The 3 in 4 Need More national summer cross-country bus tour was officially introduced in New York’s Times Square on May 24.
A 1950s-era bus, branded with the 3 in 4 Need More logo, pulled into Times Square as morning commuters were starting their day. Classical music by Juilliard students began, followed by a “flash mob” of seemingly disabled senior citizens who suddenly abandoned their crutches to begin dancing joyfully.
Following the dancers Jonas Roeser, who also serves as president of the 3in4 Association, which runs the 3 in 4 Need More campaign, explained the point of the flash mob.
Roeser told the gathered crowd, “Millions of Americans, as they get older and live longer, will need help with the tasks of daily living—ongoing care beyond the scope of regular health insurance or Medicare. Most people don’t know that, so we’re kicking off a summer-long awareness campaign where we’ll be traveling the country to educate Americans about planning for their long term care needs.”
Marion Somers, PhD, who is the official spokesperson of this cross-country campaign, followed Roeser to announce the 20-city bus tour. Dr. Somers—or Dr. Marion, as she is referred to in the campaign—is a recognized visionary and thought leader in the elder field, with more than 30 years of experience as a geriatric care manager, caregiver, author, speaker, and teacher of all things elder and eldercare.
As part of the campaign there will be a contest for people who submit their “care” stories through the 3 in 4 Need More website. At the end of the bus tour, Dr. Marion will announce the winner, who will receive an in-home makeover (grab bars, ramps, elder-safe products) as well as a seven-day cruise—all worth approximately $50,000.
Another element of the tour is cementing brand identity with Americans at each stopover by casting the 3 in 4 Need More logo on buildings, national monuments (where approval has been provided), natural land formations (e.g., the Grand Canyon) and other iconic structures (e.g., Golden Gate bridge). This will be done via a logo projector and throw lenses operated from the bus. The intent is to create newsworthy stories and images that will draw more attention to the campaign’s goal of educating the public about the need for long term care insurance.
For more information on the 3in4 Association, call 888-874-2870 or email contact@3in4needmore.com.
The 3in4 Association is a 502(c)(4) non-profit corporation. Donations may be deductible as business expenses, but are not deductible as charitable contributions for federal income tax purposes.
Everyone in the insurance industry should join the organization, take advantage of the promotional materials available, and stay informed on the progress the tour is making in educating consumers about the need for long term care. The 20-city tour officially began on June 27 and will end on August 26 (for a complete itinerary, go to page 70).
Long term care insurance has been the “read headed stepchild” of the insurance industry for far too many years. However, its status seems to be improving. According to industry statistics, sales increased during 2010. This fact is confirmed in the research for Broker World’s 2011 Individual Long Term Care Survey . The survey specifically interprets individual sales numbers and presents a comprehensive overview of products and companies in the individual market.
Be sure to check back next month when Broker World will publish the first annual Multi-Life Long Term Care Insurance Survey. The multi-life market has been a growing portion of LTC insurance sales, and this new survey will compare detailed sales distributions of the multi-life market to corresponding sales distributions for other LTC insurance policies sold.
With all the attention on long term care in this month’s issue, please don’t overlook the life insurance focus section (beginning on page 10) because you will miss some excellent product and marketing wisdom! [SAC]
