Since I last wrote about the big news between AARP and the American Seniors Association (ASA), I have received numerous emails asking me questions mostly focused on 1) how to join the ASA, 2) how they compare to AARP and 3) what benefits and insurance programs they offer.
First: if you want to join, visit their website: www.americanseniors.org
Second: The ASA is an elder advocacy group similar to the AARP, but more politically conservative in nature. They’re actually going out of their way to market themselves as a conservative alternative to the AARP. While the AARP does not actively market itself as a liberal organization, some view them as such. The ASA appears to be embracing the conservative niche, doing things like posting Fox News videos on their website’s front page.
Third: Since I first wrote about the ASA, they have partnered with Liberty Mutual insurance group and Mutual of Omaha to offer a insurance benefits through their site. This is undoubtedly an attempt to both appease their increasing member base, but also to generate additional revenue. They are undoubtedly getting lead and/or commission revenue through their partnership with Liberty Mutual.
Buyers should be wary of what they buy regardless of where they buy it, however. American Seniors Association is still relatively new and they don’t have the membership base that AARP does, so if your primary objective in obtaining insurance is to save money, shop widely and wisely. For example, the ASA’s “Medicare Solutions” link on their site is actually a link to Senior Market Sales, Inc., a company that offers insurance products to seniors through third parties.
I did a little digging on the link to “Travel” on the ASA’s site. It appears that they’re just offering a commission based link through www.cltsloyalty.com, a company that partners with others to offer travel and vacation plans. While I see nothing necessarily wrong with this, a disclaimer of some sort might be appropriate. The ASA does not actually state that its their travel program, they’re just implying that it is by listing it on their site and failing to directly state that it’s not their program.
The ASA is still a very new organization that is slowly gaining experience and size. Their website format and design is, in my opinion, still amateur. It is not well organized or designed, and I think that’s indicative of their organization as well.
The ASA’s advocacy efforts appear non-existent, and I see no professional research resources on any work they’re conducting. At this stage, the ASA seems to be offering little more than a way for conservative elders to join an organization that proclaims to represent their interests, but don’t exactly say how. Instead they prominently focus attention on their revenue generating insurance and travel programs.
That being said, I’ve signed up for their email updates to see how they develop and improve over time. Stay tuned.