The Importance of Connection in Claims: Part One

Tracy Borreson on April 22, 2020

Claimants are feeling a variety of emotions. They may be stressed, dealing with something that was totally out of their control (as in a catastrophic event). They may be feeling guilty, dealing with damage to their car because they hit someone else. They may be feeling nervous, dealing with a new insurance company for a Worker's Comp claim and not sure when they'll get back to work. 

No matter the reason why someone is dealing with a claim, they are all experiencing emotions that would generally be interpreted as "negative". And while insurance companies do a great job focusing on "optimizing" their claims process, they rarely focus on managing these emotions as part of it.

Join us for the 3-Part Series on how to create real connections with your claimants.

Why do we need a connection?

Let's take a look at the current COVID-19 situation. As I write this, the majority of the world has been in isolation for about a month, longer if you're in Asia or Europe. If you're anything like me, you're craving some human interaction.

This is a basic human need; connection with others. And it's not something that can only be generated in a consumer-to-consumer relationship. Businesses have the ability to create this connection with their customers, and this can pay off HUGE, especially in situations where people feel alone.

I don't know about you, but going through a claim (and I've had my fair share) can feel super isolating. You want to feel confident that all the vendors want to take care of you, but it's often hard to actually FEEL it. 

Read on for the first tip in the series on how to help your claimants FEEL connected. 

PART ONE: Using What You Know

Over the years, your company has collected a variety of information on each policyholder. Names, contact information, policy details, updates, claims, you name it. Each interaction gave you another piece of data that may or may not be amalgamated into a single customer view. 

Let's look at it with a consumer-to-consumer example. You now have been on 3 dates with someone. Each date, you've given them pieces of information about you. Your first date, you mentioned you're allergic to seafood. On the invite for your fourth date, they recommend a seafood restaurant.

Oops. They didn't use that information they had on you.

How do you feel? "Like the other person doesn't care" is likely the answer. Even if you're someone who looks for the best in everyone, best case scenario here is the person is forgetful or just not good at managing data. Neither of which create much trust, especially in a business relationship. 

With each interaction, as a business, we have the opportunity to create more trust. And we also have the ability to lose trust. Managing your policyholder data responsibly ALWAYS creates more trust; so, it's worth the investment. 

Not sure how to get your systems aligned?

Tech Partners, like SPLICE Software are here to help. We'll walk you through the current customer experience, review the employee experience, and create a solution for you (with tool recommendations within your budget) that you can use to create these connections. To get started, Schedule a Consultation.

Stay tuned for the rest of the series; each post will be linked here once live :)

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