Why does a customer relationship management platform matter?

Today, life insurance agents can’t succeed without robust Customer Relationship Management software, commonly known as CRM. As more consumers and insurance carriers turn to the Internet to shop for insurance, a CRM system both simplifies and shortens the process of purchasing and delivering life insurance.

As an agent, there are many advantages to using a quality CRM solution when selling life insurance. However, with so many choices on the market offering an expanding set of features, how should you evaluate the different systems?

Prospects

You likely already have an extensive list of customers and prospects. But can you upload your data automatically into the system, saving you time and allowing you to focus your efforts on selling? More importantly, you need a system that seamlessly integrates with your lead sources so that the data automatically appears, making you instantly ready for the next call and saving you the time that would be required to retype this information.

1. Quotes: More and more systems include a life insurance quoting feature. The best systems tailor the quotes based on the consumer’s coverage needs and term length. Even more advanced systems can filter the quotes based on a preliminary health screening. These features allow you to immediately share quotes from various top-rated insurance companies, thereby reducing the risk of a more difficult call down the road to explain a higher premium rate than initially quoted.
2. Applications: Insurance carriers are constantly changing their applications. An agent could spend all his or her time keeping up with the latest changes and maintaining paper copies of the right applications. Sending in an outdated application can put the case at risk. A few CRM systems have integrated current electronic applications directly into the system. You don’t need to retype information or worry about staying on top of the current versions.
3. Medical Exams: Some CRMs offer the ability to order a medical exam for fully underwritten insurance while the applicant is still on the phone. This allows the applicant to sign both the application and medical exam at the same time, expediting the process to create a better customer experience. Collecting all the information at once and avoiding a follow-up also increasing the likelihood of your insurance policies placing.
4. Case Management: More advanced CRM systems automate and streamline the case management process, saving you time. A few systems provide automated transmission of the application and ongoing underwriting status using an industry-standard protocol. For agencies that have dedicated case managers, this support staff, leveraging the CRM system, can become virtual extensions of your team.
5. Ongoing Communications: Many systems allow you to add information about your customers over time to help identify future sales opportunities. This list can be used to ask for referrals or provide cross-sales offers. A few agencies have connected their CRM systems to marketing automation solutions, enabling users to leverage email and texting in drip campaigns to stay connected with customers.

 

These are just a few of the most important features to consider when choosing a CRM platform. At eFinancial, our Automated Life Insurance Selling System (ALISS®) provides these benefits and more, tailored and designed specifically for direct life insurance agents. The newest version, to be released Summer 2018, will include many improvements based on feedback directly from our agents.

Ask an eFinancial eIndependent representative about becoming one of our partners and gaining free access to this system.