Research Findings

KAUS Insurance

Katherine Chen

DesignLab UX Academy

Table of Contents

Introduction

1. KAUS Background
2. KAUS Project

Synthesis

• User Persona
• Empathy Map
• Storyboard
• Conclusion
• Next Steps

Research

• Research Goals
• Assumptions
• Methodologies
• Market Research
• Competitor Analysis
• Provisional Personas
• Interviews

Project Introduction

KAUS Background

• Big insurance company operating for over 30 years
• They have insurance options for every type of situation
• Have 350+ packaged offerings rather than personalized options, allowing them to keep rates low
• Previously sold insurance traditionally through regional agents

KAUS Project

• KAUS is looking to create a responsive e-commerce website and new logo
• Goal is to start selling insurance online directly to consumers
• Want to tap into younger demographic, which tends to be more comfortable with digital platforms
• New platform will allow for easy search and filtering on their packages

Research

Research Goals

1. Understand why customers buy the insurance they have
2. Understand how customers research and find insurance
3. Discover what factors go into insurance decision-making
4. Uncover existing pain points that customers experience when looking for and selecting insurance
5. Find out how online insurance is sold today, and if there are any areas of improvement

Assumptions

• Many young adults are not familiar with buying insurance, or if they have insurance they aren’t familiar with their own policy and what it covers

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• Buying insurance online is not easy to do

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• Most people feel overwhelmed when choosing and buying insurance

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• Most people buy what’s convenient to them because buying insurance is confusing

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• Younger customers are more cost-conscious

• People are likely to go with an option that is readily available to them (e.g. family insurance plan, insurance through employment, familiar brand, etc.)

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• The overall need to change insurance plans over time is not strong once an initial selection is made

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• There is a gap in customer experience with in-person vs online insurance buying, and customers may be less willing to buy insurance online without agent assistance

Methodologies

Market Research

The purpose of market research was to familiarize ourselves with the insurance industry and understand the current market solutions and offerings, trends, practices, and customer demographics.

Competitive Analysis

It was important to understand competitor strategies and see if there are any areas of improvement to existing methods. In particular, KAUS noted that they were late to the digital game compared to their opponents and wanted to catch up.

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1:1 Interviews

Interviews were conducted to better understand consumers’ decisions and their feelings towards purchasing insurance. This method allowed us to directly collect qualitative data and discover preferences and pain points.

Market Research

The purpose of market research was to familiarize ourselves with the insurance industry and understand the current market solutions and offerings, trends, practices, and customer demographics.

​

Competitive Analysis

It was important to understand competitor strategies and see if there are any areas of improvement to existing methods. In particular, KAUS noted that they were late to the digital game compared to their opponents and wanted to catch up.

​

1:1 Interviews

Interviews were conducted to better understand consumers’ decisions and their feelings towards purchasing insurance. This method allowed us to directly collect qualitative data and discover preferences and pain points.

Market Research (1/2)

Statistics

• The average insurance customer engages with their insurer only 1-2 times a year
• In 2018, 12.5% of non-elderly adults were uninsured. 8.8% of all people were uninsured.
• 3 in 5 (60%) of insurers are using tech to build products/services to boost engagement, 35% planning to in 2020
• Health insurance is the fastest-growing segment. Takes up 23% of global insurance premiums. In 2017 the industry achieved 5% YoY growth.

Trends

• There’s a trend in the rise of Insurtech - with technology, AI, chatbots, and smart apps, many insurance startups are using this technology and disrupting the traditional insurance market.
• There is an increased focus on personalized premiums and usage-based coverage, rather than one-size-fits-all insurance. New tech such as AI and smartapps are used to determine personalized risk profiles.

Market Research (2/2)

* Trends with millennial consumers, based on surveys conducted by Liberty Mutual and Safeco Insurance

How millennials choose insurance

Digital channels used for service

Millennials purchase factors

Competitor Analysis

Common Features

• They all offer insurance for various situations
• Insurance types were split into categories on the website

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• Users can calculate policy quote online
• Users can manage billing and plans online
• Users can file claims online

Provisional Personas

Interviews

• 6 participants were interviewed about their insurance experience
• 3 male, 3 female
• Ages ranged between 24-64 years
• All participants had insurance of some kind

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• Interview consisted of questions on their insurance experience, buying process, and general opinions on insurance

Synthesis

User Persona

Empathy

Map

(1/2)

Empathy

Map

(2/2)

PAINS

• Upselling from insurance agents
• Busy with work, lack of time to look into plans
• Online portal doesn’t give quote right away
• Debating cost vs coverage
• Terms are confusing and lack transparency
• Concerned whether insurance will actually cover if an incident occurs
• Data privacy

GAINS

• Protect current way of life, have stability
• Peace of mind, be ready if something goes go wrong because insurance is there to support
• Better control over finances (for example, insurance helps cover partial healthcare expenses)
• Good cost vs quality/coverage insurance policy
• Fulfill legal insurance requirements, avoid fines on taxes, etc.

Storyboard (1/2)

Storyboard (2/2)

Conclusion

With this process, the research uncovered industry trends, competitor processes, common user behaviors, and consumer thoughts when it came to insurance.

The research insights and synthesis deliverables allow us to understand our target user base and better meet their needs by empathizing with the user.

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Key Insights

• Those who purchase insurance do so to protect their way of life and bring peace of mind
• Users tend to search online and ask people they know for opinions and recommendations when choosing their insurance company
• Users value reliability and simplicity in company processes, from getting a quote to filing a claim
• Upselling from agents was a common pain point across all interviewees

Next Action Steps

• Define project goals
• Develop product feature roadmap
• Begin to ideate on possible solutions

Thank you!