Customers aren't ready to receive messages from theinsurance industry that are based on the customers' analytics andsocial media patterns, according to Celent's “Customers Don't Wantto Buy Insurance From Big Brother” report.

“Most people will hate receiving messages that imply theorganization has gone a step further in understanding their data.Either we're too early, or this must be an opt-in process,” saysCraig Beattie, senior analyst with Celent's Insurance Group andauthor of the report, “What surprised us, though, was that eachmessage had people who would love to receive it. Given that thiswas typically in the younger age groups, we're going to be seeingthis kind of interaction in the future.”

The survey of 2,642 people in the U.S. and the U.K. seeks tohelp insurers understand how to recognize groups that would belikely to respond well to 8 potential messages. On a scale ofhating these messages to loving them, the mean response to Celent'ssurvey was at best neutral, and, for most of the messages, muchcloser to the hate end of the scale.

Survey respondents were asked to rate each message on a scale of1 (hate) to 7 (love). No message received a positive averageresponse (5 or greater) across the group of respondents. Youngerpeople are more likely to respond positively to the messages, asare those people who collect or share data. It's not about“familiarity with technology” the report states. “Target socialmedia users rather than smartphone owners and geeks.” And aboveall, avoid criticizing the behavior of the message recipient.

Messages & Conclusions (in order frommost liked to least liked)

1. The area you are about to walk/drive into has seen 14muggings and 3 violent deaths in the last 3 months, could you takean alternate route?
Mean response: 4.04

Conclusion: This message generated a love-hateresponse, with hate being in the lead by a small degree. Youngerrespondents offered a balanced set of responses, with a neutralresponse being quite common, whereas older respondents tended tostick to the extremes. A good proportion of the over 65s “loved”receiving this message.

2. The item you just purchased is available for 10% lessat a short distance from your current location, click here for moredetails
Mean response: 3.85

Conclusion: The descriptive statistics suggesta balanced response to this message. Present sharing style is astrong indicator of response to this message, although even someactive sharers scored a 1 for this message. A service wherecustomers could volunteer for these messages is advised. Regardingdata that the respondents already collected about themselves, bothlocation data and personal finance data played a role in positivelyinfluencing the results, perhaps offering a better clue as to thetype of customer looking for this service.

3. We noted that you have checked in at a locationoutside the country, so we have pre-authorized your credit card foruse there.
Mean response: 3.56

Conclusion: Celent recommends voluntarysign-up for this service. There are people who would respondto this message, but the majority of respondents had a strongnegative reaction. While the younger age groups are morepredisposed to liking this message, affluent middle agedgroups who may be fans too. Also, for banks and credit cardissuers, customers who regularly download and track their personalfinance data may be more interested in this kind of service.

4. Your child's current driving style suggests they havea 1 in 3 chance of a fatal or very serious accident in the nextyear, please call us.
Mean response: 3.32

Conclusion: Celent theorizes that these resultsmay be skewed as most think that young people drive badly.

Next page: Read the four least-likedmessages

5. Recent news stories suggest that one or more of yourinvestments is not in line with your personal values–please call usto discuss (i.e. not meeting green objectives, testing on animals,involved in war, etc.).
Mean response: 3.18

Conclusion:This message was broadly negativelyreceived but was better received in North America and particularlyby those with who are existing members of loyalty programs.

6. Given your age and DNA data, you are at risk ofexercising too much, please consult with a physician about yourfitness plan and request a review of your knees.
Mean response: 2.53

Conclusion: Age, gender and country of responseall had an influence on the response. This is the only message thatU.K. respondents rated higher than U.S. respondents and males weremost likely to respond favorably.

7. Your current driving style suggests you have a 1 in 3chance of a fatal or very serious acident in the next year, clickhere for driving tips.
Mean response: 2.51

Conclusion: There are two confounding factorshere: First, most drivers do not consider themselves to be poordrivers, so the messaging appears overly critical and unlikely.Second, the example was considered by some respondents as tooextreme, as seen in the feedback. Responding to the questiontherefore requires a little more role play. There is some evidencethat younger respondents felt less strongly about this question andthat those that avoid technology were more likely to hate receivingthis message. A positive message (e.g., “Your driving style is goodand you will receive a discount this month”) may well have resultedin a more positive response.

8. We noticed you have visited four gambling websitesrecently. Your profile suggests that you may be susceptible togambling addiction. Click here to talk to someone about copingstrategies. In the meantime, we've now stopped these websites fromcharging your cards.
Mean response: 2.39

Conclusion: This is the leastwell-received of all the messages. This could be due to how themessage is phrased, as well as the result of the privacyimplications.