Today's Customers Need Conversation Instead Of One-Way Communication: Piyush Trivedi, Kotak Mahindra Life Insurance

In an era where digital engagement plays a pivotal role in customer interactions, insurance companies are embracing innovative strategies to meet evolving customer expectations. Piyush Trivedi, the Joint President – Alternate Channel at Kotak Mahindra Life Insurance, sheds light on the innovative approaches the company has adopted to engage with customers directly and provide tailored insurance solutions. Excerpts from the interview: 

What innovative strategies has Kotak Life Insurance adopted to engage with customers directly and provide them with personalised solutions?

Technology exposure in India is leading to an increase in digital natives whose communication, decisions and actions are embedded in technology. The Gen X, Y and Z of today are inherently impatient for relevant information that would help them take decisions swiftly.

As a new-age insurance company catering to these digital natives, we have invested in various mar-tech platforms to understand the growing customer needs and develop a strategy and roadmap to reach and engage them. Our customers have evolved significantly and look for the most transparent and seamless experiences. Whether its customer interactions, purchasing journeys, or personalised automated pieces of communication, today's customers need conversation instead of a one-way communication. At Kotak Life, we have made this expectation the basis of all our Purchase and Service journeys interactions with our customers

With an objective to ensure not only financial well-being but also to ensure overall well-being for our customers and their families, we at Kotak Life have launched the ‘HappyYou’app. This app is designed to give our customers complete control of their physical, mental and emotional health through an easy to use and engaging interface.

How do you see the landscape of alternate direct channels evolving in the insurance industry, and what potential do these channels hold for reaching a wider audience and increasing accessibility to insurance products?

Today, customers have more access to information because the internet is at their fingertips. Increasingly, they research and engage with brands online. Naturally, this is a more informed audience, who have a strong sense of discretion between right and wrong. These customers have set new standards for convenience, ease of use and value. For a long time, the traditional insurance business model proved to be resilient. But now, with this data-driven scenario, insurance models, purchase and servicing journeys are evolving to meet the digital age customer’s expectations.

To enable that, at Kotak Life, we have set-up 24x7 digitally enabled service touchpoints, AI/Machine Learning chatbots for seamless & instant service processing, and simplified and seamless purchase journeys.

Digital engagement has become increasingly important, especially in the insurance sector. How does Kotak Life Insurance leverage digital platforms to engage with customers and provide them with seamless and interactive experiences?

Social media has made it easier to reach out to customers and build awareness. We have a robust social media strategy that consists of multi-lingual content that focuses on our products, services, demystifying life insurance as a category, etc. to increase awareness among our customers. Along with social media, we also offer an interactive and seamless experience through well-designed and user-friendly website that offers easy navigation, clear information and tools for managing policies, making payments and filing claims. 

We also offer web and WhatsApp chatbots that provide instant responses to customer inquiries, guides them through policy details and assists with basic tasks and much more. We have interactive calculators to find human life value, investment needs for fulfilling future goals and product suitability, along with a user-friendly interface to provide instant quotes and online buying journeys with simplified and integrated processes for real-time PAN verification, eKYC, credit score check, etc. to reduce manual documentation.

Could you share some examples of successful digital marketing campaigns or initiatives that have significantly impacted customer engagement and led to increased awareness about insurance products?

We have multiple full-funnel marketing campaigns that not only create awareness but also talk about important aspects that are relevant to customers to build engagement and eventually leads to a purchase for us. These campaigns are executed around key product categories such as Term, ULIP and guaranteed returns. These have helped us not only reach a wider in-market audience and build product awareness but also increase our brand search volume. 

Recently, we experimented with a protection solution for youngsters “Kotak Protect India” which offered a seamless on-boarding experience along with the ability to customise solutions to an individual’s need. 

As the lead life insurer for Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, Kotak Life has launched the “Suraksham” initiative to maximise insurance awareness and penetration in these geographies. Suraksham includes spreading financial awareness, financial literacy programmes at schools, health awareness camps through mobile medical vans and a host of other on-ground awareness drives.