Max New York Life

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A STUDY ON MARKETING CONCEPTS APPLIED BY “MAX NEW YORK LIFE” Theme: Knowledge for application (Component 2)

INDEX 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6) 7) 8) 9) 10) 11)

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Company Profile How New York Life enter the Indian Market Vision, Mission and Values Achievements The MAX VIJAY New product development process Multi- channel distribution Product life cycle Product Hierarchy Product Mix and Product line length for MYNL Type of Marketing in the Service Industry Product Strategies

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12) 13) 14) 15) 16) 17) 18) 19) 20) 21) 22) 23) 24) 25) 26) 27) 28)

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Product levels of an Insurance Industry Diversification by MAX VIJAY Customer Expectations Customer Satisfaction Customer Development Process Customer Relationship Management Traditional Organizational Chart Customer Oriented Organization Charts Basis for Segmenting market Differentiation Strategies Karo Jyaada Ka Iraada – Brand Philosophy Positioning Two Way Stretch Emerging trends in the Insurance Sector SWOT Analysis Literature Review Bibliography

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COMPANY PROFILE Max New York Life Insurance Company Ltd. is a joint venture between Max India Limited, one of India's leading multi-business corporations and New York Life International, the international arm of New York Life, a Fortune 100 company. The company has positioned itself on the quality platform. In line with its vision to be the most admired life insurance company in India, it has developed a strong corporate governance model based on the core values of excellence, honesty, knowledge, caring, integrity and teamwork.

Incorporated in 2000, Max New York Life (MNYL) started commercial operation in 2001. In line with its values of financial responsibility, Max New York Life has adopted prudent financial practices to ensure safety of policyholder's funds. The Company's paid up capital as on 30th April, 2009 is Rs 1782 crore. MYNL shares a market share of 5.9% in the life insurance sector.

MNYL has multi-channel distribution spread across the country. Agency distribution is the primary channel complemented by partnership distribution, banc assurance, alliance marketing and dedicated distribution for emerging markets. The Company places a lot of emphasis on its selection process for agent advisors, which comprises four stages - screening, psychometric test, career seminar and final interview. The agent advisors are trained in-house to ensure optimal control on quality of training. The company currently has around 92,760 agent advisors at 710 offices across 385 cities. The company also has 36 referral tie-ups with banks, 24 partnership distribution and alliance marketing relationships each. Max New York Life has put in place a unique hub and spoke model of distribution to deepen our rural penetration. The company has 133 offices dedicated to rural areas.

MNYL offers a suite of flexible products. It now has 43 life insurance products and 8 riders that can be customized to over 800 combinations enabling customers to choose the policy that best fits their need. The company currently has more than 13,923 employees.

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HOW NEW YORK LIFE ENTERED THE INDIAN MARKET:-

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New York Life International, INC., a Fortune 100 company, decided to select JOINT VENTURE as a medium to enter into the market of India. It has chosen MAX INDIA LTD., one of the India’s leading multi-business corporations. Through its wide network of highly competent wide network of highly competent agent advisors and flexible product solutions, MYNL is creating a partnership for life with its customers in INDIA to meet their life stage needs..

VISION To become one of the most admired life insurance company of India. Strong Corporate Governance Model

MISSION • • • • •

Become one of the top quartile life insurance companies in India Be a national player Be the brand of first choice Be the employer of choice Become principal of choice for agents

VALUES Knowledge: Knowledge leads to expertise; and our expertise is in helping people protect themselves. Perfectly combining global expertise with local knowledge, we are India's life insurance specialist. MNYL believes that for knowledge to be of value it must be focused, current, tested and shared.

Caring: MNYL is redefining the life insurance paradigm by focusing on customers first. The service process is responsive, personalized, humane and empathetic. Every individual who represents the company is for us our brand champion.

Honesty: Honesty is the heart of the life insurance business. It is all about trust. Transparency, integrity and dependability form the cornerstones of the MNYL experience. The company ensures that everyone who represents the brand carries a promise: we care — in word as well as deed.

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Excellence: Excellence at MNYL implies the ability to perform at a consistently high level. Focused on the value of continuous improvement in people, processes and the organization, the company strives for the highest standards of quality in every aspect of its business

ACHEIVEMENTS •

MNYL Insurance felicitated with the ‘Golden Peacock Innovation Award’ for the year 2008 for Excellence in innovation in conceptualizing and marketing Max Vijay.

•

MNYL is the first life insurance company in India to be awarded the IS0 9001:2000 certification. MNYL was among the top 25 companies to work with in India, according to 2003 Business World magazine, "Great Workplaces In India", MNYL was ranked at the 20th position. This survey is the local version of the "Great Places To Work" survey carried out every year in 22 countries. Been among top five most respected private life insurance companies in India according to a 2004 and 2006 Business World survey. MNYL Insurance has emerged as one of the best employer in the recently announced Business Today-Mercer-TNS Survey of 'The Best Companies to Work For in India'. The company was ranked 7th in the survey and the best life insurance company to work for in India.

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THE MAX VIJAY NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT PROCESS A. IDEA GENERATION Since no other insurance company had ventured into the rural market, MNYL came with an idea to serve the lower strata of the society, which represents the maximum population in the country.

B. IDEA SCREENING Since Uttar Pradesh is the biggest and the most populous state in India, the company strategists suggested implementing Max Vijay scheme in all the 52 districts of the state. They felt that there would not be any dearth in the number of people who are ambitious and wish to achieve something in their lives, in such a populous state.

C. CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT AND TESTING •

The scheme would be valid for 10 years

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•

Maturity period – 10 years

Max Vijay would give a choice to the customer for making payment using three premium options 1) Rajat 2) Swarna 3) Heera The sum assured from the policy is guaranteed with choice to invest any amount ranging from Rs.10 to Rs.2500000, anytime, anywhere

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D. MARKETING STRATEGY DEVELOPMENT •

Affordable, accessible and flexible

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Widespread distribution network

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Payment through neighborhood retail outlets and grocery stores

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NGO’s

E. BUSINESS ANALYSIS MNYL has set a target of achieving a collection of Rs.100 Crore premium in three months through Max Vijay scheme. It further plans to implement the scheme to 50,000 customers in 52 districts through 15000 counters.

F. PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT •

Minimum formality in buying the policy

•

Premium can be paid easily just like TOPPING UP A MOBILE

G. MARKET TESTING

Before launching the scheme throughout India, they have chosen the state of Uttar Pradesh as a pilot project (β - testing). This also ensured that any drawbacks and loopholes, if any, would be corrected before launching the scheme nationwide.

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H. COMMERCIALIZATION Commercialization involves the following four processes: 1) WHEN (timing): In commercializing a new product like Max Vijay, market entry timing

is critical. MNYL was first to capitalize the opportunity created during the financial crisis and enter the untapped market. 2) WHERE (geographical strategy): Uttar Pradesh, the biggest and the most populous state

was chosen. 3) TO WHOM (target market): Lower strata of the population, Rural India. 4) HOW: •

Tie up with Indian Oil Corporation: 2000 Kisan Seva Kendras

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Outsourcing agreement with technology major, IBM

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Recently, Mr. Amitabh Bacchan was roped in as the brand ambassador for Max Vijay product. The reason behind using him as a Brand ambassador is his strong association with the character “Vijay” who symbolized people’s hero who fought for the cause of the common man by standing up for their rights. His appointment as the brand ambassador for Max Vijay is a rebirth of the old Vijay, who is today propagating the cause of small savings and financial inclusion for the underserved masses of the country.”

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MULTI CHANNEL DISTRIBUTION MNYL has mainly used ZERO Level channels to sell its products to the customers. This helps in removal of the intermediaries which dilutes the profit. The various channels employed are:•

Insurance Agents

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Direct Selling Agents

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Internet

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Banc-assurance (First level): Here the Banks act as a mediator between MNYL & the customer. Hence it comes under the First Level Channel for distribution. Eg: It has tied up with Andhra Pradesh Rural Bank to distribute its products.

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Different Channels of Distribution i) Agency Channel:- In MNYL , business is done mainly through Agent Advisor. In India it

has more than 55000 agents. Two Programs are run under Agency Channel •

AAP(Agency Association Program)

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CEIP

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ii) Banc assurance: Banc assurance is an innovative distribution channel involving banks to sell insurance products of Insurance Companies. MNYL has tied up with several banks iii) Direct Sales Team(DST ):- Max New York Life Insurance makes a data base of potential customers; contact them on the telephone to market different policy of the company. iv) Alternate channel- Business is done through associate partners, internet etc.

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PRODUCT LIFE CYCLE

The MNYL lies in the growth stage of the PRODUCT LIFE CYCLE (PLC). There has been a period of rapid market acceptance and substantial profit improvement. The different strategies that have been adopted by MNYL in this stage are as follows: •

Persuasive advertisements (display of regular ads during prime time shows)

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Addition of new product features

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Increase in the distribution coverage (tie-ups with IOC, AP Rural bank, Mercantile Bank etc.)

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It has shifted its focus from product-awareness to product-preference advertising

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Product Hierarchy : Seven levels for life insurance sector are: 1. Need family: The core need that underlies the existence of a product family. E.g. security. 2. Product family: All the product classes that can satisfy a core need. E.g. savings. 3. Product class: A group of products having a certain functional coherence. E.g. financial instruments. 4. Product line: a group of closely related product w.r.t (e.g. life insurance) 

Functions



Same customers



Channels

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Price range

5. Product Type: A group of items within a product line that share on of the possible forms of the product. E.g. term life insurance

6. Item: a distinct unit within a brand or product line distinguishable by size, prize, appearance, or some other attribute E.g. Max New York SMART Steps™ Plus insurance.

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PRODUCT MIX AND PRODUCT-LINE LENGTH FOR MNYL LIFE PLANS

GROWTH

CHILD PLANS

PLANS 1)

Five Yr Renewable

1)

& Convertible Plan

2)

Level Term

2)

Policy

Life

1)

Children's

HEALTH

PENSION

PLANS

PLANS

1)

LifeLine

Premium

to 18 (Par)

t (Par)

Plan

Plan

Life

2)

Children's

MediCash™

Whole Life

3)

Participating

2)

LifeLine

5)

Life Gain™

Invest™

Gold

to 24 (Par)

Plus

Pension

Life

Max New York Life

Participating

SMART

Plan

Xpress

Endowment (Par) Plan

5)

3)

SMART

3)

Steps™

SMART Assure

LifeLine MediCash™ Plus

4)

SMART

4)

Steps™ Plus

LifeLine Safety Net™

5)

SMART Steps™

5)

LifeLine Wellness™

Single Premium

6)

Life Pay™ Money Back Plan

6) Max New York Life LifeLine Healthy Family

7)

Endowment to Age 60 (Par) Plan

8)

Life Gain™ Endowment Plan

9)

Life Gain™ Plus 20 Participating Plan

Life 19 |10)P a g Partner™ e Plus

SMART

Wellness™

Plus 25

20 year

2)

Endowment

Maker™

4)

Retiremen

Maker™

Platinum 4)

Easy Life™

Endowment

Plan 3)

1)

Maker™

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In the above diagram: WIDTH OF PRODUCT MIX OF MAX NEW YORK: 5 LENGTH OF PRODUCT MIX OF MAX NEW YORK: 28

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TYPES OF MARKETING IN THE SERVICE INDUSTRY:-

MAX NEW YORK LIFE

INTERNAL MARKETING

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EXTERNAL MARKETING

INTERACTIVE MARKETING

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EMPLOY EES

CUSTOM ERS

INTERNAL MARKETING:As far as the Internal Marketing of the MNYL is concerned, it regularly motivates its employees to perform better in difficult times. Training is a continuous process for agents at MNYL and ensures development of skills and knowledge through a structured programme spread over 500 hours in two years. This focus on continuous quality training has resulted in the company having amongst the highest agent pass rate in IRDA examinations and the agents have the highest productivity among private life insurers. MNYL has been awarded the best employer to work with; hence it shows the commitment it has towards its employees.

INTERACTIVE MARKETING:MNYL has developed skills in its workforce i.e. agents to serve their clients effectively and with ease. The technology backup provided by the IBM also helps MNYL to have an edge over the other insurance companies.

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PRODUCT STRATEGIES

The Insurance Industry exhibits the following FIVE product levels:CORE BENEFIT: SECURITY BASIC PRODUCT: HEALTH, CHILD, LIFE, PENSION, GROWTH EXPECTED PRODUCT: CLAIM SETTLEMENT AUGMENTED PRODUCT: ELECTRONIC FUND TRANSFER FACILITY FOR CLAIM SETTLEMENT (DONE BY MNYL)

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PRODUCT LEVELS OF AN INSURANCE INDUSTRY

MNYL has extended its brand by introducing the MAX VIJAY in a new Product Category.

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The brand name remains the same i.e. MAX NEW YORK LIFE after the launch of the new product in the market. The product category was new in this case, it was specially designed to cater the lower strata of the society giving them multiple paying options of the premium.

DIVERSIFICATION BY MAX VIJAY:

ANSOFF GRID

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MNYL has diversified by introducing the Max Vijay Scheme, which is a new product and offered into a new market. The new market is Uttar Pradesh, since it was earlier catering to the other parts of the country.

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CUSTOMER EXPECTATIONS:In the today era, Customer expectations are rising. Customers, faced with a dizzying array of insurance products expect customized offerings, value, ease of access, and personalization from insurers. Today, customers are expecting individual attention, responsiveness, customization and access. At the same time, they don’t want to pay a premium for these services. High customer expectations and lower exit barriers could lead to increased customer attrition. To meet the customer expectations is a daunting task for today’s insurance companies. If the customer’s expectations are met, then only he will be satisfied and continue your services. The company tries to utilize every moment of truth and tries to satisfy him at maximum possible touch points.

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CUSTOMER PERCEIVED VALUE

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Total Customer Benefit

Total Customer Cost

Product Benefit

Monetary Cost

Services Benefit

Time Cost

Personnel Benefit

Energy Cost

Image Benefit

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Psychological Cost

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CUSTOMER SATISFACTION: Customer satisfaction refers to the extent to which customers are happy with the products and services provided by a business. Gaining high levels of customer satisfaction is very important to a business because satisfied customers are most likely to be loyal and to make repeated orders and to use a wide range of services offered by a business. Since sales are the most important goal of any commercial enterprise, it becomes necessary to satisfy customers. For customer satisfaction it is necessary to establish and maintain certain important characteristics like: a. Quality b. Fair prices c. Good customer handling skills d. Efficient delivery e. Serious consideration of consumer complaints. Satisfaction is the feeling of pleasure or disappointment attained from comparing a products perceived performance (outcome) in relation to his or her expectations. If the performance falls short of expectations, the customer is dissatisfied. If the performance matches the expectations, the customer is satisfied. If the performance exceeds expectations, the customer is highly satisfied or delighted. MNYL is an ISO 9001-2001 Certified Company. Some of the benefits it provides to its customers are as follows: •

MNYL issues Policies to its customers in quick time and with maximum accuracy.

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Fast settlement of Claims and demonstrate reliability and trust

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Effective touch points for the customers who are regularly working towards resolving customers’ queries and needs.

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amongst our customers

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MNYL is constantly designing products keeping in mind long term customer benefits and responsibly fulfill the regulatory requirements.

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CUSTOMER DEVELOPMENT PROCESS

Potentials Disqualified Prospects

Prospects First time customers Repeat customers

Clients

Inactive or Ex-customers

Members CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT: CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT is the process of carefully managing detailed Advocates information about individual customers and all customers touch points to maximize customer

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loyalty. A customer touch point is any occasion on which a customer encounters the brand and product-from actual experience to personal or mass communications to casual observation. Max New York Life Insurance Company has also undertaken various steps to strengthen its customer relationship management.

Max New York Life Insurance has announced the introduction of INTERACTIVE VOICE RESPONSE (IVR) service in 10 different languages. The leap is in a bid to enhance and improve max New York Life’s customer and distributor experience by availing the customer service in their own language. Sanjeev Mago, executive vice president, Customer Operations and Service Delivery, Max New York Life Insurance, said, "This initiative is yet another step towards improving customer satisfaction by enhancing their ease of resolving pre and post policy issues. At Max New York Life, we lay emphasis in interacting with our customers and distributors in their choice of language."

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In order to improve its customer relationship management, MNYL has maintained internal records and marketing intelligence systems to maintain a database of profile and contact information of the customers.

Databases, Data Warehousing and Data Mining

MNYL Insurance has organized their information:•

Customer databases

•

Product databases

•

Salesperson databases

The most important of the above three is the customer database in which the profile and the contact information of the customer is saved. The customer database may even include the demographics and psychographics (activities, interests and opinions) according to which a customized policy is formulated for his/her needs.

“Carpet Bombing” is also being done to target the random customers in order to spread awareness and market the policies at a large scale.

MYNL conducted a study in association with AC Nielsen, which revealed that the customers want return and protection in an insurance policy. Based on this study, the company launched ‘Smart Express’ for a smooth ride through the volatile markets.

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TRADITIONAL ORGANIZATION CHART

This is the system when managers believe the customer as the company’s only true “Profit Centre”. It was the traditional approach and off late it was changed to the modern approach wherein customers are given prime importance.

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MAX NEW YORK LIFE FOLLOWED MODERN CUSTOMER-ORIENTED ORGANIZATION CHART

The Max New York Life culture is about: •

The customer comes first

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Do it right the first time

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Bias for result oriented action

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Financial strength and discipline

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Clarity of purpose

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International quality standards

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Inclusive meritocracy

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Learning opportunities

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Fun at work

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Commitment to published value system

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DIFFERENTIATION STRATEGIES: Product Differentiation: MNYL decided to straddle more on life benefits than death benefits. On the basis of a study conducted on the category & competition they realized that the competitors were focusing on pure protection & family protection as a benefit. So MNYL decided to focus on the aspirational proposition – thereby differentiating from their competitors.

Services Differentiation: With the launch of ‘Health Family Floater Plan’ MNYL became the first and the only company to offer benefits for congenital disorder. It also introduces some other significant firsts and bests to the industry: •

Relevant and segmented benefit for parents

•

Yearly increases on surgical benefits, even after claims

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Guaranteed renewability till the age of 75 years

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Highest number of Hospitalization Days and Daily Cash limits

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Highest number of critical illness covered

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Health insurance coverage for the longest duration - 10 years

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No upper limit on the family size.

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Personnel differentiation: The companies differentiate themselves by having better-trained employees. MNYL provides 150 hours of training to their employees against the industry average of 100 hours. The result is they have some of the best Agent Advisors in the business. Backed by the best training and infrastructure, their expert Agent Advisor will spend time evaluating the customers’ needs rather than just selling. They are professionals who will thoroughly understand the customers’ needs before recommending the policy tailored to meet them. They offer the best products with Flexibility as their cornerstone.

Re-training: Following the stock market meltdown in 2009, a large number of MNYL financial advisors had stopped visiting their customers, since they did not know how to deal with their queries about the fall in the value of investment. At this juncture, MNYL felt that the financial advisors needed a fresh perspective & communication skills to address the needs of their customers. Thus they re-trained & certified around 85,000 odd financial advisors.

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Today, India sits as the cusp of greatness both in its potential and in its achievements. Some argue that it has already crossed that threshold and is destined for greatness no matter what. MNYL believes that there are examples of this greatness all around and is proud to chronicle it for our collective inspiration. MNYL’s philosophy of ‘Karo Zyaada ka Iraada’ is a salute to all those who happily challenge status quo and push the boundaries in the search and in the creation of a bigger, brighter tomorrow. The dream of a larger good is no longer confined to a limited few. MNYL intends to awaken today’s India to re-look at itself, its realities and the possibilities and new ways to progress through its new business philosophy. ‘Karo Zyaada ka Iraada’ appears at a time when people are happier if we could articulate and then live our ambitions.

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POSITIONING:In order to achieve superior brand positioning, any marketer has to address three basic questions, which are: Who is the target group; what is the value proposition to them; is the communication effective or not. Positive answers to the above questions indicate that the company’s brand positioning is successful and that the customers are receptive 2 the product. The target groups for MNYL 1. People in the age group of 30 – 45 years 2. People in the age group 20 – 50 years 3. People in the age group 18 – 70 years 4. Health conscious people 5. Large families 6. Rural and semi urban masses

Value propositions to the target groups (in the same order followed for target groups) •

On the basis of age demographics several children plans were there to target the segment of people who lie within 30-45 years of age and for the education of their children. This target groups also includes married couples who are interested in securing the future of their children. Children's Endowment to 18 (Par) Plan, which provides an option to buy a permanent life insurance policy without medical underwriting. With the Stepping

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Stones™ (Par) Plan, the customers are entitled to make withdrawals for any unplanned expenses. •

Various plans like 20 year endowment plan, whole life participating plan etc. and various life plans have been designed exclusively for this target group.

•

For this target group, pension plans have been designed to facilitate the customers to derive benefits post retirement.

•

Various plans like Life maker premium plan, Life line safety net etc. have been designed to help customers derive benefits through health insurance policies.

•

MNYL's Five Year Renewable and Convertible Term Insurance (Non-Participating) is particularly useful as a short-term protection plan. An important feature of this policy is that it allows the insured to convert the policy to a regular policy during the tenure of the policy.

•

Max Vijay is a policy aimed to provide benefits to the rural and semi urban people.

Is the communication proper? MNYL has adopted an all persuasive brand positioning. The new television commercial (TVC) highlights the fact that today it is a general human tendency to desire and aim for more as against the old mind set of being content with whatever one has. The present trend is to dream bigger and a brand should partner that dream. MYNL believes that it is the age of consumerism and hence they its better to partner with their customers in their ambitions. The creative strategy captures that spirit. Through the TV commercial they have tried to highlight basic human tendency of 'Desire for More'.

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In addition to the TVC, MNYL have gone for the whole nine yards in terms of its marketing activities. As a part of its online promotions, MNYL has designed a game in the form of question and answer to not just engage better with the customers but also add to its database. The company had also advertised on websites. The company had promoted itself through malls, the Delhi Metro, traffic police stands, Mumbai railway stations and television programs such Big Boss, and Zee TV’s Sa Re Ga Ma and also targeted the news channels. Nearly, 60 per cent of the marketing budget was spent on mass media and the rest 40 per cent on below-the-line (BTL) activities.

Media mix: MNYL had shifted its strategy from being a lot on 9 pm English news channels to mainstream popular family programmes. They have done a lot of digital advertising as well. They have concentrated on TV by choice as part of their strategy.

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TWO WAY STRETCH MNYL, in order to achieve a higher market reach, has adopted a two way stretch. According to this strategy, MNYL has designed and delivered products and services for the two major segments – affluent segment and the lower strata segment of the Indian population. 1.

Up – Market Stretch :

Life Maker™ Premium Investment Plan MNYL wants to cash in on the affluent class’s mentality to think beyond basic necessities of life i.e. Food, Clothes and Shelter. The latest Life Maker™ Premium Investment Plan gives consumers a lot of choices - especially when they are looking for Great life style, Big Home, their own well established Business and top of all - Protection for their family. Max New York Life Insurance provides customers a powerful investment-cum-insurance plan where they can direct their investments in the customized unit linked funds such as equities, money market instruments, investment grade corporate bonds, and government securities. These funds offer a wide range of returns based on market returns. Customers can choose to invest their premiums in one or more of these funds, depending on their risk taking ability. The switching feature of this policy provides customers the facility to change the investment pattern by moving from one fund to other fund(s) amongst the funds offered under this contract. In case of unforeseen urgent needs; the plan ensures easy liquidity to the customers by accessing their fund through surrender benefit. 2.

Down market stretch (Max Vijay) :

Max Vijay is a savings cum life insurance plan aimed at the rural masses. This plan has been designed keeping in mind the lifestyle, income patterns and the needs of semi urban and rural people. It empowers millions of Indians to benefit from the economic boom in financial services that was hitherto denied to them. 'Max Vijay-Insurance Savings Box' or "Bima Gullak" combines

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the best of insurance and savings and gives customers a means to aggregate his earnings in a structured and well-planned manner.

UPMARKET STRETCH

DOWN MARKET STRETCH This kind of two-way stretch helped MNYL to gain the market dominance in the microinsurance category.

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Emerging Trends in the Insurance Sector: Micro-insurance The concept of micro insurance is to provide insurance to people living in rural areas & to people living below the poverty line. As Majority of India’s population is concentrated in the villages & most of them don’t have access to any financial products. Hence the opportunity is huge as it is an untapped market. According to IrDA, micro insurance products are those that provide term cover of between Rs 5,000 and Rs 50,000 for 5-15 years, or are endowment policies for 5-15 years that provide insurance of between Rs 5,000 and Rs 30,000. As Micro Finance sector is in evolving phase, Innovations are required at all stages for products, in pricing policy and in delivery channels.Success of marketing micro insurance depends on understanding the social and cultural needs of the target population. Clients should also receive price differentials for using different channels. Groups & their promoters can provide ideal platform to kick start the micro insurance. MNYL has targeted this segment with its MAX VIJAY product, which takes into account the unique needs of this audience. Max Vijay offers financial inclusion for a 10-year period, for minimum enrolment premium options of Rs 1,000, Rs 1,500 and Rs 2,500, respectively, and does not require compulsory time-bound renewals. Customers are given a privilege to deposit premiums any time from as low as zero to Rs 2,500 per day at their nearby retail shop or NGO. “Max Vijay has received an encouraging response from the market, having provided financial inclusion to over 55,000 households and has reached average sales of 1,000 policies per day,” Mehta said.

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SWOT Analysis Strengths:•

Strong corporate governance model

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Quality products

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Adaptability to changes

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Strong Brand name

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Large networks

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Leading company in insurance sector

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Diversification of funds

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Well Efficient Management

Weakness:•

Less awareness about all products of life insurance in market

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Low advertising

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Focus only on URBAN areas

Opportunities:-

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•

Fast growing economy

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Scope for opening of new branches in state/country

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High growth of ULIP industry

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Increasing population will increase in insurance business

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Increasing per –capita income in India

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Catering to the untapped Rural and Semi-Urban market

Threats:•

Market uncertainty (Recession)

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Consumers do not invest easily

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Arrival of new entrants in the insurance industry.

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Cut throat competition within the industry

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LITERATURE REVIEW MAX LIFE UNVEILS NEW SERVICE Financial Chronicle Max New York Life Insurance has launched electronic fund transfer facility for settling policyholders' claims. WE’RE FOCUSING ON ‘GUARANTEED’ PRODUCTS: MNYL K.R. Srivats The Hindu Business Line As life insurers adjust to the new market reality, they are recalibrating their marketing strategies to cope with the economic downturn. The current slowdown is being seen as an opportunity to make more gains and strengthen brand visibility. Impact of economic downturn on Max New York Life Insurance: For the first time, there has been negative growth in the industry in December 2008. Hence there is a need for a more balanced portfolio. What the customer is seeking at this point of time is more traditional products that have a safety aspect built into them. A company like MNYL has such products, and it has approached customers upfront, saying their money is safe with the company. It is important to have a balanced product suite from a company perspective. Company’s marketing strategy: MYNL is making a conscious effort to move our portfolio focus from being highly skewed towards pure equity-linked investment products to a more balanced mix of traditional savings instruments that provide capital protection and guaranteed returns.

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The new products that could be introduced in these tough times: MNYL have more or less a comprehensive product suite. There will be additional focus on introducing more products on the guaranteed space. In the next six months, that is going to be the focus. They are working on launching guaranteed products. Health is an area un-impacted by recession. MNYL has 5 health products, in different variations. In future, they have planned for additional products on pension.

Curtailment of advertisement expenses in these tough times: Not really a dip in spends but there’s stricter control on the return on investment. Marketing budgets are a function of business. The advertisement-to-sales ratio has not gone down. MNYL has got budgets that are aligned to business needs. The linkage with lead-generation and meeting business objectives will be of prime importance, hence online and on-ground activities might witness additional focus. Also, sharper segmentation, focused activities, tighter control on spends and ensuring maximum bang for each marketing dollar being spent. Marketing initiatives to sustain brand visibility: The activities we’re consciously undertaking are ones that educate and engage our consumers about the benefits of investing with a long-term horizon and hence how life insurance has a stronger role to play in times like these, even more so than when the going is good anyway.’ Karo Jyada Ka Irada’ — what has been the response to this campaign launched six months ago? The new brand campaign has been instrumental in ensuring the brand breaks through the

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clutter in life insurance advertising. The same is visible via an unprecedented surge in our brand metric measures for the year 2008. When we launched ‘Karo Jyada Ka Irada’, we did not see it as a return of investment proposition. Because it is a financial product, people see that very literally.

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The representation is dreams and aspirations — you get into long-term investments for fulfilling those dreams and aspirations.

MAX NY LIFE LAUNCHES ELECTRONIC FUND TRANSFER Business Standard Max New York Life Insurance today announced the launch of Electronic Fund Transfer of claims payment for its policyholders. The idea behind launching EFT is to cut down on the settlement period to ensure smooth and hassle-free settlement of claims, a company release said. "Approved claims can now be settled within 72 hours of submitting all documents", it said. "The amount due under the settlement of claims will be credited directly into the claimant's bank account enabling us to reach the bereaved families at the earliest and when most needed", the release added. INNOVATION FLASH ISSUE 2, FEBRUARY 2009, THE NEWSLETTER OF MICROINSURANCE INNOVATION FACILITY: Max New York Life Insurance Company Ltd has developed ‘Max Vijay’, a business model designed to serve 100 million low-income households in India by improving access to life insurance and minimizing transaction costs. The model is based on extensive and widespread distribution of a simple, tangible savings and insurance product through non-conventional insurance channels like small retailers, NGOs and MFIs, and leveraging IT, including handheld terminals, mobile phone and Internet portals, to manage payments that are likely to be small and irregular. The Facility grant will support the purchase of low cost, Wireless, printer integrated hand-held terminals (HHT) that can be used to collect small amounts at convenient locations.

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The grant will also be used to test new technology methods using mobile phones and Internet portals

BT- Mercer-TN survey places Max New York life insurance among “BEST COMPANIES TO WORK FOR IN INDIA” Max New York Life Insurance, India's leading private life insurance company, emerged as one of the best employer in the recently announced Business Today-Mercer-TNS Survey of 'The Best Companies to Work For in India'. Max New York Life Insurance was ranked 7th in the survey and the best life insurance company to work for in India. The top ranking in the survey, reiterates relentless focus on making Max New York Life a great place to develop work, maximize potential and build careers. As one of the most premium survey for best employers in India; a four-pronged methodology i) HR Metrics ii) HR Processes & Policies iii) Employee Perception iv) Stakeholder Perception forms the basis for the survey. Max New York Life was a great performer in the Employee Satisfaction Level - one of the parameter of BT-Mercer-TNS Survey. BT Survey identifies Max New York Life as an excellent nurturing ground for grooming talent systematically; which undoubtedly makes it a leader in HR practices.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

 Marketing management by Philip Kotler

 www.maxnewyorklife.com  www.4psbusinessandmarketing.com

 www.wikipedia.com  www.thehindubusinessline.com

 www.business-standard.com  www.financialexpress.com  www.businessweek.com  www.afaqs.com  www.investing.businessweek.com

 www.mydigitalfc.com  www.nextbillion.net  www.business.mapsofindia.com  www.info2india.com

 http://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/223363  http://www.nabard.org/pdf/report_financial/Chap_XI.pdf

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