Anyone striving for success knows that learning does not stop when you leave the classroom. The same is true for you and your agency, especially when it comes to the capabilities of your agency’s management system. We believe it’s our job to provide you with frequent training resources so you can use Partner XE to the fullest. Some of our great educational resources include:
National and Regional Conferences
We just wrapped up our regional NASPA conference in Boston, which was a huge success for the over 40 users sharing ideas and best practices. A big thanks goes out to Arbella Insurance for the use of their facility and sponsorship at this event. If you’d like to help us organize a conference in your region, contact Tami Scott.
Our National NASPA Conference is filling up fast, with registration far exceeding the 2012 conference. We’ll be making some important announcements at the conference and want you to be the first to hear the news.
Informative Webinars
This month, we’ll be hosting a webinar in conjunction with IVANS to provide insight into the current state of download. You’ll learn from IVANS about download education and optimization campaigns, and get some great information on downloads from personal and commercial lines. This is not one to be missed.
PartnerNet 2.0
Our client portal, PartnerNet, provides access to hundreds of quick guides, recorded versions of every Partner XE webinar, news about upcoming webinars and conferences, and much more. The newest version of PartnerNet was just released, with a refreshed look to help you find what you need faster. This redesign was made with mobile in mind, and gives you easy access to all the great content published on the SIS blog.
Our clients are our first priority and we’re always looking for new ways to help you know what Partner XE can do, and making it work better for you. I’m always open to your feedback, so feel free to contact me with any questions or comments at [email protected].
Your agency management system is a lot of what makes your agency work – it holds all your client information, tracks your accounting, stores documents and provides prospect research all in one place. It’s an investment of your agency’s time and money, and you want to get the most out of it. You want a system that works for you, with all the capabilities you need but without the bells and whistles you don’t. You want an agency management system that helps you work better, easily integrates with your current work processes and will grow with your agency. With all the options out there, how do you choose? And once you do, how do you make sure it’s worth your time?
Choose the Right Partner
Before you invest in a specific management system, look at the provider. No matter how great a product may be, if its provider isn’t a fit you’re in for trouble. You’re not just getting an agency management system, you’re getting the people who created it, provide service for it, and decide how to change it. You want to be sure your agency fits with the management system and the people behind it.
When looking at a potential provider, search for one who:
Has staying power: Look for a vendor who has been around for a while, and intends to stay. Be careful of start-ups as a larger, less personal vendor could acquire them in the future.
Goes with the flow: Find a provider that is aware of technological changes and the evolving needs of your agency. Look for a company that will make changes to what you have instead of making you switch over to a new system year after year.
Lends an ear: Choose a provider that listens to your concerns and responds to what you need. Look for a place with greatcustomer service, preferably one where you get your own personal representative.
Stays in touch: Look for a provider that is available when you need them. Find a provider that makes it easy for you to reach them, providing you ways to contact them by phone and e-mail, and who gets back to you ASAP.
Puts you first: Be wary of companies that are tied to investors or just looking at the bottom line. Independent providers are less restricted by these pressures and can focus on you, their clients, first.
Get Involved in User Groups
While looking for a vendor, you should also make sure they provide you with access to a user group. Once you’ve started using a provider’s management system, you should start connecting with other users. User group are a great place to learn about new tools and find out what you can do with what you have. Even the best providers can only give you so much information about their product as they don’t use it in the “real world” like you. Good providers learn what their management systems can do, and what it should do, via these users groups.
User groups are a great place to provide feedback to your provider and to talk best practices with other agencies. Some user groups are more involved and may host events or conferences, such as Partner XE’s user group National Association of Partner Agents (NASPA). NASPA includes every agency using the Partner XE system and is run by an elected volunteer board of Partner XE users. It educates the Partner XE user base on how to get the most out of their agency management system, and provides feedback and input to us at SIS.
If you’re already a Partner XE user, we encourage you to sign up for the upcoming NASPA conference April 24-25th in Columbus. If you’re not using Partner XE, contact us today to find out how SIS and Partner XE can work for you!
As conventional phones become less prominent in homes throughout the country, so too do traditional phone systems. Many are switching to VoIP ( Voice over Internet Protocol) phone systems that, true to their name, transmit calls via the internet. With VoIP, you can make calls from your smartphone, tablet, computer, office phone: anything with speakers and a microphone. These systems can save you a bunch and typically include calling features that would cost extra with most other phone services.
The biggest VoIP savings are in international and long-distance rates, which is a huge benefit to insurance agencies as they do business with more and more “long distance” numbers used with cell phones. Also, most VoIP systems let you keep your old number and include call-forwarding and voicemail. This allows you to be accessible when you want, but gives you the freedom to allow calls to go to voicemail if you’re not in a place where you can talk.
As with most cloud technologies, there are many new VoIP services popping up. We’ve outlines a few of the most popular to help you decide what’s right for your agency.
Phone Power
Phone Power offers a number of features and great customer support, but has limits to outbound calling and high cancellation fees.
Unlimited incoming minutes and free in-network calling
Second line offered for free
Toll-free numbers and fax lines supported
Call forwarding to several phones, conference calling, call transferring
Great customer service (can contact by email, phone or live chat)
High cancellation fees if terminating your annual contract
No unlimited plans offered
Outbound calling threshold of 5,000 minutes
Lingo
Lingo provides great coverage for international calling, unlimited calling within the U.S. and Canada, and includes all your basic features (voicemail, call waiting, speed dialing, etc.). Its monthly rates are a bit higher than other companies with similar features, but in the end it offers a lower cost by providing only the basics.
Only the basics: not a lot of additional features offered
High monthly fee compared to other services
Skype
Skype is well known for its video services, but also provides VoIP. It has great pricing and no limits on calling, but like Lingo it lacks some additional features. Although there is no hardware to install, it also does not offer phone adapters, meaning you cannot make calls from a handset.
Competitive pricing for national and international calls
Voicemail, caller ID, call forwarding, call waiting and call transfer included
Free calling to other Skype users
Unlimited plans offered
No hardware to install
Not many additional features
Limited to using mobile device or computer to make calls
Voice quality is less than desirable
Does not provide support via email or chat, only offers video tutorials
Star2Star
Star2Star also offers the basics (voicemail, call forwarding, etc.) but adds a lot more with voicemail-to-email and auto attendant. In addition, Star2Star operates using less bandwidth than similar systems. Set-up and installation are easy, but figuring out how to use the system can be a complex, so be ready for a bit of a learning curve.
End-to-end installation of phone system for easy set-up
Unlimited conference calling
Voicemail-to-email: sends an MP3 file of the voicemail message to your email
Auto-Attendant automatically transfers callers to extensions
Less bandwidth than other systems
Complex system means a longer learning curve
What other VoIP providers have you tried? It’s important to share your experiences so we know what really works. We love to hear our clients’ opinions, and put their feedback to work. Our Partner XE agency management system is a product of that client feedback, including features like Outlook integration and mobile access. We’d love to hear what you think! Contact us at 800.747.9273 or [email protected] to find out more!
It should be no surprise that many of the apps mentioned in our last post on electronic signatures boasted mobile capabilities to provide on-the-go access. More and more business is done on tablets or phones, and this is especially true with your potential and current clients. Doing business via mobile fulfills your clients’ need to make their interactions with your agency as quick and easy as possible, and increases your client satisfaction.
Mobile access means you can provide quotes, update client profiles and do prospect research anytime, speeding up processes and ensuring you don’t forget important info when you’re on the go. Many of the popular sites and programs your agency uses have mobile access, and you should start taking advantage of these apps to keep your agency ahead of the game.
This app gives access to quick auto insurance quotes, allowing you to provide clients with up-to-date info on rates instantly. You can search for the value of specific vehicles and read about new and used car prices, look at photos and compare vehicles easily. Kelly Blue Book’s app is free and can be accessed on any mobile device, including tablets.
Zillow has quickly become the best resource for concise property information, and its free app provides all the same great info in a mobile-friendly package. Each Zillow profiles shows an estimate on a property’s value, past and current owners, info on local schools and much more. With this app, you can compare process and property values and provide your clients with quick coverage quotes.
With this app, ACORD gives users access to commonly used forms. Users can view, complete, sign and send forms through this app, making it that much easier to turn prospects in to clients. It also provides capability to save incomplete forms for future use and is free for users of Cap Dat ACORD.
CamScanner turns your phone or tablet in to a portable scanner, allowing you to capture important documents using your device’s camera. The app provides cloud-based back-up, and gives you the ability to edit and share what you’ve “scanned”. CamScanner is also great for storing receipts and business cards when you’re traveling – and it’s free.
We couldn’t look at great mobile apps for your agency without talking about Partner XE’s mobile app. Partner XE Mobile puts your agency management system in your hand and makes it accessible anytime, anywhere. You can search for, view and edit client and prospect profile, and can place calls or e-mails simply by tapping the phone number or e-mail address in a given profile. Through the Partner XE Mobile claims feature, you can access claim numbers, dates, and statuses, making it easy to have the most up-to-date information – and it’s all free for Partner XE users.
To find out more about Partner XE mobile and Partner XE’s other great features, contact us at 800.747.9273 or [email protected]
As an insurance agency, you no doubt spend a good deal of time sending, signing and receiving contracts. This process can be surprisingly complicated, especially with deadlines, a lack of scanners or faxes, and recent changes to contract privacy and security policies. It can be hard enough to get a client to agree to a contract, so you want to make the process quick, yet you still need to take the time to ensure compliance with legal regulations and protect client information.
Your solution lies in electronic signature and delivery verification apps. These cloud applications take the hassle out of scanning and faxing contracts for signatures, and keep all sensitive information stored securely and up to legal regulations. As an insurance agency, you no doubt spend a good deal of time sending, signing and receiving contracts.Using email to obtain signatures is becoming the standard, especially since secure email methods are available, and using e-sign methods will speed up the contract process to save you time and money.
No matter which app you chose, be sure to check its compliance with guidelines set by ESIGN (Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act) and UETA (Uniform Electronic Transactions Act). The examples we’ve selected are all ESIGN and UETA compliant, and should be used as one option for your clients. Although it is likely most will chose to sign contracts via email, in order to stay within privacy regulations you should always offer hard copy signing as an option, too.
True to its name, DocuSign allows for easy document signing via email. The app is easy to use and has a reputation for being a more cost-efficient choice than others. It synchs with file storage applications like DropBox or Google Drive, making it easy for you to drop pre and post signatures contracts in these secure locations. When sending, DocuSign allows for different types of what they call “envelopes,” including requesting delivery confirmation or allowing the recipients to make changes to a document.
DocuSign’s standouts are the ability to have multiple signers and showing detailed stages of completion. If multiple people are signing one document, DocuSign allows you to add tabs for each recipient with a unique recipient ID. Once you’ve sent your document , DocuSign lets you know when it has been sent, viewed, edited (if applicable), signed, declined or even if it bounced-back with an auto-respond. Seeing these various statues let you know your next steps immediately, so you won’t be waiting for a contract that a client hasn’t even seen.
With Silanis, you get greater visual proof of a document’s stages as it shows you the appearance and order of all web screens seen by the recipient, including legal disclosures presented. Silanis also tracks time spent on each page and the actions taken on each page (i.e. clicking to accept, signing, initialing, confirming, etc.). Having such detailed information bolsters your E & O compliance greatly.
For extra security, Silanis uses SMS messaging to confirm a signer’s identity. When the document is sent, a 4-digit code required for signing is also sent to the recipient’s phone. If a client prefers in-person signatures, Silanis is functional on tablets or smartphones to allow for touch-screen signing. Also, Silanis has a great integration edition designed to synch easily with your agency’s current applications.
One of the more well-known e-signature apps, RPost is certified to provide legal proof of email delivery and is part of Partner XE 2.0’s Outlook integration. Once you’ve installed RPost, you can easily send secure messaged simply by clicking “send registered mail” on your email service. After sending a secure message, you’ll receive an acknowledgement email from RPost letting you know when it was delivered along with a registered receipt that is automatically filed within the RPost system.
RPost has a special eContract mode specifically designed for sending and e-signing contracts. In this mode, you can attach a Word doc which is automatically converted to a PDF for secure, tamper-free sending. Once sent, a recipient can click anywhere to type in the designated text fields and can use their mouse to securely sign the document.
Due to RPost’s easy integration with Outlook, we’ve included it as part of Partner XE 2.0 so you can easily attach contracts to profiles within your agency management system. With this integration, every step from prospect to contracted client is synched in one place. SIS client John Heinsz of Heinsz-Schaefer-Garwitz Insurance Services uses the RPost integration, saying “(t)he most immediate impact has been the use of the Esignature feature. Our producers immediately saw the time savings with this feature and have loved it…Now, instead of having to send a PDF and have our client print it, sign it, scan it and send it back to us… we can have our client esign it…and then save the final document either as a PDF or as part of the email saved with the Outlook PlugIn.”
To find out more about how to use XE’s RPost integration, contact us at 800.747.9273 or [email protected].
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Your agency management system is a lot of what makes your agency work – it holds all your client information, tracks your accounting, stores documents and provides prospect research all in one place. It’s an investment of your agency’s time and money, and you want to get the most out of it. You want a system that works for you, with all the capabilities you need but without the bells and whistles you don’t. You want an agency management system that helps you work better, easily integrates with your current work processes and will grow with your agency. With all the options out there, how do you choose? And once you do, how do you make sure it’s worth your time?
As conventional phones become less prominent in homes throughout the country, so too do traditional phone systems. Many are switching to VoIP ( Voice over Internet Protocol) phone systems that, true to their name, transmit calls via the internet. With VoIP, you can make calls from your smartphone, tablet, computer, office phone: anything with speakers and a microphone. These systems can save you a bunch and typically include calling features that would cost extra with most other phone services.
It should be no surprise that many of the apps mentioned in our 
As an insurance agency, you no doubt spend a good deal of time sending, signing and receiving contracts. This process can be surprisingly complicated, especially with deadlines, a lack of scanners or faxes, and recent changes to contract privacy and security policies. It can be hard enough to get a client to agree to a contract, so you want to make the process quick, yet you still need to take the time to ensure compliance with legal regulations and protect client information.
