In a competitive market, it is necessary to adopt cutting-edge technology that empowers your agency to increase revenue and scale efficiently. That’s where insurance agency CRM solutions come in.

With many divisions and a siloed industry, insurance agencies need a centralized, accurate, up-to-date, and automated database to ensure performance at the highest levels. A CRM is designed to do exactly that.

What Is An Insurance Agency CRM?

CRM stands for customer relationship management, and generally refers to software applications that help you manage customer data, so you can automate and streamline communication.

Today, most CRMs are online and Cloud-based. It’s easy for companies of any size with different branches to nurture relationships with their prospects and customers.

Most CRMs Are Not Made For Insurance Agencies And Lack Features Agents Need

Unfortunately, most CRMs are not created for the insurance industry. Agents are forced to piece different solutions together. This results in high-priced subscriptions, long set up-times, and an awkward workflow.

Launch is different. It was created specifically to help independent insurance agencies scale.

Eliminate silos, increase sales from your existing book of business, and more.

What Problems Does A CRM Solve For An Insurance Agency?

What makes an insurance agency CRM worthwhile? Why would you want to adopt new software and automation in favor of familiar manual processes?

Here are several critical problems CRMs solve for insurance agencies.

Competition

The insurance market is competitive. Customers have many companies and products to choose from. If you don’t give them comprehensive service, you will find your prospects talking to your competitors before you can even follow up with them.

That’s because most insurance agencies are siloed and do not have the ability to look at a single client holistically across divisions.

But CRMs help you track your conversations, so you know when someone on your team has last talked to a prospect and what stage of the sales process they’re currently at.

Data Management

Data entry may not be the most challenging job in the world. But manually managed Excel spreadsheets and notepads are error-prone and can lead to confusion and missed opportunities.

HubSpot reported that 40% of salespeople still use informal methods like spreadsheets and email programs to store customer data.

Just as failing to follow up with a prospect or client at the expected time can cause confusion and frustration, calling too often can sour the relationship, as the client wonders whether your agency has their act together.

Inefficient Processes

Insurance agents are often inundated with a myriad of tasks, including policy setups, renewals, follow-ups, and of course, ongoing communication. Is it any wonder some agents feel scattered and overwhelmed?

When processes are inadequate or inefficient, your productivity and bottom-line suffer.

Lead Generation

Insurance Leads Guide says the cost of an exclusive lead can range from $20 to $50 or more (per lead).

Today, customers are often looking for hassle-free, convenient products that meet all their needs and are less likely to purchase disparate products from multiple companies as they find it harder to manage their various policies.

If you don’t have a streamlined process to meet the needs of your leads, you could end up losing them to other companies that are more efficient, further driving up the cost of lead generation.

Customer Retention

According to Capterra, 47% of CRM users said their CRM had a significant impact on customer retention and satisfaction.

Retention is a challenge for many of the reasons already mentioned – competition, data management, inefficient workflows, and more.

It is often said that the best customers are the ones you already have. And a good CRM will help you increase revenue from your existing book of business.

Is there a CRM Specifically For Independent Insurance Agencies?

Most insurance agencies are siloed and do not have the ability to look at a single client holistically across divisions.

Launch is a CRM created specifically to help independent insurance agencies scale faster than their competitors.

It comes out-of-the-box with features that eliminate silos, spot sales opportunities in your existing book of business, agency-wide visibility on every client, and more.

What Are The Benefits Of Using A CRM?

According to Salesforce, CRM applications can help increase sales by up to 29%, sales productivity by up to 34%, and sales forecast accuracy by 42%.

These are encouraging stats. If you want to better manage customer relationships and offer more value than your competitors, a CRM is a must.

Insurance Agency CRM Comparison – What Is The Best?

There are many CRMs to choose from, and it’s likely you’ve even heard of a few of them.

Here are some of the top-rated insurance CRM systems.

Launch

New to the scene and completely different from everything else on this list, Launch is a CRM created specifically to help insurance agencies scale faster than their competitors.

It comes out-of-the-box with features that eliminate silos, gain agency-wide visibility on every client, and spot sales opportunities in your existing book of business.

More importantly, your sales team can act on every opportunity, so your agency gets that revenue instead of your competitors.

Keap

Formerly known as Infusionsoft, Cloud-based CRM Keap has maintained a strong presence in the CRM space for 20 years, with a robust feature set (including marketing automation and eCommerce functionality) and unmatched integration options.

Most customers have found it to be a great all-in-one solution. The main downsides of Keap are that because of its raw power, many users have reported overwhelm, with some even referring to it as “Confusionsoft.” Integrations can also be quirky and intermittent.

Keap is powerful, but it’ll take some serious work to set your agency up with it and keep it working smoothly.

Zendesk Sell

Formerly Base, Zendesk Sell is a web- and mobile-based CRM with the ability to manage sales, track leads, and keep you connected with customers. It includes a standalone sales automation module and integrates with tools ranging from Mailchimp to PandaDoc.

Customers found Zendesk Sell easy to use and enjoyed its substantial feature set. Some found integration features to be a little lacking and noted that certain functionalities took some getting used to.

Thryv

Thryv describes itself as an “end-to-end client experience software,” designed specifically with small businesses in mind. This all-in-one business management solution helps you expand your online presence, improve customer relationships, and even streamline payment processing.

Customers rave about Thryv’s easy-to-use platform, as well as its quality customer service. Some said Thryv had more features than they need, which made it hard to learn.

Unlike Launch, some Thryv customers also said it did not allow them to gain agency-wide visibility on their clients, but it might help expand your insurance agency’s visibility with clients.

Final Thoughts

Every insurance agency needs a CRM to remain agile, competitive, and productive.

Choosing the right insurance agency CRM is all about finding what works for you. Complementary software makes it easy for you to track the right data while automating and streamlining communication and customer relationships.

A CRM is a competitive advantage in an industry where adoption has yet to reach critical mass. If you’re looking for ways to maintain, sustain and grow your insurance agency, it’s time to go to school on CRMs.

Insurance Agency CRM: The Ultimate Guide