IMC Strategy for Westfield Insurance's Digital Growth

Introduction to Westfield Insurance

The way people view, compare, and purchase insurance is changing. More and more customers are using the internet to compare and buy insurance products. Westfield Insurance and its agents and agencies need to understand this trend, as it opens up an entirely new group of potential customers—especially the younger generation.

For this purpose, Westfield and its agencies must adapt their marketing and communication channels to target this new market. Integrated marketing communications (IMC) is necessary to build and establish the company brand online. Since potential customers use the internet extensively, it is best suited for the company to develop an IMC strategy that creates a strong presence across digital platforms. In this way, the company and its agents would be able to tap into new customers and use the internet—especially social media—for marketing purposes effectively.

Westfield Insurance, based in Ohio, U.S., is one of the oldest non-public companies in the region, operating in the insurance and banking sector. The company claims to be completely customer-oriented, with business strategies aimed at garnering customer satisfaction.

The company also attaches great importance to innovation and, coupled with a forward-looking vision, strives to be the leader in its field by capitalizing on the opportunities presented by an ever-changing business environment. Its strategy is to build long-term relationships with employees, business partners, and customers, thereby pursuing a model of sustainability.

Westfield employs an experienced team of professionals who provide objective and credible solutions for customers, striving to ensure peace of mind. The company's vision states that it always undertakes a pledge to protect the interests of its customers. Westfield banks on its knowledge of the business and values trust and integrity as the supreme qualities that give it respect and stewardship in the marketplace.

Despite being a non-public company, Westfield is one of the largest employers in Medina County, Ohio. The company is engaged in the business of commercial and personal insurance across 21 states, as well as surety services in all 50 states. This is achieved through an integrated network of more than 1,200 agents. With more than $3.9 billion in consolidated assets and net written premiums exceeding $1.7 billion, Westfield stands out as one of the players with the largest contract performance bonds in the state of Ohio.

At the core of the company's values is its pledge to "do what is right" for its customers, independent agency partners, and employees. The company stresses an inclusive policy—whether for its customers, employees, or agents. In recent years, Westfield has innovated through research and is providing products that are needed and expected by both customers and agents. These innovations have resulted in a band of satisfied customers, delivering sustainable business performance to the company.

The process of coordinating the various aspects of branding and image-building by companies is defined as integrated marketing communications (IMC). According to the American Association of Advertising Agencies, IMC is "a comprehensive plan that evaluates the strategic roles of a variety of communication disciplines and combines these disciplines to provide clarity, consistency and maximum communication impact" (Aaaa.org, 2015). The aim of IMC is to create a promotional strategy that is seamless for customers as they move from one aspect of the marketing mix to another. In this form of strategy, the core brand image is reinforced through different channels of marketing communication that function together in a seamless manner, rather than in isolation.

IMC Objectives and Benefits

The objectives and benefits of IMC for companies are manifold. IMC helps increase brand awareness, which is perhaps the most common marketing communication objective. This is achieved through the repetition of the brand name, slogans, and jingles, with the aim of becoming more memorable to the intended audience. For established companies like Westfield, IMC serves to maintain top-of-mind awareness for the company brand.

A well-thought-out IMC strategy also helps change audience attitudes in favor of the company. This aids in the removal of any misconceptions in the minds of customers or the general public about the company, its products, or its services. While this can also be achieved through extensive advertising, an integrated approach using all communication channels creates a greater impact. A notable example is BP, which spent millions on advertising campaigns to explain what the company was doing to clean up the environment following the 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

IMC activities also help create and influence the intent to purchase. Persuasive advertising and the use of multiple communication channels help achieve this objective more effectively than advertising alone.

Companies also use IMC to encourage first-time customers to make a trial purchase, which can lead to repeat purchases when executed through a carefully laid out plan. This is one of the more common techniques in marketing and leaves a greater impact when deployed across multiple communication channels.

Building a positive brand image through IMC strategy implementation can also lead to customers switching brands. This way, companies can attract new customers from rivals, thereby increasing their own market share while reducing that of competitors. Switching brand loyalty is a difficult proposition, and a strong IMC strategy has the potential to achieve it (Gabrielli & Baghi, 2014).

In the case of Westfield Insurance, the objectives of IMC are:

• To assess the current business available to the company and evaluate its organizational functioning.
• To identify the possible growth the company can attain in the next five years in personal lines of business.
• To obtain suggestions for creating social media buzz.
• To make appropriate use of social media to attract the younger generation to Westfield Insurance and build brand awareness among that audience.
• To demonstrate the value of agents on the internet.
• To stress and reinforce the core values of the company while remaining competitive.

Market Analysis and Digital Trends

In the U.S., there is price sensitivity among customers as the economy improves and continues recovering from recession. The insurance industry is no exception to this trend. It is now easier for consumers to research, compare quotes, and purchase insurance through digital media and the internet. This has prompted insurance companies to offer their services through online mediums, according to a report by eMarketer titled "Digital Insurance Trends: Reshaping the Insurance Path to Purchase and Beyond" (Emarketer.com, 2015).

Insurance is a product that is often complex to understand for potential buyers. In the modern era, researching and obtaining insurance quotes through digital channels has become an integral part of how consumers choose between insurance products (Gabrielli & Baghi, 2014).

Consumers prefer digital channels in both life and non-life insurance lines, according to a report by Capgemini titled "Trends in Insurance Channels" (www.capgemini.com, 2015). The report states that customers are leaning toward online systems more than offline or physical channels—including agents, brokers, and banks—for comparing policies and services, collecting information, and finding the best deals. However, the study also notes that offline channels remain important for building trust through quality advice, convenience, and direct answers.

An article titled "The Switching Economy: Consumers Open to Buying Insurance from Google, Amazon, and Verizon" states that 43% of 6,000 insurance customers surveyed across 11 countries would consider purchasing insurance from banks, 23% from online sources, and the remainder through home service providers.

Taking these facts into account, it is clear that companies offering insurance products should strengthen their agent and agency networks to cater to the needs of the new generation, who prefer using the internet to compare and purchase insurance. Along similar lines, Westfield would also need to enhance its online offerings and agent network so that the company can grow its business while agents maintain the high standards the company demands.

Therefore, Westfield's marketing strategy also needs to adjust and adapt to changing customer trends by adopting integrated strategies that include online channels for promotion. The company also needs to make use of interactive assistance programs for agencies and agents that deliver knowledge about social media and other internet methods to reach the next generation of potential customers and establish brand presence online (Jiang & Chia, 2010).

As a starting point, the company can create and maintain social media pages on platforms such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and other available channels.

Conclusion

It is important to understand the change in the ways many customers compare, choose, and even purchase insurance. The use of the internet for purchasing insurance is increasing, and Westfield and its network of agents and agencies need to target this young generation of potential customers. For this reason, Westfield needs to prepare a comprehensive IMC plan that incorporates the extensive use of the internet and especially social media.

The target market for the company would be young people between the ages of 25 and 35 who rely on the internet for purchasing decisions and who are financially capable of paying a premium for the best insurance deal. Hence, the primary aim of the company is to create an understanding of online media and tools such as social media in order to effectively deliver messages that enhance and establish the company brand and help generate sales.

References

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