TRENDSPOTTING. Adding more value to insurance

There is very little that can make one feel better after a death in their family. The support and company of family and friends can go some way in mitigating the feeling of abandonment that comes with the loss. However, with the rise in nuclear families and faster-paced lives, relatives who once stayed for as long as 14 days now leave in three days, observes Jitin Paul, CMO, Bharti AXA Life Insurance. In his job, he has met a few claimants, women, who needed professional support in such situations, and this led to their offering a grief support programme.

The service is free to Bharti AXA’s customers. A psychologist with over 15 years of experience is available to counsel them on the phone. Bharti AXA is planning to make this available as a face-to-face service as psychologists recommend it, says Paul.

Insurance companies are beginning to offer a clutch of value-added services besides insurance schemes themselves. At the heart of this trend is the need for the companies to differentiate themselves from the others. There is, to begin with, the problem of persuading people that insurance is worth buying – they either feel invincible or think it’s money going into a black hole. Anisha Motwani, Managing Partner, StormTheNorm Ventures and once an insurance marketer herself, points out that many consumers acknowledge insurance is necessary, but eye it with disdain and sometimes cynicism. They find it opaque, hard to compare and above all ‘not enough value for money’. “The maths further enhances the misconceptions as not enough money flows back to the consumer vis-a-vis the seller’s promises.”

There are few opportunities to engage with the customers unless it’s during the purchase/ renewal or claims process and these are mostly annual occasions.

Says Anika Agarwal, Head – Marketing, Max Bupa Health Insurance, “The layman sees all insurance schemes as the same. The difference lies in the service delivery.” Health plans with value-added services such as health counselling, stress and weight management as well as a second medical opinion will be the way ahead for this sector, where the focus till now has been on hospitalisation.

Aegon Life Insurance came up with iCare and iWill when a customer told them she knew little about her dead husband’s investments or insurance details. These services are not restricted to its customers. KS Gopalakrishnan, MD & CEO, says ‘iCare’ will ensure the family is apprised of all the important financial details in an adverse situation. iWill, in the pipeline, will educate customers on the importance of making a will and the associated legalities. Bharti AXA’s customers can get second opinions on wills. They can also contact a financial planner who functions independently, without any connection to the company.

Max Bupa’s Agarwal says another set of value-added services set for big growth has to do with health technology and big data, which can give insurers access to a larger strata of population and help target more and more customer segments.

Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance has introduced B-FIT, a health and fitness app for its consumers and employees. The app focuses on keeping the users healthy and fit while rewarding them with Vantage Circle points for being healthy. Each point is equivalent to ₹1. The app rewards its users with discounts on nutritionist and diagnostic services, doctor consultations, fitness trainers and hobby classes.

In future, if the regulations permit, we would also like to introduce rewards like discounts on premiums paid by consumers on completion of their set fitness targets in the app, says Rituraj Bhattacharya, Associate Vice President, Product Development. “While it is too early to track consumer behaviour through our health app, we are working to derive inputs from our health app to target potential customers,” he says.

Bharti Axa’s Paul says that in any large category, there are a lot of undifferentiated product propositions and if there is one, it’s quickly copied. Breaking the mould in such a market will depend on the quality of customer relationships.

StormTheNorm’s Motwani says many consumer-friendly regulatory and business practices have shifted consumer attitudes favourably in line with insurance’s core values.

“However, significant effort is required to evoke present action for a delayed/ non-gratification product category. Unlike popular belief, this is not a rational purchase category and demand is easily spurred by conversations and discussions. These kind of offerings give you an easy conversation starter with the consumer.”

COMMENT NOW