10 Steps to start a Digital Insurance Agency

Stand Out from Your Competition by Starting a Digital Insurance Agency

Updated: 11/29/22

When you consider that roughly one-half of the world’s population, some 3.2 billion people, spend time online daily, it becomes clear that the digital era has taken over. Now is the time for the insurance industry to take advantage of what the internet offers. One option is to start a digital insurance agency with excellent products and affordable prices.

Whether you currently work as an insurance agent or plan to become one, the only way to stay ahead of your competitors is to reach your target audience on their playing field — the internet. In fact, independent insurance agents have a distinct advantage in the digital market. Instead of working harder, work smarter.

What Is a Digital Insurance Agency?

As the name implies, a digital insurance agency is a technology-based business that allows you to work more efficiently, build stronger relationships, improve on customer service, make well-informed decisions, and accelerate growth and profitability regardless of the type of policies you sell.

10 Things Your Digital Insurance Agency Needs

You have two options. You can start a digital insurance agency as your sole business or add one to your existing brick-and-mortar company. Either way, your agency needs these 10 things to achieve success.

• Website – Having a website is the first step in digitalizing an insurance agency. Website will serve as a foundation to build and scale up your business.

There are many options available online but not all provide complete control on your site and you may not be easily moved from that platform. I suggest creating a wordpress website that you can completely control and move to any hosting platform later if you need.

Hosting: You need a website hosting provider where you can host your website. In physical world you may be renting a office space, hosting is something similar in virtual space where you rent a space from hosting provider. I use Bluehost and have a great experience with them. You can get a discounted hosting package by using below-mentioned link.

Bluehost for hosting website

WordPress – Once you have a hosting space you need to install wordpress on top of it. Bluehost provides a one-click install facility. Once you have wordpress installed you can either use one of the existing wordpress themes to design your site or hire someone to do that for you.

Website design – If you are looking for help in designing/developing your website than you can try a website called Fiverr . You will find lot of designers/developers who will design/develop your website very cost-effectively.

• Management System – Serving as a strong internal foundation, a professional management system helps drive daily operations. With this system, you put yourself in a position to better manage various aspect of the business, including customer relationships, documentation, accounting practices, sales automation, and benefits administration.

• Data Analysis – By moving into the digital arena, you gain access to a tremendous amount of data, far more than generated with a traditional agency. You need to implement an analytical system that will help you manage data and convert it into simple and visual insights. The system you select also must offer maximum security.

• Insurer Partners – Starting a digital insurance agency also requires you to develop a system for exchanging information with your insurer partners. The goal is to choose a solution that allows for seamless interactions, which equates to faster, better, and more accurate information and quotes passed on to your customers. Automation is critical because it eliminates human error.
• Mobility – This year, more than 50 percent of all online traffic came from mobile devices. As part of starting a digital insurance agency, you need to ensure your target audience can find your business and reach it via a smartphone, tablet, and so on. Not only that, but mobile applications make it possible for your employees to respond quickly to inquiries. With mobility, you provide your customers with an enhanced level of service.
• Cloud Storage – The cloud is an excellent choice for safeguarding data. You can safely store information and gain access to it from anywhere and at any time. You also control who views and edits the stored data.
• Engagement – People who are interested in buying insurance want a personal experience. They want to feel as though their agent genuinely cares about them and their needs. Although sending emails and talking to someone on the phone certainly helps, remember to use social media, as well. Sites like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram allow you to engage with both prospects and current customers. According to a recent study, 65 percent of the sales cycle for the insurance industry occurs before someone even speaks with an agent.

• Competitiveness – Using technology is an excellent way to get and stay ahead of your competition. There are hundreds upon hundreds of tools, applications, and programs that can give your business a distinctive edge.
• Flexibility – The insurance industry is ever-changing. When selecting technology for your agency, make sure it can adapt to the market, as well as your specific needs.
• Efficiency – The fact is that people purchase insurance because they need it or must have it based on the law, not because they find the topic extremely interesting. Because of that, most want to find a trusted agency, select a policy, and then move on quickly. Being efficient gives you an advantage. To boost efficiency, rely on automated business processes as much as possible without compromising customers’ personal experience.
• Scalability – Obviously, your goal in starting a digital insurance agency is to grow. Therefore, make sure you select scalable technology that can accommodate your needs now and well into the future.

Tools for Digital Insurance Agency

• Appointment scheduling software – You can use tools like Calendly.com or 10to8.com to help customers schedule online. You can also use a chatbot for scheduling appointment via messenger
• Chatbot – This can help you to serve your customers 24/7 via messaging. Most of us are messaging/chatting with our friends and family but not our customers. Best part of chatbot/messaging is that customer can interact at any point of time and chatbot can respond to them. Whatever chatbot cannot respond can be responded by your staff when they are in office, best part of messaging is that people are ok to wait for a message response.

https://www.friendlyagentbot.com/2017/12/08/best-chatbot-for-insurance-agency/

• Video Proposal – If you are not able to connect with client in person, video proposal is a great way to get their attention and business. You can use a free tool called https://www.vidyard.com/ to create video proposal and share it with your customers
• Connecting via Phone – You can use tools like https://responseiq.com/ which appear like website widget an allow your customers to connect with you over phone within a 27 second window.
• Referral Management – Best way to get new customers is via referral or word of mouth. It’s good idea to survey existing customers and get their feedback as well as find out Net Promoter Score(NPS). If NPS is low then you can connect with customer and resolve any issue they may have. You can request referral from customers who have high NPS. Some of the softwares which can help you with this is Surveymonkey.com and rocketreferrrals.com. This can also be done via messaging by leveraging a chatbot
• Email Marketing – People buy from people based on the relationship they cultivate over a period of time. Email marketing is best way to cultivate relationship with prospects and existing customers. You can use email marketing software like activecampaign or mailchimp

Search Engine Optimization

Search engine optimization (SEO) is another critical aspect of starting and operating a successful digital insurance agency. Quality written content, keywords, internal and external links, and other SEO elements play a vital role in increasing traffic to your website. Ultimately, when prospective customers look for a professional insurance agency, having your app and site optimized will guide them directly to your business.

Beyond generating traffic, SEO is essential for gathering leads and increasing conversions. For instance, by optimizing the content of your website, you enhance interest in the product you sell. The goal is for visitors to stay on your site longer, which creates an opportunity to introduce your insurance products and close the deal.

Create a Cohesive Solution

Without question, the insurance market is fiercely competitive, which is why you need to take the appropriate steps to stand apart. As the insurance industry becomes increasingly competitive, and with ever-changing policy offers, running a brick-and-mortar business is no longer effective on its own. Instead, you need a strong online presence.

Remember, you can always create a digital footprint alongside a more conventional agency. Not only does that allow you to reach a greater number of potential customers, but it also helps you provide your current clientele with an enhanced service. Because so many people now conduct business online, it would be a detriment to your goals to not start a digital insurance agency.

Along with selling and renewing policies, a digital insurance agency makes you more accessible. It also allows you or your staff to respond to questions or concerns in a timely manner. By starting this type of business, you give people what they want: convenience. Today, people have extremely busy lives. Offering them a solution for insurance online eliminates a great deal of stress.

With a digital insurance agency, your clients can pay premiums, check or make changes to an existing policy, and learn about other products you sell. In other words, this gives you an opportunity to cross-promote. One individual might visit your site in search of homeowner’s insurance. If you offer a well-designed and optimized site, they could end up looking at other coverage, whether for life, a car, or a business.

Summary

Why sit back and watch other insurance agencies pass you by when you can get ahead by starting a digital insurance agency? Provide both prospects and current customers with a convenient way to purchase a policy for an affordable price. While the digital agency provides a platform for your customers to take certain actions, you have more free time to spend developing lifelong relationships. In no time, you will see an increase in sales, which equates to a higher level of generated revenue.

Hopefully this article was useful to you and helped in learning something new. Please share it with anyone who may benefit from it.

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