AEP contact with current book of business

[timeflies]

I have over 400 MAPD members in my book of business and last year during AEP, I did receive a decent # of referrals, but there are some current members that want to find a better plan for a variety of reasons. I pride myself in staying in regular contact with my members and helping out as much as possible with customer service issues. When there is a major issue with their plan, I always make a phone call to the members to make them aware of it like when a large provider group leaves the plan they are enrolled in etc.
I also use SOC to keep in contact with my members and everyone gets a thank you note, a birthday and a Christmas card and so.
So now that AEP is approaching I would like to see how agents that sell a lot of MAPD plans reach out to their current book. Do you send them a letter about AEP and ask that they call you if they have concerns or want to take a loot at other plans, or do you call all of your members? I got several calls from members during the year letting me know that they would be wanting to meet during AEP, but I am not sure how to handled the rest of them.
With 400 members and not being able to call and talk about specific 2019 plan benefits until October 1st, I would need to make an awful lot of calls in a short period of time to reach everyone. Your feedback is appreciated? Since many of my members have been on their plan for several years, I would think that if they had any concerns they would let me know. I just don't want my current members responding to another agent, or plans' mailing and then losing the business.

 

[Todd King]

You might entertain sending out a letter to your existing clients explaining that you won't have any details on the upcoming year's plans until October 1st. So, please reach out to you on or after that date, but before the beginning of December (or whatever you choose), so that you can discuss it with them to see if their plan is still the best fit for them.

 

[Northeast Agent]

I send MA clients a letter by the middle of September, reminding them to expect their ANOC by 9/30. The letter also states I can't discuss the 2019 plans until at least 10/1, but a SOA is included if they want to do a yearly review after that up until December 7th.

Med Supp clients receive a different letter, letting them know that AEP is geared towards MA and PDP. I remind them we can certainly do a yearly PDP review after 10/1 and they receive a SOA as well.

Last year, I received a few screaming phone calls from clients demanding to be taken off their Med Supp. They wanted to be put on the Humana plan that would give them everything for "free." The culprit was their $0 premium HMO that was being advertised all over, so that involved some re-education.

 

[russelltw]

If you are the face to face type, you might try to find a central location and ask for your clients to come back and meet you there (maybe a coffee shop). Bring their info and discuss their plans.

I would think about how you can reach multiple clients at one time and have them do the driving to you.

Two years ago, Hurricane Matthew hit my area hard. I had to drive to a cousins house who has power and internet. My internet provider's substations were flooded. I sent an email and video showing them how to shop their pdp plan. If you needed my help, to please call, but it might be a week or so before I could do much work. I also let them know they could call Medicare directly and a review.

The more clients you have to harder it is to deal with AEP. Always love hearing what others are doing.

 

[enyce]

Wow good job on keeping up with your clients, I personally never reach out and only lost about 8% of clients in a 12 month period, Though of course ymmv based on the area and plan options/changes, But to answer your question, I don't reach out to anyone and sustain give or take 250 MAPD clients.

Your method sounds great for retention, Just not worth the effort for some of us.

 

[LostDollar]

Wow good job on keeping up with your clients, I personally never reach out and only lost about 8% of clients in a 12 month period, Though of course ymmv based on the area and plan options/changes, But to answer your question, I don't reach out to anyone and sustain give or take 250 MAPD clients.

Your method sounds great for retention, Just not worth the effort for some of us.

based on the reading I've done here, it looks to me like your entire customer base would be wide open to an agent that stresses how they will do an annual review of the client's drug plan costs against a current drug pricing list.

 

[bpenn9]

Wow good job on keeping up with your clients, I personally never reach out and only lost about 8% of clients in a 12 month period, Though of course ymmv based on the area and plan options/changes, But to answer your question, I don't reach out to anyone and sustain give or take 250 MAPD clients.

Your method sounds great for retention, Just not worth the effort for some of us.

You are loosing 20 clients, around $4800 in a year. Reaching out is a great way to help with retention and ASK for referrals.

 

[Chazm]

I send half my letters the last week of sept and the rest about a week into October. The calls come pouring in so I like to stagger it.

I just let my clients know that they shouldn’t be complacent with their current plan. Call me to find out what direction their plan is going and to see if there are better options. If one or more plans are having big changes, I urge those clients to reach out to me.

I also ask for referrals in the letter

 

[GreenSky]

based on the reading I've done here, it looks to me like your entire customer base would be wide open to an agent that stresses how they will do an annual review of the client's drug plan costs against a current drug pricing list.

Is that how you work with your clients?

Or are you just lonely?

Rick

 

[LostDollar]

Is that how you work with your clients?

Or are you just lonely?

Rick

The posts in the thread bring up a wide spread in procedure.

I became a forum member in the fall of 2016. That was pre computer conversion and I think there might have been a bit wider member participation in discussion at that time. It seems like there were at least two threads that came up about the perennial MAPD vs MedSupp debate.

In those, and other, discussions I have observed there are some MedSupp sales agents who do not wish to become AHIP certified and therefore cannot sell either PD or MAPD plans. However, some of those same agents whose sales efforts are restricted to Med Supps press a cadre of friends and relations into service during AEP and review the prescription lists and drug plans of all of their clients who ask for help.

Posts in the thread above present a variety of other, less extreme, responses to the situation, concluding with a response of no client interaction at all. One of the discussions that range of response could reopen is whether or not an agent should have an assistant. For some agents who do not have extensive networks of family and friends or the force of personality to impose the agent's will upon them, a paid assistant would give an agent some help to solve the problem of client interaction. (while also raising issues like theft of business and increasing cost of business.)

It is not my place to try to present the business practices of folks with whom I do business, but I do have a customer view of how one successful agent (with at my guess over 20 years of experience and over 1,000 policies in force) approaches the situation. The general parameters of the approach have been presented in other forum member posts above.

I think the questions of cost of obtaining a lead or cost of obtaining a customer have been raised a number of times over the last 18 months in both the senior and fe forums.
The post above I responded to raises another question which I'm not sure has been discussed.

What is the cost of loosing a customer?

That becomes a value judgement which each agent has to keep in mind as they decide their level of activity for AEP.