One accusation that the insurance industry often gets is that it lags and has low innovation in product development. Surprisingly, the reality is products are diverse across offerings and options. Products exist for pandemics, alien abduction, and even ghosts. Coverage exists for identity theft, cyber exposure and digital data recovery. Yet, many consumers are not aware of these solutions. The debate continues: is insurance bought or sold?

We don't buy a policy and celebrate like we do our homes, cars, or even a new comfortable hoodie. We buy policies then resent the premiums as they clear our bank statements. We dislike that automobile policies are legislated, or homeowners' policies required by mortgagees or landlords. When is the last time you thought to look for an insurance product such as pandemic coverage? Under this premise, insurance is sold. 

As an established global industry, the existing processes and marketing both enables and limits the development of products. Typically, marketing courses teach the 5 P's of product, promotion, price, place and people to consider when launching new products.

The original version of this article appeared in PC360 to view it, click here.