Is industry jargon killing sales?
February 9, 2015 by Dan Cook
Is industry jargon killing life insurance sales opportunities? LIMRA fears that the answer is yes.
LIMRA partnered with Maddock Douglas to dig into why so many people — an estimated 18.7 million —say they value life insurance but wind up not purchasing any. Ineffective communications popped up as the primary suspect.
The language sales people use is often confusing, too technical, or too jargony. Potential customers are put off by the language disconnect and postpone or completely abandon the purchasing process, LIMRA said.
The study, “Get Real Already — Authenticating Industry Language,” concluded that a dramatic shift in language may be required to take advantage of the lost opportunities the study identified. In fact, the authors called for a cultural change around communications.
“The industry needs to communicate using authentic language and relatable imagery,” said study coauthor Scott Kallenbach, research director, LIMRA Strategic Research. “Our goal here is to help financial services companies set the stage for wholesale, industry-wide changes in communications. When customers and would-be customers are able to see the value in companies’ products clearly, they’re much more likely to take an interest in them and make a purchase.”
The study focused on the millions of “stuck shoppers” for life insurance, asking them how and where they got stuck in the pursuit of coverage. All these shoppers believe in the value of coverage and say they want it, but failed to convert from prospect to buyer.
“This group is not limited to young, single, unmarried individuals. Many are married, have families, and their income levels are moderate; though the group tends to be concentrated in Generation Y (aged 22 – 33),” the study found.
The major hurdle was what the researchers termed a lack of authentic communications.
“Authentic communication is more than just using everyday language and laymen’s terms. It also includes relatable visuals and attainable goals. Within authenticity we discovered six elements: •Easy to understand — Language that we use everyday
•Down to earth — Images that feel realistic
•Memorable — Communication that is interesting
•Positive — Messages that are warm and comforting
•Credible — Sources of information that are trustworthy
•Relevant — Communication that says the company understands them, and who they are.”
To address the issue, LIMRA and Maddock Douglas have developed a suite of tools to help companies and sales people make the shift from obtuse to authentic language. Details can be found at the Get Real page on LIMRA’s website.
Originally published on BenefitsPro.com
