Insights gained from customer feedback can assist disability insurance companies and producers in developing improved products and services. But is the business asking customers the right questions, at the right time?
Everyone in the industry is a customer at some point. This is so, regardless of occupation, be it employer, producer, employee, claimant, consultant, insurer or reinsurer. Even so, it is safe to say the industry has not led the way in soliciting customer feedback. As a result, the business is missing significant opportunities to improve its products and services, enhance customer service and retain business.
Many group disability insurers do conduct customer satisfaction surveys after installation of a new account, of course. Many also conduct claimant satisfaction and broker/agent surveys.
However, there are additional opportunities to solicit valuable feedback from customers that still go untended.
That can be a harmful oversight, for having a clear understanding of who the customers are is key to growth.
In the group DI delivery chain, for example, there are many potential players in the customer relationship. These include the broker/agent, the employer/purchaser, the employee and the insurer.
As the box on this page illustrates, the relationships between these constituents provide a variety of opportunities, or potential touch points, for interaction and feedback.
The mistake some group disability companies make is not taking advantage of all the customer "interaction opportunities" to solicit feedback. For example, insurers who gather feedback from employers only at the point of policy installation miss ongoing opportunities to check back with their customers. Depending on the number of employees a company has, there could be limited touch points between the insurer and the employer.
Therefore, without proactively gathering ongoing satisfaction feedback, how can an insurer know what to expect at the policy renewal?
