Agency Web Sites Must Be More Than E-business Cards

One agent in Massachusetts now provides forms that can be filled out online or printed as a PDF file to request changes to a policy, file a claim or get a quote. Another agency in Florida provides a weekly opinion poll on its Web sites and provides the results and opinions of their insureds directly on the site, including how the agency intends to handle those issues.

Many agents are providing links to useful services such as the state motor vehicle division or other insurance-related services. Others are providing an easy way for their commercial accounts to access, print or e-mail certificates of insurance.

The technology now available using the Internet has advanced our capabilities even more. The key is providing customers with their personalized data in real time. Some agencies provide clients with direct access to their own data via password-protected encryption. Consumer access to information and the ability to do some transactions online, such as paying their bills, is what will satisfy todays client expectations.

So, how do we take the next step? Agents, insurance companies and their agency management vendors need to create a seamless approach to the relationship provided to the consumer.

One approach is to provide customer access directly to their Web sites. Yes, it does provide access to information and transactions. But is that enough? The reality is that, on average, consumers identify with the agency that sold them the policy more than the company. We also must help the agency to maintain that relationship. That means providing agencies with customer data that enhances the agency relationship.

One way to do this is to provide links from an agents Web sites to the data of the company, using secure passwords and mirroring the agency so that it is seamless to the customer. Another is to use data from the agency management system in a Web-enabled format so that with secure access, consumers can see their personal information.

These and other uses of electronic data interface will allow independent agents to move to the next level of services consumers have come to expect. Automation and technology are really just tools and can never replace the personal relationship an agency has with its customers. But we can use these tools to provide consumers with what they expect: “Give me access anytime, anywhere.“

([email protected]) is director of Agency Desktop Solutions and oversees the Web sites for Keene, N.H.-based Main Street America Group. He is a member of the Agents Council for Technology (ACT).

(The Agents Council for Technology is a group of agents, companies, vendors, user groups, and associations assembled by the Alexandria, Va.-based Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America to promote and facilitate the use of effective technology solutions and business processes within the independent agency system. Opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and should not be construed as an official position of ACT.)

Reproduced from National Underwriter Edition, March 3, 2003. Copyright 2003 by The National Underwriter Company in the serial publication. All rights reserved.Copyright in this article as an independent work may be held by the author.