The Digital Distribution Strategy Survey we published last year highlights the advantages but massive hurdles digital marketing presents for small-to-medium sized insurers in the U.S. 43% of those surveyed planned to begin testing digital lead generation in one to two years while 32% still had no plans to test digital channels. Yet evidence continues to point to consumers moving online. Indeed, a recent report from Forrester states that 23% of U.S. life insurance buyers used a computer to apply, 7% applied via a smartphone and 4% on a tablet.
As the digital trend expands, smaller insurance companies still face barriers that can be difficult to overcome. Most companies identified four main challenges to improving their digital marketing and customer experience: resource limitations, lack of expertise, organizational challenges, and lack of strategy.
Combining RGAX’s knowledge of consumer behavior and longstanding expertise in the insurance industry, we defined three key approaches that can help organizations level up their digital distribution efforts and create a better customer experience. Communicating, leveraging data, and creating viable hybrid solutions through digital channels were identified as the highest-impact approaches to connecting insurance companies and clients online. While hurdles still must be overcome, more companies of all sizes are making the leap to digital channels to expand their business and provide more touchpoints for their customers.
Bringing End-of-Life Insurance Online with Sagicor
Sagicor Life Insurance Company is one organization that’s taken digital innovation head-on, and we’re excited to showcase how they collaborated with RGAX to capitalize on digital trends and directly connect with clients online. Sagicor is part of Sagicor Financial Corporation Limited, one of the oldest insurers in the Americas with over 175 years of high integrity and quality service. While the company is rooted in a strong community legacy, Sagicor is leading the way with a forward-thinking, collaborative, and strategic approach to the future of insurance. 
In a previous post, I shared how RGAX worked with Sagicor to create a new product, Peace Assured, and an end-to-end digital strategy to get it in front of people who need it. RGAX leveraged client-specific research findings plus its extensive experience in testing and delivering digital strategies to create and launch an all-encompassing and net-new campaign for Sagicor’s Peace Assured product.
Here we explore the key components incorporated into the Peace Assured digital distribution strategy. The strategy emphasizes benefits for every stakeholder, building upon Sagicor’s current direct-to-consumer program, which uses an online e-application journey that creates a positive, convenient experience for its customers.
Using Brand and Design
Branding and design are especially important for digital distribution because a brand’s online properties are essentially your storefront. It’s important to have cohesive messaging and style elements throughout all marketing assets. For Sagicor and Peace Assured, it was important to create a visual connection between the Sagicor branding and product visuals to ensure Peace Assured is recognized as a member of the Sagicor brand family while making the product simultaneously distinct.
Crafting a User Journey
The user journey illustrates a prospect’s interaction with the digital campaign from first encounter, to conversion, to becoming a client. An effective user journey is rooted in user research, digital marketing skills, and good design. It addresses the user’s concerns at different stages of the digital sales cycle and provides proactive, engaging information when and where it’s needed most. Together with Sagicor, we created a full end-to-end user journey to guide asset development and the overall campaign strategy, resulting in a cohesive experience for the customer.
Enabling Data and Targeting
Various digital ad platforms make it possible to get granular for audience targeting. For this strategy in particular, this meant targeting and testing audience characteristics and interests — for example, age, gender, marital status, hobbies, and education — that might indicate whether someone is more likely to consider life insurance, and more specifically, final expense life insurance. Once these traits are identified, they can be plugged in to the ad platform to build an audience to target.
Using Data and Lead Nurturing
Retargeting and lead nurturing are both key. In fact, they’re among the biggest benefits of digital strategies. Life insurance is a major decision for most people, so it’s not an instant purchase. It can take months to make the purchase since one is likely to shop around, learn more about the needs/benefits, and then consult with family members and friends. Customers demonstrating interest need to continuously be shown helpful information that will nurture them into becoming a customer. For Peace Assured, we’ll continue to provide the required educational information to ensure the target market is equipped with the tools and knowledge to purchase the product.
Modern Marketing and Hybrid Solutions
With Peace Assured, it’s possible to submit an application online, but to meet the needs of the target market, RGAX provides call center support. Many people, particularly within the older audience segments, prefer to speak to a real person, especially when handling critical elements such as their Social Security numbers and payment information within the eApplication. Giving people options ensures they feel confident in their decision and the brand’s reliable service.
With a strong digital distribution strategy for Peace Assured, Sagicor can better understand how it can reach its target consumer and open new doors to consumers that it can’t reach via more traditional channels.
Make Digital Trends Work for You
If you’re ready to enhance your company’s digital distribution capabilities, our Digital Distribution team can provide a customized solution that fits your specific requirements and goals, whether your organization has begun its foray into digital channels or is just looking to get started. Get a free consultation.
