# 5 Ways a CCM platform can help improve customer engagement in insurance Author: Pal Sinha, Barnali Author URL: https://financedigest.com/author/pal-sinha-barnali Published: 2022-02-15 Category: INSURANCE Category URL: https://financedigest.com/category/insurance Meta Title: Transforming Customer Experience for Insurers with CCM Meta Description: Discover how Customer Communication Management platforms can help insurers engage customers with tailored, personalised messages across multiple channels. URL: https://financedigest.com/5-ways-a-ccm-platform-can-help-improve-customer-engagement-in-insurancehtml ![undefined](https://prod.superblogcdn.com/site_cuid_cm5qst7v3003gwirgwqtxn8i8/images/istock-1159038950-1736816237607-compressed.jpg) _By_ **_James Hall,_** _Commercial Director, Striata_ Insurers today face a host of challenges they wouldn’t have been able to imagine a decade ago. Quite apart from the pandemic related events of the past two years, which have seen them pay out hundreds of millions of pounds to businesses and families, the business environment around them has completely changed. A host of technology-centric startups, for example, are determined to eat into their customer bases. At the same time, those customers expect increasingly sophisticated experiences, [guided by their interactions with companies in other aspects of their lives](https://www.financedigest.com/healthy-lifestyle-benefits-a-guide-to-better-living.html "Healthy lifestyle benefits – a guide to better living"). In a world where [customers can get products and services](https://www.financedigest.com/revolutionising-customer-service-three-sectors-that-are-leading-the-way.html "Revolutionising Customer Service: Three sectors that are leading the way…") on demand, why would they expect anything different from their insurers? In fact, [research shows](https://www.salesforce.com/news/stories/state-of-the-connected-customer-report-outlines-changing-standards-for-customer-engagement/) that 84% of customers say the experience a company provides is as important as its products or services. Additionally, people are willing to [pay more](https://www.pwc.com/us/en/advisory-services/publications/consumer-intelligence-series/pwc-consumer-intelligence-series-customer-experience.pdf) for a great customer experience and will [share those experiences](http://www.slideshare.net/ekolsky/cx-for-executives) with other people, effectively taking on an evangelical role for your organisation. Unfortunately, [customer experience optimisation is not something that insurers](https://www.financedigest.com/insurers-ready-to-fight-back-against-poor-customer-experience.html "Insurers ready to fight back against poor customer experience") have always excelled at. Take customer communication, for example. It’s an important pillar of [customer experience](https://www.financedigest.com/customer-experience-platforms-market-to-reach-us-18972-7-mn.html "Customer Experience Platforms Market to reach ~US$ 18,972.7 Mn") but until recently, the only time most people had any contact with their insurer was when they had to make a claim or add something to their policy. It shouldn’t be surprising then that a [2021 poll](https://yougov.co.uk/topics/finance/articles-reports/2021/05/27/which-insurance-policies-are-britons-most-likely-s) revealed that nearly half (46%) of UK policyholders were looking to change providers within the next 12 months. It’s therefore critical that [insurers improve their customer](https://www.financedigest.com/how-artificial-intelligence-can-help-improvethe-customer-journey-in-insurance.html "How Artificial Intelligence can help improve the customer journey in Insurance") experiences. Customer communication is a particularly good place to start on that front. After all, [95% of customers](http://links.loyalty360.org/wf/click?upn=CH41FiknWED2TCa2zvYnJK-2BV3LyV-2BgfyIOXdQuSN8poSTCDZRp23r0O-2BJtMFlEAgKlfxYMYT9eSm-2BCf1ryY8k94T6vmqy7WSl8ICAGKBvOOK-2BPh1ymY1j5ihYB3GwtcP1tKSzP1LthC6TMCs1CWl81zLNLcrn-2BFlMN52vwVXsuKGMaBAPoUkOUJuhcmuqj6tVQ2mLhCMU3lRKOsIO8Rh-2Bw-3D-3D_2vTJrUuia70dGpEqe7tlkmrQX-2B-2Ft8-2FZP79IN5OXtTdcm77FZjLT-2FXndPYvHio2KArkJlxBnMoCYgrVCc9q-2BqSnp-2FRsyQD-2BG9Xm3RaUOGKQRVAMVDNZIz0aWzRfIl5zi1puVuZjyucpuGkN5YpWOarPZI9bXHM0ukyqc0SkZPeKO11mWPOHYfhgNyJgWnGDyBFEZc7dEhYLGMb4nVylBSZLbRZ1riOlnZkMS-2BlZB3FViJn2iZPHWwrGcA8aXSythJ) are looking for some degree of proactive communication from the companies with which they do business. Luckily, [insurers aren’t on their own when it comes to improving](https://www.financedigest.com/improving-risk-management-in-the-insurance-industry.html "Improving risk management in the insurance industry") customer communication. A Customer Communication Management (CCM) platform can be especially useful. **What a CCM platform is** Simply put, CCM platforms are integrated suites of software that allow organisations to send messages to customers that are tailored to their individual needs and specific platforms (web, email, SMS, print) and devices (mobile, laptop, tablet, PC) rather than being generic. They also allow organisations to send out messages that don’t only provide the necessary information but the wider context of the interaction, which includes customer profile (e.g. lifestyle and life-stage needs), history of online activity, and personal preferences. Ultimately, this allows [insurers to provide a more personalised experience](https://www.financedigest.com/app-based-insurance-cover-for-millennials-possessions-and-experiences-back-me-up-powered-by-ageas.html "APP-BASED INSURANCE COVER FOR MILLENNIALS’ POSSESSIONS AND EXPERIENCES: ‘BACK ME UP’, POWERED BY AGEAS"). For insurers, that can be incredibly valuable. Here’s how: - **[Engage with customers](https://www.financedigest.com/chatbots-the-secret-weapon-to-customer-engagement.html "Chatbots: The secret weapon to customer engagement?") on the right channels at the right time** The chances of any contemporary [customer engaging with an insurer](https://www.financedigest.com/customer-engagement-in-the-insurance-sector.html "Customer engagement in the insurance sector") on a single channel are very slim. People change channels depending where they are, what time of the day it is, and what device they’re on. A CCM [platform allows insurers to provide](https://www.financedigest.com/newly-launched-quintessential-to-provide-prestige-living-management-platform-for-prs.html "Newly launched Quintessential to provide ‘prestige living’ management platform for PRS") a consistent experience to their customers through print, PDF, HTML, email, text, and a variety of other online channels. This kind of cross-channel consistency is key to building great customer experiences and makes it a great [deal](https://www.financedigest.com/yum-beats-sales-estimates-as-customers-flock-to-kfc-taco-bell-deals.html "Yum beats sales estimates as customers flock to KFC, Taco Bell deals") simpler for customers to switch between channels without compromising their progress around a specific query or task. - **Generate and deliver documents through a single provider** The insurance space is incredibly document-heavy. There are policies, bills, statements, claim forms and various other customer documents that form a critical part of any customer’s relationship with their insurer. While it’s inevitable that some of these documents will remain physical for a while to come, others are ideal targets for digitalisation. A CCM [platform allows organisations to achieve this blend of digital](https://www.financedigest.com/seenthis-launches-creative-platform-to-boost-performance-and-reduce-co2-emissions-in-digital-advertising.html "SeenThis launches Creative Platform to boost performance and reduce CO2 emissions in digital advertising") and physical documents through a single provider, while also meeting regulatory requirements. In the UK, these regulations include GDPR as well as the Data Protection [Act of 2018 and the Privacy and Electronic Communications](https://www.financedigest.com/dodge-a-bullet-with-the-insurance-act-2015-act-now-to-implement-two-way-communication.html "Dodge a bullet with the Insurance Act 2015: Act now to implement two-way communication") Regulations (PECR) - **Store documents securely online and enable customers to self-serve** Those regulatory requirements, along with the damage that can occur as the result of a breach, also make the secure storage of documents essential. A CCM [platform can help provide](https://www.financedigest.com/fico-provides-decisioning-platform-for-smartphone-only-buddybank-in-italy.html "FICO Provides Decisioning Platform for Smartphone-Only buddybank in Italy") a repository for those documents. Additionally, it means that customers don’t have to try and keep documents themselves and makes it easier for [customer service](https://www.financedigest.com/id-fraud-is-on-the-rise-can-financial-services-do-more-to-protect-their-customers.html "ID fraud is on the rise: can financial services do more to protect their customers?") agents to locate documents (stored digitally, rather than in hard copy). - **Gather and utilise [customer data](https://www.financedigest.com/manchester-arts-centre-the-lowry-selects-logpoints-siem-technology-to-safeguard-customer-data.html "Manchester arts centre The Lowry selects LogPoint’s SIEM technology to safeguard customer data") to continually improve communications** Today, [data is crucial to the operations of any organisation](https://www.financedigest.com/can-financial-services-organisations-harness-data-and-bi-to-catch-up-in-the-digitalisation-race.html "Can financial services organisations harness data and BI to catch up in the digitalisation race?  "). Insurers are no exception. After all, you can’t provide customers with tailored messaging if you don’t know enough about them. But, as is the case with many industries, [insurers often battle with legacy enterprise systems that silo data](https://www.financedigest.com/how-data-is-revolutionising-car-insurance.html "How data is revolutionising car insurance"), preventing them from having a single view of the customer. With a CCM platform, [insurers can help bring together data](https://www.financedigest.com/big-data-lowers-insurance-premiums-and-optimises-business-performance.html "Big Data Lowers Insurance Premiums and Optimises Business Performance") from across the organisation to properly enable the organisation to use the available data and generate customised messaging in line with their customers’ specific needs and the point they’re at in their lifecycle. 5. **Encourage customers and brokers to adopt digital channels for communication** There is already a clear impetus for insurers to make the shift to [digital](https://www.financedigest.com/insurers-beware-fraudsters-love-digital.html "INSURERS BEWARE: FRAUDSTERS LOVE DIGITAL!") communication in the insurance space. [Research from Accenture](https://insuranceblog.accenture.com/insurance-customers-enjoy-digital-but-hanker-for-human-attention) shows that more than 50% of customers in the sector prefer using digital channels when they’re looking for product information or updating personal information with their insurer. The shift to [digital also comes with significant cost](https://www.financedigest.com/managing-the-cost-of-digital-transformation-with-saas-optimisation.html "Managing the Cost of Digital Transformation with SaaS Optimisation") reductions, which can be passed on to the customer. At a time when many households are facing increases in [living costs](https://www.financedigest.com/5-ways-to-support-your-employees-during-the-cost-of-living-crisis.html "5 ways to support your employees during the cost of living crisis ") thanks to inflation, that can be a critical point of differentiation. Because of the customisation offered by CCMs, they can help organisations bring people towards those digital channels with personalised nudges and suggestions. **The best place to start** Of course, a CCM platform shouldn’t be the entirety of an insurer’s [digital transformation](https://www.financedigest.com/future-of-finance-2023-digital-transformation.html "Future of Finance 2023: Digital Transformation") and customer engagement efforts. But, given the importance of customer communication to the overall customer experience, there can be no doubt that it’s a very good place to start. Not only does it [reduce costs](https://www.financedigest.com/finnair-to-cut-costs-reduce-fleet-to-return-profitable.html "Finnair to cut costs, reduce fleet to return profitable"), it also improves service levels, and increases overall levels of customer satisfaction. With customer experience being the big differentiating factor it is, it’s imperative that insurers give themselves as big an edge as possible, as soon as possible. --- This blog is powered by Superblog. Visit https://superblog.ai to know more. ---