Over the past two years, clients have adjusted their insurance expectations, from face-to-face communication to technology, and brokers have been trying to navigate how to enhance client relationships in the new environment we live in.
Stuart Bruce, CEO of FIRST Insurance Funding Canada and presenting sponsor for the Lifetime Achievement award at this year’s Insurance Business Canada Awards (IBCAs), spoke to Insurance Business about what solutions will help foster better broker-client relationships.
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“Brokers innately have been taking stock of technological solutions to get in front of their clients,” he said. “When it comes to technology and vendor partners, specifically in the payment space, the client experience is critical.”
Creating strong, personal bonds with clients gives brokers a competitive advantage and having a payment partner that elevates that client experience is vital to overall success.
“The industry was already on a journey towards creating better client experiences. The challenge brokers have in a hard market, is that it’s daunting to explain complex solutions when pricing has changed,” Bruce explained.
Brokers have been working with clients to right-size insurance as prices increase, and having a well-managed payment plan makes the conversation more palatable.
“The industry is large and interconnected, but we’re starting to see a trend of brokers realizing how important their brand is to clients,” said Bruce.
“We’re seeing brokers wanting to get their brand in front of their clients,” he continued. “Both our physical and electronic payment option forms are completely customizable, so brokers have that branding support,” he said.
Technology is also allowing brokers to build more rapport with clients through avenues such as social media, but, according to Bruce, success in today’s economic climate is not solely centered around digital solutions.
“I think the most successful trend right now is combining the personal and digital touch,” he said. “All clients are created differently and want to be serviced differently.”
Having an omnichannel experience makes a world of difference for clients, and comprehensive payment solutions makes their experience that much better. Bruce said that in the payment space, brokers need to have peace of mind knowing their client has multiple payment options. Many have got used to simple and easy transactions in their day-to-day lives and expect insurance to be no different. They don’t want or need to understand the intricate background as to how a payment is processed; they just want that instant access to choose how and when they pay.
FIRST aims to create that real-time interface so brokers have a seamless, one stop shop to service clients. “We invested heavily in APIs over the last five years, having the ability to have that ongoing connection is the future of the industry,” Bruce said.
Broker partners should also be working to improve central management systems so interacting with clients is not overly complex. “We view both the broker and customer as our clients, so supporting both those relationships is key,” he said.
Register for the IBCAs virtual ceremony on November 17 and 18 and find out who wins FIRST’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
