Omnichannel: It’s a buzzword that’s thrown around a lot in business circles, but what does it really mean, and is your business an omnichannel business?
While at its essence, omnichannel simply means to offer multiple channels, in the modern business landscape a true omnichannel business is considered one that offers a seamless customer experience across various platforms – and it’s increasingly important for insurers to get right.
Earlier this month, the insurance industry was warned to do more to stop creating problems for its customers,
as ratings for the sector slipped compared to last year. In a competitive market, insurance companies need to differentiate themselves by more than just price, we were told by The Institute of Customer Service.
But alongside providing customers with a problem-free experience, insurance firms need to focus on becoming genuine omnichannel businesses which offer consumers a smooth journey, according to The Institute’s CEO.
“We talk a lot about omnichannel and the need to have lots of different channels, but often as organisations we force people to use a particular channel,” Jo Causon told Insurance Business. Today, it’s no longer enough to simply be present on a range of platforms – consumers want to be able to carry out the service that they require on the channel of their choosing.
Recent evidence suggests the industry hasn’t quite got to grips with that idea yet: a survey
ranking UK general insurers on their digital offerings found that just 4% offered full digital claims services, forcing customers to pick up the phone.
“Omnichannel is only good when it’s my choosing of which particular channel, and we still tend to have preferences over channels,” Causon commented. And while the complexity of insurance products can hinder businesses from offering services such as claims online, there is more that can be done to create a seamless customer journey.
“One of the things that irritates many of us is when we have to constantly repeat the information or say the same thing, just because we’ve changed channels,” Causon said. “Some of that can be down to data protection, but not all of it. I think that really thinking about the design of the actual customer experience is increasingly important, frankly… We know that as customers, the easier, the more straightforward and the more intuitive you can make that experience, the better that is going to be.”
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