Interview with Tetyana Pinchuk - Retail Sales Director of ASKA Insurance Company

Let's talk in the original language

ASKA is a former leader and today remains a strong player in the insurance market. Is it difficult for a national brand to compete with subsidiaries of international insurers and dynamic new players? How does the ASKA team intend to develop further? We discussed this with Tatyana Pinchuk, ASKA's Retail Sales Director.

— Tatyana, ASKA has been known in the market for 27 years. When and how did you first become acquainted with the company?

Nine years ago, I joined ASKA as a junior sales manager. During this time, my acquaintance with the company has grown into something more than just a job. Even when things get tough, the feeling that you made the right choice and love this team and this company never goes away. Over the past year and a half, this feeling has been compounded by an awareness of enormous responsibility. This responsibility is not only for your own and your team's results, but also for the company's success in the market as a whole.

— ASKA is better known as a player in the corporate insurance market. Why?

Yes, ASKA has held a significant position in corporate insurance for many years. Based on the half-year results, we are among the leaders in the classic property insurance market, agricultural risks, and are also strong in other types of corporate insurance coverage.

This is understandable: ASKA initially built its client portfolio in an industrial region with a developed infrastructure. We focused on the needs of our corporate clients, insuring large industrial risks, and providing them with reliable reinsurance coverage abroad. Twenty years ago, few market players could offer clients such high-quality insurance services. ASKA, as the first non-governmental insurer, effectively addressed this challenge. And we are pleased that our image as a strong player in the B2B insurance market remains intact. This is a completely adequate assessment of our capabilities.

What's disappointing is that the company's membership in a large financial-industrial group is often used as an argument in competitive battles. Our market colleagues occasionally cite this fact when describing us as a captive insurer.

— Isn't your parent holding, SCM, responsible for your strong market position?

When ASKA joined one of Ukraine's leading financial-industrial groups, our expertise and competencies only strengthened. Strategic planning, streamlining all business processes, transparent reporting – many business standards were implemented in accordance with SCM policies and rules.

On the other hand, ASKA has been present on the market much longer than our management company. And many enterprises that are part of SCM today had a positive insurance history with ASKA even before joining the group.

However, after a quarter of a century in the market, few people remember this. And today, the rules of cooperation are very simple: we regularly participate in SCM tenders on a general basis, under the conditions of market competition. We don’t always win – it’s an open market, and that’s normal.

— Can you give some examples?

Yes, of course.
For example, just a month and a half ago, one of the domestic insurance companies announced in its press releases that it had won the tender for corporate medical insurance of the Metinvest holding. Although ASKA also participated in it.

We know that SCM Group's policy will not change for at least the next 5 years – only market rules will apply to us. Our priorities will not change either: along with insurance for corporate clients, we have always developed a retail network and were present in all regions of Ukraine. Today, developing the retail business is one of the company's key objectives.

— How is retail insurance developing within the company? And what challenges do you face?

Developing retail at ASKA is my key objective. And the company's retail strategy for the coming years includes a number of important steps.

Firstly, ASKA participates and will continue to participate in all market-wide projects aimed at creating a strong classic insurance market in Ukraine. We were among the first to join the project for direct settlement of motor vehicle liability insurance claims and are actively preparing for the introduction of an electronic policy.

Secondly, these are significant internal changes. Thus, in the spring and summer of 2017, we updated our auto insurance product line, optimized our payment business processes, and implemented many other mini-projects in the service area.

Our immediate plans for the fall include developing our sales channels, both online and offline. We want to regain our strong position in a number of regions, expand our network, and intensify our online promotion.
The first results are already visible: according to the results of the first half of the year, we are demonstrating a 35% increase in net insurance premiums. ASKA is growing in such predominantly retail sectors as CASCO and travel insurance. Over the first six months of 2017, our CASCO premiums increased by a quarter, and we returned to the top 20 leading companies, while our travel insurance sales grew by more than a third.

— Is there anything that distinguishes ASKA from other insurers in the eyes of retail clients? What do consumers value the company for?

Retail consumers, unfortunately, are often unfamiliar with insurance. But even more often, they are unwilling to delve into the nuances, familiarize themselves with the terms of the contract, and a description of our services.
Therefore, for a long time, ASKA focused on simple products and the professional training of its sales and service specialists. In essence, our employees acted as "family doctors," only on matters of finance, insurance, and risk management.

Our specialists are trusted as the best experts in the market, and this trust has been the key to ASKA's success for many years. After the outbreak of military events in the east of our country, many of the company's regular clients were forced to move to other regions. And there they still look for contacts of local ASKA branches and continue to insure themselves with us.

After all, generations of people insure with us: for example, adult children of our first clients come to us for consultations and purchase services.

— But it turns out that over the years of such work, ASKA has become a "training ground" for other insurance companies?

Yes, our former employees are developing the insurance industry as a whole, but this has been the case throughout the company's history, and this is natural for the first non-governmental insurer.

We simply understand that our task is not only to train qualified insurance specialists, but also to complement their competencies with properly structured business processes.

Here it is important to understand that in the last 1.5-2 years, clients' expectations from an insurance partner have changed dramatically. Consumers have less time and more stress, so simple consultations and advice are not enough. They want a guarantee that in the event of problems, the insurance company will minimize stress and provide all the necessary services: from roadside assistance to prompt payment in the event of an insured event.

One individual professional cannot guarantee such a result; the entire company must work together. If we can, both clients and insurance sales specialists will feel comfortable with us. This means we will not have any risks associated with the loss of salespeople or a reputation as a "training ground." Of course, this is an ideal model, but we are striving to create it.

— Some believe that retail insurance in Ukraine is a market where the agent dictates the rules to insurers. Do you agree?

There is a lot of truth in this statement – if we are talking about compulsory motor insurance. Ensuring access to insurance services for clients in the regions, especially in small towns, without a network of independent agents is very difficult, and often economically unjustifiable. That's why insurers compete for agent networks.

Our company is no exception. However, there are different ways to compete. For example, ASKA, in addition to a market-based commission, offers agents user-friendly software. This includes remote access to the front office for selecting insurance products and calculating prices for MTPL, CASCO, Green Card, and other programs. This is convenient for creating a commercial proposal for the client, reporting, and feedback. This service allows agents to save working time and convert it into communication with clients, and therefore, increased sales.

 — Traditional retail insurance consists of representative offices in the regions that need to be maintained and developed. Is such a model needed today? And will it be relevant tomorrow?

In my opinion, such a model is definitely needed. At the very least, because representative offices in the region are not only sales offices, but also customer service centers.

Furthermore, live communication and the insurance partner's "physical proof" of its reliability—a comfortable office, competent and friendly staff, a recognizable style—remain crucial for many clients. Furthermore, interacting with field agents in each region often requires a local presence. Knowledge of local specifics and the ability to build connections and communicate on the spot are also essential for creating a successful sales system. All of this is achieved through the work of offline representative offices in the regions.

However, limiting yourself to this model alone is no longer an option. Many clients are more willing to communicate online: this is the behavior of a young and socially successful audience in large cities. Therefore, we, like other major players in the insurance market, are striving to develop multichannel communications and sales.

— There is a lot of discussion about digital sales in retail insurance right now. How exactly are you developing this area?

It must be admitted that we began systematically developing our online channel a little later than other strong retail insurers, although it was ASKA that made the first attempts to sell online on the market. We are currently actively working on the company's systematic presence in the digital environment.

I think we will be able to talk about visible changes by the end of 2017 - in the first quarter of 2018: we are completely updating our corporate website, changing the format of our presence on social networks, and starting in October we will begin active online promotion, including planning the launch of several independent product landing pages.

Since the beginning of summer, we have been testing online sales of the most popular insurance products, for example, travel insurance. We are very pleased with the initial results. But I would not like to predict the situation - it is more correct to talk about the goals already achieved.

— And are other sales channels growing? Has anything changed in the partner retail sector in the last 1-2 years?

Since I am responsible for retail sales in the company, it would not be entirely appropriate to comment on partner projects. Our team from the partner sales department can tell you more about them.
I will only say that at ASKA this area is highlighted as a separate vertical and is one of the
priorities.

It is safe to say that the partner channel is definitely transforming - for example, online insurance service aggregators are attracting more and more attention, as well as system partners who are not financial intermediaries.

Also, since the beginning of 2017, the partner sales vertical at ASKA has been implementing not only a new, but also a provocative project for our conservative market - "With One Finger".
Its goal is to build a sales network of non-professional agents in the insurance services sector. The project received a mixed reception from market colleagues, and there was much criticism.

However, in my opinion, such pilot launches are simply necessary, because, ultimately, the entire insurance industry benefits from
testing new ideas.

— What other changes are in ASKA's immediate plans for the retail market?

One of the most pressing tasks is the creation of a health insurance product for our retail clients.

Since the beginning of the year, healthcare reform has been actively discussed in society, and many Ukrainians realize that they will most likely have to independently provide financial protection for themselves and their loved ones in the event of health problems. Such products currently exist, but they are not popular enough.

Firstly, they are usually offered through partner channels as a supplement to other financial services. This means access to these programs is limited, and little is known about them.

Secondly, most health insurance programs offer minimal coverage and cover a very limited range of situations. We, however, are ready to offer a full-fledged product to a wide range of consumers.

Source: Insurance of Ukraine

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