CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Financial advisors looking to invest client assets in annuities rank Jackson National, Lincoln Financial Group and Pacific Life in their top five across three types of annuities: variable, fixed and indexed. However, the leader and subsequent rankings vary by product category, as advisors are influenced by different factors when considering each product type. While Jackson National stands out as advisors’ favorite for variable annuities, Lincoln Financial Group achieves the highest consideration for fixed and indexed annuities. These and other findings are from Annuity Brandscape™, a Cogent Reports™ study released by Market Strategies International-Morpace.
Advisors cite the ability to generate guaranteed income in retirement for their clients as the top reason for selling annuity products. Offering the best retirement income products is the most important consideration driver for variable annuities, while guaranteed rates and product simplicity are the most important areas to convey for fixed and indexed annuities. Annuity providers must be aware of differences in the drivers of consideration by product type and focus their sales and marketing messages accordingly.
“Firms looking to bolster advisor interest should work to target the right benefits to the right people at the right time,” said Meredith Lloyd Rice, vice president at Market Strategies-Morpace and author of the report. “Building strong advisor engagement, through wholesaler and digital interactions, is critical to developing this understanding.”
In fact, underpinning their leading consideration scores, Jackson National and Lincoln Financial both stand out as leaders in wholesaler penetration and marketing outreach, leaving both firms in a position to benefit from rising annuity sales.
Top Five Annuity Providers in Overall Consideration by Product Type
| Variable Annuity | Fixed Annuity | Indexed Annuity | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Jackson National | 1 | Lincoln Financial Group | 1 | Lincoln Financial Group | |||||||||
| 2 | Lincoln Financial Group | 2 | Pacific Life | 2 | Allianz Life | |||||||||
| 3 | Prudential Financial | 3 | Brighthouse Financial | 3 | Pacific Life | |||||||||
| 4 | Nationwide Financial | 4 | Jackson National | 4 | Jackson National | |||||||||
| 5 | Pacific Life | 5 | Nationwide Financial | 5 | AIG | |||||||||
Base: All advisors
Source: Market Strategies International. Cogent Reports™. Annuity Brandscape™. December 2018.
About Annuity BrandscapeTM
Cogent Reports conducted an online survey with 712 financial advisors from October to November 2018. In order to qualify, respondents were required to have client assets invested in variable annuities, fixed annuities or indexed annuities. Cogent Reports sets quota targets and weighted the data to be representative of the overall annuity producer universe using the Discovery Data Financial Services Industry database as a sample source and Cogent BeatTM Advisor. Market Strategies will supply the exact wording of any survey question upon request.
About Market Strategies International-Morpace
Leading market research firms Market Strategies International and Morpace bring clients closer to their customers through exceptional insights, which includes deep expertise in financial services, specifically among wealth, banking, payments and insurance organizations. The firms specialize in brand, customer experience, product development and segmentation research, and are known for blending primary research with data from syndicated, benchmarking and self-funded studies to help clients succeed. The syndicated products, known as Cogent Reports, help clients understand the market environment, explore industry trends and monitor their brand within the competitive landscape. Market Strategies and Morpace have earned the trust of many of the world’s top brands across the automotive, consumer & retail, energy, financial services, health, technology and telecommunications industries. They are combining into one firm, as part of an acquisition of both firms by STG, and will be rebranded under a new name in 2019. With more than 450 research professionals, the collective firm is now the 15th largest market research firm in the US and top 25 globally.
