How brokers can use the Internet to improve processes, better serve their clients and thrive in the digital age
Today is International Internet Day and it’s time to celebrate one of the most disruptive innovations in recent history. For more than 50 years, the Internet has transformed nearly every industry in ways that were previously unimaginable.
More recently, the insurance industry has been experiencing its own Internet-enabled technological revolution with insurtech companies reshaping old processes through new and exciting technology.
Insurtechs have become the global industry craze with the total annual insurtech funding reaching US$7.1 billion in 2020, inking 377 deals— the highest in any year to date1.
The Australian insurtech scene is also heating up with 80% of insurers stating that they were either using an insurtech or were in the process of developing or investing in it, according to a survey by APRA2.
While the human touch in sales and customer service is still important, customers want fast and efficient products – insurance included.
With insurtechs changing the insurance industry at breakneck speed, brokers are adapting and embracing these innovations to compete in the new environment.
Here are four tips to help brokers not only survive but thrive in the digital age.
1. Cover the whole risk
Some insurers only offer a specific product. As a broker, this often means chasing up multiple insurers to get quotes for different types of insurance. This will likely leave the broker in the unwanted position of not being able to cover the whole risk for their SME clients or spending a lot of time on an SME customer. With SME insurance premiums typically lower than larger businesses, the whole process can be arduous and inefficient for a broker with little financial reward.
Insurtechs such as BizCover for Brokers have remedied this problem by creating a digital platform that generate quotes for multiple lines of business insurance from multiple insurers in minutes. It allows brokers to be the hub for all their SME clients’ business insurance needs.
2. Time is of the essence
One of the main advances of the Internet is that it has given instantaneous accessibility to the many. Gone are the days where clients are happy waiting weeks for their insurance quotes and even longer for their policy documents. Customers expect speed and transparency.
BizCover for Brokers’ online platform allows brokers to meet their clients’ needs by providing fast, accessible options without the requirement of filling out multiple proposal forms and waiting for responses.
3. Stay human
BizCover for Brokers uses a combination of AI, automation and data analytics to improve the broking process. While these technologies make the transactional part of broking more efficient and user-friendly, it also gives brokers more time to stay human.
Human relationships are the currency of commerce and your ability to build trust with your clients will set you apart from other brokers. The BizCover for Brokers platform gives brokers the time to focus on that vital part of their job rather than spending that time chasing quotes. Essentially, the platform lets robots be robots and humans be humans, collaborating to create a more streamlined process for the customer.
4. Provide value
Clients rely on brokers for advice, expertise, and to demystify the world of business insurance.
“The key value proposition of a broker is to provide choice,” says BizCover for Brokers CEO Michael Gottlieb at the Brokers SME Insights Webinar last year.
“We wanted brokers to be able to take out the time intensive process of broking, which is zero value add to customers, and be able to spend their time building relationships and providing advice and advocacy to their clients.”
*The information in this article is general only and should not be relied upon as advice. BizCover for Brokers is a registered business name of BizCover Pty Ltd (ABN 68 127 707 975; AFSL 501769).
