Various types of life insurance policies:

Endowment policies: This type of policy covers risk for a specified Period, and at the end of the
maturity sum assured is paid back to Policyholder with the bonuses during the term of the
policy.
Money back policies: This type of policy is for periodic payments of Partial survival benefits
during the term of the policy as long as the Policy holder is alive.
Group insurance: This type of insurance offers life insurance Protection under group policies to
various groups such as employers Employees, professionals, co-operatives etc it also provides
insurance Coverage for people in certain approved occupations at the lowest Possible premium
cost.
Term life insurance policies: This type of insurance covers risk only during the selected term
period. If the policyholder survives the term, Risk cover comes to an end. These types of
policies are for those People who are unable to pay larger premium required for endowment
and whole life policies. No surrender, loan or paid up values are in such policies.
Whole life insurance policies: This type of policy runs as long as the Policyholder is alive and is
covered for the entire life of the Policyholder. In this policy the insured amount and the bonus
is Payable only to nominee on the death of policyholder.
Joint life insurance policies: These policies are similar to Endowment policies in maturity
benefits and risk cover, but joint life Policies cover two lives simultaneously such as married
couples. Sum Assured is payable on the first death and again on the death of survival During the
term of the policy.
Pension plan: a pension plan or annuity is an investment over a Certain number of years but
does not provide any life insurance cover. It offers a guaranteed income either for a life or
certain period.
Unit linked insurance plan: ULIP is a kind of insurance plan, which Provides life cover as well as
return on premium paid over a certain Period of time. The investment is denoted as units and
represented by the value called as net asset value (NAV).



Different distribution channels in India:
A multi-channel strategy is better suited for the Indian market. Indian Insurance market is a
combination of multiple markets. Each of the markets requires a different approach. Apart from
geographical spread the social cultural and economic segmentation of the market is very wide,
exhibiting Different traits and needs. Different multi-distribution channels in India are As
follows:
Agents: Agents are the primary channels for distribution of insurance. The public and private
sector insurance companies have their Branches in almost all parts of the country and have
attracted local People to become their agents. Today's insurance agent has to know Which
product will appeal to the customer, and also know his Competitor's products to be an effective
salesman who can sell his Company, the product, and himself to the customer. To the average
Customer, every new company is the same. Perceptions about the Public sector companies are
also cemented in his mind. So an Insurance agent can play an important role to create a good
image of Company.
Banks: Banks in India are all pervasive, especially the public sector Banks. Many insurance
companies are selling their products through Banks. Companies, which are bank, owned, they
are selling their Products through their parent bank. The public sector banks, with their Vast
branch networks, are helpful to insurance companies. This Channel of selling insurance is
known as Bank assurance.
Brokers: Now a days different financial institution are selling Insurance. These financial
institutions are known as brokers. They are taking some underwriting charges from the
insurance companies to sell their insurance products.
Corporate agents: Corporate agency is a cross selling type of Channel. Insurance companies
tie-up with business houses in other Industries to sell insurance either to their employees or
their Customers. Insurance industry, during the past 2 years has witnessed a Number of such
strategic tie-ups and alliances. Corporate agents have become a major force to reckon with in
distributing insurance Products.
Internet: In this technological world Internet is also a channel of Selling insurance. This can be
as direct marketing.


EFFECTIVE MARKETING STRATEGIES FOR INSURANCE PRODUCTS
Now the Indian consumer is knowledgeable and sensitive. Consumers are Increasingly more
aware and are actively managing their financial affairs.
People are increasingly looking not just at products, but also at integrated Financial solutions
that can offer stability of returns along with total Protection. In view of this, the insurance
managers need to understand more About the details that go into the introduction of insurance
products to make It attractive in this competitive market. So now days an insurance manager
Requires leadership, commitment, creativity, and flexibility. "Every family in every village in the
country should feel safe and secure". This vision alone will help to bring the new ideas to the
insurance manager. Financial, marketing and human resource polices of the corporations
Influence the unit mangers to make decisions. Performance of insurance Company depends on
the effectiveness of such policies. Insurance Corporations formulate and revise these policies
from time to time to ensure that the performance of the managers is best for the organization.
In the competitive market, insurance companies are being forced to adopt a strictly
professional approach in marketing. The insurance companies face the challenge of changing
the uninspiring public image of the industry. Some of the important marketing elements are-
1. Marketing mix.
2. The importance of relationship.
3. Positioning.
4. Value addition.
5. Segmentation.
6. Branding.
7. Insuring service quality.
8. Effective pricing.
9. Customer satisfaction research.
The growth of insurance sector is governed largely by factors external to it.
The following factors influence the market and demand of product-
1. Government policies
2. Growth in population
3. Changing age profile
4. Income wise distribution of the population.
5. Level of insurance awareness.
6. The pricing of the policies.
7. The economic climate of the country.
8. The aversion to risk.
9. Social and political features of the country.
10. Growth scenario in the world.


















An insurance product can be classified into three Phases:
1. Core product: In insurance industry the core product is the policy that provides protection to
the customers.
2. Expected product: Because of competition customers start to expect more from an insurance
product. Then insurance companies provide some tangible attributes in their product to
differentiate from Competitors, such as-
Brand
Some additional features in existing product
By providing instruction manual with the policy
3. Augmented product: An insurance company can provide different Types of services to
differentiate their products-
1. Post-sales services.
2. Branches in different places for customers.
3. Customer complaint management.
4. Payment option convenient to customers.
The entry of private players and their foreign partners has given domestic Players a tough time,
because the opening up of the sector has not brought in only foreign players, but also
professional techniques and technologies. The Present scene in India is such that everyone is
trying to put in the best Efforts. There are marketing strategies more for survival than growth.
But the most important gift of privatization is the introduction of customer oriented Services.
Utmost care is being taken to maximize customer Satisfaction.





Success of an insurance company depends on four important
functions:
Identification of markets: Identification of markets means need to Understand the trends in
culture and businesses constantly, through Conducting research and analysis. Insurance
companies can take this Job on their own or assign it to an external agency. Relying on an
External agency can be risky due to the questionable loyalty of the Agents.
Assessment of risks and estimation of losses: Efficiency of actuaries And assessors of the
insurance policies in fixing premiums and settling Claims is foremost an important area for
achieving overall efficiency In operations. The quality of assessing the risk and estimation of
Losses has the largest claim on the performance of an insurance Company. Well-trained,
experienced and expert hands are needed for the operations.
Penetration into and exploitation of markets: Market penetration or Exploitation of a
company can be identified with the growth in Number of policies in each type of insurance,
growth rate in earnings Or turnover, companys market share, increase in number of branches
and divisions etc. Efforts of the company as a whole and that of the Divisions and branches are
assessed to measure the effectiveness.
Control over investment and operating costs: Control over Resources such as men, machines,
and materials at each level of the Organization provide measures of efficiency of a unit as well
as the Organization. Investment control and expense control are dealt separately and the
effectiveness of managements decisions at various levels is to be assessed separately.