AIQ: Customer email experience
At Assurance IQ, there was no established or cohesive email onboarding journey for new Medicare customers. Together with the lifecycle team, I was tasked with creating a new digital flow for new enrollees to increase customer retention and effectuation on Medicare policies. I began by delving into account data to assess where Assurance IQ stood with this customer segment and identified some target metrics. Additionally, I analyzed competitors within the Medicare space to identify strong elements in their branding, design approach, and visual language.
The Approach
I developed a visual language for the Medicare onboarding journey that prioritized easy legibility and refined iconography, ensuring clarity and accessibility. This approach aimed to support the content without overshadowing it, reducing the need for customers to decode information. Survey data indicated that most people perceive themselves as 5-10 years younger than they are, prompting a photography overhaul to feature younger mature adults (ages 50-60) in more dynamic settings like family gatherings and caring life moments, enhancing relatability and vibrancy. Implementation involved A/B testing the new onboarding emails on 23,000 policies in the first year, yielding immediate positive results. Policies outside the test group had a 56% lower effectuation rate compared to the test group, which achieved an average effectuation rate of 89%. The onboarding journeys averaged an open rate of 30%, a click-to-open rate of 7%, and a click rate of 3%. A separate co-branded email journey was also created for Cigna Healthcare policyholders, aligning with Cigna's brand while maintaining Assurance IQ's design principles. The outcomes were significant: by the close of the annual enrollment period, customer retention surged by 23%, saving the company $2.6 million for Q4 2023. In the second year, the open rate increased by 8%, with a high inbound call rate of 6% and a ~3% higher connect rate than the previous year. Retention increased by 12.6%, valued at $16.6 million in retained customer lifetime value (LTV).
Outcomes & Results
Creating a cohesive email onboarding journey for Assurance IQ's new Medicare customers exemplifies the power of strategic design and targeted communication. We significantly improved customer retention and effectuation rates by developing a visual language focused on legibility, incorporating relatable photography, and implementing A/B testing.
