Digital Transformations
It’s times like these when we are all stepping back and reevaluating what is important.
Luckily, Insurance has been identified as an essential service but many clients and potential customers will likely not be visiting your brick and mortar operations. Getting your messaging across is more crucial than ever so here are some communication tools we love:
Video Conferencing: Zoom allows for recording, polls, screen shares, and more!
Calendar Scheduling: Calendly connects to Zoom, lets you customize the URL and questions, and instantly connects to your calendar (Outlook, Gmail, etc.) and we are offering free 1:1 training for our Bigfoot Insurance platform HERE. Or schedule a time to chat with our CEO Martin Burlingame HERE.
Getting e-signatures: Docusign or Formstack / Insuresign
Online payments: We LOVE ePayPolicy because it allows us to take ACH and Credit Card payments that we can track by invoice.
Social Media Engagement: Make it a goal to post on social media at least once a week and connect with us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Remember that when you are posting, the greatest impact comes from being authentically you. As you can tell, we ran with the idea of #policieswithhair
Podcasts: Follow thought leaders on social media, engage with them to see their COVID-19 response efforts, and listen to top leaders like Marketing Guru Michael Jans and others found on LinkedIn.
Newsletters: We’ve used Mailchimp but transitioned to Hubspot for automation and more robust information about our clients. Both have free levels and are a great way to send out mass communications to your insureds updating them on your office hours and staffing changes during massive shutdowns across the country.
Blog: If you feel like you have a penchant for writing, blogs are a great way to bring people in to your website to learn about the services you provide. We love Squarespace but there are plenty of other website builders. Social media and blogs allow you to get your story out there and connect to a wider audience. If you tag or mention your friends (including us) you are more likely to get seen.
Internal Communication: Slack is free but we’ve moved to Jostle to eliminate many emails by connecting our intranet, events calendar, chats, training manuals, and HR communications.
As an insurance agent, your value add is your expertise. Be sure to revisit and refresh your Website, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram to make sure all of your contact information is up to date. We did a recent blog post that hopefully added clarity to our path forward during these difficult times.
How have you been leaning in to this digital transformation?
Drop us a line on social media or send us an email at Ashley@bigfoot.insure.
Tips from our staff:
Homes/Condos/Rentals: “Please make sure to provide the year full updates were made to heating, plumbing, roofing, and electrical within the app. It helps immensely.” - Robert Rogacki, Personal Lines Team Lead
Cyber: “While millions of Americans are working remotely, don’t forget to share with your business clients how they can mitigate their cyber risk. Be vigilant, 2-factor authentication, VPNs, proper system hygiene and of course a strong cyber liability policy.” - Ben Shoemaker, VP of Michigan Branch
Garage Dealers: “Home garages are welcome! Please also consider coverage for your tools and equipment” - Karina Medina, Garage & Dealers Underwriter
Commercial Auto & Trucking: “We can do restaurant delivery vehicles for 6 month or annual Hired/Non-Owned policies and have an awesome market for 25+ vehicle fleets. ” - Jennifer Solis, Transportation Underwriter
Commissions: “Agents that are directly appointed can collect the payment and remit the net amount due, thus retaining their commission. These are considered net agents. For those appointed with a group, the entire amount due is paid and the agent will get paid after the policy is paid in full. These are our gross agents. Both net and gross agents will sometimes have to do direct billing where the carrier must be paid directly and we receive commission only from the carrier and will pass it on to the agent. Net agents get paid on the 15th of each month and gross agents get paid by their group on a monthly basis as well. You can find this information in the quote packet.” - Mack Hone, CFO
Pictured from left to right:
Our branding has also gone through many transformations. Back when Martin was just a retail agent, he focused on Bull & Horse coverage and continues to insure a local rodeo in Colorado Springs. Later, to play on the superhero trend we had Captain Shield Pro and did a fun photoshoot of our staff dressed as unlikely superheroes. Two years ago we sent out an email to 35,000 agents that we started Bigfoot Insurance because of Martin’s encounter with Bigfoot while backpacking across Europe. His travels were real but the encounter wasn’t. Last year we launched a campaign to introduce Bigfoot Insurance as your advocate for hard-to-place risks. Send is your #policieswithhair