The world is changing at an alarming pace; everything we do, from booking holidays, shopping, making appointments, house hunting, job hunting, and booking transport, it is all done online, thanks to the huge influence of the World Wide Web.
Is this as good thing?
In many ways, yes; being able to do everything without having to leave your house could be seen as a positive and a negative, but the fact of the matter is that by using the Internet for many of your daily and ad-hoc duties, you are opening up a world of choice and therefore a world of deals to explore.
For the regular business however, is this still a good thing?
Competition is fierce in many sectors, but perhaps none more so than the insurance industry.
In order to bag new clients and work to improve, you need to be one step ahead of the game, and this means your technology needs should always be top draw. Everything changes, nothing stands still, and the insurance market is constantly twisting and changing.
As an insurance broker, you may be lamenting the dawn of the price comparison website. Customers can now search online, find a deal which suits their budget and needs, and simply book it there and the – often there is no need for them to even contact or use an insurance broker, they just head online and select the deal that is best for them.
There is a silver lining however, because if you can keep one step ahead of the game and keep your insurance software working for you, whilst constantly updating itself, you can attract new customers, keep existing ones, and generate income and revenue for your business.
What a Broker Needs to do These Days
In order to attract new business and attract repeat customers, you need to be ultra-competitive in every single facet of your business. On top of this, you also need to ensure that your service is easy to use, transparent, and also that it offers customers something that the competition doesn’t.
After sales care, high customer service levels, and of course, competitive prices – these are all things which customers want to see, and these are all things which will attract profit towards your company.
To tick all of these boxes, your insurance software needs to be top notch.
What You Need in Your Insurance Software
Constantly updating and ahead of the game
It’s no good buying software which is out of date within the first few months; as we said, everything is changing, literally constantly, and you need your software to be as new as the day you bought it.
Legacy systems are now old hat, and many brokers had initial problems coming to terms with this issue, unable to keep up with changes in the industry, and with technology overall. We also know that cloud technology is something which has certainly changed the world, let alone just one industry, and Software as a Service (SaaS) is something which has come to the fore. This particular invention allows you to download software from a server remotely, e.g. the cloud, and means you don’t need to purchase licenses for various software packages every single time something new comes out.
What does this mean? Your software is also up to date.
An easy system to use
Customers will not stick with a company who make life difficult for them, so your software also needs to be simple and straightforward, whilst ticking all the boxes you need it to. A smooth approach to everything for your customer, and for you, is imperative to provide the best possible service. Companies like SchemeServe provide insurance software applications, whilst also giving you the information you need on policies and underwriting processes, without major hassle and stress for either party.
Customer service needs to be top notch
Just because you are working online, doesn’t mean that you can forget about the old fashioned face to face customer service approach. You need to build positive and helpful relationships with your customers, both existing and new, and your software should make this process easy, by helping you reach out to customers, and keep them happy every single step of the way. For this reason, CRM (Customer Relationship Management) facilities are very important to incorporate within your software, keeping all the personal details you need for your customers in one simple and safe place.
This particular part of your software is also an example of an area where brokers hung onto old fashioned modules for too long – updating this section of your software in particular will help you move forward, and will help your whole software suite integrate and work together much better.
The underwriting process needs to be seamless
Old, out of date software will not provide you with the information and mechanisms to complete the underwriting process quickly or seamlessly; new software certainly does this. The speed of your delivery is imperative, especially in an industry where things are constantly changing and shifting.
As you can see, updating and continually improving your insurance software is perhaps the most important part of your business process. If you work with something old and slow, you are basically going to lose customers to the competition – it’s that simple.
Combining fast, efficient, effective, and high quality insurance software with smooth and top notch customer service is a blend which will not only attract new business towards your company, but one which will also keep existing customers, and stop them from defecting to the competition. Your process needs to constantly improve, constantly get faster, and constantly offer something new.
Of course, easy to use software is also much better for you and your employees to use too, making life simple overall. Shopping around for the best insurance software for you is a must do, ensuring that you not only find the software to suit your needs, but also the needs of your customers, now and in the future.