By Dave Willis, CPIA

Summer tans are barely starting to fade and it's already time to think about getting ready for next year. Agents and brokers interested in building and maintaining a solid book of voluntary benefits business should start planning-and acting-now to ensure a successful 2016.

Finding and firming up partnerships is an important first step. "Do your research and make sure you partner with a voluntary benefits specialist that can offer your clients experience, expertise, exceptional quality and a proven track record of success working with brokers and in your clients' industries," advises Rich Williams, senior vice president of Growth Markets for Colonial Life. He says very few new entrants offer such proven end-to-end benefit services.

"Also," he adds, "look for a carrier that measures its effectiveness and customer service, internally and through external, unbiased research. Companies that continually scrutinize themselves continually improve. The right partner will help differentiate you from your competition and help you and your clients achieve a significant positive bottom-line impact."

Laura Bongiorno, vice president of specialty and voluntary markets for The Hartford, concurs. "Understanding your partnerships is more critical than ever," she says. "Have a short list of vetted partnerships on the carrier side, as well as the technology side. This will allow you to recommend good fits."

As for technology's role in sales and management of voluntary benefits, Jim McGovern, vice president, employee benefits division, at OneAmerica, offers counsel on finding the best match. "Listen to what people are proposing as a solution and then conduct due diligence," he offers. "IT solutions are like cars. They may look good on the outside, but look under the hood. How old is it? Is it flexible? Is it an open-source code? Doing that will serve you and your customers very well."

Len Cavallaro, head of voluntary marketing at Reliance Standard Life Insurance Company, adds, "This business is changing every day. The last five years, for sure, have seen more change in employee benefits than the 25 years before them. Attend conferences and trade shows-for content, of course-but also for the exhibitor rooms. They're full of various vendors and services. When deciding on a technology solution, talk to a carrier you're comfortable with to see which vendors integrate well with them."

Product focus

Pointing to a Kaiser Family Foundation survey showing that 28% of respondents couldn't define "annual health insurance deductible," Joel Ray, chairman and CEO of New Benefits, says, "Someone has to help them. Agents and brokers need to be up-to-speed on insured and non-insured benefits. When an employer says, 'My people can't afford a $50 doctor co-pay' or 'I can't afford a rate increase, but I need to protect my employees,' be ready to respond."

He points out that more and more employers are seeing value in bringing things like concierge services, bill negotiation, 24/7 access to a physician and more to the table. "The more time you spend learning about all of the available products and services, the more valuable of an agent or broker you'll be to customers and prospects," he notes.

Kathy O'Brien, vice president of voluntary benefits for Unum's National Client Group, adds, "The most successful brokers will be those who broaden their perspective of what a total benefits portfolio looks like for their clients." She points out that, as more brokers move into the voluntary benefits space, those who are able to assume a more consultative role will be able to offer better-rounded portfolio solutions for their clients.

She also emphasizes the importance of keeping voluntary in the mix. "As we continue to see technology play a key role in the benefits landscape, and as health care reform continues to influence this industry, brokers who can offer their clients a full portfolio of benefits-one that includes voluntary benefits-will be the most successful."

Jeff Kolesar, vice president of group sales and market development at Renaissance Dental, similarly encourages agents and brokers to move from a "features and benefits" method of selling to a consultative approach. He says, "By providing a higher level of advice and guidance to clients, and cross-selling ancillary benefits, agents and brokers increase enrollment and retention rates while creating multiple revenue streams to replace lost medical commissions."

He points out that voluntary benefits have grown increasingly popular among employer groups, and ancillary benefits are following suit. "Such benefits, like dental and vision, aren't the headache that medical is," Kolesar says. "When you sell ancillary, you not only increase your compensation, but you improve your overall stickiness with customers."

"Take time to really understand the medical plans within the group," advises Janet Buzil, MBA, HIA, vice president of marketing and product development for Combined Insurance, "and then match the supplemental products to those. For instance, look for the accident insurance hospital admission benefit and align it with the medical deductible such that, if an employee ends up in the hospital for an accident, the deductible is covered. That way, you're not over- or under-insuring people."

She also suggests aligning the doctor visit benefit with the co-pay. "Or if there's no co-pay, go higher to cover the full cost of the visit," Buzil says. "It's similar with critical illness. Originally, it was for the non-medical costs of getting ill, but now it's gaining popularity because of $5,000 medical plan deductibles."
Customer needs should be the focus. "As a mutual company, we build products to serve needs versus building products to make money," McGovern explains. "Our latest offering took a whole life product from our flagship portfolio and created a guaranteed-issue worksite benefit. We believe everybody should have some whole life in their portfolio, so when they leave their job, they can take care of themselves and leave a legacy for their families."

It's important to complement solid offerings with good communication. "Employers need to deliver an effective communications strategy that engages and speaks to the value of the benefits being offered, especially since they may have to contribute more of their own funds to achieve the right level of protection," explains Phyllis Falotico, assistant vice president, Group and Worksite Marketing for The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America.

She adds, "Workplace benefits have become critical to the financial security of today's working Americans and can be offered at little or no cost to the employer. An integrated communications strategy is key to ensure an understanding of how these products work to help meet coverage gaps."

Clients, data and more

Bongiorno offers several recommendations for agents and brokers looking to succeed in the voluntary benefits arena. First, she says, understand Millennials. "You need to understand them and how their decision-making will affect the workforce," she explains. "Learn how they make decisions, how they buy, and what insurance products they will need going forward."

Data analytics is similarly important. "With technology," she adds, "we're able to align information of an individual's decision, their buying persona and their need. Everything can be much more individualized."
Finally, understand technology and security. "Make sure you know how to handle and protect consumer data," she suggests.

Cavallaro emphasizes the importance of serving insureds. "Find a way to offer advice to end consumers," he explains. "Employers don't want all of the questions coming back to them. When the employee has questions and needs help deciding what to buy, a good broker can step in and claim that role for his or her own."

Dylan Whitney, workplace sales manager for EMC National Life, offers what might be the most practical advice for producers looking to grow their voluntary benefits business: "Just ask! If agents want to keep pace in the ever-changing and competitive insurance market, they need to be asking both existing and prospective clients for an opportunity to provide a voluntary solution."

He adds, "Voluntary products are set up in a way that an agent should be asking to add a new product to all client benefit offerings each and every year. This ongoing sales strategy enables the agent to show value while increasing overall retention and ultimately keeping others out."

The author
Dave Willis, CPIA, is a New Hampshire-based insurance freelance writer and a regular contributor to Rough Notes.