Forrest T. Jones & Company Case Study
Project Scope
Forrest T. Jones & Company (FTJ) of Kansas City, Missouri needed next-generation sales and marketing Web site functionality and looked to IdeaStar to help them reach their goals. FTJ specializes in association group marketing and employee benefits. IdeaStar, as a pioneer in the development of Web-enabled marketing solutions, was asked to develop enhanced quote and application processes for products and services in which association members could easily enroll. In addition, FTJ wanted to improve Web based lead generation capabilities for employer groups and release the web site with a fresh new design.
Challenge
FTJ had a definite need for a Web-based system that would provide greater self-service capabilities and make enrollment easier for members. Similar to many affinity and member-driven organizations, FTJ offers a variety of valuable insurance benefits and services to its association clients and their members. FTJ needed a site that could be customized for each visitor based upon their professional field, association affiliation and state of residence.
Each page is branded to the association and offers products, rates, applications and other information available to that specific association and state. The complexity of the data and a varied user audience provided a number of challenges as the system would be required to serve tens of thousands of members – all from a single site and one URL!
Site content specifics:
• 80+ Groups/Associations
• 30+ Carriers
• 130+ Products
Solution
IdeaStar developed a matrix-driven portal that allows:
• All carrier pages to be separately branded.
• All group/association pages to be separately branded.
• All members to see the right product mix for their association and state.
The member is able to choose from a menu of plans and services, gain additional information in regard to a particular plan or service, receive a quote and apply online. IdeaStar developed the matrix as a tool to process this complex data set and control the exposure of product information to specific audiences.
As a compliment to the matrix, IdeaStar also provided FTJ with a content management system that allows them to control certain content on each individual page of the site. This allows FTJ to edit the marketing content themselves without the need for the IT department or IdeaStar to facilitate those updates.
With a strong focus on usability and creating user confidence, IdeaStar was able to make a content rich site easy to navigate which improved efficiency and encourages enrollments. The intuitive nature of the site’s architecture not only drives enrollments, it also facilitates cross-marketing opportunities and lead generation.
Results
The new FTJ Web site went live on May 12, 2008 offering enhanced functionality and improved site design. Members can now easily navigate through the specific products and services available to them with efficiency, accuracy and confidence. The Web site facilitates stress-free browsing and has simplified the product selection and enrollment processes for site visitors.
FTJ has strengthened its relationships with its affinity and member driven audiences by improving its services to them via the Web. In addition, with a sustainable, reliable and secure Web platform the company is well poised to maintain a competitive advantage, increase enrollments and maximize lead opportunities.
Client Says
“The new site is a significant upgrade in navigation and functionality for the association members who comprise one of our most important markets,” said Frederic Hron, Director of Marketing Communication for FTJ. “IdeaStar helped us create a site that presents a customized environment for each visitor, one branded to their association, where products, rates, applications and other information are generated based on the visitor’s state of residence and association affiliation.”
Questions? Contact IdeaStar