitally is not an easy task, but thanks to the technologies available, it is by all means possible. It truly impacts both the business perception and results. Higher engagement is a catalyst to two primary strategic company objectives: increased sales of insurance as well as stronger customer loyalty in the long run.
Author: Seweryn Bąk, Executive Sales Director, Comarch
Comarch cooperates with over 100 banks and insurers in 50 countries across the globe, including the Nordics. Comarch’s clients are Allianz, AXA, BNP Paribas, Credit Suisse, DNB, Ergo, ING, Prudential, Santander, Swiss Life, and many more. See more
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