Individual annuity remains a competitive market and insurers are looking to differentiate themselves by deepening distribution relationships, expanding channels, and improving transparency. To this end, insurers are focusing on technology investments to support automation, growth, customer experience, and efficiency.
The push towards lower fees means that producers will need to make up for lost income and grow their client base. Expansion in this market will depend largely on buying and communication preferences between Millennials, Gen Z, and prior generations. Carriers are turning their attention to straight-through processing, reviewing manual processes to improve the customer contracting experience. Some carriers are also breaking ground in online annuities by partnering with online marketplaces and startups.
Internally, attracting and retaining the next generation of producers is a growing concern as the average age of an agent moves past 59 years old. Insurers can apprehend this issue by improving agent portals, especially self-service functionality. Self-service can help ensure producer satisfaction while increasing operational efficiency.
Updating policy administration platforms are also very much top of mind as insurers seek to improve product development, scalability, interfaces, cost per policy, and data security. Nonetheless, challenges around converting contracts and sunsetting legacy platforms pervade; choosing the right partner for enhancements and managing internal resources are both critical.
More information on trends and challenges in the individual annuity sector is available in Novarica’s recent report, Business and Technology Trends: Individual Annuity.
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