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Procedia Economics and Finance
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Procedia Economics and Finance 15 (2014) 1138 1145
www.elsevier.com/locate/procedia
Emerging Market Queries in Finance and Business
Customer relationship management in the insurance industry
Ciprian Matisa*, Liviu Iliesb
"Babes-Bolyai University Cluj-Napoca, Facultaty of Economic Sciences and Business Administration, 58-60h Teodor Mihali street, Cluj-Napoca, 400591, Romania bBabes-Bolyai University Cluj-Napoca, Facultaty of Economic Sciences and Business Administration, 58-60th Teodor Mihali street, Cluj-Napoca, 400591, Romania
Abstract
This paper addresses the implementation of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) in insurance companies. Thus, we reviewed several specialized papers addressing regional and international solutions for customer relationship management.
customer relationship management. The aim of the authors is to present the benefits resulting from the application of new technologies, thus estimating the pace of change, the new opportunities and the need for flexibility in the relationship with customers. Along with the technological component the human component is also present in order to ensure the successful implementation of CRM
@ 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/)
Keywords: Customer Relationship Management, sales management, technology
1. Introduction
* Corresponding author. Tel.: +4-0264-414-751; fax: +4-0264-414-770 E-mail address: ciprian.matis@econ.ubbcluj.ro
2212-5671 @ 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/).
doi:10.1016/S2212-5671(14)00568-1
Ciprian Matis and Liviu Ilies / Procedia Economics and Finance 15 (2014) 1138 - 1145
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The rising expectations of customers have forced the insurance sector to introduce more and more new customer relationship management initiatives as it has got a serious impact on the sale of the insurance products, while the technological advances and decreasing costs of technology have reduced barriers to adopting IT based CRM initiatives. As the profitability of the insurance sector is mainly depend on the services it offers and on meeting the customer demand on a regular basis, this suggests that a good CRM initiatives must be the foundation of the insurance sector. The major burden the industry faces is obtaining and keeping clients. This is due to the fact that it has become increasingly difficult for this particular sector to gain profits while curtailing costs. The purpose of the paper is to present the benefits resulting from the application of new technologies, thus estimating the pace of change, the new opportunities and the need for flexibility in the relationship with customers while highlighting the importance of the human component in order to ensure the successful implementation of CRM.
2. Literature review
Worldwide, especially developed countries are characterized by a stable insurance market with low growth potential and a high degree of competitiveness, the focus in these areas being on creating and managing a portfolio of profitable customers and maintaining it (Biswamohan and Bidhubhusan, 2012). The adopted strategies take into account improving after-sales services (particularly in the field of damage management and complaint resolution) and to develop attractive and complex product packages that closely match the customer
management concept in the insurance industry. Compare