Making Insurance Fun
E-Learning and Video Ideas for Insurance Companies and Agents
Your Insurance Policy is a lengthy document and sometimes people do not read it fully and are satisfied with a broad summary. Can Insurance Policies be made more fun and entertaining? The answer is definitely, yes. An article published in the October 1951 issue of Nieman Reports, cautioned, those publishing newspapers at the time that the challenge from Television is not one, that they should take lightly. The article noted that you could take your newspaper with you wherever you went but you could not carry your TV set. With the rise of mobile phones, in 2021 you can take both your newspaper and TV with you, wherever you go.
How does this relate to Insurance Companies? Insurance policies so far have taken the form of a document, that the insured kept in a safe place, and accessed when necessary. Could your Insurance Policy that exists in the form of a Document also include an accompanying Video? You may ask, why a Video would be necessary? A Video, especially a professionally produced Video, would encourage consumers to carefully examine their coverage, much more so, than a paper document. For those 65 and over, it would make it easier to understand the details of their Medigap Insurance Policy.
Would producing Videos increase costs for Insurance Companies? At first, yes because the Videos would need to be produced. However, over the long run it has the potential of decreasing litigation costs as the details of the policies would be well communicated to the insured and the need for expensive litigation would be reduced. During the Production Process there would be the potential for significantly increased clarity on a variety of exclusions and riders in the Policy. The Videos also would need to be produced only once, to be delivered to hundreds of thousands or possibly millions of insureds. In fact, insurance companies first might want to focus on areas that lead to more litigation.
Consider the case of Aetna quietly settling a high-profile case that was brought by Gillen Washington. Washington had a rare immune disorder and needed infusion treatments. The infusion treatments were quite expensive but coverage was denied. Former Aetna Medical Director had testified that he had not reviewed Washington’s records and instead relied on information from Nurses to deny the claim. This prompted a subsequent investigation by the California Department of Managed Healthcare and the California Department of Insurance. Videos should be considered an important tool, especially in areas that lead to lawsuits.
Insurance Agents can also use Videos to increase business. While Independent Agents spend long hours during their early careers building up a portfolio, finding new clients remains a challenge. According to the 2017 NU/PIA Independent Agent Survey, 37% of Agents cite finding new business as their top challenge. Informational Webinars that go into how Insurance can help manage risks is one way how independent agents can attract new business. Short Educational Videos is another way to attract new business.
What are some of the Topics for Educational Videos? Policy Provisions, Exclusions and Riders are one area where Videos can be useful. For example, there are different ways to renew an Insurance Policy such as Optionally Renewable versus Guaranteed Renewable. For those selling Medigap Plans, differences between Medicare Advantage Plans and types of Medigap Plans are another topic for educational videos. Explaining the differences between Medicare Private-Fee-for-Service Plans versus Medicare Select Plans versus Medicare Specialty Plans helps consumers make informed choices. Explaining the available Medigap Plans in respective states also helps consumers make better choices. There are of course, many more ideas, for other insurances lines such as Property-Casualty Agents and Surplus Lines Agents among others.
Videos used by Insurance Agents will have a similar impact as wheels on luggage. As noted by Nobel prize-winning economist Robert Shiller, innovation can be very slow-footed and it can take years to accept the blindingly obvious.