3 Technologies to Improve Insurance Customer Experience in 2024

The key to a great customer experience is about having a simple, frictionless customer experience across the entire journey.

The Competitive Advantage of a Stellar Insurance Customer Experience

In today's crowded insurance market, crafting a differentiated insurance customer experience is no longer optional – it's essential for survival. A staggering 60% of insurance executives admitted to a lack of proper customer experience strategy in a 2020 IBM study. The digital landscape is a key battleground of the insurance industry for insurers striving to keep pace with evolving customer expectations. The demand for faster, simpler online experiences has skyrocketed, particularly since the pandemic.

This blog post dives into three key technologies that progressive insurers are leveraging to elevate the insurance customer experience and meet these demands. We'll explore Intelligent Document Processing (IDP), Robotic Process Automation (RPA), and Chatbots, along with additional strategies to revolutionize the insurance customer experience.

Intelligent Document Processing (IDP) in Action

Intelligent Document Processing (IDP) harnesses the power of Optical Character Recognition (OCR), Machine Learning, and other AI technologies to automate data extraction from various document formats. Converting documents like health reports, IDs, passports (both physical and PDFs) into structured data is the cornerstone of any automation system. This is where intelligent workflows truly come alive.

Imagine an insurance agent receiving scanned copies of a customer's health report for a claim. Traditionally, they'd manually extract relevant information and input it into the system – a time-consuming and error-prone task, especially when dealing with high volumes. IDP steps in, converting all that data into a structured format, enabling automatic extraction. This not only accelerates the process significantly but also enhances accuracy. Consequently, insurers can streamline document processing, leading to a faster and more positive insurance customer experience.

The same principles apply to processing other customer information and even claims. Let's delve deeper into the specific benefits IDP brings to the insurance customer experience...‍

Effortless Customer Onboarding

One of the biggest pain points for new insurance customers is the lengthy onboarding process. Traditionally, this involves filling out forms with detailed personal and insurance history information, followed by scanning and uploading supporting documents. The cherry on top? Weeks of waiting to hear back on approval.

Imagine a smoother experience: with IDP integrated into the system, new customers simply upload pictures of their ID documents. The onboarding form is then automatically populated with the extracted data. This data can also be verified against other databases to prevent fraud, creating a win-win scenario. Customers spend less time on manual entry and experience a faster onboarding process, while insurers benefit from streamlined workflows and fraud prevention.

Simplified Wellness Programs

Many insurance companies offer wellness programs to incentivize healthy habits among their customers. Participation often involves submitting documents like gym receipts, health check reports, and others to demonstrate adherence to specific lifestyle goals. Based on this data, customers are rewarded with incentives like coupons for their healthy choices.

However, program success hinges on customer engagement. A cumbersome system deters participation, leading to missed opportunities for both customers and insurers. Customers might be discouraged by the hassle of filling out forms and uploading images to claim their rewards.

IDP eliminates this hurdle. Customers simply upload the necessary documents, with no need for manual form filling. This simplifies program participation, boosts customer engagement, and ultimately enhances the insurance customer experience.

Faster Claims Processing

Different insurance claims require submission of various documents, such as car repair reports or doctor's notes. Manually extracting data from these documents can be a time-consuming bottleneck in the claims processing workflow. While rule-based automation can offer some relief, it struggles with documents in different formats or layouts.

This is where IDP's machine learning capabilities come into play. By training IDP on document samples encompassing various formats, insurance companies can automate data extraction for claims. This eliminates the need for manual data entry and allows automation software to handle the process. The result? Faster claims processing, reduced waiting times for customers, and improved accuracy through automation. Ultimately, IDP streamlines the workflow, enabling insurers to deliver a faster and more error-free experience for their customers.

How to Improve Customer Experience in Insurance through Automation and Omnichannel Strategies

Optimizing Workflows and Reducing Wait Times
Traditional insurance processes are often plagued by slow turnaround times and manual errors, negatively impacting the insurance customer experience. This section explores two key technologies that address these pain points: Robotic Process Automation (RPA) and Chatbots.

• RPA Streamlines Workflows: RPA utilizes data extracted by technologies like IDP to automate various tasks, particularly those related to document processing. This streamlines the overall insurance customer experience by accelerating processes and minimizing errors. Faster processing translates to happier customers who don't have to wait as long for resolutions.‍
• Chatbots Address Wait Times: The challenge of eliminating customer wait times is a real one. Chatbots powered by AI or pre-programmed Q&A systems offer a solution. Chatbots provide an additional channel for customers to receive prompt answers to their inquiries, ultimately leading to a smoother insurance customer experience. For instance, a customer unsure about a new insurance product can leverage a Chatbot to get the information they need, even outside of regular business hours. This eliminates obstacles in tasks like signing up for new products.

Shifting the Focus to a Customer-Centric Insurance Experience
The insurance industry has traditionally been very product-centric, but a shift towards customer-centricity is essential to stay competitive. This section highlights the importance of omnichannel customer engagement and a seamless digital experience.

• ‍Omnichannel Customer Engagement:
  Consumer engagement methods have undergone a dramatic shift in recent years. Insurance customers no longer rely solely on agents or brokers for product advice. A 2020 survey revealed that people now seek more flexibility. While insurance brokers remain valuable, the decision-making and purchasing process often involves a combination of channels, including Chatbots, online reviews, and other web-based resources, in addition to consultations with brokers. These interactions are also more likely to occur online than in person. Any cumbersome or frustrating elements within this omnichannel approach can easily deter new clients.
• Creating a Seamless Digital Experience:
  The more effectively insurance companies can facilitate this omnichannel approach for customers, the better their chances of retaining their attention. Ideally, seamless integration should exist across various channels. Whether a customer calls a helpline, messages a Chatbot, or emails a broker (or utilizes all three), the information should be readily accessible and interconnected. It's not just about having a single decent digital communication channel; it's about offering multiple options that seamlessly connect throughout the customer journey. By prioritizing a user-friendly digital experience, insurance companies demonstrate their commitment to a customer-centric approach.

Streamline Your Insurance Workflow with Automated Data Extraction

The insurance industry juggles a high volume of documents daily, from onboarding forms to claims processing. Clients also expect faster turnaround times.

Imagine this: Automatically extracting data from various documents like health reports, receipts, and more. This frees up valuable time for your team and opens doors to improved customer engagement through post-purchase wellness programs.

Discover the power of automated data extraction.Visit our insurance solutions page to learn how it can enhance your workflow and elevate your insurance customer experience.