The Coronavirus pandemic has presented unprecedented challenges to businesses in every industry and insurance agencies are no exception. A heavy reliance on manual processes and reluctance to adopt insure-tech solutions has proved detrimental to many agencies as the crisis has persisted. Insurance agencies that are re-thinking the way they do business would do well to consider outsourcing as one method of streamlining back-office processes, cutting costs, and shifting their focus to the agent/customer relationship. Insuserve-1 has a variety of solutions that can help agencies weather these difficult times and position them to thrive in the future.
Addressing New Workforce Challenges
Insurance agencies of all sizes have faced business continuity issues such as civil authority restrictions on office operations and employee absences due to quarantining. The pandemic reduced or eliminated many childcare options for employees during the summer months, and as a new school year begins, many employees are faced with having to home-school their children. Allowing employees to work from home has required massive adjustments, as agencies work to quickly implement new technology solutions.
As employees adjust to the changes, agencies may see a decrease in productivity. Backlogs in processing tasks and delays in meeting customer requests can occur. Partnering with an insurance process outsourcing company, such as Insuserve-1, can assist in addressing those issues. Outsourced processors are already familiar with the technologies used to work remotely and can quickly step in to handle routine back-office tasks. Whether your agency is behind on carrier downloads or indexing of documents, issuing Certificates of Insurance, policy or endorsement checking, or preparing quotes on carrier websites, we can assist you.
Reducing Operational Costs to Weather the Recession
Beyond the operational issues, most agencies are facing some loss of revenue, especially those with commercial customers. Most of the effects of the pandemic will be felt in property and liability coverages that are based on payroll or revenue. The crisis has impacted businesses of every size – many have had to lay off employees, close additional locations, or shut down their business permanently. The side effect is reduced premium income for agencies. Personal lines are not immune either – personal auto premiums have been reduced as more of the labor force shifts to working from home and mileage ratings have come down.
While many agencies need to cut costs, consumers are trying to do the same. This makes it even more important to focus on what differentiates your agency from the competition. Even if interactions must be over the telephone or video chats, fostering strong agency/client relationships is more important than ever. Outsourcing processes that are not customer-facing gives agencies this capability by allowing CSR’s, Account Managers and Producers to delegate tasks that divert their focus from customer interactions. Insuserve-1’s processors complete back-office tasks quickly and accurately, which improves customer satisfaction. Certificate turnaround time is reduced, delays in quoting are avoided, and information in agency management systems is up to date so agency employees can quickly answer customer questions and solve problems. Outsourcing routine, but often time consuming, tasks is more cost effective than assigning them to agency employees whose valuable time could be better spent focusing on activities that have the potential to generate income.
Outsource to Gain Competitive Advantage and Position Your Agency for Future Growth
With every new challenge comes new opportunities. The COVID-19 crisis has accelerated digital transformation in many industries, including insurance, and the agencies that adapt are the ones that will flourish. Agencies can gain competitive advantage by investing in insure-tech solutions that automate processes, deliver comparative rating capability, and provide remote access for employees. When investment in technology is combined with process outsourcing, even greater efficiency and productivity can be achieved.
As consumers face continued economic difficulties, it is more important than ever that agents and brokers sell the value of their services. By allowing CSR’s, Account Managers, and Producers to delegate routine tasks, they are better able to focus their attention on building relationships that can lead to new business opportunities in the long term. Insuserve-1 is ready to develop customized solutions that fit your agency’s needs.
Recent Posts
Insurance News Updates
Leave A Comment