Global insurance companies face tough competition, weak markets, sluggish growth, and low returns. Yet most insurers are not fully tapping a golden opportunity to build a larger and more lucrative business. It involves customers that many carriers already serve but rarely interact with and revenues obscured by the cash from larger lines of business.
In a detailed global study, The Boston Consulting Group identified the untapped opportunity that lies in serving the growing commercial-insurance needs of small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs). BCG’s research included an extensive survey of 2,500 small businesses in six of the largest developed SME insurance markets—the U.S., the UK, Italy, France, Germany, and Japan—and focus group interviews that explored the insurance decision-making processes of small business owners. The results are a detailed and surprisingly different understanding of small-business insurance needs, preferences, and behaviors, as well as strategies that can enhance insurers’ profits.
As PMEs são uma força crescente na economia global, mas continuam sendo uma reflexão tardia para muitas grandes seguradoras, que geralmente percebem as PME como um mercado disperso de pequenos clientes, melhor tratado à extensão de agentes intermediários e corretores. Na maioria dos mercados, as PME representam quase um terço do valor de todos os prêmios de seguro comercial-em um mercado global cujo valor estimado é de quase US $ 1 trilhão em prêmios anuais, incluindo cativos e resseguros. Eles preferiram que os intermediários de corretor e agente os ajudem a navegar no mercado complexo e escolher a cobertura apropriada entre as multiplicidade de ofertas de seguro comercial. Além da cobertura de propriedades e vítimas, as ofertas incluem automóveis, transporte, responsabilidade, compensação dos trabalhadores e seguro de negligência. Portanto, além de usar o canal de agente tradicional, as operadoras têm a oportunidade de encontrar outras maneiras de interagir com os clientes das PME. Nossos resultados de pesquisa e trabalho com as seguradoras nos ajudaram a identificar quatro abordagens que as operadoras astutas e proativas podem buscar-individual ou em combinação como uma abordagem multicanal-para construir um negócio de seguro comercial maior e mais lucrativo para o negócio de seguro comercial: 3571
SMEs, for their part, have shown little interest in dealing directly with commercial carriers. They have preferred having broker and agent intermediaries help them navigate the complex market and choose appropriate coverage from the multitude of commercial-insurance offerings. In addition to property and casualty coverage, offerings include auto, transportation, liability, workers’ compensation, and malpractice insurance.
BCG found, however, that SMEs are more open to direct interaction and outreach from insurers than many carriers have expected. So in addition to using the traditional agent channel, carriers have the opportunity to find other ways to interact with SME customers. Our research results and work with insurers have helped us identify four approaches that astute and proactive carriers can pursue—individually or in combination as a multichannel approach—to build a larger and more profitable SME commercial-insurance business:
- Design targeted outreach initiatives that don’t threaten existing intermediaries but build a true multichannel interaction model with SMEs.
- Improve the value proposition for brokers and agents.
- Develop a “hybrid direct” model that provides semicustomized offerings, advice, and information.
- Develop new data capabilities and targeted analytics to maximize customer value.
The Power of Small Companies in Six Big Markets
In addition to the survey of developed markets, our research was informed by in-depth SME interviews in the U.S. and input from carriers incorporated through an insurer advisory committee. The survey polled businesses with up to 250 employees, a widely used benchmark for defining SMEs. There is, however, no universally accepted SME definition, and criteria differ across markets, industries, and organizations. Country-reported SME data, for example, can reflect benchmarks that are based on company revenues, balance sheet totals, or employee head count.
By any definition, SMEs are a major economic force globally and in most developed markets. (See the exhibit below.) In the U.S., they account for 84 percent of limited-liability businesses and 45 percent of GDP. In the UK, France, and Germany, they make up some 99 percent of private-sector businesses.
That collective commercial heft is a critical opportunity for insurers competing in a global market that will likely remain challenging for the next decade. (See “ Melhore a lucratividade da P&C e o crescimento premium , “Artigo do BCG, janeiro de 2014.) As seguradoras não-vida estão enfrentando um crescimento lento em mercados desenvolvidos, clientes sensíveis a preços, margens espremidas e baixo retorno sobre o patrimônio líquido. Os superávits de capital mantiveram a concorrência alta, enquanto uma série de eventos catastróficos recentes e que estão em expansão de que os negócios em expansão são de uma quantidade de economias de crescimento e poucas economias de crescimento, em que se expandirem mais de um crescimento de negócios que se expandiram em geral, a mais de uma quantidade de economias em que se expandem, a mais de uma quantidade de economias de crescimento e poucas economias de crescimento e poucos passos de crescimento e poucas economias de crescimento e poucas economias de crescimento e poucas economias em que se expandiram, a mais de uma quantidade de economias de crescimento e poucas economias de que há mais de uma quantidade de economias de crescimento. Casos, com barreiras altas e caras à entrada. ou filiais da empresa, incluindo Alemanha, França, Itália e Japão
On the basis of distribution, developed SME insurance markets fall into two distinct market archetypes:
- Independent-agent markets, notably the U.S. and the UK, where independent agents not directly owned by the insurer constitute the primary distribution channel
- Captive-agent markets, where the primary distribution channel comprises mostly captive agents or company branches, including Germany, France, Italy, and Japan
The archetypes, along with our research, provide insights and competitive guidance for SME insurers operating in the six markets surveyed and in developed markets worldwide. (For detailed data on each of the six major markets, see the Apêndice .) Os arquétipos e suas características não se aplicam necessariamente aos mercados de PME em economias emergentes, que não foram objeto de nossa pesquisa.
As principais necessidades e preferências das PMEs
A pesquisa da BCG revelou quatro necessidades e preferências importantes para PME que podem contribuir diretamente para a construção de um negócio de seguro comercial maior. Isso incluiu um maior envolvimento da seguradora no processo de compra e mais informações e educação de seguradoras sobre a cobertura e os referências de seguros relacionadas a seus setores. Muitas PME dependem muito de seus corretores e agentes, interagindo exclusivamente com eles ao longo do ciclo de vida da política. No Reino Unido e nos EUA, 35 % e 14 % das PME, respectivamente, relataram que não sabiam quem era sua seguradora, ou listaram seu agente ou corretor como sua transportadora. As PMEs em geral expressaram satisfação com esse relacionamento, mas indicaram que gostariam de um envolvimento mais proativo de suas transportadoras. Em vez de gastar tempo "compras de preços", a maioria disse que pensa em seguro apenas no horário de renovação ou ao registrar uma reclamação. Os pequenos proprietários de empresas geralmente começam procurando uma opção de preço mais baixo. No entanto, eles trocam de forma livre para receber uma melhor cobertura ou atender a uma necessidade específica, em vez de obter um preço mais baixo. As operadoras que antecipam uma gama completa de necessidades de PME e são proativas - por exemplo, entrar em contato com uma PME com uma oferta relevante antes do tempo de renovação - obterão a vantagem, capturando participação de mercado com melhor retenção e novos negócios. Mercados-como Itália e França e, até certo ponto, Alemanha e Japão-que têm uma forte presença de agentes cativos, segundo a pesquisa. Eles estão melhor posicionados para desenvolver uma oferta mais atraente do que as operadoras com um forte canal de corretor. Em resumo, a confiança na seguradora histórica é uma vantagem significativa, mostrou a pesquisa, e os agentes cativos tendem a ganhar maior confiança das PMEs. Intermediários, nem acreditam que os bancos tenham experiência suficiente em seguro. Essa percepção reduz claramente a capacidade dos bancos de intervir como intermediários que recebem taxas nesses mercados, o que, por sua vez, aumenta a oportunidade para as seguradoras interagirem diretamente com as PMEs.
SMEs want more interaction with insurers. While SMEs were mostly satisfied with their broker and agent relationships, they also wanted more direct interaction with carriers. That included greater insurer involvement in the purchase process and more information and education from insurers on coverage and insurance benchmarks related to their industries.
Closer and more interactive relations with SME customers can shave costs, broaden the client base, and create new opportunities for customer engagement. Many SMEs rely heavily on their brokers and agents, interacting exclusively with them throughout the policy life cycle. In the UK and the U.S., 35 percent and 14 percent of SMEs, respectively, reported that they did not know who their insurer was, or they listed their agent or broker as their carrier. SMEs in general expressed satisfaction with that relationship but indicated that they would like more proactive engagement from their carriers.
Price and consumerism often play limited roles when SMEs choose or switch insurers. SMEs apply little consumerism to their commercial-insurance purchase decisions. Rather than spend time “price shopping,” most said that they think about insurance only at renewal time or when filing a claim.
Price—while important—is not the deciding factor in many markets. Small business owners often start by looking for a lower-price option. Yet they freequently switch carriers to receive better coverage or meet a specific need rather than to get a lower price. Carriers that anticipate a full array of SME needs and are proactive—for example, contacting an SME with a relevant offer before renewal time—will gain the advantage, capturing market share with better retention and new business.
SMEs place greater trust and loyalty in incumbent insurers with captive agents. The inclination of SMEs to buy commercial insurance from their personal carrier is greater in markets—such as Italy and France and, to some extent, Germany and Japan—that have a strong presence of captive agents, the survey found.
That trust and loyalty gives carriers with strong captive-agent networks a substantial hidden advantage, particularly in cross-selling. They are better positioned to develop a more compelling offering than are carriers with a strong broker channel. In short, trust in the incumbent insurer is a significant advantage, the survey showed, and captive agents tend to win greater trust from SMEs.
SMEs in these developed markets are reluctant to depend on banks as intermediaries. Because they have depended on other intermediaries in the insurance-buying process, SMEs in developed markets, do not perceive banks as adequate advisors or intermediaries, nor do they believe that banks have sufficient expertise in insurance. That perception clearly reduces the ability of banks to intervene as fee-receiving intermediaries in those markets, which, in turn, increases the opportunity for insurers to interact directly with SMEs.
Also, in emerging markets, bancassurance Pode ser uma opção viável, principalmente onde os produtos de seguro não penetraram amplamente e existem poucos intermediários estabelecidos. Em muitos mercados, no entanto, é provável que a distribuição direta não ofereça às seguradoras uma pista rápida para o crescimento nem para se tornar um modelo dominante em breve. (Consulte “Indo direto: um caminho para o futuro?”)
Four Approaches to Serving SMEs More Directly
Commercial insurers might well be tempted to “go direct” to the SME market, given the openness of SMEs in our survey to more outreach from carriers. In many markets, however, direct distribution is likely neither to offer insurers a fast track to growth nor to become a dominant model anytime soon. (See “Going Direct: A Path for the Future?”)
indo direto: um caminho para o futuro? Eliminando o intermediário, uma abordagem de vendas diretas oferece vários benefícios. Pode reduzir os custos da comissão em 10 a 15 %, reduzindo a complexidade do processo, ampliando a base de clientes e criando novas oportunidades de envolvimento do cliente. A distribuição direta também pode melhorar significativamente os tempos de resposta do cliente, às vezes reduzindo um processo de serviço de uma semana inteira para um único dia.
Commercial insurers might well be tempted to “go direct” to the SME market. Eliminating the middleman, a direct-sales approach offers multiple benefits. It can shave commission costs by 10 to 15 percent while reducing process complexity, broadening the customer base, and creating fresh opportunities for client engagement. Direct distribution can also significantly improve customer response times, sometimes reducing a service process from a full week to a single day.
Indo direto, no entanto, provavelmente não oferecerá a maioria das seguradoras uma trilha rápida para o crescimento na maioria dos mercados. A penetração direta de vendas às PME-enquanto variando amplamente entre os seis mercados desenvolvidos que estudamos-foi relativamente baixo no geral. As vendas diretas atingiram um máximo de apenas 18 % das PME no mercado do Reino Unido e totalizaram apenas 4 % nos EUA (consulte a exposição abaixo.) Os EUA e o Reino Unido, por exemplo, são mercados de agentes independentes. A maioria dos proprietários de pequenas empresas considera ofertas de seguro comercial extremamente complexas e difíceis de entender. Essa descoberta apenas mostra quanto trabalho a maioria das operadoras enfrenta antes que elas possam aproveitar o potencial de longo prazo de ir direto. Eles precisarão simplificar as ofertas de produtos, tornar-se proficientes em fornecer conselhos personalizados e melhorar o reconhecimento da marca. Embora pequenas políticas comerciais-AUTO, por exemplo, sejam semelhantes às políticas padrão-auto-autentinas e incluam muitas das mesmas opções de cobertura pré-embaladas, os clientes das PME enfrentam requisitos mais complexos e muitos exigem assistência na seleção de níveis de cobertura apropriados. Para as operadoras, isso significará contratar consultores dedicados ou encontrar novas maneiras de fornecer conselhos de maneira eficaz e eficiente. águas. Prevemos que outros se seguirão e que o mercado de PMEs comerciais diretos poderá atingir US $ 25 bilhões até 2022.
Prospects for going direct differ widely among markets—even among those that share the same market archetype. The U.S. and UK, for example, are both independent-agent markets.
A majority of SMEs in some markets—including the U.S. and France—said that they were unwilling to buy direct, in most cases because they need purchase advice. Most small-business owners consider commercial-insurance offerings extremely complex and difficult to understand. That finding alone shows how much work most carriers face before they can take advantage of the longer-term potential of going direct. They will need to simplify product offerings, become proficient at providing customized counsel, and improve brand awareness.
Going direct will require changing current direct-to-customer sales models. Although small commercial-auto policies, for instance, are similar to standard personal-auto policies and include many of the same prepackaged coverage options, SME customers face more complex requirements, and many require assistance in selecting appropriate coverage levels. For carriers, that will mean taking on dedicated advisors or finding new ways to deliver advice effectively and efficiently.
Furthermore, to avoid channel conflicts, many carriers will need to sell under brands different from their core brand in markets where they already have agent distribution.
Still, insurers such as Hiscox, Insurantz.com, and Premierline Direct in Europe, and Geico in the U.S. are testing the waters. We anticipate that others will follow and that the direct-commercial SME market could reach $25 billion by 2022.
Insurers should, however, consider four other approaches that proactively address SME needs and preferences. Each approach can help build a larger and more profitable business while taking advantage of competitive, economic, and regulatory conditions in specific markets. Most of these initiatives can be launched without incurring substantial costs or overhauling a carrier’s business model.
Design targeted outreach initiatives that don’t threaten existing intermediaries. Insurers can explore targeted outreach initiatives that add value and build business through proactive interaction and initiatives. But carriers should do so in a way that doesn’t threaten existing intermediaries that are crucial to their business.
Initially, an insurer can maximize its value to an SME by providing education on insurance best practices and benchmark information relevant to the SME’s industry. More ambitious initiatives might include “good behavior” programs and benefits similar to those offered in personal-insurance lines.
Strategically, insurers should develop operating models that are better targeted to serve explicit small-business needs. By tightly integrating the model with distribution channels, insurers can provide differentiated service, including more tailored and proactive communications, better integration with the agent or broker, and quicker servicing of policies.
Improve your value proposition to brokers and agents. Given their relations with and influence over small business owners in most markets, brokers and agents provide a crucial, prepaved path to building your business. That makes it important to give brokers and agents, in addition to the customers, a keen sense of your value.
One means of achieving this is to provide data and analytics on SME behavior that help intermediaries grow their book. Insurers can also provide modularized products designed to help intermediaries pitch to specific acquisition targets. Another way is to help intermediaries build multichannel servicing capabilities—for example, online pricing and self-service platforms for clients. These provide the added benefit of integrating insurers’ operating models more tightly with intermediaries.
Insurer relationships with brokers and agents tend to be highly concentrated—typically about 80 percent of premiums are driven by 20 percent of brokers and agents. For this reason, insurers should evaluate and segment their intermediaries according to business-building potential and target their strongest efforts on the highest-value intermediaries with a differentiated partnership model.
Desenvolva um modelo diretor híbrido com conselhos e informações semicustomizados. Um modelo híbrido, ou personalizado, direto-com ofertas, conselhos e informações semicustomizados-podem produzir alguns dos mesmos benefícios centrados no cliente. Este modelo tem o potencial de aumentar a penetração e o lucro das PMEs imediatamente. Para ter sucesso, o programa diretor-híbrido deve ter como objetivo dar às PME o tipo de interação personalizada que está acostumada a experimentar com um agente ou corretor. A oferta híbrida fornece produtos e cobertura em conjunto com - mas diferente de - os produtos tradicionais da seguradora distribuídos por agentes. Uma iniciativa híbrida-diretora pode incluir serviços e produtos em camadas pelo segmento de clientes, com opções de preços relacionadas. Isso pode incluir a atribuição de PMEs dedicados a agentes que trabalham e se comunicam de um local central, em vez de interagir diretamente com os clientes no campo. Uma PME saberia seu agente dedicado pelo nome e se comunicaria diretamente por telefone ou e-mail, raramente, se é que alguma vez, vendo-o. Muitos deles derivam da segmentação do cliente - usando dados e análises para identificar as PME que compartilham necessidades, preferências ou atributos do produto específicos, como datas de maturidade - depois que desenvolvem produtos e serviços direcionados personalizados para esses segmentos. Essa abordagem pode ser preferível a descontos de preços, o que pode não ser financeiramente viável ou ativo da venda cruzada, que o cliente pode se ressentir. Outro conjunto de iniciativas envolve simplificar e diminuir os ciclos de subscrição usando informações disponíveis nos bancos de dados da empresa e fontes de pontuação de crédito. businesses, particularly in the U.S. Although going completely direct isn’t an immediately viable game changer for many carriers, most can take a portion of their SME business direct. A hybrid, or personalized, direct model—with semicustomized offerings, advice, and information—can produce some of the same client-centric benefits. This model has the potential to increase SME penetration and profit immediately. To succeed, the hybrid-direct program should aim to give SMEs the kind of personalized interaction they are accustomed to experiencing with an agent or broker.
A hybrid-direct offering coexists with an insurer’s agent and broker channels without undermining them—avoiding channel conflict, for example, by establishing a new brand not associated with the core business. The hybrid offering provides products and coverage in tandem with—but different from—the insurer’s traditional products distributed by agents. A hybrid-direct initiative might include services and products tiered by customer segment, with related pricing options.
The hybrid-direct approach provides personalized interaction and advice through a semicustomized service that is consistent with the carrier’s business model and resources. This might include assigning SMEs dedicated agents who work and communicate from a central location rather than interacting directly with clients in the field. An SME would know its dedicated agent by name and communicate directly by phone or e-mail, rarely, if ever, seeing him or her.
Develop data capabilities and targeted analytics to maximize customer value and improve underwriting. By combining in-house data with customer data from new sources—such as company databases and credit-scoring providers—insurers can create a multitude of business opportunities. Many of them derive from customer segmentation—using data and analytics to identify SMEs that share specific needs, preferences, or product attributes such as maturity dates—then developing targeted products and services customized to those segments.
Similar opportunities can be created by exploring customer lifetime value and tailoring products to maximize that value. This approach may be preferable to pricing discounts, which might not be financially viable, or active cross-selling, which the customer might resent. Another set of initiatives involves simplifying and shortening underwriting cycles by using information available from company databases and credit-scoring sources.
Developing advanced analytics on the basis of new or existing data allows carriers to optimize value propositions for specific demographic segments in, for example, the following ways:
- Helping target women and minorities who are now more commonly the founders and owners of small businesses, particularly in the U.S.
- Identifying potential new SME customers within the existing customer base of the carrier’s personal-insurance lines, then developing targeted marketing programs to reach them—a strategy that has been used very effectively by credit card companies
Carriers might also tap industry-specific data and knowledge to provide risk mitigation advice and tools as part of their service offering to SMEs, which have limited resources to create sophisticated ferramentas próprias. Uma transportadora, por exemplo, forneceu programas de monitoramento de frota para clientes de PME e, em três anos, reduziu sua taxa de perda em 10 %, enquanto aumentava a retenção de clientes em mais de 15 %. Mas tocar nesse crescimento exigirá o desenvolvimento de abordagens mais diretas e centradas no cliente que atendem às PMEs coletivamente e individualmente. Ao mesmo tempo, exige abordar clientes individuais mais diretamente e oferecer serviços que satisfazem as necessidades individuais de uma maneira mais personalizada - com menos complexidade. As operadoras que terão sucesso serão aquelas capazes de repensar o mercado, o cliente das PME e talvez até seu próprio modelo de negócios.
In an era of tight margins and weak returns for commercial insurers, small businesses offer a substantial and rewarding growth market. But tapping that growth will require developing more direct and customer-centric approaches that serve SMEs both collectively and individually.
Success means understanding the collective needs and preferences of SMEs clearly. At the same time, it requires approaching individual clients more directly and offering services that satisfy individual needs in a more customized fashion—with less complexity. Carriers that succeed will be those capable of rethinking the market, the SME customer, and perhaps even their own business model.
For astute insurers that step up to the challenge, adopting one or more of the approaches discussed above can unlock the golden opportunity at their doorstep.
