Now you can find top-ups of Insurance policies!

“Small is Big” is an old formula which has transformed FMCG industry, telecom sector and now it’s the turn of the insurance business. Now be ready to find insurance policies selling at your neighborhood kirana store and paanwallah shops. Looking at the huge opportunity in rural sector, insurance companies are looking for innovative marketing strategies in order to establish themselves in these markets. Recently, I heard the news of Max New York Life Insurance Company launching Max Vijay, a new product in rural areas. This product would be packed in a DVD-like pack and sold through the grocery stores. This sounds as an interesting move to me because of the comprehensive distribution strategy. The enrollment price could be minimum Rs. 1,000 and maximum Rs. 25,000 depending on the plan opted for.

I feel Max Vijay has been developed looking at the mobiles phones’ successful distribution strategy in these markets. The identity proof and other relevant documents from the buyer will be collected by the store owner who sells the policy. As Analjit Singh says, “It is like a mobile recharge – one goes to a store and buys a prepaid card.” In my view it will more suitable for people like construction workers and daily wage earners who might not have regular income to pay the subsequent premium.

Apart form life insurance sector in India, I believe there are many other markets which will be tapped in the next phase of the ongoing revolution. Two wheelers’s insurance industry, for example, has a lot of opportunity for insurers. Around 70-80% of two wheelers are not insured after they are 1 to 2 years old. Most of the two-wheeler owners find it very inconvenient to present their vehicle at the time of filing in the details and as a result, with seven million two wheelers sold every year, it is a huge market still waiting to be tapped. I hope the strategy adopted by Max Life Insurance will inspire the general insurance companies as well and they come up with similar innovative ideas to tap the other markets.

Email id: keshavkd@gmail.com