Toast305-ga,
This question, along with your last one, has been especially
challenging, because most insurance companies (as well as other
companies) are moving toward an online presence and building their
communication strategies through the web. Also, most customer clubs
offer some enticement in the ways of points, airmiles, discounts on
products, etc. Since you are not looking for those "perks," your best
bets are likely some of the methods I outlined in your first question.
I have searched extensively and have come up with some "ideas" that
you might use from what other companies are doing. They are not
specifically directed toward offline insurance companies, but I still
believe you can glean some ideas that you can utilize. Even if the
ideas seem off base, I think you can extrapolate the concepts into
some effective ideas for your company. Perhaps, the information in
this answer coupled with suggestions I provided in your previous
question may provide you with some more direction.
What follows are, strictly, examples of what some companies are doing
in the way of enhancing communication or instituting some form of
customer clubs. I have left out a host of internet-related customer
clubs, because your company does not have a website.
=====
Dodge Ram - Cummins Owners Club
http://www.cummins.com/na/pages/en/products/dodgeram/ownersclub.cfm
**********************************************************************
"Welcome Cummins and Onan fans! This is the place for owners of Dodge
Ram/Cummins turbo diesel trucks, Cummins-powered RVs and Onan mobile
generators to find information about the growing network of Cummins
Owners Clubs.
"Cummins distributors across North America have formed Owners Clubs to
show our appreciation for your business - and to make sure your prized
Cummins vehicle stays in top condition!
=====
These owners clubs offer valuable benefits to their members,
including: parts and service discounts, club-sponsored events like
distributor branch open houses and engine maintenance seminars, and
social gatherings."
=====
"Contact the Cummins Owners Club in your area to find out more about
upcoming events and get information about how to join!"
===================
"Public Relations." Competitionmaster.com
http://www.competitionmaster.com/pages/career/public_relations.html
*********************************************************************
Customer clubs can give customers a "voice."
"Multinational companies have recently launched customer clubs through
which they keep in contact with their customers, take their advice and
inform them of new products or services. A happy customer will most
likely make repeat purchases, so an effective PR makes a good business
sense too. It is a means to win customer loyalty."
==============
Although the following article deals with Timeshare Customer Clubs,
it has some excellent ideas that can be applied to any business!
"Consider Developing a Customer Loyalty Club." by James J. Gilmartin.
The Timeshare Beat.
http://www.thetimesharebeat.com/gilmartin.htm
************************************************
(Note: Much of this article was adapted from "Customer Clubs and
Loyalty Programmes - A Practical Guide", by Stephan A. Butscher, Gower
Publishing Limited, 1999.)
I have excerpted the pertinent information directly from the article:
"Customer loyalty clubs are a German invention. Currently, German law
is extremely restrictive and makes it almost impossible to give
different customers or customer groups different prices and discounts
simply because they are members of a customer club. German
marketers.... are forced to develop customer clubs built primarily on
non-financial benefits. The result was customer clubs. Several hundred
clubs in Germany and now in other countries around the globe have
proved that emotional benefits, services, and value added discount
programs are the key to customer loyalty."
Steps to Establishing a Customer Club:
"There are several steps involved in establishing an effective
customer club. First, put together an interdisciplinary project team
that is fully devoted to developing a powerful program. Creating a
customer club should involve the whole organization and by having team
members from different departments you avoid a one-sided approach.
Moreover, before starting any work on a customer club, answer one
question honestly: "Are our products (or services) really worth it?"
If your products are inferior or out of date, any investment in a
customer club will be a waste of time and money."
Club Goals:
"At the outset, the goals for the club must be clearly defined. Only
if they are will you be able to measure the club's success. The core
goal of a customer club is of course to increase profit revenue and
market share. Other important goals include customer retention,
winning new customers, setting up a strong customer database,
supporting other departments with information or access to
information, and creating communication opportunities between the
organization and its customers. A variety of subsidiary goals are
added, such as improving public relations and customer support,
increasing usage and achieving more frequent visits to your product or
service."
"It is important to be aware that customer clubs do not create quick
results. They should instead be viewed as a powerful
retention-marketing tool for building long-term relationships."
Club Benefits:
"The heart and soul of a customer club are its benefits. Choosing the
right benefits will make the club successful. Benefits must have a
high-perceived value to members. To find the right combination of hard
(financial) and soft (non-financial) benefits, it is necessary to take
a value-oriented approach that consists of three steps."
"In the first step, a list of potential benefits is brainstormed,
focusing on the needs of the target groups. The only limit to
developing interesting benefits is the imagination of the project
team."
"The second step is small-scale pre-studies that aim to filter out the
most and the least interesting benefits from this list by asking a
small sample to rate the different benefits. The interviewees are
asked to add new ideas of their own in order to make sure that
interesting areas are not left out and the customer's voice is heard."
"Some of these new ideas as well as the best-rated benefits are taken
into the third step, a large-scale survey. Interview a sample of at
least 250 people. Using methods such as ranking scales, constant sum
scales or the more sophisticated and very exact conjoint measurement,
the value of the remaining benefits is measured."
"The result of this three-step approach is that the long list of
benefits obtained in step one is split into three groups: a small
group of top-value drivers, those benefits with a lower value to the
customer, and those benefits with no value from the customer's point
of view. Select the final benefits from the first two groups after
taking into consideration cost, feasibility and competence."
Communication:
"A customer club mainly communicates in three areas: with club
members, with the personnel of the sponsor organization and with those
in its external environment such as the media. There is a variety of
communication methods, such as a club magazine, regular newsletters or
mailings, a club hotline, a web page, club meetings and events, or
club outlets. Communications with members should not be limited to
sales information and special offer brochures. Members will want to
know what is happening in the club, receive information on new
products and read about topics of general interest."
"Internal communication with the sponsoring company's personnel and
management is important as they have to be informed about the club's
existence and its goals in order to fully support the club. Internal
support is very important and includes everybody from top management
to those at the customer interface. Only if the club is supported at
every level can it be a success. If, for example, a customer is
repeatedly treated badly by service or sales people, then no club in
the world can turn him or her into a loyal customer. In addition, a
club member might expect special treatment at the point of sale.
Therefore, all employees who deal directly with customers must
understand the importance of the customer club, the loyalty effect it
is trying to create and their role in this process."
"Finally, the club has to communicate with those in its external
environment to obtain press coverage and to increase awareness of its
activities. A great deal of press coverage will not only attract new
members, but also enhance the sponsoring company's image with its
customers."
How the Club is Organized
"A customer club is a complex organization involving many different
parties, including the sponsoring company, the club management,
external partners, financial partners and the members. It also
encompasses a variety of processes and tasks, such as communicating
with customers, dealing with financial issues and handling problems.
In order to manage the club properly and ensure a smooth operation, a
club service center may be set up that forms the hub for all club
contacts and activities. Because of the complexity and the general
goal of increasing customer loyalty, the club service center must be
of a very high quality. Therefore, the personnel, technology and other
infrastructure have to be chosen carefully."
"The question of whether to do all these tasks in house or outsource
them to an external agency is difficult to answer, as both
alternatives have their advantages. In general, it is a good solution
to take care of core club tasks within the company, while more
administrative tasks are outsourced. However, the final decision
depends on the financial situation of the sponsoring company and the
degree of independence it wants to have."
Integrating the Customer Club into Your Organization
"One of the questions that should be addressed is how to integrate the
customer club into the sponsoring company's organizational structure.
There is a variety of alternatives from founding a very independent
company to manage the club, to integrating the club into an existing
department, to outsourcing the entire club management to an outside
agency. There is no best solution, so this decision depends on the
individual situation of the sponsoring company."
"It is more important to ensure that the customer club's enormous
support potential is fully exploited within the company. Departments
such as market research, product marketing or R&D can use the
information in the club data- base and the members themselves to test
new products, to discuss existing products in order to identify
problems and areas of improvement to test new advertising campaigns,
and for many other opportunities. Club members demonstrate more
willingness than ordinary customers do to participate in surveys, as
they have a stronger relationship with the products, expressed by
their membership."
====
"Ten great reasons to choose a Herpa model for your company." Herpa.
http://www.herpa.de/herpa_ef.htm?http://www.herpa.de/industry/promomodels_e.htm&1
********************************************************************************
"With the Herpa Cars Club and its bimonthly magazine DER MASSSTAB, and
with more than 20,000 members and subscribers from all over the world,
Herpa has one of the largest customer clubs worldwide. For you, that
means that the reports about your model act as a kind of free
advertisement for your company on a worldwide scale."
One example of a unique membership idea, besides their magazine, etc:
"Every two months, all members participate in a free lottery where
they can win a special model."
** (How could you apply some sort of concept like this to the
insurance business?) **
====
"MANAGING CUSTOMER VALUE," by A.V.SURESH. FICCI Publications.
http://www.ficci.com/ficci/cmi/CMI11.htm
*************************************************************
"Once you have built an organisation, which is worthy of devotion, and
have a set of loyal customers who swear by you, it is important that
you recognize your customers and remind them how important they are.
Appreciation does wonders to each of us. Would you agree to that? How
can our customers then be different from us. Customers seek attention
and appreciation from the company they have been loyal to. Exclusive
customer clubs, freebies or even a small birthday or anniversary card
can do the trick for you. Assume you bought a television a decade back
from company X and replaced it with a newer model of the same company
X, wouldn't you be delighted to receive a thank you card from the
company or to be present in a get-together organized with all your
fellow customers?"
===========
Some ideas to consider about creating loyal customers at a
cooperative bank follow:
"Member Relationship Management in Credit Cooperatives," by Dr. Thomas
Baumgärtler.
IRU Courier 3/01.
http://www.iru.de/en/publikationen/courier/3-01/english-2.html
"At the same time, the continuous increase in cooperative
shareholders, combined with a growing number of members per credit
cooperative due to mergers, makes personal contacts and relationships
with the members almost impossible. Tendencies of alienation and
indifference on the part of existing or potential members are the
logical result of this process. In addition, the fact that credit
cooperatives frequently do not recognize the positive effects of close
contact with the members and do not use them to their advantage
appears to be problematic. This fact, and also a general decline in
customer loyalty in banking, have resulted in minimum contact between
the member and its bank. Cooperative institutions are therefore called
upon to pay greater attention to their relationship with the members
in future."
"...... This brings us to the question of how to manage the
relationship with the members (customers) more intensively in future
in view of growing competitive pressure. An adequate response: a
membership retention strategy of credit cooperatives should in
principle aim at reducing the tendency to switch banks and at
intensifying the relationship with existing members in their capacity
of both customers and investors/shareholders instead."
"Against the background of members´ individual needs, both the effects
they are looking forward to before using the service and the expected
benefits once the service has been rendered play a very important
part. Depending on whether their expectations in using the service
have been met or not, or have even been exceeded from their point of
view, different constellations and reactions amongst the members, in
their capacity of customers, can be noted. Possible responses range
from positive references and loyalty on the part of the member to
complaints, negative mouth-to-mouth propaganda, reduced frequency and,
at worst, resignation of the member. A high degree of loyalty and a
close relationship with the members can only be achieved if members
are highly satisfied."
****
"...surveys of satisfaction indicators must be carried out such as,
amongst other things, the volume and conditions of services previously
offered, future customer demands for services, additional bank
accounts, friendliness and quality of advice and the image of the
bank.
**Credit cooperatives have numerous instruments for either collecting
information (such as written questionnaires, interviews, telephone
campaigns) or for reviewing complaints (i.e. cards to express an
opinion or a hotline for complaints), the latter being particularly
important for membership retention as part of a comprehensive
complaints management.**
In measuring member satisfaction, the objective should be to get as
close as possible to the needs and preferences of members and their
relationship to the cooperative at a particular point in time. Based
on such findings, specific measures can be initiated to eliminate
possible deficiencies."
****
"An element which has been discussed in the literature for a long
time, but is seldom used in cooperative practice is the cooperative
patronage refund. This concept creates a member-oriented added
(financial) value which cannot be copied by competitors in the same
manner. Yet credit cooperatives often emphasize the dividend paid to
members as the only feature that distinguishes members from
non-members. In so doing, they reduce investor relations exclusively
to the profit orientation of the member. By introducing a refund on
cooperative patronage for both deposits and credits, the customer
relationship with the member can be reinforced because it pays for the
individual member to intensify business with its bank. The concept of
cooperative patronage refund is extremely helpful in emphasizing the
exclusive nature of membership, in particular from an economic point
of view, in comparison to non-members and competitors, and in
considerably reducing the number of members/customers who "go
astray"."
"In addition to using material incentives, credit cooperatives may
activate a socio-emotional bond between the members and the bank at
the level of ownership; active involvement of the members will play an
important part in this. If members regard their participation merely
as a profitable form of investment, the relationship will be reduced
to financial considerations and lasts as long as the amounts paid in
dividends are acceptable to the member. Unlike large commercial banks,
in which customers and owners are not identical, the members in credit
cooperatives are at the same time the decision-makers. At the annual
meetings or delegates´ assemblies, the member can take part in the
decision-making and control of its cooperative. Active member
participation may in fact contribute to greater satisfaction because
it offers the opportunity of communication in the form of both
criticism and acknowledgment. Additionally, participation may
strengthen internal cohesion, under certain conditions may even
stimulate a "we-feeling" and identification of members with their bank
- and ultimately affect positively the business relationship in the
process. These opportunities do not exist for customers in the
"general market". In most cases, dissatisfaction about services
rendered can only be expressed in terms of refusal to make any further
purchases at all."
====
Not necessarily communication, but a way to retain customers!
"Utilities Target New Programs To Build Customer Loyalty." Envision
Online.
http://www.envworld.com/Newsletter/summer_00_3.html
"The insurance industry provides a good example of how companies can
increase customer loyalty by expanding products and services provided.
Many insurance companies that began in the life insurance business
later expanded to include property and casualty insurance. Their goal
was to provide one-stop shopping for all of their customers' insurance
needs. Prudential is one example. The Prudential Insurance Company of
America had millions of life insurance policyholders who already knew
and trusted the Prudential name. When the company started selling
homeowners and auto insurance policies, it offered a discount on
premiums to customers who hold both a Prudential life insurance policy
and a Prudential homeowners or auto insurance policy. In this way, the
company increased sales as well as customer loyalty."
==========
Wausau Companies Agency offers electronic newsletters and a multitude
of seminars to customers around the country!
http://www.w-cai.com/
Customer Seminars
"For 2003, Wausau offers over 100 loss prevention seminars in topics
ranging from decision driving to disaster preparedness at no
additional charge to Wausau customers. This selection of seminars is
twice as many as last year. To better serve your needs, we've located
these seminars conveniently in a major city near you."
http://www.wausau.com/omapps/ContentServer?pagename=wcmInter/Page/Level3Page&cid=1019551143147&dir=/wcmInter/Home/Services/Loss_Prevention/Customer_Seminars
(Take a look at all these seminars!!!!!!!!!)
=====
How could you re-format and apply this type of concept?
From "A Business Case for Automated Response Marketing," by Susan
Lassiter-Lyons, Principal, Lassiter Marketing Group, LLC. Big
Marketing.
http://www.big-marketing.com/myarticle1.html
Insurance Companies:
"Insurance companies send out personalized storm warnings via email to
all their home policy owners in the area where the storm is expected.
The messages include tips on how the policy can protect their home
from storm damage and what the policyholder can do to decrease the
likelihood of damage. This not only creates an enormous amount of
goodwill for the company, it also lowers the amount of claims that
they have to pay out. Let's say for example that, on average, this
company receives 1,000 claims a year averaging $25,000 a claim. If
these types of email campaigns help reduce the number of claims by
just a conservative 1%, the result is a savings of at least $250,000
per year."
=======
I know you have been hoping for some examples that are far more
concrete. However, the internet has brought customer communication to
an entirely new level. Therefore, seminars, e-mail or snail-mail
newsletters, thoughtful cards to remember special occasions, etc.
might be your best bet as a start toward building a good communication
program.
I sincerely hope this helps in some regard. Do not hesitate to ask
for further clarification *before* rating this answer and I will be
happy to do what I can!
umiat-ga
Google Search Strategy
"customer clubs"
+corporate "customer clubs"
customer loyalty AND insurance companies
+newsletters AND seminars +communication AND insurance companies
insurance companies AND customer communication +offline |
