Can insurance be human and kind? Serenia Life Financial sure thinks so. Formerly FaithLife Financial, the member-based financial services and insurance provider has unveiled a new name while promising to stay true to its nearly 100-year-old roots.
“Our values have proven to be a real differentiator for us,” said Angela Ricci (pictured), chief marketing officer for Serenia Life Financial. “In fact, the value of showing kindness was appealing [to Canadians]. Our goal was to ensure that we stayed true to who we are but repositioning and talking about our values in a different way.”
Serenia Life supports its 33,000 members with a range of insurance and investment services. Originally established as a fraternal benefits organization for the Lutheran community, it expanded its membership eligibility in 2004.
Giving back to its communities is also a core value for Serenia Life. In the past 50 years, the organization said it raised $5.5 million for charitable organizations and logged almost 850,000 volunteer hours through member fundraising events.
Despite the appeal of its values, the company found that its brand wasn’t connecting with Canadians. “It was a decision we did not take lightly,” Ricci continued. “The research inspired us to understand that if we were going to be successful, we needed to rebrand and increase the appeal.”
The rebrand is the culmination of a two-year transformation. In late 2021, Serenia Life – then FaithLife Financial – redesigned its suite of life insurance products to make them more accessible to Canadians. The new products highlighted increased flexibility, customization, and affordability for individuals at all stages of life, and were the company’s response to its members’ evolving needs during the pandemic.
The suite included a term insurance policy with three coverage options (term 10, term 20, and term 30), allowing members to choose one or a combination to meet their needs, and a life insurance policy that offers policyholder dividends. The company also further expanded its services to more Canadians.
“The product redesign helped capture the attention of the marketplace, so the rebrand was the icing on the cake,” Ricci told Insurance Business.
Serenia Life has also unveiled changes to its advisor-facing platforms, including a new advisor website called Springboard, which features a fresh look and upgraded functionality. It has also revamped its eApp with technology enhancements that have long been requested by advisors.
“One of the most important things for us was to keep all our stakeholders engaged through the rebrand process, ensuring we hear their feedback,” Ricci said. “Our advisors were very open to the changes and they’re already seeing positive results.”
Serenia Life is looking to increase its digital footprint “where we can and wherever it makes sense,” according to Ricci. “Being able to hold on to our values as we've delivered our rebrand has been such an inspiring experience for us. We’re excited to continue down that road,” she said.
Following its pivotal rebrand, Serenia Life is looking forward to seeing its hard work bear fruit, but it’s also open to continuous improvement.
“It's been big change for us in the last two years. I think we will go through a period of settling into that change and making sure that that we've got it right,” Ricci shared. “We’ll continue to do our research and listen to our advisors, with whom we have a very collaborative relationship, and to make ourselves stronger and better partners for our members.”
“We are evolving to address the calls for increased flexibility, support, and simple human kindness at a time when Canadians need it most,” said Glenn Hymers, CEO of Serenia Life Financial.
In a heartfelt open letter, Hymers addressed the dramatic shift in people’s values since the pandemic, which led the company to transform. “With everything moving online, we experienced fewer social interactions and fewer of the positive emotions that come with being kind to one another. The pandemic reminded us that connecting as humans first, whether in person or online, forms the bond upon which trust is based,” Hymers wrote.
“Kindness helps us build more meaningful relationships, and this is exactly what we hope to represent at Serenia Life Financial.”
