More companies are turning to the insights data analytics can provide to their business—and voluntary benefit manufacturers are no exception. A recent Eastbridge survey on the topic revealed that 50 percent of carriers are currently using data analytics for at least some piece of their voluntary business. Another 20 percent are planning to implement analytics in the near future. These carriers are looking to use this data to help them better understand customer needs, increase persistency and provide better customer service.

Although most carriers are drawing on data from their administrative systems, many are also mining data from their billing and enrollment systems. Some are going so far as to build small internal teams dedicated to this effort, while others have chosen to outsource this type of analysis.

Clearly, the era of big data is creeping into the voluntary industry, and for many carriers, this information has the potential to pay big dividends. But as product manufacturers and other voluntary players further invest in analytics, it's important not to be left behind and squeezed out of the information game. Brokers who don't gain insights from their own data are likely to find carriers knowing more about their business than they do.