Facebook is a social web application which used to build personal networks.
The main usage of these networks is called “Facebook Marketing” that will help spread the brand and propel business into the forefront of existing and potential customers’ minds. So Pages, Groups, Applications, Advertising, Polls and Connects of Facebook is used to be a supplements to the eCommerce. The insurer still need their own eCommerce site but a link between it and Facebook can extend the channel (with Facebook) and do viral marketing (through Facebook).
Some companies like Bestbuy use Facebook application like “Shop + Share” to sell products on Facebook. That’s a good idea for small shops or retail businesses. But for financial services like insurance, I think simple products like Accident can be sold there but others are hard to put into Facebook.
We know that our SP is used to help re-build the sales process missed linkages between customer acquisition and policy purchase. Traditionally these works are done via agents and now agents are still main channel for complex products. The usage of Facebook can easily solve the missed linkage. The networks connect agents, customers and insurer can help customers find agents and help agents acquire customers. Insurer can provide tools on Facebook in order to do help customers find their insurance requirements and nearest agents. (And their requirements can be sent to the agents.)
Scenario: An insurer has its own Facebook page. Lots of agents and customers are follower of the company. One day, the insurer announces that a product for pet is released and an application to do pet life quotation can be find in insurer’s Facebook pages. The customers can use the tool to do quotation for their pets, buy it directly or find an agent nearby to get more information. And agents can use this tool to calculate and sell the product to others do not use Facebook.
Google Wave is a web application for real-time communication and collaboration.
The main usage of the platform is collaboration between multiple persons in real time or nearly real time. For insurance company, these collaborations can between the staffs or across the partners. Based on Google Wave, the stakeholders of any business can come together and solve the problems in an efficient way. The two problems left are building the Google Wave Application for the business and ask stakeholders come into the Wave.
There are lots of scenarios in insurance business which need lots of collaborations. It will be very efficient that customer, agent and operator can use Google Wave to filling the application forms online (then send it into the system). And the underwriters, doctors and other specialists can perform underwriting in another Wave. Note that insurance is a very complex financial service business, so nearly any business inside the insurance contains lots of stakeholders e.g. re-insurance, product design, claim, etc. All of these can collaborate in Google Wave.
The Google Wave can be a nice supplement for Insurance Business Systems which always need some offline collaborations. It can make these work online and directly link with the systems.
Scenario: When the customer is going to buy the new released Pet Life V2, but such product is a little complex, a new Wave triggered by agent is begin. The customer put the information and images of his pet into the wave, the agent help him filling the application form. After the operator of insurance company confirm the application, the data is sent to business system.