Author: Anton Tomic, Global Head of Strategy at SAP
In the world of insurance, digital strategy is no longer an option – it’s essential. Times are changing, but there are simple ways to stay ahead
Ask what it means to be an Integrated Digital Insurer, and many execs will tell you it just means adding some online advertising or a new sales channel. There’s more to it than that though, and if you don’t keep up you’ll get left behind.
Price comparison websites are more popular than ever, and hovering in the background of the market are online behemoths such as Amazon, Facebook and Google. They each already have relevant channels, infrastructure and money to invest. But will they end up as partners, market makers or even competitors?
There’s more to digital readiness than marketing. Consumers expect digital touch points from service providers as a minimum. The online world is already the forum of choice for so much. So how can insurers innovate to stay competitive?
1. First and most important? Adapt your business model. Introduce the new social channels as credibly as possible and look at developing innovations with companies that have similar business models to yours.
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Next, embed the customer into the supply / operational chain. Introduce agile, lean teams to develop innovation and enable Straight Through Processing driven by the customer.
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Provide customer- and agent/broker-centric offerings, and one customer experience across all channels. Consider multiple and consistent touch points and standardize the conversation between you and your customer.
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Use SAP’s Insurance Suite and combine it with SAP’s technology innovations on Big Data (HANA) and Mobility to replace archaic mainframe driven systems that are not future-proofed. This will allow Straight Through Processing from customer interaction to reinsurance, not to mention myriad extra benefits for the insurer.
So what does this mean? Well at the very least it brings you up to speed, able to innovate in a world where we’ve already helped develop a system that offers instant injury insurance based on location (download the app from the chair lift while skiing); file claims for an accident by sending pictures direct from the scene on your smartphone; or connecting insurance and telematics, so drivers can have a pay-as-you-go mechanism. The technology is already there. Let us help you to connect the dots. Contact us today!
