The Digital Trust Advantage: How to Empower Home Policyholders through Personalization

Accelerating the adoption of emerging technologies in the insurance industry requires an ethical approach to consumer data use. 

High-performing organizations understand that to maximize a customer’s lifetime value and achieve trust with their consumers, they must go beyond transparency. They must use the information a consumer provides in service to the consumer. This generally manifests in personalized experiences and greater convenience, such as auto-filled forms or recommendations based on online behaviors, but many of these digital interactions can be borderline intrusive. That’s why social media companies, online retail sites and apps, and even telecommunication companies fail to win many of their consumers’ trust. 

Catherine Bannister, managing director, and Deborah Golden, principal, of Deloitte write in “Ethical Technology and Trust,” “Business leaders are reevaluating how their products, services, and the decisions they make—around managing data, building a partner ecosystem, and training employees, among others—build trust.”

In contrast, insurance companies, government agencies, and even payment system providers use consumers’ data to create repetitive, frictionless experiences that denote high security. These seamless, digital interactions naturally dovetail with the development of trust.   

As Marsha Egan writes in “The Power of Trust,” “…the investment return of time, repetition and consistency in being trustworthy for both individuals and organizations is immeasurable. It is a value that needs to be lived and practiced continually. When there is trust, there is acceleration.”

Today’s digital-savvy consumers demand this ethical treatment. According to KPMG’s Global Customer Experience Excellence Report 2020, 90% of customers are willing to pay more for ethical retailers.

Of course, once trust is earned, it must be safeguarded through constant reaffirmations to ensure longevity. After all, while garnering trust may take years, the erosion of trust can happen in an instant. 

Writes Egan, “The sad truth is that while it might take years and numerous tests of trust to validate a person or organization as being trustworthy, trust can be broken with one incident. It is easy to break trust and difficult to make trust.”

Hitting close to home 

There is no place more private than the sanctity of the home, and thus, trust is mission critical in the homeownership sphere and the industries surrounding it. Most home documents include sensitive information (and personal identifiable information), such as social security numbers, dates of birth, phone numbers, and of course, home addresses. Depending upon the nature of business, an organization may even collect dynamic digital data, including biometric, device information, and online behavioral details.

By leveraging home data, insurers can provide a personalized homeownership experience, which today’s digital-savvy customer has come to expect. This innovative approach begins with a few quick data points, which a sophisticated AI can turn into personalized reminders for home maintenance and tailored recommendations for home improvement. Critical weather alerts, based on the home’s location, can encourage homeowners to ready their home for potential severe weather events with actionable insight. These touchpoints can help to reduce the number of homeowner claims, build consumers’ awareness, and create a trusted ecosystem of value, all delivered by the carrier or agency.    

Whereas many companies offer free solutions to consumers through paid, targeted advertising, future-focused insurers build trust through education and engagement that empower homeowners to make informed decisions about their homeownership. Expert-backed home tips help homeowners know what to do and when to do it around the home. This is imperative to insurers as 22 million Americans admit it’s difficult to keep track of home maintenance.

By addressing the home knowledge gap and sending personalized home guidance to policyholders’ fingertips, home insurance companies can develop a deeper connection with their clients. They’ll enable their policyholders to complete necessary maintenance tasks and home improvement projects, which can increase the value and safety of the home. A maintained home is also less likely to suffer a home insurance claim, helping to lower loss ratios.

A more engaged client with a personalized customer experience from their insurer is also more likely to stay a client, and 78% of consumers say they are more likely to refer friends and family to companies that personalize.

Trust is the foundation that insurance incumbents and new entrants need to survive in today’s digital marketplace. If you can achieve it, you will be here to stay.

About vipHomeLink

vipHomeLink is a technology company that “simplifies homeownership” by providing a digital home management solution to help homeowners maintain, organize, and improve their homes. The Company partners with insurance companies, real estate agencies, and mortgage providers to drive engagement with homeowners and improve home safety for their families. The branded app helps build awareness of the home, provides customized reminders and tailored home recommendations, and shares original, expert, multi-channel home content with members. vipHomeLink is based in Morristown, New Jersey.

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