Industry watchers suggest insurance companies need to improve their ability to attract new customers and retain existing ones. Because people expect to interact with you electronically -- via mobile devices, social media, online transactions, etc. -- you need IT solutions that support those things. But IT solutions must also help streamline processes and curb costs, to increase overall business performance.

It’s time to bring legacy systems up to date or, more likely, replace them with newer IT solutions that will give you expanded capabilities and greater agility in the years to come. The marketplace is replete with applications specifically designed to help insurance companies and their agents reach high-tech customers with high-touch services.

Siloed operations are no longer productive.

You need infrastructure that assures seamless integration of data and applications. Comprehensive solutions can help you improve business productivity by streamlining workflow and operations and help you strengthen customer loyalty by ensuring top-quality service.

The right IT solutions can help you address enterprise-wide challenges such as:

• Increasing regulation.
• The need to expand into new markets, both geographically and with new product offerings.
• Changing demographics.
• The insurance-market ramifications of external threats such as terrorism and climate change.
• Adopting new distribution channels, especially web-based.

IT solutions can enhance client relationships.

Nearly 70% of millennials have no retirement plan, so there’s a vast untapped market out there. With the right IT solutions in place, you can reach them and convince them to choose you over the competition. But you can’t appear forward-thinking to prospective customers, or even long-time existing ones, if you’re not using the technologies they’re using on a daily basis.

Convenience and value are critical customer retention factors. Customers expect real-time service, consistently and across multiple channels. They want direct access to their own information, just like they have with their bank. Integration supports better access to data, for both employees and customers, and that builds trust. The most effective IT solutions provide a personalized experience for all processes -- sales, underwriting and claims.

The same is true for attracting and keeping employees. New hires may be highly tech-savvy, but if they aren’t, they’ll require extensive – and expensive – training to bring them up to speed. The most valuable IT solutions will support your employees’ need to work collaboratively and remotely and to use their own devices.

Customer-centric claims management is critical for continued survival.

The insurance industry is heavily dependent on business continuity and timeliness, so  reliable uptime is essential. Service interruptions are particularly painful for claims processes, because the circumstances are unhappy to begin with. In fact, claims is where many insurance companies traditionally lose customers. The right solutions can smooth your claims process and boost customer satisfaction.

Technology should support new product development.

Your enterprise can thrive when you’re able to monitor and analyze product pricing and financial results, because you can better predict customer behavior. In essence, technology is becoming a sales agent and customer service rep, too, enabling you to offer increasingly important services such as real-time quote generation and direct sales via multiple distribution channels. You can enhance efficiency and customer satisfaction and reduce your costs at the same time.

Taking advantage of innovative technologies can give you better information and insight to drive strategic growth for your organization. It can enhance enterprise-wide productivity, from the front office to sales agents, claims and other customer services. Equally important, smart solutions will help you better manage risk.

You’ll be equipped to get out in front of electronic hacking and other financial crimes, reduce day-to-day operations risks as well as disaster recovery planning, improve governance and ensure compliance.

You cannot be innovative or effectively implement new business models without the latest in IT solutions. The right choices will allow you to face change confidently and flexibly. That can stimulate business growth, helping you be competitive and more profitable.

Photo credit: Esurance.com