Facebook and Twitter are great for posting cat pictures. But are people really using social media for life-changing communications? Like, if a hurricane comes by and blows down their house?
In a word, yes.
That's why Security First Insurance, a Florida company, deployed software designed to track when its customers make posts on social media or in email related to potential claims. The goal is to get claims resolved more quickly.
"We don't get many Facebook posts or Twitter comments during normal times," Security First COO Werner Kruck said in an interview. "People don't really care about their homeowner insurance company when everything is fine. But it goes the other way when a hurricane strikes, and you have a claim or loss."
In the past, customers submitted claims mostly by phone, and sometimes by email. But when disaster strikes, people are desperate and use any means available to get through to their insurance company. That often means posting a question or comment on the company's Facebook page or Twitter feed. After all, even people who've lost everything else to a disaster still have smartphones in their pockets.
Security First is using big-data cloud social media analytics software from IBM and partner Integritie to analyze incoming messages sent by email and social media using text mining, text analytics, and natural language processing to detect words that convey distress or identify significant property damage.
Security First, headquartered in Ormond Beach, Fla., has about 180,000 customers.
Florida has more people and property exposed to hurricanes than any state in the country, averaging 12 government-named storms and nine named hurricanes annually, IBM said.
During a typical month, Security First processes a relatively small number of claims -- about 700 for damaged property and possessions, less than 1 percent of its customer base, IBM said in a statement. However, that number explodes in the aftermath of a hurricane, to tens of thousands per day.
During a weather emergency, having a sole marketing person at a console monitoring social media doesn't give Security First the responsiveness it needs. But the SMC4 software categorizes social media and email messages to determine whether they're related to claims. The software assigns each message a priority, then routes the message to the appropriate person in the company call center.
"Rather than having just one person at a console, we have as many as we need," Kruck said. Call center staff are categorized by area of business competency, and which social media and email feeds they can respond to. Security First can then devote more people to social media during emergencies. A few core staff use the software regularly, and about 16–18 additional people are trained to use it in case of disaster, Kruck said.
"We have the leverage to have multiple people respond. And we keep track of everything, so if someone posts something and deletes it, we still have it," Kruck said. Communications are stored in an IBM database that's admissible in court, so there's no question that Security First might have altered messages.
The software has been in place about two years, including earlier versions. Security First worked with its vendors to refine the software, including observing response to superstorm Sandy in the New York metropolitan area. The latest version has been in place since late April, said Security First VP Marketing Marissa Buckley in an email. The software has yet to be battle-tested; Florida hasn't had a hurricane since 2005.
The SMC4 software also monitors messages posted to Facebook for profanity and other objectionable content, and can delete the messages or hide and record them. Likewise, it monitors outgoing messages from Security First for inappropriate content.
Social media software like SMC4 isn't just useful for the insurance business, Kruck noted. Any company or organization might see a sudden spike in social media activity if it gets a lot of publicity, particularly if that publicity is bad.
One thing about all of this--companies which are focusing on social media communications (Delta and now Sprint, among many others) tend to be more responsive in these areas than traditional methods. Maybe it's a simple numbers game (fewer trying the social route) but I think it's because there is energy pushed into the social media space and a "Have to" approach with traditional methods. And, by "Have To," I mean the managers and executives who oversee the call centers and customer messages, not the actual workers.
In fact, show me a company that has energy around all of its touchpoints and I bet you'll find a company that has been excelling at social communication for years.
" That often means posting a question or comment on the company's Facebook page or Twitter feed. After all, even people who've lost everything else to a disaster still have smartphones in their pockets."
Even if the people lost their smartphones in that chaos, their relatives can readily claim for the insurance of their loved ones by using their Facebook accounts but for that they need to be aware of their passwords!
"In the past, customers submitted claims mostly by phone, and sometimes by email. But when disaster strikes, people are desperate and use any means available to get through to their insurance company. That often means posting a question or comment on the company's Facebook page or Twitter feed."
Only if people get time out of updating a Facebook status about the disaster and posting pictures of its after effects!
So are you infering that the primary objective of Security First Social media does trump any of the 'hidden" motives that have been doing the rounds? So in other words, the devil is n the details!
So are you infering that the primary objective of Security First Social media does trump any of the 'hidden" motives that have been doing the rounds? So in other words, the devil is n the details!
There may be other "hidden" motives behind Security First social media mining strategy, but the primary intention -"to get claims resolved more quickly"-, will certainly be apprecialted by most customers.
It is important that companies take into account customers feedbacks in order to know their sentiment and make change to their business strategy, accordingly. However, not every company having a social media presence undersrtands that. Sounds like Securiy First is doing something worth emulating by other companies.
I've often wondered how large companies that have to respond in disasters are tackling social media. Now I know. I think that this information is not unexpected to me, since companies like Security First had to develop some kind of method to engage with customers. Because social media has become such an outlet for people, it's important to capture that feedback.
SMC4 is integrated with Security First Insurance's Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and external email channels. The system collects messages that are sent to the company from policyholders who want to connect or share information with Security First Insurance. SMC4 does not collect messages that are not sent to Security First Insurance's communication channels.
Security First Insurance is based in Florida, a state with the most people and property exposed to the deadly forces of hurricane winds. To respond effectively and efficiently, Security First Insurance must leverage new technology and adapt to cutural changes such as the widespread adoption of social media.
The ThinkerNet does not reflect the views of TechWeb. The ThinkerNet is an informal means of communication to members and visitors of the Internet Evolution site. Individual authors are chosen by Internet Evolution to blog. Neither Internet Evolution nor TechWeb assume responsibility for comments, claims, or opinions made by authors and ThinkerNet bloggers. They are no substitute for your own research and should not be relied upon for trading or any other purpose.
In a standout presentation at the Jefferies 2013 Global Technology, Media & Telecom Conference in New York this week, the UK government talked about becoming a "very intelligent client."
A consumer business would have to be crazy or desperate to change call-center software in December, the peak of the holiday season. But that was exactly Positec's position.
To help enterprises deploy software faster for mobile, social, big-data, and cloud applications, IBM this week acquired development tools vendor UrbanCode.
Internet Explorer seems like a relic of the 90s, like parachute pants and Friends. But that's just me. I'm a Chrome guy, and before that I used Firefox.
New York's Metropolitan Transit Authority is conducting a pilot test of digital kiosks to guide subway users to where they want to go more efficiently and at lower cost.
The whole Amazon.reader debate is a double-stupid. It's stupid to think that there's any e-book buyer who doesn't know Amazon's URL, and it was stupider to let ICANN launch the whole free-form TLD initiative to start with.
While NFC's original goal was to enhance mobile commerce applications, it is finding its way into a number of other uses, which is creating both opportunity as well as challenges for IT departments.
Enterprises would like to move to cloud computing but are hesitant because they are concerned about providers’ ability to secure company data. Here are some tips that help to ensure that if breaches occur, the business is not left holding the bag.
Edmunds separates customers into segments based on the info it collects on its site and from partners, and uses that to push out custom content, said Brian Baron, director of business analytics for Edmunds.com, at Predictive Analytics Innovation Summit.
The automotive website uses propensity modeling to target ads and customer registration forms, said Brian Baron, director of business analytics for Edmunds.com, at Predictive Analytics Innovation Summit.
Subsidized handsets, rather than locked handsets, should be the focus of regulators. We're not getting good deals, not fostering innovation, and weakening our power as buyers.
Expert Integrated Systems: Changing the Experience & Economics of IT In this e-book, we take an in-depth look at these expert integrated systems -- what they are, how they work, and how they have the potential to help CIOs achieve dramatic savings while restoring IT's role as business innovator. READ THIS eBOOK
your weekly update of news, analysis, and
opinion from Internet Evolution - FREE! REGISTER HERE
Wanted! Site Moderators Internet Evolution is looking for a handful of readers to help moderate the message boards on our site – as well as engaging in high-IQ conversation with the industry mavens on our thinkerNet blogosphere. The job comes with various perks, bags of kudos, and GIANT bragging rights. Interested?
To save this item to your list of favorite Internet Evolution content so you can find it later in your Profile page, click the "Save It" button next to the item.
Email This
