Health insurance members expect strong digital consumer experience (CX) options, and payers that provide or improve those options likely would enhance member engagement. (Photo: Shutterstock)
The health care industry is often compared to other consumer shopping experiences, such as buying a car or a new appliance. Aside from actually being able to compare the price of different goods, these shopping decisions often depend in large part on the customer experience–another oft-overlooked area in health care satisfaction.
Zipari, which bills itself as the developer of the first and only Consumer Experience Platform built specifically for health insurance, recently released results of a new survey gauging member engagement.
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Among the findings:
- The call center is the heart of member engagement and remains the preferred communication method for many health insurance members. When asked what would increase their health plan engagement, 71% said shorter service-center hold times. Additionally, 65% would like service representatives to have more information available right away.
- Health insurance members still expect strong digital consumer experience (CX) options, and payers that provide or improve those options likely would enhance member engagement with their health plans. In fact, digital access is a significant predictor of member satisfaction.
- Payers that make investments in digital CX are reaping benefits, including their ability to personalize member experiences across channels.
For its report — titled "Members Weigh-In on Consumer Experience: With Some Surprises for Payers" — Zipari and its research partner Ipsos, surveyed 3,000 health insurance members and 400 payer representatives to gauge their perspectives on consumer experience (CX) across traditional interactions and digital channels.
With years of research showing that member engagement is key to improving satisfaction scores, driving better health outcomes, and reducing costs for payers and members alike, creating effective consumer experiences remains a critical challenge, according to Zipari.
"While the call center remains a core pillar driving member engagement, digital member portals and apps are a critical and complementary channel for payers to engage with members and maintain customer satisfaction," Mark Nathan, Zipari's chief executive officer, said in a statement. "This creates a huge opportunity for payers. When members can accomplish basic tasks on their own with digital solutions, it creates less pressure on the call center, reduces hold times, and sets up opportunities for what health insurance leaders identified as a key competency: more time and empathy for members who are calling because of stressful health or financial challenges."
Payer respondents that have made investments in digital CX report significant benefits from those efforts. More than 90% of survey respondents that have made digital investments noted significant membership increases, with 73% indicating a decrease in membership turnover. Additionally, while 73% of payers feel that they reach out frequently to members, only 24% of members share that sentiment. In fact, 63% of members said outreach in the form of personalized recommendations would increase their engagement.
These results highlight an opportunity for payers to improve communication orchestration while also putting payers without digital CX platforms at a disadvantage, according to Nathan. "The data clearly shows that mastering both the call center and personalizing digital offerings and outreach is going to be the golden ticket to attracting and retaining customers in this fast-changing, dynamic, member-driven market," he said. "Essentially, what members want today is a human connection when they need it most, and digital self-access available around the clock."
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