(Image credit: Shutterstock.)

In August of last year, I wrote an article about how insurers can integrate the personal cloud into existing insurance offerings to serve as an opportunity to strengthen customer relationships, reduce churn, increase renewals, and increase their bottom line. In this article, I will explore why insurance companies offering a total home digital protection package can benefit consumers by protecting their devices in addition to the content stored on consumer devices.

Consumers are looking for a trusted partner that can securely protect their digital content. Also, consumers need to know they have the flexibility to upgrade their device and their content will not be affected during the process. This is where insurers can step in and prove themselves to be extremely valuable as the trusted steward for their customers.

According to Statista, consumer spending on smart home products is forecasted to grow to more than $170 billion dollars by 2025. According to Deloitte’s 2022 Connectivity & Mobile Trends, the average household has a total of 22 connected devices. Insurance companies have a golden opportunity to offer a total home digital protection package that covers not only the devices against failures, but also protects content that is created and captured on these devices.

Smart Devices

Smart devices are becoming increasingly expensive and high-end smart phones are often over $1000. For example, the iPhone 14 Pro starts at $999, and the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 that was released last August, starts at almost $2,000. Given the expensive cost of upgrading to a new mobile device, device protection is often included as a part of a new device purchase.

Digital Content

Digital assets like photos, videos, and other important files must be backed up via personal cloud to make room on the device for things like music, apps, the operating software, and much more. For example, the latest Android OS takes up to 16 GB of space on Android devices. Sophisticated and advanced cameras generate photos and videos that are very large in size. Photos on the new iPhone 14 Pro take up a lot of space as well. 48-megapixel RAW files can take up to 75MB in space.

With how expensive mobile devices already are, it is not feasible to have unlimited storage on a device. 512 GB on the iPhone 14 can cost a whopping $1300.

Consumer Freedom

Insurance providers typically offer device protection plans for any device that is generally manufacturer agnostic. In the event, a customer moves from Verizon to AT&T, the consumer is covered and able to move their digital content from their current device, to the new one under the new carrier seamlessly.

Consumers need the same paradigm to allow them the freedom to change or upgrade to whatever device they desire without fear that their personal data will be lost or having to embark on a painful migration process.

Security and Privacy

Nowadays, consumers are looking for a trusted partner that values security and privacy to store their digital assets. Insurance companies have an excellent opportunity to maintain a long and trusted relationship with their customers by integrating a personal cloud solution. A personal cloud solution makes it easy for consumers to safely manage their digital assets and safeguard important files. Providers who offer this additional level of security provide a level of comfort for consumers, ensuring their content is safe and secure.

Digital Protection Package

A personal cloud solution is a cross platform service that works across all devices and platforms to enable an entire family to access and share content. A personal cloud offering is also an excellent addition to device protection bundle plans for insurance providers to keep consumers at ease regarding their expensive device and important files.

An insurance bundle should cover all devices for a flat fee. For example, $50 per month for all devices and content on them is an excellent value proposition for a family with 4+ expensive devices. Consumers demand value for their subscription and a personal cloud offering with its basic tenets fits the need perfectly.

With the rapid growth of devices in the home—smart phones, tablets, laptops and more—insurance companies can benefit by offering a total home digital protection package that protects consumer devices in addition to the content stored on the device. A device, while expensive, can always be replaced, whereas if photos and other important files are lost, they most likely cannot be recovered.

Insurers Can Use Personal Cloud to Create Value for Consumers