Why can’t health insurance companies engage members? It doesn’t seem that difficult to do. Consumer engagement will be one of the most important strategies needed as healthcare reform takes shape. There will be more and more individuals buying health insurance. Insurers need to find ways to capture individuals today so they can acquire them as customers in two years. Here are 8 ideas for health insurance companies to use to engage consumers. Over time, I will expand on each of these ideas:
1) Invest in innovative technologies like telemedicine and online care
Insurers need to find a way to differentiate themselves from their competition. In general, most consumers make their insurance decisions based on price. This needs to change. Consumers are not buying commodities; they are buying a critical service. The telemedicine and online care market is poised to grow by 25% over the next few years. Insurers need to invest now as this can be a critical strategy that links to consumers and physicians. Most importantly, this will show innovation to consumers and will help with the individuals market. Plus, it will fit with an insurer’s online or mobile strategies.
2) Personalize the enrollment experience
Insurers are guaranteed of reaching their members one time per year – annual enrollment. Instead of the traditional, confusing enrollment meetings and forms, insurers should find a way to personalize and optimize the experience for consumers. If it can be done for car insurance, it can be done for health insurance.
3) Connect using social media
Less than 10% of all health insurance companies use social media today. There are 300,000,000 million people on Facebook. Something doesn’t seem right, does it? Social media is here to stay and insurance companies need to leverage it. They can start with something simple – invest in Search Engine Marketing and actually have reputable names come up when consumers type in “health insurance” in Google.
4) Partner with companies that have reputable brands
Did you know that consumers rate health insurers in the bottom of trusted brands every year (cable companies battle it out for the “top” spot)? By partnering with well-known and trusted brands, health insurance companies can sell their products and reach different types of consumers. Who knows, some of these other companies will be competitors in two years. Partner with them now just in case.
5) Innovate and build partnerships with vendors
Many companies cringe when you mention the word vendor to them. Companies hide information from vendors and are quick to blame them for issues. However, vendors provide critical services to health insurance companies that they otherwise would not have. Many of these vendors have ideas and capabilities that they would love to share with insurers. Insurers need to have open minds, be transparent with vendors and partner with them.
6) Leverage learnings from the retail market
Let’s face it, healthcare is about ten years behind the retail market in terms of technology and innovation. Many health insurance companies have a strategy to become more retail. In fact, some health insurance companies have even opened up retail stores. I think that these companies may consider partnering with retailers/hiring key retail strategists so that they can quickly build and execute their retail strategies.
7) Partner with physicians, doctors, nurses and anybody else in the provider market
Consumers trust their doctors. Health insurance companies need to figure out how to leverage this. Accountable Care Organizations and Patient Centered Medical Homes are great concepts that may be able to embrace this concept. However, insurance companies need to internally change their mindset so that they can share more information with providers and truly partner.
8) Create a radically different insurance product that pays for everything for a consumer
On a scale of 1 to 10, how frustrating are doctor’s bills, EOBs (this is NOT a bill), co-pays, deductibles, etc…? If you said 350, you are right. Here’s a radical concept for health insurance companies – create a product that pays for EVERYTHING. Imagine if you are a consumer and you are promised to never receive another bill from a doctor’s office. Sign me up!
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