To Realize Opportunities, Insurers Must Push Their Unique Value
By
New York
There are profitable opportunities for insurers who choose to let consumers know the value they bring and do not “run in the shadows of other industries,” according to industry executives at a recent meeting.
During a global financial leadership forum sponsored by the American Council of Life Insurers, Washington, life insurance executives were told of the opportunities this decade offers insurers who take basic steps to set themselves apart from other financial services industries.
One of these opportunities is the estimated $10 trillion in wealth transfer that is anticipated in the United States during this decade. Also, according to speakers, some opportunity exists to export retirement products overseas, depending on the strength of unions and defined benefit plans in different parts of the world.
Part of that opportunity, according to Gregory Boyko, chairman and CEO-international operations, with Hartford Life Insurance Company, Hartford, Conn., is to meet the demand for retirement and estate planning advice that will continue to grow.
This is particularly true for todays time-pressed consumers, added Norman Sorensen, president, Principal International, Des Moines, Iowa.
But delivering “value” and helping consumers understand that value is the first critical step that insurers need to pursue, said Robert MacDonald, chairman of Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America, Minneapolis.
During the last 15 years, life insurers have gotten away from selling value, he said. “We need to get back to selling value and get away from price and tax leverage. When you give value, then you can make profit.
“Make others compete against us. We should lead, not follow,” MacDonald said.
There are a couple of steps that must be met in delivering value, he said. These are simplicity, real-time service and long-term thinking, he added.