A change in dynamics between Fidelity Life, its customers, and advisers, is on the cards as the insurer embarks on a five-year plan to transform its business.
Fidelity Life wants to increase its market share from its current 11.4% to a number its Chief Customer Officer Pete Doherty was reluctant to share. Doherty joined the New Zealand-owned and operated firm four months ago and says it is embarking on a rebranding plan to put its customers first.
“We always have put the customer first,” says Doherty. “But we have also had a focus on the fact we are an intermediate business. For a long time we have engaged our customers through our advisers.
“The view we want to take going forward is that we are engaging our customers in partnership with our advisers.
“The advisers still have a huge part to play in that relationship, but we intend to put a lot more emphasis on taking ownership and accountability of customer outcomes.
“And really this is around us ensuring that we are looking after customers in partnership with the advisers. And simply not relying on the adviser to handle the customer relationship.”
At this point in time we don’t foresee any material changes for advisers…
Is this the thin end of the wedge as the company, formed in 1973, changes its relationship with advisers? Doherty says not.
“At this point in time we don’t foresee any material changes for advisers,” he says.
“We will be adding value to the relationship with their clients – the end customers – through adding products and propositions such as the Sharecare health & wellness app.
“Advisers will be our channel to market and they are a very important part of the overall business. We are trying very hard not to change anything in that respect. What we want to do is actually help augment their relationship with their clients.
Advisers will be our channel to market and they are a very important part of the overall business…
“Nothing short of transformational change is needed to secure our future – incremental changes just won’t cut it. We see a clear opportunity to take advantage of the industry’s current challenges and relentlessly focus on becoming a more customer-centric business.”
In an effort to get to know who buys its products, and where market growth might come from, Fidelity Life surveyed 2,000 customers and un-insured people to see what they thought.
The firm’s Head of Marketing, Meagan Tuckerman, says putting the customer at the heart of what the company does involves learning from them in terms of how they want to interact with Fidelity Life and what kind of products they want.
“We need to understand how they want to communicate with us, and through what channels.” she says.
“There is a lot of power and a lot of capability bound up in our customers’ views of our company and what we’d like to do is learn from it.
“Our research shows consumers want a brand that is friendlier, one they can communicate with, and products that they understand. Insurance is quite a personal experience, it’s a very personal purchase.”
Insurance is quite a personal experience, it’s a very personal purchase…
Behind the scenes Doherty says the firm is investing in back office technology, and its core platform administration systems are being updated.
“I think AI (artificial intelligence) and associated technologies have a part to play in a balanced future, where we will have people and technology working together to deliver the best outcome for the customers,” says Doherty.
So where will the company be in five years’ time? Doherty was reluctant to say other than to restate the firm has ambitious growth targets.