Using the post as a communications tool

It is becoming increasingly evident that the traditional consumer/supplier relationship in the insurance market is changing. In the financial services sector, according to Abi Wood , head of financial marketing at Royal Mail in the UK, suppliers face two additional hurdles. Competition continues to be fierce, both through the number of suppliers in the market, and because of the lengths at which many will go to encourage customers to switch. And because of the influence of new technology like the internet and SMS, consumers demand 24/7 instant access to their financial suppliers from mortgage suppliers to insurance brokers. Consumers want to choose how they communicate with their suppliers, and also which channels their suppliers use to communicate with them. Given the rate of customer churn in the financial services arena and propensity for customers to switch suppliers, the risks of getting customer service wrong can be incredibly high. And adding to the challenge is the way in which consumers are becoming increasingly wary of how their personal information is being used.