For the past few weeks we’ve been looking at the latest Accenture findings on how insurers are adapting to changing consumer demands by digitizing their sales capabilities. Today we’ll take a closer look at how the life insurance agent’s role is expected to shift over the next few years as these strategies evolve further.

Our 2015 Distribution and Agency Management Survey finds that when it comes to sales digitization, there are differences—some slight, some dramatic—in how P&C, life and multichannel insurers are approaching the subject. Probably the most dramatic differences can be seen in how carriers plan to train their agents to face the future.

Everyone knows the agent/client relationship is key to account retention and customer loyalty. But when asked whether they are prioritizing refocusing their sales agents to where they can add the greatest value, life insurers lag far behind other types of insurers—with only 55 percent saying they will do this, compared with 69 percent of multiline insurers.

Maybe this discrepancy can be explained in part by the participants’ response to a question on the use of aggregator platforms—which allow consumers to access insurance products from across the market. The Accenture survey shows that carriers expect the use of aggregators to rise over the next three years, especially at the early stages in the sales process, such as for information discovery and quote generation.

However, the assessment of their influence varies considerably from one country to another—and across different lines of business.

As you can see from the chart above, a whopping 62 percent of life insurers say they are considering setting up their own aggregator sites to sell their own and other insurance products—more than any other type of insurer.

Next week we will take a look at the role the Internet of Things will play in the evolution of life insurance sales, and some tips on how insurers can position themselves to reap the benefits.

Learn more:

Reimagining Insurance Distribution:  Accenture Distribution and Agency Management Survey