Customer experience

Due to banks' sales success, life insurers are designing simpler products for bank reps to sell.

The agreement will enable Ironshore Inc.’s specialty health care division to provide brokers with a direct entry access point to a dedicated Allianz underwriter to secure coverage for foreign and clinical liability insurance needs.

BlueCross and BlueShield of Tennessee has announced the theft of identifiable data that affects an estimated 500,000 members.

Internet marketing will be regulated by 2015, controlling more than $250 billion in Internet marketing spending worldwide. Outlandish? Maybe not.

Instead of focusing on product features, insurers are focused on growing customer wallet share and capturing emerging customer segments, such as Gen Y. Tech vendors need to pay attention.

The Hartford Financial Services Group is making an effort to help employers de-stress. As the finale of a three-part direct mail campaign, the group benefits carrier recently sent stress balls to leaders at nearly 2,000 large companies. Each executive received a hand-sized, squeezable ball printed with the Web address for The Hartford Experience (http://thehartfordexperience.com/).

Hotels and retailers top Forrester Research’s latest customer experience ranking, Customer Experience Index (CxPi). Insurers, though, rank among the bottom four industries on the list.

Global wealth management technology spending by banks, brokerages and insurance companies is set to reach $3.7 billion by the end of 2010, up 5% from 2009, according to a report released January 7 by Boston-based research firm Celent.

Sircon, a wholly owned subsidiary of Vertafore Inc., took to the road the past 14 months to facilitate discussions between Sircon and representatives from a number of insurance companies. Stopping in cities such as New York, Atlanta, Los Angeles, Dallas, Chicago and Philadelphia, Sircon’s insurance-industry solutions team provided attendees with insights into upcoming product developments, industry trends and challenges, and provided hands-on training and question-and-answer sessions on pressing topics.

CSE Insurance Group, released its second iPhone application, the CSE Accident Tool Kit application for the Apple iPhone and iTouch. The mobile application is designed to have everything policyholders need to report an auto accident and file a claim from an iPhone or iTouch.