NU Online News Service, April 15, 11:47 a.m.EDT

The number of agents and brokers selling personal linesinsurance is declining, as direct sales by insurers rise andcompanies seek to create new relationships with customers,according to PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).

PwC has released an annual report of existing and futureindustry challenges. In it, PwC says producers can still have avital role in building the types of customer relationshipsnecessary to retain and grow business, and insurers are devotingefforts to develop quality producers while maintaining andexpanding direct channels.

“Customers are used to real-time, multimedia interaction in allaspects of their daily business and personal lives, and they expectthe same convenience and accessibility from their insuranceproviders,” says Jamie Yoder, co-leader of PwC's InsuranceAdvisory. “As a result, the role of the insurance advisor is beingpermanently altered, and insurance providers are focused on meetingcustomer demands across all channels.”

Direct sales increased 41 percent—28 percent via the Internetand 13 percent by phone—in 2010.

Insurers are becoming more “consumer-centric,” but there arechallenges to that, PwC says.

Therefore, insurers surveyed by PwC expect to invest more ininformation analytics, market infrastructure and talentrecruitment.

“Insurance companies are following the lead of other industrieslike credit card services and packaged goods,” says Yoder. “Theyare focused on listening to and understanding customers andcustomer segments in order to create deeper and longer-lastingrelationships and develop more distinctive service and productbundles.”