Insurers’ need for Consumer-Focused Innovation

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Extracted 27JUL2011 from http://www.accenture-blogpodium.nl/innovation/insurers-need-for-consumer-focu...

The first part of Accenture’s global Consumer-Driven Innovation Insurance Survey 2011 conducted in 13 countries of over 7,000 insurance consumers...

  1. The insurance industry is at a turning point, with clear opportunities for carriers that use consumer-driven innovation to achieve differentiation – there is a broad gap between the things consumers regard as important, and their satisfaction with insurers in these areas.
  2. An advanced analytics capability will be key to meeting customers’ expectations of personalized products and services – 76% would be willing to switch to an insurance provider that could offer products and services that were more relevant to them.
  3. A robust mobile capability will be essential to the “retailization” of insurance – more than 70% of consumers expect to be using mobile devices in the next two years to interact with their insurer.
  4. To attract and retain customers, especially younger ones, insurers will need to invest in next-generation distribution channels – 59% of consumers would be likely to switch providers if their insurer was unable to provide all services across all preferred channels.
  5. Consumers in emerging markets are even more interested in innovative products and services than their counterparts in mature markets, and are more prepared to switch providers to gain access to them –  well over 80% would be receptive to new insurance services offered via mobile devices, compared to the global average of 63%.

For many global carriers, expansion into emerging markets is an important part of their growth strategy. The research found that consumers in i.e. India, China and Brazil are less satisfied with their insurance providers than those in the established markets. They are more likely to terminate their relationship with one or more providers and significantly more likely to switch providers to get products that are easier to understand and more relevant to their needs. Even more than in the rest of the world, respondents in these countries are more interested in taking advantage of mobile-enabled services, and are more reliant on the recommendations of others (as disseminated via social media) in selecting new providers.