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Challenges & solutions for advisors - part 2 - Growth
Discover practical solutions to advisors' biggest challenges, and how smart technology can help.
22 May 2025
Today's insurance advisor faces a multiple challenges at once: how do you attract new customers, and how do you serve them without your workload exploding? In a market where margins are under pressure and personal service remains crucial, finding the right balance is extra important. In this blog, we look at how digital support can help advisors with efficient customer management and unlocking sustainable growth.
Modern customers - who are they?
Before you can start thinking about how to acquire new clients, you need to have a good idea of what kind of modern clients there currently are. Our research shows that advisors encounter roughly three types of customers, each of which requires a different approach:
Independent decision-makers: These customers want to arrange everything themselves and take out insurance through a user-friendly digital environment.
Hybrid decision-makers: They want guidance in the selection process, but then take out their insurance online themselves.
Full-service customers: This group wants to be completely unburdened and let the advisor handle the insurance.
Advisors who can serve all three customer types, significantly increase their chances of growth. But that requires flexible customer service models, in which digitalisation and personal contact are combined. So let's take a look at the challenges, and of course the solutions.
Challenge 1: Finding and retaining new customers
Finding new customers is becoming increasingly difficult. Many products and services are searched for, found and bought online. As a result, there are a lot more options, and thus more competition.
This is both an opportunity and a threat: the ability to be found no longer depends on distance, which is good because it opens up possibilities to gain customers anywhere. But on the other hand, it means you could miss out on the people in your very own neighbourhood, because they haven't been able to find you online.
Solution: Increasing your online presence (with some extra help)
A perhaps obvious solution is to work on your online 'findability'. But just because it's a bit obvious, doesn't mean it isn't true. In fact, there are still advisors who don't do anything about improving their online presence.
One reason is that improving findability takes time - and time is precious. That's where marketing agencies can come in handy, to outsource these marketing efforts to. There's even agencies with a special (sub)focus on insurance advisors, so they're well-informed enough for a flying start.
Yet marketing also raises the question in some people's minds, ‘With all these big companies with big media budgets, does it even make sense for me to make such an investment?’. The shortest answer is yes, but you're right that you need to be smart about it. For example, as mentioned earlier, there are plenty of clients who want to speak to their advisor in real life, rather than digitally. So having a local office is a strength you can leverage in your online marketing. This way, you can be found, and distinguish yourself by being local.
In reality, technology can actually help strengthen personal contact!
Challenge 2: Scalable customer service
Growth is important for advisors, especially now that there's more pressure on provision earnings and transparency. But how do you make sure you can grow, without having to hire more staff to keep up?
Many advisors struggle with inefficient processes and outdated systems. This leads to a lot of manual work, repetitive tasks and high workloads. The challenge lies in making customer service more efficient, without losing the personal touch and service that advisors are known for.
Solution: Digital solutions for extra efficiency
Customers expect convenience and fast service, while they also still value personal contact. So full, 100% digitisation isn't the answer. But digital service providers can help advisors work more efficiently, which can help save your staff from the increased workload. Think of smart digital solutions such as:
Online purchasing funnels:
In these digital environments, customers can easily purchase insurance policies themselves, without needing advice. You can also use such funnels after you've given customers the necessary advice, so customers have the option to activate their products themselves. Online purchasing funnels make sure you can help customers digitally and in your branding style, to maintain the customer loyalty and recognition you've worked hard to establish.
Digital customer portals:
Thanks to self-service portals, customers can easily view their data and adjust it when needed, without need you to manually intervene. Think of a their banking account, an e-mail address, or finding their policy sheet.
It also allows you to make sure that more impactful changes (such as a customer moving house) can only be submitted with your involvement. That way, you stay connect and can immediately adjust your advice accordingly.
Automated customer interactions:
Smart systems make sure advisors get notified about changes or events, which allows you to approach customers at the right time with relevant information. Think about big changes such as moves, birthdays and more. You could can also use this kind of automation for personalisation, such as congratulating customers on their birthday, to maintain this personal touch.
These kinds of solutions can help advisors serve more clients without compromising service quality.
The power of combining digitisation and personal touch
Many advisors are reluctant when it comes to digitisation because they fear it will be at the expense of personal customer contact. But we've found that technology can actually help strengthen personal contact! By reducing administrative burdens and automating repetitive tasks, advisors are left with more time for advice and in-depth customer contact.
A futureproof strategy needs:
Online presence to make sure you are findable in this digital age.
A hybrid customer service model, in which customers can take service themselves, but can also easily contact an advisor when needed.
Efficiency in processes through smart use of digitalisation.
A strong focus on customer experience, to make sure that customers continue to experience the service as personal and reliable.
Conclusion
To grow, insurance advisors need to be both efficient and customer-oriented. Digitalisation needs to be embraced rather than avoided. Because digitisation doesn't mean that the personal touch will disappear, but rather that it's strengthened by using technology where it adds most value, for both the customer and the advisor. Scalable growth can be achieved through a combination of digital presence, digital efficiency and offering a service that matches the expectations of the modern customer!
