Post COVID19 – The new reality for life and health insurance

It has been eight months since the pandemic shook the world, forcing businesses across the globe to innovate and come up with new solutions and strategies to keep going. It has also proven to be an opportunity for businesses to understand their full potential. There is no doubt that insurers can rise to the challenges coming their way and come out as winners. 

The concept of insurance is straightforward: it is about Individuals and/or enterprises purchasing a product that will help them during a time of need, financial security for which they pay a premium throughout the policy. A study carried out by a leading Insurance company over the last few months has discovered a drastic change in the minds of people. During pre-COVID times, there were around 41% of the population who believed and had invested in insurance coverage. 

However, that number has gone up to 60%, proof that the COVID-19 was a wake-up call for many. There is also an increase in insurance policy purchase among Generation Y. When compared to men, the percentage of women keen on purchasing policy was higher.

Source: https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/risk/our-insights/covid-19-implications-for-business

Similarly, 54% of the respondents shared a concern one of their loved ones might contract the virus, while 50% had concerns about job security.  People are educating themselves about the value of an insurance policy and this has led to a boost in insurers reaching out to customers as well as initiating remote insurance sales processes. 

In this post, we share with you the main concerns and actions that insurers need to take to sustain the post-COVID-19 norms.

Activities	Changes to be made	Areas of improvement/updates
Marketing: Creating marketing campaigns and boosting sales along with customer retention, through an increased customer interaction & engagement while keeping an eye on the brand management as well.	Insurers must engage with their customers over digital platforms.  Offering easy online access via the web or mobile apps is crucial.  There is likely to be an increase in renewed awareness and interest in life and health products and so campaigns need to be drawn around these changes.  Proactive marketing campaigns to retain customers and increase engagement along with loyalty through ‘emotional necessary.	Update the marketing messaging to speak to the customers, using emotional connect and product positioning.  sentiment and product positioning  across platforms – print, mails, digital channels and events]   Ensure alignment of marketing strategies to the evolving customer needs.
Product Development: Understanding customer behaviour, gaining insight and developing new products	Insurers to innovate and add more products [health oriented and around financial wellness].   The future lies in following, Customer preferences Regulatory changes Social responsibility Other economic drivers  To focus on retirement planning and income protection plans.	Develop products that leverage connected wearables- telematics to  offer discounts on premium and promote overall well being among the customers [behaviour & lifestyle patterns, etc]  Offer new personalised products to suit customer requirements Product development to allow for multi-channel sales
Distribution & Sales:Studying the market, understanding evolving customer demands & offer better products & services	No major changes to the existing distribution channels in the post COvid era.   Increase in Direct-to-consumer might become the most popular and preferred solution.   Insurers to adopt digital solutions and multi-channels to engage with customers and increase sales.  Insurance sales to be driven by customer preferences which could also lead to changes in regulatory norms.	Insurers to work with digital and automated solutions to elevate the overall purchase journey.  Update the marketing campaigns so that sales can be increased.  All social media channels to be utilised when reaching out to target customers.     The new operating model for distribution and sales to consider what physical footprint is needed. And what technology needs to be integrated and where.
Underwriting: Gain insight into customers to analyse risk profiles & calculate premium coverage pricing	Customers are open to sharing personal usage data, through IoT and connected wearables.   Improve underwriting abilities using insights gathered from various data sources. (e.g. ‘no exam/fluids’ underwriting)  Premium coverage will be computed based on usage, giving customers possibilities  of discounts	Source and leverage on the non-traditional data gathered from customers. Look for opportunities for data collection and improved processes. Utilise AI & ML capabilities to harness the power of predictive modelling and analysis. Develop technical capability by automation of entire processes.
Claims management:Redefining the claims process, offer a seamless process & faster claim settlement. This includes reinsurance recovery, and litigation [if any].	Reimagine the entire claims handling process [irrespective of the amount] Create self-service models by integrating automation into the system for faster claims processing and fraud detection along the way.   Automation that is focussed on the back-endSystems to give a better customer experience.	Create a shift in the entire claims processing to deal with post COVID impact.  [fewer accidents, reclassification of other terminal illnesses)  Automated claims processing capabilities are the need of the hour, with emphasis on expediting the entire claims handling process.  Claims will become a self-service model.

Today, while it makes sense to purchase a health insurance policy, one needs to be aware of all that the policy offes, the key features and what it covers. It is good to connect with your insurer, have multiple meetings/calls/video chats and obtain as much insight into this before investing in one. The study has shown that 80% of the respondents are aware of the various policies, and importance of having a separate insurance cover for certain select diseases,  a good 93% are aware of cashless facilities offered by insurance companies. 

Changing the distribution operating model will not happen overnight. This not only needs new tools and assets to be deployed but also requires a great deal of capacity building throughout the value chain, such as products and claims. We can help Empower your agents with the Neutrinos Digital Sales Distribution Suite. We offer, 

1. Unified Secure Communication 
2. Cognitive Insights using AI, NLP, & other capabilities  
3. eAuthentication  & Signature  
4. Native Device Capabilities
5. Conversational Insurance
6. Scheduling and Routing
7. Social Media Marketing
8. Integration with automation

Neutrinos has the experience and expertise to help clients on their digital transformation journey.  Having worked with insurers all over the world, the Neutrinos value proposition is one that is robust and is easier to implement than you think. Make the shift for the better and adapt to a new customer journey Enable anytime, anywhere, personalised insurance sales with Neutrinos Digital Sales Distribution Suite.

If you are struggling to boost sales during this pandemic or how to prepare for the post COVID-19 period,  reach out to us for a walk through.