Picture this scenario: A MetLife home and auto policyholdervisits Amazon's site over a two-month period to purchase productsfor a newborn on the way, including food and clothing, a baby crib,stroller and wireless monitor. Before a Metlife's agent learns ofthis coming "life event," an Amazon call center agent, shoppingcart transitions in hand, offers the customer a life insurancepolicy through a partnering carrier, taking new business that, inyears past, would likely have gone to MetLife.

Sound far-fetched? Think again.

According to Glenn Wintrich a global director and principalconsultant of Innovation Services at Dell, Amazon has applied to sell insurance(both life and P&C) in 37 states. It's only a matter of time,he warns, before the tech titan clears some hurdles (regulatory,among others) and jumps into the arena, presenting a potentiallyformidable threat to the industry's long-establishedincumbents.

But there's still time for these players to fight back against"disruptive innovation" from the likesof Amazon. To that end, said Wintrich, a workshop presenter at the2016 BenefitsPRO Broker Expo held in Fort Lauderdale, insurers mustdo some innovating of their own. That means getting a handle on thegrowing mountain of data about customers and prospects that's readyto be tapped.

"Industry Innovation needs to be systemic," said Wintrich. "Thatdemands the right technology tools to gather, interpret and managedata. It also requires foresight: an ability to look at industrytrends, determine what’s real, probable and possible, and stayahead of the competition."

The industry's need for a better holistic view of customers andprospects is real and growing, particularly in respect to dataavailable about them on social media. Wintrich said that socialcustomers tell an average of 42 people about a good experience —and 53 people about a bad one. Customer satisfaction is a leadingindicator of company financial performance.

The "voice of the customer" on social media carries more weightwith prospects than does a marketing campaign; and retention of anexisting client costs less than acquiring a new one.

"The cost of churn—replacing a customer who's left for anothercompany—is about three years' worth of business," said Wintrich."If you have such churn after two years, you make no money. If thecustomer leaves after one, you’ve lost money."

To minimize turnover and maximize customer acquisition andloyalty, he added, the next generation of business solutions mustbe designed for socially connected, mobile consumers. This is a bigand growing audience.

Market research cited by Wintrich pegs mobile phone users in2017 at $5.3 billion or about 70 percent of the world's estimated7.5 billion people. More than 4 in 10 people globally (2.3 billion)will using social media next year. By 2020, this huge populationwill be consuming 35 zettabytes (ZB) of data, up from 7.5 ZB in2015.

How to best serve these socially connected and mobile users?Enter the "real-time 360-degree view of the customer." Acomprehensive understanding of individuals’ wants and preferences,said Wintrich, requires software and systems that can gather andinterpret both "data you own" (behavioral information collectedfrom past transactions); and "data you don't own" (directinformation collected from real-time, direct engagement with thecustomer; and derived information from real-time, directengagement with the customer).

The data collection encompasses a wide range of sources. Amongthem: business systems data, 3rd party information, engagementthrough mobile and IoT (Internet of Things) solutions. Itextends also to psychographic/social data, physiologicalinformation (such as from wearables), life events, affinityrelationships and networks.

To illustrate the 360-degree approach, Wintrich noted thatsocial media monitoring tools can be used to track customercomplaints about a vendor on Twitter or Facebook. The provider canthen "nip the problem in the bud" by proactively contacting thedisgruntled individual to address the issue before the problemescalates and does real damage.

Data gathering tools can also be used to build a tailored policybased on an applicant's lifestyle, health, employment and maritalstatus and other factors. For many, such customization can be agodsend, as in situations where an applicant would normally bedeclined or rated because of his or health condition.

Wintrich noted, for example, that accidental death anddisability (ADD), life and disability income insurance aretypically 3 to 5 times more costly for diabetics than for healthyindividuals.

However, using a Fitbit and other tools for monitoring real-timechanges in an applicant's health condition and activities —weightloss or gain, blood sugar levels, daily exercise and sleep — aninsurer may be able to offer a policy for a premium at or near thepreferred or standard rate. Or, if a policyholder veers off aprescribed dietary, medical or exercise regime, the insurer canoffer coaching to get them back on track, dynamically adjusting thepolicy premium to suit the individual's health status.

"People who answer 'yes’ on an application to a question askingwhether they're a diabetic are almost always declined forinsurance," said Wintrich. "That means lost commission for thebroker and revenue for the insurer.

"Now, a carrier can ask whether a diabetic applicant is enrolledin a company’s wellness program and is monitoring his or her healththrough a Fitbit, Apple Watch or other wearabledevice," he added. "If data from that device isconnected to a company’s health-monitoring Web portal, an applicantmay now become a low risk and eligible for conditionalcoverage."

For healthy policy applicants, he continued, technologies arecoming to market that can quickly and seamlessly facilitate thesale. In Wintrich's example of the "digital insurer of the future,"the entire sales process — delivery of a policy quote, ratings andreviews from friends on social media, underwriting validation,policy issuance, notification of the premium paid and access to thepolicy online — takes place within an 11-hour period. Theinformation at each step is communicated to the applicant acrossmultiple devices: the desktop, laptop tablet and smart phone.

Such end-to-end policy customization transaction capabilities,and the customer data underpinning them, will be key not only tosecuring and retaining new customers, but also the benefits brokerswho interface with them.

"We’re telling insurers, 'You need to pay close attention to thedata that people are giving you,'" said Wintrich. "It will beincreasingly important for brokers and agents to closely alignthemselves with carriers that are adopting best practices in regardto data collection and analysis."