Create a better customer experience for policyholders by utilizing the intelligence of communication automation with an empathetic and human approach in all your messaging. When dealing with insurance policies and claims, insurance companies need to tailor their messaging and dialog to each use case, while having the convenience of communicating on a large scale. By implementing insurance automation software into your pre-existing workflows you can send out important messages and updates to policyholders with the right tone of voice for different situations.
What Insurance Automation Can Look Like
The insurance industry has been comparatively slower at embracing digital transformation and straying away from traditional manual processes when it comes to communicating with their policyholders. In other industries, utilizing intelligent process automation throughout the customer journey has resulted in improved customer satisfaction, a seamless customer journey, and overall better communication with customers. The consumer reporting firm Wiraya found that 86% of customers who left their insurance , energy, mobile or banking provider said they would have been more content with the service, had they received timely communication by their preferred method. (patracorp.com) Regardless of the type of insurance, introducing communication automation to various insurance processes can add speed and convenience to internal systems.
Opportunities For Communication Automation
Beginning at customer prospecting and customer onboarding, starting off the connection on the right foot can generate more value out of your customer interactions. During those first few conversations with customers you have the opportunity to collect contact data, communication preferences and permissions, especially with policy administration. This means not only asking for a policyholders e-mail address or phone number, but asking them to opt-in to communications and letting you know which channel they would prefer to be contacted in. By creating automated processes that request this information, you can ensure any communications going forward are legally compliant and optimal for speed and convenience. You don't want to wait for an insurance claim submission or overdue policy payment to have up-to-date data. By introducing automation technologies into the insurance journey, you can make sure that all the data on file is correct and that all internal processes that rely on that data is relevant, timely, and efficient. Which, in turn, will increase customer retention and create a greater lifetime value in each policyholder.
Beyond content, the tone of your messaging should reflect that of a real human interaction. Although those first few interactions with prospects and policyholders are important for collecting information, they are also important for portraying who you are as a brand. Building a strong customer relationship always starts out similar to building any sort of interpersonal relationship. It should feel like a fair interaction - both parties getting to know each other in a friendly way. Make sure that your policyholders and potential prospects feel that. Convey your gratitude for their interest in you over other potential insurance companies. All insurance companies are not the same, so make sure they get a sense of your organizations values and persona through your messaging. The better the fit between your values and theirs, the more interested in working with you they will be.
By utilizing automation in insurance, you are also ensuring that you don't miss out on any cross-selling opportunities. The better your preexisting relationship with your policyholders, the easier it will be to ask them about building on it. Rather than coldly trying to sell them things they are not interested in or don't need, utilize your knowledge and understanding of them to provide them with the best solutions possible for them. In many cases, it is actually in the policyholders’ best interest to bundle their insurance and it needs to come off that way in your messaging. Easily send automated, personalized, informed sales messages with insurance bundle offers that are easy to understand and accept. By providing direct links within your automated messaging you can give your policyholders the ability to make changes to their data and policy in real time from within the message itself. In the end, this creates a frictionless business process for not only you, but your policyholders as well.
Building long-term customer loyalty goes beyond friendly onboarding texts and helpful, money saving information. It means handling the difficult or upsetting conversations with empathy and understanding. Throughout their relationship with your company, it is more than likely your policyholder will have to submit an insurance claim. These are the true automation opportunities where you can make policyholders feel informed and supported throughout the claims cycle without requiring an overwhelming amount of work from your insurance agents. Policyholders should know how to start the claims process before they ever need to file one, and it is your job as their insurance provider to ensure that. Providing clear claims instructions on your website, app, and even in your policy renewal communications can help mitigate any confusion. By providing automated updates and estimated timelines to your claimants, you can minimize frustration throughout the claims process.
In terms of messaging, it is important to remember what a stressful time it can be when you have to file an insurance claim. Your policyholders could be dealing with physical injuries after a motor accident, losing their home and belongings or even the loss of a loved one. Finding the balance between helpfulness, informative and empathy is important. You need to be understanding of their situation, but in a way that helps them spend as little time worrying about their insurance as possible. Stay true to your brand voice to ensure your authenticity comes through in your messaging.
Digitally Transform & Grow
All in all, there's no denying that insurance has become increasingly complex. As technology continues to advance, we're seeing new ways to automate processes and streamline operations. Insurance providers must continue to evolve along with these advancements if they want to stay competitive. Utilizing the power of automation with a humanistic approach, insurance providers can create intelligent systems that support their policyholders and increase customer retention.
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