Making the Most of Your AEP It s Not Too Late!
82 DAYS, 8 HOURS, 10 MINUTES AND 0 SECONDS
What You Need to Do Stand Out From the Sea of Sameness Secure Your Existing Members Stimulate New Prospects to Join All in 68 Days!!!
The Targets Other Plans Members Your Own Members Your Own Previous Members Your Prospects from Last Year Who Didn t Become Your Members Medicare Bare Other Plans Medicare Supplement Members Those People Coming Onto Medicare During the AEP
Phases of the AEP Pre-Heat and Member Retention Mad Rush Period of Calm Determination Final Push
PRE-HEAT
When you don't preheat, you cook your food at a lower temperature as your oven heats up for the first 5-15 minutes.
If you don t pre-heat your market before the AEP, your audience may take an extra two weeks to warm up on October 1. Valuable time that you can t afford to lose in an AEP.
AEP Pre-Heat Signals your opportunity to switch is coming Can be one or combination: Direct Mail, TV, SEM, Display Ads, Landing Page or Microsite Call to action possibilities Sign up for a seminar in advance Sign up for an enrollment kit to be sent to you on October 1 Or, simply look at me Creates brand awareness Particularly important if you are a new plan or a smaller (or large) plan with not a large brand budget for Medicare products
Pre-Heat Messages We ll be here for you. Something new is coming! USP-oriented Event driven Or, all of the above.
Brand Alignment CTA: Reserve a kit
USP CTA: Put on list for October seminar
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Event
Look for us USP
Create a Meaningful Identity Regular examination of who you are and who you want to be in the market as it is today The market doesn t stay the same. Neither should you. Keep your material fresh
Vision Vista Showcases the visual vocabulary of a brand or program by showing the overall theme and the way that color, photography, typography and graphics will help support and define the overall concept.
MEMBER RETENTION
Member Communication: Pre-ANOC Outreach to current members to let them know: Important information is coming in the ANOC Local member-oriented meetings that will answer questions, if you are having them Include option to speak to a consultant to cement the relationship Reinforce the relationship Creatives with a low cost useful gift that has a long-shelf (i.e. calendar magnet) On-going reminder of their membership Arrives before the mad rush of the AEP and tells the member to sit tight.
Member Communication: Post-ANOC Speak to the most vulnerable to switch members about their plan options within the family of plans Identify those who are most vulnerable Changes in plans and/or networks Early intelligence on competitors -- any Five Star plans? If there is very good news make sure the good news is heard Outline options and provide clear, easy to understand direction on how to move to another plan if needed If possible personalize the letter with the plan name the member currently has because members may be confused about the specific plan name. Include a product brochure so that the member has view to all plans are available to them Possibly assign the most vulnerable to a personal consultant or offer home visit Follow-up with an outbound call
Member Communication: Pre-ANOC and Post Logo, #10 envelope From the plan Important member information
Member Retention: Medicare Supplement According to Deft Research, Medicare Supp members are increasingly more vulnerable during the AEP with the bombardment of shop and switch advertising and their propensity to shop is higher than ever Reach out to Medicare Supp members before the AEP to reinforce relationship and benefits Urge them to call if they have any questions or concerns
What Prompts a Consumer to Shop? Were you prompted to first look into different health insurance by any of the following? National Notification of changes letter 20% Promotions from different insurer 18% TV advertising 10% Promotions from current insurer 10% Phone call from agent 3% Internet advertising 4% Newspaper advertising 3% Billboards or outdoor advertising 1% Radio advertising 1% Letter from Medicare saying plan not 3% available in 2013 Nothing you can recall 57% Deft 2012 Study 30
Pre-ANOC Pre-ANOC Example 7/11/2013
Post ANOC Example Reinforce their satisfaction is important Highlight options are available Provide enough information to compare Remind of current member advantages Provide specific steps that need to be taken Ensure they know if no change do nothing
THE AEP
DMW AEP Progression
The Mad Rush Heavy in-market presence and media weight in order to be seen Layered, integrated media for maximum lead generation direct response television in the first week(s) to warm the market, followed by direct mail Use of primary direct response media like DRTV and direct mail for maximum lead generation and print for awareness
Calm Deliberation After the first three to four weeks of marketplace noise and after prospects have attended seminars or received product information from other companies the following media strategy is followed: Reduce slightly the broadcast media weight Drop additional direct mail and continue with print
Final Push During the last two weeks of November, the Final Push stage begins. During this time, the media strategy is: Heavy-up broadcast media and snipe the end tag Drop a final, inexpensive urgency postcard to drive in procrastinators
Sniper Snipe
Sniping Adding a small message to an existing ad to either create urgency or highlight a specific message that you want to call out. Enrollment period ends soon Plan now available in XYZ County ABC Medical Practice (Hospital) has now joined our network Great for late breaking news
Layered Media Provides: Constant communication with the target audience Creates barriers to the competition Allows your plan to be available for consumers when and how they choose to respond, through the channel of their choice Provides a constant and manageable flow of leads.
Prospect Communication: DRTV Drive lead volume while boosting other advertising efforts Straight-forward, relatable message :60 spots and :120s to maximize effectiveness Make sure that your TV this year has a strong call-out to people on Medicare. Want to be sure they listen and don t get confused with all the under 65 Health Care Reform messages
Prospect Communication: DRTV Make your TV spots (and any other video you have) work harder for you by re-purposing the content YouTube Doctors Office On-demand viewing on your own website
Prospect Communication: Direct Mail -- General Audience Recommend at least 4 touch points Pre-AEP Warming 1 st touch: Learn, encourage to participate it s the smart thing 2 nd touch: Time to shop, drive applications 3 rd touch: Final opportunity urgency (web or phone, primary response) Possible additional targeted touch depending on goals and competitive situation Strong drive to web and web tools easy, simple, secure as long as your web will provide a good customer experience Educate regarding any changes Puts your plan in the role of helpful advisor
Prospect Communication: Direct Mail -- General Audience Target Audience: Age 65 to 80 Suppress retired military with TRICARE, if in a highlyconcentrated military area Buy all names within household but mail only one name This ensures current member spouses/other members of the household receive direct mail Use deciles (if you have a model) and other criteria (ages or geography) to narrow the focus for follow-up mailings Competitive environment and goals
Prospect Communication: Direct Mail -- General Audience Speak to prospects based on Younger/older audience Older seniors have different needs/concerns Different benefits highlighted Concerns about switching let them know they may be missing out if they don t look; allay fears; reinforce that it is easy Benchmark (other clients): 36% lift over general message Customize message based on the competition New information about that may be relevant or motivating
Prospect Communication: Direct Mail -- General Audience Target, target, target by the competition: refine your copy in geographic footprints to sell against specific competitors in those areas http://www.cms.gov/research-statistics-data- and-systems/statistics-trends-and- Reports/MCRAdvPartDEnrolData/Monthly-MA- Enrollment-by-State-County-Contract-Items/MA- Enrollment-by-SCC-2013-06.html?DLPage=1&DLSort=1&DLSortDir=desc ending
Prospect Communication: Direct Mail -- General Audience Use personalization to hit on specific advantage by county as it relates to the competition in that county Often as simple as rearranging benefits or highlighting those that are most favorable Your competition includes Med Supp plans and Medicare only. If you have a high population of either, that needs to be addressed in the copy.
Target By Competitor Example Geo-targeted based on competitive landscape Newspaper ROPs to take advantage of competitive position within select geographies Direct mail - geo-targeted inserts DRTV used fixed spots in certain DMAs to support exploit key provider relationships
Prospect Communication: Direct Mail Non-Converted Leads Now more than ever* speak to consumers who inquired but did not buy last year Acknowledge that they inquired Ask if they are unhappy with their current plan Remind them of the benefits of your plan Anything new? Stress how easy it is to switch *Those that shopped but didn t switch last year are twice as likely to switch in the future. And if they did switch to another plan (not yours) they are likely to switch again in the near future 28% of switchers switched 2 or more times (Deft Benefits Design and Market Dynamics Study)
Non-Converted Lead Example Acknowledge that they have inquired Address what might be there current circumstance Remind them of your advantages
Prospect Communication: Direct Mail Winbacks Reach out to those that have left you Acknowledge the relationship Simple #10 package with warm, friendly letter Former members likely to open OSE with just your logo on it Tell them you want them back Personal appeal Relay what is new or different plan options Reinforce what members say is best about you. Many people miss what they had before. They may have been attracted by a lower premium or special benefit of another plan and need to be reminded of what they liked best about being your member. Benchmark (other clients): 4.00% RR 24% CR
Other Considerations SEO and SEM in place and ready Digital ads Landing pages for all media (or at least one) All web leads should go to a landing page first and then be directed within the site where the prospect wants to go. Make sure look connects with upfront advertising Make sure that emails will be answered in a timely manner, particularly in the Final Push where an unanswered email can mean the loss of a sale (preferably have some click to chat as well)
Other Considerations Put seminars on-line for those that can t attend. Also Saves reps time Saves cost of paying for space Provider training Broker training
Landing Page Group Health Cooperative 7/11/2013 55
Prospect Communication: Application Chase Follow-up leads that have not enrolled Increase conversion and capitalize on investment Outbound calls to ask if they need any help How often are outbound calls made to individuals who receive an enrollment kit? Send a simple personalized note from representative Benchmark (other clients): 4.77% RR 15% CR Online: ask for email address and permission Develop email channel for follow-up Drive to the web for enrollment
Make your promises more tangible Good service prove it Committed to your area prove it Vast network prove it People like you. They really like you prove it
Make Your Promises More Tangible Awards and Ratings Star Ratings, NCQA, JD Powers How many doctors How many members Talk about what you do in the community How many people switched to you Testimonials!!!!
And see why 96% of existing Group Health Cooperative Advantage members who have a choice, choose to re-enroll in a Group Health Cooperative plan.
WIIFM Last minute check as you review your creative: Eliminate as many we s as possible Ramp up the number of you s People don t care about you, your mission statement, your company or your product. They only want to know what all that means to them.
What You Can Do Now Create a pre-heat Create pre and post ANOC communications Do a quick profile of your existing members See what you can do to impact later mailings based on the competition. Have back-up creative. Create winback and non-converted lead versions of direct mail Make sure you have landing pages
What You Can Do Now Add additional touches for the AEP, if needed Snipe copy points on existing creative Review all your copy to make sure it has WIIFM Make sure your SEO is just that optimized See that all target markets are addressed Check internal operations as it relates to email and follow-up on applications Prepare for a shorter final push due to the later Thanksgiving holiday
Questions? Linda Armstrong: larmstrong@dmwdirect.com Boomer blog: nogreenbananas.net http://www.youtube.com/user/dmwdirectchannel