Some interesting research findings in this white paper, here’s the word;
UK insurance brokers need to put concerted effort behind building greater awareness of their role, service value, and access to insurance products, if they wish to secure more client business and grow.
Furthermore, they need to work hard to shift customer perceptions, with the viewpoint of one-in-ten UK consumers being that insurance brokers are ‘outdated’ in our modern digital world.
These are some of the findings contained within a white paper produced by the insurance PR and content team at Catapult PR, which has represented insurance clients continuously since the consultancy’s foundation in 1998.
The white paper, ‘What UK Consumers Think About Insurance Brokers’ is based on independently commissioned research, organised by specialist research company, Censuswide.
It discovered that a large percentage of respondents have insufficient knowledge of brokers to comment on their viewpoints of broking (22%). 14% believe brokers add cost but no value. 11% of people openly admit they do not know what brokers do, suggesting the need for awareness-focused and educational activity on the part of brokers.
The white paper offers many more insights into how insurance brokers are perceived, both in general and in different areas of the UK. It also demonstrates the challenge insurance brokers face in making insurance provision through a brokerage relevant to younger generations.
The white paper is also an asset for brokers wishing to address the issue. Suggestions about messaging that could assist with broker marketing and client acquisition are provided and the document pinpoints key areas on which brokers can work, to help guide customers through the pitfalls that can emerge within non-personalised insurance provision.
Part two of the white paper also helpfully focuses on a ranking of factors that would actively encourage consumers to use an insurance broker. Beyond more obvious answers relating to better value for money, and having the reassurance of having the right cover, were: personalised service; a good reputation built up by the brokerage, a belief in the brokerage as an expert, and better explanations of products/provision of online resources.
The white paper suggests how brokers can utilise this knowledge, to communicate with potential customers and also attain all-important expert positioning through thought leadership.
Catapult has already engineered thought leader status for a variety of insurance brokers. It also has 13 years of experience in representing Gauntlet Group and its AR network and took brokerages like fleet specialist, McCarron Coates, to multi award-winning insurance industry success, creating campaigns that won hearts and minds in key insurance niches. It has continuously represented insurance sector businesses since its foundation in 1998.
Managing director, Jane Hunt, a former PR Manager at the then 750-branch-strong Swinton, who later handled the PR launch of Privilege Insurance, says, “Brokers typically make too many assumptions about prospective clients and their knowledge of working with a brokerage. Many also head down the wrong marketing routes, underestimating the importance of building awareness, trust and an expert voice. These factors have always been important but they now dovetail with exactly what AI-drive search wishes to see, whether that is through Google or an AI bot. All search is now looking for signs of authority and unique insights.
“Brokers are currently at risk of falling out of view, if they follow the wrong strategy. They often lack the tone of messaging that can both speak to, and connect with, the average client. It is also rare for them to focus on external brand-building through PR, to become an expert voice. They also usually overlook or vastly underestimate the importance of online material that educates both the consumer and the AI search tools.
“Our white paper seeks to support brokers, by helping them get inside the head of their prospective clients, to attain a clear view of those to whom they are marketing. With the marketing advice we also offer within the white paper, we have sought to guide both broker thinking and marketing efforts and help brokers move forward more productively and visibly.”
‘What UK Consumers Think About Insurance Brokers’ is available for download at the Catapult PR website at www.catapultpr.co.uk/brokerWP
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