Since the advent of the Internet, rapidly evolving technology has been an integral part of nearly every industry. What started out simply, with email communication and online searches, has grown to include Web conferencing, social networking, and much more.
But when it comes to the insurance industry — and specifically a producer’s practice — are today’s technological options enough?
Many in this industry would argue that the innovation of technology for independent agents just isn’t keeping pace with other fields. In fact, the lack of insurance-specific technological options has driven many professionals to simply adapt existing technologies for their individual needs, making do with tools developed for others or the public at large.
So why are the technological needs of agents not being met? Is it because there isn’t a demand for such tailored tools? Or is it because most agents wouldn’t use the solutions anyway? We spoke with several people in the industry to find out: What’s the state of technology in your business today?
Making do with what’s around
Many agents, confronted with a dearth of options in the area of insurance-specific tech tools, are finding themselves adapting tools created for either consumers or businesspeople in general, tweaking those tools to meet the needs of their practice. The strongest example of this is in the field of smart phones and mobile devices.
John C. Johns, managing partner at Southern Farm Bureau Life Insurance, said he uses his BlackBerry and Bluetooth every day to streamline his business and help make his work more efficient.
“If it’s legal in your state, I would recommend that you use a Bluetooth or other hands-free device to check your voicemail and return phone calls during your daily commute,” he said. “You can even use that time to set up appointments for the next day. I also use my BlackBerry to check my emails from home while I have my coffee in the morning.”
John Davis, senior sales executive with the benefits provider Arison Insurance Services Inc., agrees that the BlackBerry has been an important tool for his business.
“The BlackBerry has probably been the single biggest technology tool for me just being able to keep up with the email on an ongoing basis and delegate tasks as they come up,” he said.
And Al Canton, owner of InsuranceSolutions123.com, uses a different device — the iPhone — in an even more advanced way, with an application called AppleMobileMe.
“With [my Web-based CRM software] and AppleMobileMe, I can keep all my files and everything right on my phone, and I can run my agency from anywhere in the world that I can get a Web connection,” he said. “I have been in Hong Kong and sold insurance.”
Steve Anderson, a former agent and editor of The Anderson Agency Report, a newsletter that teaches agents how to use technology and prepare for upcoming trends, mentioned that many agents are also turning to tools such as ACT!, a contact relationship management (CRM) system, as well as similar products.
To find a CRM that will work for you, Canton suggests visiting www.smallbizcrm.com to browse the available options. In particular, he stresses the importance of a strong CRM. In fact, he has found one system that works so well for him that he has recommended it to other agents — Sugar CRM, a Web-based tool that also has a free edition.
“The big selling point to me for Sugar is that it’s Web-based, so I can hit the database anywhere I go via a Web connection,” he said. “I’ve done it on cruise ships; I’ve done it at 25,000 feet. I’m also on a budget, and the free edition has everything I need. It’s perfect for a small agency like mine.”
Canton notes that every agent, by law, needs to keep a detailed record of all of their conversations with clients. That’s the importance of choosing a quality CRM — and not one that’s tied to your hard drive. You want a tool that will be readily available, even if your hard drive isn’t.
He also said that while Sugar CRM might be perfect for him, it won’t be right for everyone.
“Everybody has different hot spots,” he said.
Agents may also want to look into online conferencing tools. Davis, for example, uses WebEx to create video presentations for his employer clients, who are often spread throughout the country.
“When we’ve got executives in different locations and they want to consider the different options that are available, it’s a lot more cost-effective than having people travel to a single location,” he said. “But that being said, you still have to travel sometimes because the personal relationship is still very important. There’s no technology that’s going to replace the personal relationship.”
The Internet as a tool
For many agents, their most helpful technological tool is the Internet. Jack Jameson, an agent with Farmers Insurance, receives the majority of his leads through Internet lead providers such as insuranceleads.com, insureme.com, and quotescout.com. His most effective source of leads, however, is NetQuote.
“When you first start as an agent, they hand you a phone book and say, ‘Good luck,’” Jameson said. “But with NetQuote, you’re not cold-calling; it’s actually people looking for insurance. I would say at least 30 percent of my book of business has directly or indirectly come from NetQuote.”
Jameson said he prefers NetQuote to other companies because he receives a lot more leads from them — not to not to mention their leads are of a higher quality. He stresses that when searching for a lead provider, agents should consider not just the number of leads they’ll receive, but how useful those leads will actually be in drumming up new business.
“I’ll get as many leads from NetQuote in a month as I get from all the other companies combined, and their leads seem more scrubbed,” Jameson said. “I don’t get as much of the garbage, and they’re really good about giving you credit if it’s a fake phone number, or if the person says that they weren’t looking for insurance. These are the kinds of things you should look for in a lead provider.”
Jameson added that a big part of implementing an Internet lead provider is using it correctly.
“If someone says now is not the right time, I’ll call them again in six months,” he said. “We wrote a NetQuote lead from two years ago the other day. We’ve been calling them every six months, but now was finally the right time. It’s really important that you don’t just forget about those leads. If we don’t get the business, we still send them a ‘thank you’ card with my [business] card in there, and we send them a ‘thank you’ email.”
And Anderson views the Web as the ideal technological tool for agents in that it provides perfect opportunities for networking and marketing.
“One of the easiest things to do for any individual agent [who already has a Web site] is to use social media,” he said. “Get on Facebook and create an account. It really mirrors what you were taught when you first started, which is go to your friends and family. Use LinkedIn for more of a business connection.
Start a blog as part of your Web site. That helps with search engine optimization, helps with building a brand, helps with building a relationship. And this stuff is not immediate, but it does build over time, and that becomes your Internet marketing strategy.”
Challenges
While technology can provide great benefits to any agent’s business, however, it can also prove problematic.
Canton, for example, said that although his CRM software of choice is great once it gets going, he’s heard complaints that it can be a little tricky to install. And Davis thinks that, although Twitter might work well for internal use within individual companies, he’s not yet convinced that it will benefit his clients.
Anderson believes that a lot of the problems that agents face with technology simply have to do with the learning curve.
“The average age of an agent is mid-50s,” he said. “And I think the biggest challenge given the demographic of most agents is them just getting the concept. Honestly, the technology is pretty easy, and it’s gotten easier, but it can be really hard for a baby boomer. For example, look at Facebook. How can they see that as the same networking they’ve always done? How can I network with someone I can’t see?
I think we’ll never get it the same way a 25-year-old does, but I think we can start to see the advantages of it. So I think the biggest challenge isn’t the technology, but the way we see it.”
Ultimately, Anderson said, the technology is out there, but older agents are resistant to change the way they do business and start using it.
“I think there’s tremendous opportunity with the technology available to insurance agents today,” he said, “but unfortunately, most of them are stuck in the, ‘we’ve never done it that way before’ mindset.”
As the producer population ages, however, there may be an opportunity for new technological advances marketed to a newer, younger sales force — or to the older agents who are more open-minded about integrating technology into their marketing and sales practices.
Technological advances
It’s true there aren’t many new tools that are being created specifically for insurance producers. But there are still several useful solutions in the works — and even more products and services that producers would like to see developed to help them streamline their jobs.
Davis, for example, works primarily in the benefits field, and has seen a lot of programs that unite the human resources and payroll departments. However, he said, very few actually provide an integrated solution for benefits, payroll, and human resources professionals.
“One of the things that we’re trying to accomplish is integrating the HR and benefits as well as the benefits brokering process all into one so that we have our back-office recordkeeping tied to everything else,” he said.
“What we’re talking about is integration with carriers for enrollment and eligibility management, integration with COBRA administrators, integration with wellness vendors, integration with flexible spending account administrators — a whole 360 view.”
Davis adds, though, that privacy and data security are very important, and the more integrated the data becomes, the less secure it is. Therefore, it may be difficult to develop a broad-range program such as the one he’s envisioning.
Still, he’s optimistic, and he knows that something like this would revolutionize his practice.
Canton also believes there is still a lot of room for development in the online applications and prescreens.
He would also like to see more affordable tablet computers so that those clients who are comfortable working in a pen-and-paper environment can still reap the benefits of online application submission.
For Anderson, the future of technology is all about social media and Web site development.
“The major up-and-coming trend is what I call the ‘social Web’,” he said. “I’m running across a few Web developers who are building this into their Web site offerings. And from the prospect management side, there are a whole host of things available for prospect management, so now there’s a way to link that to your Web site. For example, a Web form where prospects can plug in their info, and then an auto-responder [that] confirms their email and sends them info. It’s that automated marketing and campaign management, and it’s getting that done in a proper way.”
In the end, there aren’t many companies paying attention to the unique technological needs of insurance agents.
Still, Anderson thinks this is a great time to be in the business, because new technologies should be emerging soon.
“I think it’s a great time for agents,” he said. “Opportunities are available today like they never have been before, but they have to learn how to use them.”
Heather Trese is the associate editor of the Agent’s Sales Journal. She can be reached at 800-933-9449 ext. 225 or HTrese@AgentMedia.com.