1Insurtech: Data management, commissions processing, and digital marketing

Insurance Agency Technology in 2018:

Database management, commissions processing, and marketing &

workflow automation

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2Insurtech: Data management, commissions processing, and digital marketing

Start organizing, automating & growing your agency right now!

AgencyBloc helps life and health insurance agencies grow their business by organizing

and automating their operations using a combination of an industry-specific CRM, commissions processing, and integrated

marketing automation.

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In This eBook:Section 1: Database Management .................................. 5

What are Agencies Using? ......................... 6What are Agencies Planning to Use? ....... 8Agencies’ #1 Challenge ........................... 13

Section 2: Commissions Processing .............................. 18

What are Agencies Using? ....................... 19Identifying Missed Commissions ........... 21Projecting Commissions ......................... 24

Section 3: Digital Marketing ................................ 26What are Agencies Using? ....................... 27Identifying Touchpoints ..........................30

Section 4: Check out AgencyBloc .......................... 32Schedule a demo of AgencyBloc ................ 33

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What Are Agencies Doing in 2018?

Each new year is an opportunity for insurance agencies to look back and reflect on the previous year and consider where improvements could be made. Findings from our survey suggest that, in 2018, agencies will be considering new technologies to better manage their book of business, more efficiently track and process commissions, and will continue to devote resources to digital marketing and automation.

Insurance agencies are complex businesses that depend on a variety of technology to service their clients, sell to prospects, pay out commissions, and continually market their agency. To determine what agencies used in 2017 and what they intend to change or maintain in 2018, we conducted a 24-question survey asking questions regarding database management, commissions processing, and digital marketing and automation.

Respondents were a combination of 1-2 man shops to 20+ employee agencies whose core business included groups, individuals, and seniors. These agencies sell health insurance, life insurance, P&C, annuities, voluntary products, medicare, and final expense. Most of these agencies process and track commissions in their agency—only 17% indicated they don’t do either of those.

In this eBook, we’ll cover all of these topics and what agencies are currently using for technology and what they intend to change in 2018.

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Section 1:

Database Management

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What are Agencies Currently Using?

This year, results were almost identical in what agencies are using when it comes to database management. Forty-three percent of insurance agencies are currently using an insurance-specific agency management system (AMS) to manage their book of business, and 31% use a CRM (Customer Relationship Management software). So, a combined 74% of the industry is using some kind of software (as opposed to more manual formats, spreadsheets or paper).

What does your insurance agency use to manage its book-of-business?

43%

31%

17%

9% Insurance-specific agency management system (AMS)

Customer relationship management software (CRM)

Paper files

Excel spreadsheets

Many still don’t understand the difference between an AMS and a CRM. An agency management system (AMS) is a SaaS (software as a service) technology that insurance agencies use to organize their book of business and more effectively run their operations.

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An AMS includes CRM capabilities but has many more features and benefits. Beyond tracking client relationships, a worthwhile AMS can also:

• Track agents, policies, and carriers• Process, track, and project commissions• Automate workflow• Automate internal and external communication• Monitor the productivity and growth of your agency• Run custom reports

Many agencies who adopt a CRM find that timely customization is needed to make the technology work for them whereas an insurance-specific AMS is built to suit the needs of the agency. For instance, AgencyBloc is an AMS built specifically for life and health insurance agencies, so it was built with those needs in mind. In fact, 44% of insurance agencies felt a significant increase in productivity when implementing an AMS.

What’s somewhat alarming for 2018 is that spreadsheets and paper files are still used by a over a quarter of the industry (26%) as the main way to manage their book of business.

Both can be huge productivity and resource drains for agencies because they tend to be disorganized and time-consuming to maintain. They are also incredibly error-prone; 88% of Excel spreadsheets contain errors. That might sound unbelievable, but it’s really not surprising when you consider the manual nature of spreadsheets (human error), the amount of people in your agency that access the file (and potentially save under another name, don’t save, etc.), and the miscalculations that occur when formulas are incorrect.

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Check out our blog, 7 Reasons You Shouldn’t Use Excel to Manage Your Book-of-Business, to learn more about the risks agencies take when they use spreadsheets to run their operations.

What are Agencies Planning to Use in 2018?

Similar to last year, most agencies are planning to stay with the same system they’re currently using. However, it’s exciting to learn that even more agencies are planning to adopt an AMS for the first time this year (23% vs. 15% last year). Another 15% are planning a switch from their current system to another AMS.

Whether you’re planning to use the same system or intend to switch or adopt the technology for the first time, considering your needs and being sure the software is going to meet them is always important.

We have identified 5 steps to choosing an AMS that’s right for you. These steps are simple, yet require thoughtful reflection when you consider the amount of choices in the market today:

1. Identify your goals2. Identify your needs3. Know your vendor4. Make a decision5. Manage change in your agency

Let’s cover these briefly.

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1. Identify Your GoalsBefore you can even begin looking at software solutions, you must identify the problem you’d like to solve. If there wasn’t a problem, you wouldn’t be looking for a software solution, right?

To solve your current problem or situation, you should identify some goals you’re hoping the AMS will help you reach. These goals will be driven by the current issues your agency is facing (either with your current CRM/AMS or lack of one), and they should also be driven by your growth aspirations.Examples of goals insurance agencies might be looking at would be improving client relationships (increasing client retention), decreasing commissions processing time, or automating mundane tasks/workflow.

2. Identify Your NeedsEach agency has its own specific needs, and before you overwhelm yourself with the CRM/AMS choices, identify your needs. Don’t worry about wants at this stage—those will arise as you search to discover what’s out there.

So, depending on what goals you identified and how you’re currently running, you’re going to need certain functionality. First, you’re going to need the features that currently allow you to run your business, like effectively tracking clients and prospects. Then, you’re looking beyond to your goals. If your goal was to automate communication with clients and prospects, you’re going to need the AMS to have email and automated workflow capabilities.

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3. Know Your VendorWhen it comes to software shopping, you really need to get to know your vendor on a personal level (especially if contracts are involved). Knowing the organization’s history, their experience level, and even their values is important.

So, how can you get to know your vendor in this way? It starts with a lot of online research: Google searches (our survey showed 31% of respondents do this first when considering new technology), perusing their social media profiles (especially LinkedIn!), and checking testimonials/referrals. Then, ask your peers! Thirty-nine percent of people ask a peer for a recommendation first before anything else.

What’s more: agencies indicated that referrals, online reviews, and the sales demos themselves influenced them the most during a technology purchase decision.

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A couple red flags to watch out for in this process:

• Unable to find them as a company on LinkedIn (or only seeing 1 employee at that company)

• Seeing very little or outdated activity on their social media profiles

• Unable to find a business address for the company (this can indicate that they don’t have much experience yet)

• Unable to find any testimonials or reviews (HUGE red flag!)—bonus points for vendors that have several video testimonials; this means their clients are so invested that they took the time to record themselves talking about the vendor

4. Make a DecisionThis might seem pretty straight-forward, but we’re talking about how you’re making the decision here. Include your team in this step in order to create buy-in. When you’ve narrowed your selections down, have a meeting and present this information to the other decision-makers:

• Your goals & subsequent needs• What information you found about the vendor itself (not

just about the software product)• The 2-3 AMS/CRM systems you’ve narrowed it down to

and why (list specific features and how you think they’ll meet your needs)

• Relevant pricing information• How you’ve decided to make the decision (vote, debate,

discussion, etc.)

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This information should help guide your decision, whether it’s with others or a sole decision made by you. We’ve included relevant pricing information in this step because, although it shouldn’t be a driving factor, it’s obviously an important factor to consider before purchase.

A few questions to ask vendors regarding pricing:

• Are there any volume discounts or tiered pricing?• Are there setup fees? Migration fees? • Are there fees for training or support?

5. Manage Change in Your AgencyChange is scary. You must manage the change process until your team feels comfortable with the new technology.

To effectively manage the process:

• Present the new system in a similar way as step #4 (make a decision), showing how the new system will meet your needs & help you reach your goals

• Roll out the new system to each department separately• Assign someone as the AMS/CRM expert who other team

members can go to for guidance• Hold a review with the entire team after a few months of

using the new system to discuss any concerns

Understand the human element involved in this change and lead your team to success by showing everyone how the new system will benefit each department. To learn more, check out our eBook, Managing Change: Handling Evolving Technology in the Insurance Industry.

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What is Insurance Agencies’ #1 Challenge?

Lead generation continues to be insurance agencies’ #1 challenge from last year to this year (38% vs. 49%). Although, you can see some shifts in the categories.

What is your insurance agency’s #1 challenge?

2018

2017

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Lead generation is a concern for any business in any industry. Knowing where to put your marketing dollars and knowing how and when to speak to prospects can be tricky. It can also prove to be difficult when you don’t have the right technology supporting your efforts.

Lead forms on your website integrated with your AMS continue to be an important tool for agencies this year. This is an easy way for prospects to reach out to you quickly. The important thing here is how quickly you respond to them. After all, 50% of sales go to the first person who calls, so you need the technology that will enable you to do that.

With an AMS that has built-in lead forms, you’re able to see immediately when a form is filled out and reach out immediately. In AgencyBloc, you can automate an email to the prospect right after they fill out the form assuring them you’ll be reaching out soon.

AgencyBloc also has lead vendor integrations that help your agency create an incoming stream of leads into your business depending on your needs. AgencyBloc integrates with NextGen Leads and ProspectZone, both well-known lead providers in the insurance industry, as well as a few others.

Finally, you need a productive way to track prospects throughout their sales cycle. The ability to automate some of the communication you have with prospects as well as automate reminders to yourself to be sure you follow-up is vital. You have a lot to do and, without the right technology, prospects can easily slip through the cracks.

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Growth/revenue monitoring was up slightly this year vs. last year as a #1 challenge for some agencies—23% vs. 20%. Again, this is all about using an AMS that allows you to glean insights from your data. Consider an AMS that has real-time analytics and extensive reporting so you’re always able to get at the data you need. In AgencyBloc, Dashboard Analytics display for all areas of your business so you’re able to accurately assess the performance of your business and make more informed business decisions. Each user in your agency can also create their own personalized dashboard so they only see what’s important to them.

Groups & Policies by Lead Source Graph in AgencyBloc

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Top Commissions Received by Agent Graph in AgencyBloc

Client servicing (16%) and client retention (8%) honestly go hand-in-hand. You need to provide exceptional client service, and, in turn, you’ll retain more clients.

AgencyBloc’s Automated Workflow helps in this area by allowing you to reach out proactively for things like renewal reminders. Plus, the ability to quickly pull client data helps you service clients efficiently and thoroughly with notes, documents, and other relevant information a short search away.

See an illustration of AgencyBloc’s Automated Workflow examples on the next page.

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Lastly, 15% of agencies selected commissions processing as their #1 challenge. Let’s dive deeper into that area in the next section.

Automated Workflow Examples in AgencyBloc

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Section 2:

Commissions Processing

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What are Agencies Using to Process Commissions?

Most insurance agencies responded that they use an AMS to process and track their commissions followed by Excel spreadsheets. Agencies benefit from an AMS that has built-in commissions capabilities because having the data all-in-one system means it can work together cohesively.

What does your insurance agency use to process and/or track commissions?

42%

33%

17%

8%Insurance-specific agency management system (AMS)

Excel spreadsheets

“I don’t process or track commissions.”

Commissions-specific software

AgencyBloc helps agencies process commissions faster, effectively track commissions for agents, and project commissions into the future. Not to mention, if their AMS has reporting capabilities, they can dive deep into their commission data.

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Once your clients, their policies, and your rate tables are set up, AgencyBloc saves you from manually processing commissions. For instance, if your agency downloads commission statements from carriers, AgencyBloc builds import maps for quickly importing that information. When these files are uploaded, AgencyBloc will match the information to the policies you have set up and automatically calculate commissions.

This process can prove to be difficult in Excel spreadsheets for several reasons. Like we discussed, Excel spreadsheets are error-prone, the manual process can be extremely time-consuming, you end up with an ineffective audit trail, and your analyzation of the data is restricted.

To learn more, check out our blog, 4 Reasons You Shouldn’t Use Excel Spreadsheets to Process Commissions.

In-house Agents

SubAgencies

Sub Agents

AgencyBloc Commissions Processing

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A promising comparison from last year’s survey to this year’s is that agencies who said they don’t process or track commissions at all is down 10% (27% last year vs. 17% this year). Even if agencies aren’t splitting commissions out, many still track commissions coming in for two reasons: to identify missing commissions and to track and project revenue.

Identifying Missed CommissionsInsurance agencies are still regularly looking for missed commissions about as much as they were last year. Of those that aren’t, the majority say they would if they had the technology to do so.

Does your agency regularly look for missed commissions from carriers?

57%33%

10%

Yes

No, but I would if I had the technology to do it

No, I don’t see a reason for doing that

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Agencies responded that identifying missed commissions from carriers is their #1 challenge when it comes to commissions processing.

Though it’s unintentional, carriers can and do miss commission payments for several reasons. A couple examples are:

• They’re 2-3 months behind on their payments, so it’ll appear in your books that you haven’t gotten paid yet. Most agencies don’t worry for the first few months, but if you’re tracking it closely, you’ll know when you might have a deeper problem.

• One of your clients canceled his/her policy and didn’t notify your agency. That will appear to you as a “missed” payment from the carrier and will cause you to investigate the situation.

So, tracking your commissions and regularly looking for missing commission payments is important. If you have the right technology, it doesn’t have to be time-consuming or difficult.

For example, AgencyBloc will look for commission payments not received by statement date or by bill from date that you can view by running a report or viewing on a per policy basis.

On a per policy basis, AgencyBloc will show you commission payments received, actual vs. expected commissions, and project commissions (if you project), so identifying missed payments is straightforward.

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AgencyBloc Commissions Tab of Policy Example

AgencyBloc Projected Commission Graphs

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Projecting CommissionsForty-four percent of insurance agencies are currently projecting commissions and using those projections to analyze revenue this year. Last year, 42% said they didn’t see a reason for doing that, but this year, only 27% said the same. More responded that they would if they had the technology to do so—30% this year vs. 11% last year.

Does your insurance agency project commissions?

44%

29%

27%Yes, we project commissions

No, but we would if we had the technology

No, we don’t currently have a reason to

What’s the real benefit of projecting commissions? Agencies project revenue and examine commissions received against expected in order to better address situations like:

• Hiring support staff—when will the agency need to and financially be able to hire more staff?

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• Expanding or maintaining current client base—how much does an agent need to sell to reach their financial goal?

• Deciding which products to sell—what products bring the agency substantial revenue? Does the agency need to expand into other areas of business?

• Identifying new sales opportunities—how will expanding into a new market or simply selling more of the current products affect revenue?

• Finding missed or inaccurate commissions—are there discrepancies between what the agency expected to receive and what was actually received? How does that affect future plans?

Overall, the ability to project commissions helps agencies confirm they are receiving accurate payments on what they have sold, plan better for future events, and be more proactive in their operations.

In AgencyBloc, an agency can use “Projection Tables” to plan the commissions it expects to receive and to chart their growth path. With this data, agencies see a quick overview of any missed commissions, any difference in actual vs. projected commissions, and future yearly projections. You can also see a more “bird’s eye” view of your commissions data, as shown in the graph on page 23.

Next, let’s jump into what insurance agencies are planning to do with their marketing efforts in 2018.

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Section 3:

Digital Marketing

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What are Agencies Using for Digital Marketing?

Eighty percent of insurance agencies are currently using digital marketing techniques to market their agency, unchanged from last year. When asked what tools they’re using, the majority are utilizing a combination of a website, social media, and email, and the use of marketing automation is up 10% from last year (37% vs. 27%).

What tools does your insurance agency use in your marketing efforts?

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Having an online presence with a website is so crucial. And, 78% of salespeople are now using social media to outsell their peers, so maintaining social profiles is equally as important. To learn more about online marketing in the insurance world, check out our eBook, A Brief Guide to Successful Relationships With the Modern Insurance Consumer.

Busy insurance agents who still want to make a lasting impact on their prospects use marketing automation. Agencies who are using marketing automation use it for everything from client communication, marketing to prospects, relaying information to agents, and lead generation.

For what reasons does your agency use marketing automation?

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Marketing automation is really just a subset of automation being used at many insurance agencies today. Many are utilizing automated workflow in general to make everything in their business run smoothly.

Through the use of automated emails and scheduled calls, you can make your clients and prospects feel like they’re your #1 priority. Learn more about how automated workflow could benefit your agency in a tour of AgencyBloc.

The majority of insurance agencies (78%) intend to increase the use of marketing automation this year, and zero respondents said they intend to decrease use. So, if you aren’t currently using it, ask some peers for some recommendations to get started!

78%

22%Increase use

Continue doing the same thing

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Identifying TouchpointsWhen asked what they’re struggling with most when it comes to digital marketing, most agencies answered with either lead generation or identifying touchpoints with clients (when it’s appropriate to reach out).

First, revisit the section earlier in this eBook where we discussed a few ideas for lead generation. Remember that insurance agencies identified that as their overall #1 concern when it comes to their business.

Second, we know that understanding how to keep a constant stream of communication open with clients without thinking you’re bugging them can be difficult to gauge. We suggest identifying important events like policy renewals, birthdays,

What does your agency struggle with most when it comes to digital marketing?

31%

16%

10%

9%

Identifying touchpoints with clients

Automating emails

Other

Agency website

Agent communication

1%

Lead generation

Social media

26%

7%

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or carrier change information and automating these messages to your clients. Though phone calls and in-person meetings are still necessary for a positive relationship, automation can help you keep the communication lines open without much effort on your part. To learn more about the touchpoints you should be automating, check out our blog, The 6 Processes Your Insurance Agency Should Be Automating.

How Does This Affect Your Agency?Every insurance agency is different, so what works for one agency for database management, commissions processing, and digital marketing won’t automatically work for yours. However, the important piece to take from this is that insurance agencies are increasingly turning to technology to create efficiencies in every area of their operations.

Many agencies are looking into industry-specific agency management systems (AMS) that allow them to manage their book of business, process and track commissions, and maintain communication with prospects and clients, all-in-one. AgencyBloc is an AMS that does just that. Check out the resources on the next couple pages to see if AgencyBloc might be the right fit for your insurance agency.

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AgencyBloc is exactly the tool I was looking for, and the support and guidance is absolutely what I need. This is an amazing group of people that know their business and understand and get my needs. —Susan, Health Insurance In Kansas City

Learn more in our overview video:

See AgencyBloc for Yourself

AgencyBloc is an agency management system that helps life and health insurance agencies grow their business with an industry-specific CRM, commissions processing, and integrated business and marketing automation.

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