Built to click. Timed to matter.
Markerstudy Distribution turns insight into action, boosting conversions with Adobe personalisation.
3x
higher uplift than expected for last-minute renewals
£500K
in revenue gains through segmentation and reduced support calls
27,000+
customers drove 5% boost in online engagement
“Adobe let us scale personalisation and deliver real gains for both customers and the business."
Andrew Mackie, Associate Director, Digital Sales, Markerstudy Distribution
Reading between the spikes.
You learn a lot when most of your customers engage online. Just ask Andrew Mackie, Associate Director of Digital Sales at Markerstudy Distribution.
Markerstudy Distribution sells directly to consumers through trusted well-known brands such as Budget Insurance and Zenith Insurance. In the sea of daily traffic generated by the hum of ‘business as usual’, Mackie and his team noticed something curious: customers weren’t behaving the same way in the lead-up to renewal. Some browsed early, while others waited until the last minute. That insight kicked off a new approach to digital journeys.
Mackie, together with his digital optimisation team, focused on uncovering new opportunities to better engage customers in the competitive insurance market. Markerstudy Distribution has a sophisticated digital estate, with more than 70% of customers interacting online before their renewal date. Despite years of testing and optimisation using Adobe Analytics and Adobe Target, the team realised there was still untapped opportunity hiding in the data — particularly relating to renewals, a key customer touchpoint.
"Segmentation helped us rethink customer behaviour before renewal. It showed the power of combining behavioural data with user insight to refine even well-optimised journeys."
Joe Nurser, Senior Optimisation Manager, Markerstudy Distribution
Where timing meets intent.
Markerstudy Distribution was communicating the same message to every customer — some were just beginning to consider their options, while others were ready to commit. But Mackie and his team had a hunch: if the online experience felt more relevant to where customers were in their renewal journey, it could lead to happier users and better business results.
Digging deeper, the data revealed something unexpected. A notable spike in customer traffic occurred around day 27 — when renewal notifications were first sent out — followed by a lull, then another surge just before policy expiration. These patterns pointed to two distinct types of customer behaviour and ultimately drove the decision to tailor renewal experiences based on where people were in the renewal process.
To map conversion rates against days to renewal, Markerstudy used Analytics and discovered two key segments: early browsers and last-minute renewers. Each group came with different motivations, levels of urgency, and needs. They were able to deliver customised experiences to both with Target — reinforcing policy benefits and peace of mind to the early group and offering clear call to actions and countdown timers to the last-minute crowd. They also tested messaging variations like reminders of previous coverage, simplified renewal summaries, and real-time prompts based on user activity.
Building the journey, one segment at a time.
Testing both experiences side-by-side against a control group yielded results that surprised even the optimisation pros. "We were hoping for maybe a 2% lift, so seeing a 6% uplift among last-minute renewers, especially in a segment where we thought we’d hit the ceiling, was a big win,” says Sam MacColl, Optimisation Manager for Markerstudy Distribution.
The segmentation work helped the team reframe existing beliefs about customers’ actions. "Segmentation helped us rethink customer behaviour before renewal,” says Joe Nurser, Senior Optimisation Manager for Markerstudy Distribution. “It showed the power of combining behavioural data with user insight to refine even well-optimised journeys."
The customers who preferred to engage online also proved to be those less likely to call, reducing pressure on the call centre and freeing up agents to focus on complex queries. Because Markerstudy Distribution's agents are cross-trained across service lines, that efficiency creates a ripple effect across the entire support operation.
More than 27,000 customers participated in the pilot test, which also led to a 5% boost in engagement and a 4% drop in call centre volume. This led to an estimated £500,000 in annual revenue gains, and a 3% increase in overall online renewal rates.
"We found that order matters. What's shown first sells more. AI is helping us get the right product in front of the right person.”
Sam MacColl, Optimisation Manager, Markerstudy Distribution
Targeted add-ons, powered by AI.
The benefits extend beyond renewals. The team is now rolling out a similar personalisation strategy in the quote-to-buy journey, using deeper insight into customer behaviour and context to enable more tailored and optimised campaigns. Paired with Automated Personalisation in Target, this allows them to dynamically reorder optional add-ons — like breakdown coverage or key protection — based on what’s most relevant to each customer. The result is a smarter, more relevant experience that adapts to individual needs and drives stronger engagement.
"We found that order matters. What's shown first sells more,” says MacColl. “AI is helping us get the right product in front of the right person.”
That AI-first thinking is part of a broader cultural shift at Markerstudy Group. After acquiring broking firm Atlanta, the optimisation team brought the business into the Adobe ecosystem. "We were able to introduce a system of testing and prioritising based on data," MacColl says. "Now we can actually prove what works."
Meeting customers where they click.
The shift to personalisation is now central to how Markerstudy approaches the customer experience. Tailoring messages to each customer based on what they need has proven to deliver better outcomes at every stage of the journey. Personalisation is enabling Markerstudy to meet people where they are, when it counts the most.
“Adobe gives us the flexibility and the tools to scale those experiences,” says Mackie. “It’s how we connect with customers in a way that actually matters and makes a measurable impact on our business.”
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