We are entering a new era of working and living which represents expansive opportunities for digital transformation, but we must not forget the value gained from human contact.
The pandemic has seen businesses having to evolve and adapt as their customers spend more time at home, many of whom have embraced the digital environment as their means of interacting, working and purchasing. The last 12 months has seen remote working become normal. Now, as we tentatively begin to slowly emerge from the pandemic many organisations are rethinking the traditional 9-5 office culture whilst considering and consulting with staff on introducing hybrid working - with a mixture of office and home based days.
People are making new choices about where they want to live and creating new expectations about flexibility, working conditions and life balance.
Onboarding sets the tone of your customer relationship
How can insurance providers and brokers create meaningful connections, generate engagement and build long lasting customer relationships in a digital world, where customer expectations of speed, personalisation and convenience continue to become ever more sophisticated?
How do they swiftly and easily identify those customers who are not what they seem and are purchasing insurance with the intention of making fraudulent claims, taking into consideration the volume of quotes they handle on a daily basis?
What can be done to create a good first impression?
UK insurance providers and brokers are sophisticated in their use of automation and digitalisation and onboarding new customers, particularly in personal lines, is increasingly done either wholly or in part digitally. Onboarding sets the tone of an insurance provider and/or broker relationship with the customer. So what can be done to create a good first impression?
Creating a simple digital journey is key
Leveraging in-house and external open source data, to include the opportunity presented by powerful, real time open banking data, will optimize this first contact with new customers. It removes duplication of information requests and places less onus on policyholders to input data correctly; helping to remove friction and create a smooth process.
How and when can you drive more value during your customer journey?
Onboarding is the time to set real and clear expectations for the customer and introduce a strong level of engagement. The entire customer journey may have been digital to this point, so there is also a very real opportunity to add further value by offering a follow-up video consultation with an advisor to explain how the product works and what happens next.
This will promote a strong level of engagement, introduce a human touch and begin to build a lasting relationship by getting to know the customer through a proactive touchpoint – one that hasn’t arisen as a result of a problem or that has been driven by an imminent policy renewal.
The working-from-home business model driven by the pandemic has seen insurance providers and brokers interacting with customers in their own homes, from their own homes. The mutual understanding of working in the home environment, with its associated distractions and fleeting appearances of children, pets and family members, plus deliveries at the door, has created a human connection in what was otherwise often a transactional experience. There is an appetite to maintain this empathy and generate a more customer-centric experience, starting with the first customer interaction at onboarding and continuing throughout the relationship.
To achieve this a deep understanding of the customer is required and this can be gained through accessing open banking data. An area that would particularly benefit is commercial insurance where open banking data can give a clear picture of the company’s financial status and spending trends.
SMEs have evolved and adapted through the pandemic displaying innovation and entrepreneurship. Their needs have evolved and they are seeking insurance policies that are tailored to those needs. Improvement in the onboarding of commercial policies is needed to help to re-engage the commercial customer. A hybrid approach using digital technology and
human contact to create a positive customer journey and provide valuable advice and guidance will help to instil trust in the insurance proposition.
A good mix of human and digital touch can make the difference
Marrying the digital journey with human contact, at the right time, or at the customer’s preference, signifies flexibility and a willingness to listen and give the customer choices.
Choice is important for all customers and particularly those who may be vulnerable and require additional support or those who are not comfortable in an online environment.
Maintaining empathy will require contact centres being given the time to engage with the customer who prefers to interact over the phone and the use of speech to text technology may be used to improve efficiency and reduce work load for contact centre staff. Personalising the
customer’s experience via whichever communication channel is selected is key to creating a lasting positive impression.
An appropriate onboarding process mitigates the risk of fraud
Due diligence is a vital part of the onboarding process. Identity theft has increased significantly during the pandemic and the need to know your customer and undertake ID checks is greater than ever. ID checks can be done digitally using open source and open banking data, take the form of biometric tests and/or be supplemented by human contact via a video conference. Information supplied by the customer in relation to their risk also requires supplementing and validating by accessing and interrogating external data sources and identifying fraud indicators. These checks and analytics must be performed with accuracy and at speed, so as not to slow down the onboarding process and fall short of customer expectations.
What are the three pillars of effective onboarding?
Businesses that onboard their customers well will improve engagement, help to foster loyalty and preferentiality and build a longstanding relationship.
The three pillars of effective onboarding, that lead the process at different stages and according to the customer's circumstances and preferences are:
- Technology
- Accurate information
- Human contact
