TrendSource Trending Blog

As we’ve learned through the pandemic, some things can be canceled and others can be postponed, but there are some events that simply cannot be moved. Think of it this way: Coachella 2020 was canceled, the NBA season was postponed, but the national election has to happen on November 3. Same with Easter and Commencement and the daily mail route. Unlike weddings or concerts, these things just can’t be moved. 

We are back for the next round of Market Research 101, but before we wax poetically about another market research methodology, we must acknowledge: we are nearing the end of our digital market research seminar. Sadly, all good things must come to an end and Market Research 101 is getting there quickly.

During Medicare’s Annual Election Period (AEP), TrendSource Trusted Insight designs and executes secret shop programs for over 30 Medicare Advantage plans, helping companies ensure their sales agents comply with mandated CMS guidelines. Based on more than 4,000 individual projects, we identified the top violation per audit type and, while some have appeared in years past, others were previously unseen. By alerting our clients to these issues, they were able to implement corrective actions. Below, we outline, in no specific order, some of the top AEP 2017 violations.

Every year, TrendSource executes Secret Shop programs with over 30 Medicare Advantage plans during the Annual Enrollment Period to ensure their sales agents are meeting CMS Marketing Guidelines. Based on over ~4000 Secret Shops completed, we were able to identify the top violations per audit type that occurred during AEP 2016. Some of these violations were an issue last year; however, some of these violations are new issues we were able to relay to our clients for corrective action.*

AEP 2016 has come to a close.  During our 7^th successful AEP season, we ended up completing over 4,000 “Secret Shops” for our 30+ Medicare and Medicaid clients.