Challenge: Deviating from the status quo 

Healthcare costs are rising at 7% each year, and employer health insurance premiums are not immune to the rising prices. Employers are looking for innovative solutions to cut costs and lean on their brokers to provide guidance on strategies to implement. One strategy available to self-funded employers is reference-based pricing (RBP), where medical claim prices are negotiated with providers at a percentage of Medicare prices. While RBP is appealing in theory, many brokers and HR teams are slow to adopt the strategy due to member disruption risk when shifting away from a traditional medical carrier. 

Given the complexity of reference-based pricing and the concern about member disruption, selling RBP plans can be difficult. Our client, a RBP health plan, was facing challenges educating brokers on RBP’s benefits, demonstrating their value and competitive advantage to employers, and building a trusted network of brokers RBP-advocating brokers. 

Solution: Facilitating broker introductions for connectivity and insights

Archetype connected our client into the RAD Collective, an invite-only network of 50+ forward-thinking insurance brokers and consultants. Through the RAD Collective, our client positioned themselves as industry thought leaders and trusted advisors. In addition to developing new relationships, RAD provided recommendations for making our client’s messaging and sales materials resonate more with brokers. We combined these findings with market research to highlight what makes brokers offer an RBP plan over a traditional medical plan.  

Archetype additionally refined our client’s ideal employer profile using Salesforce data and RAD member insights. We helped our client develop a more focused strategy for connecting with brokers that better fit the ideal persona.  

Impact: Driving towards growth in the 2025 renewal cycle

After missing their 2023 sales targets, Archetype enabled our client to: 

• Establish broker connections that will increase pipeline value 

• Develop a strong foundation for future sales cycles through interactions with 60 employee benefits brokers and consultants 

• Position themselves in market through valuable broker insights 

• Effectively communicate their value proposition through focused sales collateral and a strong sales pitch 

• Educate brokers on the benefits of reference-based pricing 

Our client is entering the 2025 open enrollment renewal cycle and is better positioned to sell their plans with a refined value proposition, updated sales collateral, and new broker connectivity.