Next in our series on what’s behind our Partner Platform insurance agency software community is the management and operations consulting group, Eisenhart Consulting Group. For over ten years, we’ve been lucky to work with owner Mary Belka and her team.
Mary Belka, CEO and
founder of Eisenhart Consulting Group, has been part of the Partner Allies team
for more than a decade. When she was first introduced to the Partner Platform
system, she was impressed by the hands-on, personalized service the Partner
Platform team provided to one of her clients. Since then, a mutual dedication
to personalized service has made Partner Platform and Eisenhart Consulting the
perfect team for our independent agency clients.
I spoke with Mary to talk about how she came to meet the Partner team, the unique and transformational service she brings to Partner agencies, and how she prepares agencies for the future.
How did you first become connected with SIS and the Partner Platform team?
It was about 10 or 15 years ago while working with an agency
in North Carolina. They had just switched over to Partner Platform and were
experiencing significant accounting issues due to a former employee’s
mismanagement. I hadn’t heard of Partner Platform nor SIS before this, but I
found myself on the phone with them to help my client resolve this issue. Even
though the Partner Platform team had nothing to do with causing the problem,
they methodically and patiently helped us solve it. I was so impressed and
moved by their willingness to help. I’ve worked with multiple big-name
providers and have never seen that level of service.
A few years later, I was running a Total Quality Agency
seminar in Michigan. One of the attendees brought up Partner Platform and the
great experience they had with the system and team. I reached out to (SIS
President) Michael Doran to pass on the compliment, and he got in touch
with me after that. We started talking about ways to connect our insurance
consulting with Partner Platform agencies, and the rest is history.
How do you collaborate with SIS and the Partner Platform community today?
It was clear from the start that the Partner Platform team
shared our interest in equipping agents for success. We provide one-on-one and
group coaching and education sessions for Partner Platform agencies, giving
them hands-on consulting on best practices for distinct areas of their business
and their agency as a whole.
My team has led an Account Manager School, Producer School, and targeted accounting and E&O session,
among other educational programs. We work closely with each agency and provide
process documents and workbooks to individualize their experience and bring it
back to their agency.
How would you describe the experience of collaborating with SIS and the Partner Platform community?
First off, it’s a dream to use the Partner
Platform system as a base in our courses. The system offers a depth of
capabilities without being complicated. That ease of use, combined with the
various capabilities, makes it an excellent tool for teaching. Specifically,
the integrated
accounting and insurance
CRM are essential for the similar-sized agencies we serve.
As for the SIS team, I heard so many good things before I
got in touch, and they all were true. We have a mutual set of clients in
independent agents, and our goals are the same: helping the agencies succeed. It’s
a true partnership all around.
You have unique experience in the insurance industry. What do independent agents gain from working with you over a big-name firm?
Large firms tend to operate on a one-size-fits-all system.
They have a template and fit their clients into that structure in their consultation.
While we have base outlines and procedures, our focus is on fitting our
services around the agency’s needs. We look at ways to help the agency be more
efficient, giving them space to focus on how they can better serve their
customers.
Personally, I have experience in the industry, including as
a certified E&O auditor, and am familiar with the nuances of, say,
accounting within an insurance agency. You might say after this many years,
that, “we’ve seen it all,” at one time or another. The combination of that expertise and
experience means our team can see opportunities where others cannot.
What kind of feedback do you hear from the agencies you work with?
The biggest thing we hear is: “You’ve changed everything for
us.” That means we were successful in helping agencies see old processes in a
new way, opening up space for them to gain maximum efficiency in otherwise
time-consuming tasks and increased accuracy in their customer service. We also
hear that we’ve helped them operate with a new mindset: one of learning and
growing. That’s the kind of lasting change we strive to bring to an agency.
You’ve worked in the insurance industry for over 40 years. What do you see ahead for the industry in the next three to five years?
This is something we think about a lot as we continually
improve our sessions. This past year showed us aggregation is growing, meaning
smaller agencies need to strengthen themselves or be overtaken by a larger
provider. Buyers are on the look-out for vulnerable agencies. That means our
independent agency clients need to think long-term, especially around preparing
for perpetuation and keeping their valuation protected.
The key to building valuation lies in shifting from being
all things to all people to focusing on doing the select things you do well. Insurance
customers want and need knowledgeable agents. The recent COVID-19 pandemic
brought that lack of knowledge to light with businesses, events, and individuals
experiencing loss without coverage. We need more agents to grow their knowledgebase
to serve their customers better.
With a solid knowledgebase, agents can be more flexible and
adaptable, something they’ll need more and more in the coming years. Cybercrime
and climate change threats continue to grow and change. We need agents to be
nimble, embracing elements like automation, remote work, and greater
connectivity to help them stay prepared for the unknown.
Find out more about our educational offerings, including
our Account Manager and Producer Schools, and how the Partner Platform can
serve your agency: get in touch at [email protected],
or 800.747.7005, Option 6.
We strive to provide the best insurance agency
software to our Partner Platform agencies, but we don’t have all the answers on
our own. That’s where our trusted technology partners, our Partner Allies, come
in. In this series, we get to know more about our industry
partners and how they bring innovation and expertise to the Partner
Platform system.
Lightspeed
differentiates through high-touch and high-service, which aligns nicely with
Partner Platform’s approach – and is also true for the way our independent
agency clients sell. Both Partner Platform and Lightspeed strive to be
hands-on, building relationships with clients just as our independent agents do
with their customers.
I talked with Lightspeed’s VP of Sales and Marketing, Steve Mohr, about the partnership.
How did you first become connected with SIS and Partner Platform?
One of our customers came to us with the suggestion
– they were a Partner Platform customer and saw an opportunity. I happened to have
a trip planned to the Columbus area, so I connected with (Director
of Product Management) Bryce Lee while I was in town, and we took things
from there.
After meeting with the Partner Platform team, we
saw that SIS has many of the same values we do as a company. We both provide personalized service above
and beyond what many others in the industry provide. Both of our customer bases
are very loyal, which is a testament to the product and company.
How does Lightspeed integrate into the Partner Platform
system?
We offer a complete VoIP phone solution that
provides numerous benefits such as a live switchboard, the ability to listen in
on live calls, record all calls, and real-time performance metrics. We also offer a screen pop-up on inbound
calls, so when a prospect or customer calls in, Partner Platform will automatically
pull up that contact’s information.
How do independent agents benefit from working with Lightspeed
versus a big-name provider?
I often say we have a similar value proposition as
independent agents. There are undoubtedly huge online carriers in our field
that many use, but they’re missing out on personal service, strong
partnerships, and knowing they’ll always get a human to talk to when they call
us. We also own all of our infrastructure, so we can fix any issues on-site and
don’t have to rely on third-party systems to place our calls.
What do Partner Platform clients like about working with Lightspeed?
The pop-up screen integration stands out as the
feature most users love about the system. Overall, it’s the level of service we
provide and how thorough we are, especially when agencies get started with us.
We do a full network check when working with a new agency to ensure the best
possible call quality is delivered right from the start.
What emerging needs do you see for independent insurance
agencies in the next three to five years?
I’ve been doing more research recently on what
agencies are doing to keep up with technology and product offerings trends. The
biggest challenge I see is maintaining the balance of keeping up with
technology without losing that personal touch customers get with an independent
agency. Finding the mix between
leveraging the latest technology to improve processes and keeping employee-customer
interaction at the forefront is the secret to success.
——–
Thanks to our Partner Allies like Lightspeed, we
at Partner Platform can be confident we’re offering our agencies the best
technology. Lightspeed’s commitment to provide a quality product and prioritize
client service echoes our own pledge to our Partner Platform agencies and their
promise to their insurance customers. We’re thankful for our Partner Allies like
Lightspeed, who think and act with the client’s needs first.
Have you properly equipped your insurance website
for sales? Almost
three-quarters of insurance shoppers go online to do research and obtain
quotes, so you need a quality website to attract those sales.
This shift to online prompted our Partner Platform team to think more about agency websites and how to optimize them for sales and service. We now work with agencies to help them create a custom site to grow their business after seeing several common mistakes. Here are some of the ways we saw agency websites missing the mark – and how we helped them correct their missteps.
Yes, you want your site to give visitors an idea of
who you are and what you do, but there is such a thing as too much information
online. Your site should focus on the essentials: your agency brand, the
services you offer, and how to get in touch. Too much text is overwhelming and
can turn away a potential customer.
What to do: If you’re having trouble being
concise, use videos as an alternative to provide deeper descriptions of your brand
and service.
Complicating Design
There is a lot that can be done with a website
these days, but you want to be careful about going overboard. Too many dynamic
elements can cause your site to render differently on mobile devices and even
from browser to browser. More
than half of internet users said they wouldn’t recommend a business with
poor mobile design, so you need to ensure your site renders well no matter what
device visitors use.
What to do: To ensure your site will render
well on any device, begin with the mobile design or design both mobile and
desktop versions concurrently.
While pricing and service offerings are certainly
important, you don’t want visitors to lose sight of who they’re researching or
doing business with. Your brand is the most valuable element you have to offer,
and you want people to associate the positive experience they have with your
name.
What to do: Use your branding colors
throughout the site and have your agency name, logo, and (if short enough)
motto on a sticky menu that users will see no matter where they are on your
site.
Confusing Navigation
The last thing you want is for users to get lost when
they’re on your site. If they came there to see your auto offerings or request
a quote, it should take them only a few seconds to find what they need. If your
navigation isn’t properly organized or seems confusing, it will be difficult
for visitors to find what they need, and they may abandon your site.
What to do: Use sticky drop-down menus so
users can navigate to any part of the site no matter what page they’re viewing.
Decentralizing Data
The prospect and customer information you gain from
your site’s interactions needs to be stored in your management system. When all
your prospect and customer data is in one place, it’s easier to see what certain
groupings or individuals need and the best ways to serve those needs. When your
data is decentralized, or you enter it manually, you lose efficiency and sales
opportunities.
We’ve crafted our agency
website offerings to address all these common errors, including the
critical system integration that brings agency efficiency and effectiveness to
a new level.
See samples of our
website offerings and hear from Partner
Platform agencies about how the Partner Platform system and team can
help you do more for your prospects and customers.
ZYWAVE ACQUIRES STRATEGIC INSURANCE SOFTWARE (SIS), STRENGTHENS POSITION AS AN INNOVATIVE LEADER Challenge the Status Quo More than an agency management system, Partner is who we are View Partner Platform What’s Important to You An agency management system that...
Partner
Platform announces seamless integration with Rocket Referrals – expanding
marketing automation capabilities to send timely communications, cross-sell
policies, and measure client satisfaction while building long-term relationships
with their insureds.
“It is core to
our mission to build alliances with like-minded technologies that will improve
our clients’ competitive advantages for retaining and attracting clients,” said
Bryce Lee, Director of Product Management for SIS. “We carefully choose our
Partner Allies with a goal of enhancing how clients do business and increasing
the value they receive from both parties.”
“We
believe agents should be able to pick and choose the tools they need to run
their agency; that’s why integrating and partnering with other systems
is so important to us,” said Torey Maerz, Co-founder and CEO of Rocket
Referrals. “Partner Platform users will now have one less thing to worry about
when it comes to their data and connecting to Rocket Referrals—no uploads or
syncs. We’re excited to bring this seamless experience to more agents to help
them compete and grow their business.”
Rocket Referrals
helps expand the marketing functions that are already available in Partner
Platform by enhancing the automation of Google reviews, Net Promoter Score, and
hand-written cards.
Partner
Allies provide products and services which work with Partner Platform agency
management system enhancing the independent agency’s capacity to retain, grow,
and service clients. These relationships are more than integrations – they are
commitments from like-minded vendors collaborating to serve mutual clients and
leveraging diverse strengths to improve the experience of our agencies.
About SIS
Headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, Strategic Insurance Software (SIS) is the team behind Partner Platform, an innovative web-based insurance agency management system helping independent agents break free from the status quo. Partner Platform is easy to use, streamlines workflows and enables agencies to run their business more affordably and effectively. Built on a foundation of strong technology and exceptional service, we’re moving forward with a constant eye on innovation that will make independent agents’ lives easier. For more information, please visit https://sispartnerplatform.com.
About Rocket Referrals
Rocket
Referrals is a leading insurance communications platform based in Des Moines,
Iowa. Since 2013, Rocket Referrals has been providing insurance agents across
the U.S. with innovative tools to gather and analyze NPS feedback, manage
online reputation, collect reviews and testimonials, grow referrals, automate
cross-selling and manage communications spanning email, text messaging and
direct mail.
Are you intentional about your insurance agency marketing? If you’re sailing by on your current client base and waiting for the phone to ring, you’ll soon be left behind. As one of our clients recently said, the “order-taker” agencies are quickly becoming a thing of the past. With most potential customers searching for insurance online, you need to be thoughtful about your agency brand and how to get it found.
As we recently heard from one of our Partner Allies, one of the most significant challenges facing independent insurance in the next ten years is how to keep up with the progress of digital insurance technology while maintaining a personal connection with customers.
Studies show customers want agencies to use more tech and increase service personalization. A recent PWC survey found 41% of insurance customers said they’d switch to a new provider if that provider were more digitized than their current one. And the recent COVID-19 pandemic shutdown exposed more people to digital service speed, causing a lasting shift in expectations.
How can your agency harness digital insurance tech’s speed and efficiency without losing your signature personal touch?
Identifying the right insurance sales software and systems requires understanding the balance of quality and quantity for valuable insurance leads. The concept of “living on renewals” is great – until it’s not. Intentional, proactive, professional insurance sales demand the right mindset, strategy, and systems to make the desired impact in an independent insurance agency.
Rethinking your insurance sales software and systems doesn’t have to be a major project. Start with knowing what you want, bringing that into your sales mindset, and finally acclimating to new tech. It only takes a step at a time.
