In the face of challenging times, entrepreneurial resiliency for insurance businesses is shaping up to be all about focusing on the fundamentals through a new digital lens.

2021 was, by any estimation, a challenging year for the insurance industry. If you’re not fully convinced, consider these facts:  

• In the US, 58,733 wildfires burned 7.1+ million acres, averaging 121.6 acres per fire — the impact was catastrophic for multiple communities
  
  
• Not even 8.5 billion doses of the Covid vaccine administered globally could stop a new variant, Omicron, from prolonging the Pandemic
  
  
• Preliminary data shows an estimated 1,376 tornadoes barreled across the United States, devastating communities from Kentucky to Philadelphia
  
  
• The 2021 Atlantic hurricane season will be remembered as one of the most lethal and expensive seasons on record, wreaking multiple fatalities and billions in property damages

The saving grace of such calamitous disruptions is that each new test and trial doesn’t just leave damage in its wake, historically, it also opens the door to transformation through innovation. For insurers, as well as companies across every spectrum and industry, digital transformation continues to be the evolution to watch.

The Evolution Will Not Be Televised

The digital makeover for insurance carriers, agencies, and brokerages is ongoing. More and more, insurance companies are turning to technology to digitize their daily and insurance sales operations. 

Propelled in part by changing customer expectations, as well changing market conditions, delivering a seamless digital experience has become crucial for any insurance business. Insurance agencies and brokerages that aim to deliver should start with their insurance agency website.

Just a few years ago, a standard, static website that shared basic business information (and most importantly a contact number on every page) was enough. These days, an optimal user experience can convert insurance prospects into insurance customers.

That means a website should functionally offer:

• Responsive design
  
  
• Consistent branding
  
  
• Ease of use
  
  
• Intuitive navigation

Most importantly, your insurance website should be loaded with easy-to-digest content about your services and insurance products, whether it’s a first-time policyholder or a prospect with multiple assets to protect looking for one-stop shopping with an insurance agency that will serve all their needs.

Additionally, your site should include a crumb trail of prompts and information that directs users from one digital milepost to the next along a clearly defined purchase path.

Insurance AMS, CRM, or Both?

A healthy digital ecosystem that will help your insurance business thrive should connect all the parts of your business, from selling and servicing policies to developing and executing on your insurance marketing campaigns.

So what digital assets do you really need?

An AMS, better known as an Agency Management System can help improve operational and sales efficiencies, maximizing your ability to:

• Manage and monitor sales activities
  
  
• Assign and distribute insurance leads 
  
  
• Collect data to help optimize your sales processes
  
  
• Manage and track deals in progress
  
  
• Service insurance policies and renewals

A CRM, which stands for Customer Relationship Management is aptly named. This platform is designed to capture and organize customer data as well as:

• Automate customer onboarding and insurance policy renewals
  
  
• Create workflows rules to automate marketing campaigns
  
  
• Monitor activity across your other digital channels, from your website to social media pages
  
  
• Help personalize your customer experience across every stage of the customer journey 

While both platforms are labor-savers that offer 24/7 visibility into different aspects of your business, the ideal insurance solution is one like AgentCubed, which offers the best of both worlds and is designed specifically with the needs of insurance agencies in mind.

An all-in-one tool that combines the best of an insurance AMS and a CRM will help you manage contact details and keep tabs on what’s happening with your book of business at a granular level. 

It will enable you to efficiently manage all aspects of your sales ops, from hot leads to cool conversions. Additionally, you will be able to easily manage sales productivity and set your team up for success through hand-picked lead distribution and management.

Perhaps most importantly, an insurance platform with everything you need will also allow you to up level your customer experience through robust customer support, automated client emails and reminders, and identifying insurance cross-selling opportunities that genuinely serve your clients’ needs.

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