WHOLESALE
eWholesaling from page 44
Tectonic shift to virtual
A recent article in Harvard Business Review, “Higher Ed Needs a
Long-Term Plan for Virtual Learning,” is another bell-weather for
the Life and Annuity sector.
As we know, “…unable to deliver on-campus learning,
universities have scrambled to provide academic continuity
through ‘emergency remote teaching.’” The Coronavirus pandemic
is forcing global experimentation with remote teaching. Many
factors indicate this crisis will create a tectonic shift beyond
this initial experimentation. Higher education is set for radical
transformation if remote teaching proves successful.
We are at the same point in the wholesaling world. Insurance
carriers, FMOs and BGAs over the past several months have
scrambled to provide wholesaling service continuity on a
virtual basis.
Will the most successful insurance carriers and brokerage
distributors over the next decade be those that provide the
most effective virtual service? Services such as live interactive
educational seminars; online tutorial programming; and, remote
sales assistance for point of sale client engagements?
Blueprint for future
The shift to eWholesaling can help an organization survive and
thrive in the emerging, post-COVID-19 economy. A blueprint for
building eWholesaling starts with prioritizing the following areas:
Virtual and interactive sales engagements
Digital platform-based training, education and sales
enablement
Real-time data insight — to drive proactive and targeted
wholesaler follow-up
Over the last several months, Ensight™ data shows a 155%
increase in virtual life insurance sales meetings. Demand from
wholesalers, financial advisors and life producers has been
unprecedented.
Like telemedicine and higher education, experimentation
starting as a response to COVID-19, is only set to dramatically and
rapidly shift current expectations of producer servicing. The rise of
the millennial generation — as the dominant financial professional
and consumer target audience — will further buttress this speed
of change.
5 recommendations
for eWholesaling:
1Go all-in on virtual engagements with producers —
Simply put, this is the future. The reality is virtual
meetings are more effective, efficient and productive
— while simultaneously creating more personal
relationships over the long-term.
2Think beyond case management technology —
The technology that will differentiate your
organization, whether for producers or key accounts,
will be how you enable digital learning and execute
virtual, point of sale support.
3Create your team of eWholesalers now —
The eWholesaling shift will happen rapidly in the
next two to three years. Start now. Millennials, the first
truly digital generation, are a good place to start to
build your eWholesaling team.
4Shift from T&E budgets to T&E investment —
We are rapidly moving past the world where
producer incentivization programs actually create
ROI. Tomorrow’s winners will already be re-steering
next year’s T&E (Travel & Entertainment) budget into
Technology & Education investment.
Win prospecting on the digital battleground —
5 The future of attracting and retaining new accounts
and producers will be based on your eWholesaling
model. Invest to win.
To be clear, when I say eWholesaling is the future, I am
advocating for a melding of human and technology: a cyborg
model. It makes sense for so many reasons. Higher productivity
for external wholesalers. Better agency and producer servicing.
Better product education. Even better relationships.
Now more than ever, ewholesaling should be a priority for
every manufacturer and distributor for maintaining competitive
advantage in this new virtual reality.
The rise of the millennial generation — as the dominant
financial professional and consumer target audience —
will further buttress this speed of change.
46 Perspectives Q3 2020