Insurance Supermarket's iAgent offering shows life insurance industry's digital prowess
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Launched last month, Insurance Supermarket’s iAgent is now available in all the major urban centres across Canada. The Toronto-based firm was founded in 2009 and CEO Alex Dudarev has lofty goals for its latest development.
“We have been beta-testing for the last 12 months with a smaller group of advisors and went live at the end of September,” he says. “We are living in a very exciting time. The industry is going through a transformation where the consumer’s journey is truly becoming a priority for everybody.”
Insurance providers across the board are increasing digital offerings, but iAgent is unique in the convenience it offers customers. Life insurance is in the process of making its products more accessible for the public, and this platform appears to be the next stage in the industry’s evolution.
“The platform allows for consumers looking for a face-to-face meeting with an advisor to meet within 30 minutes of making an enquiry,” he says. “If you submit an enquiry, we call you back in under 20 seconds, and you will be offered an immediate meeting, or can decide to have it the next day.”
Using a geolocation app, iAgent matches advisors and consumers in the same location, thus reducing the wait time to under half an hour. The firm has partnered with insurer ivari and MGAs Financial Horizons, Hub Financial, IDC/Worldsource and PPI Solutions for the platform.
“Under those four groups are about 85% of independent advisors,” says Dudarev. “We are trying to add other distribution centres, but in order for the system to work the group has to have a truly national presence. That’s why these four groups are there.”
In operation for eight years now, Insurance Supermarket is an example of the progress life insurance is making in adapting to the challenges of the digital age. Consumers have certain expectations now, and life insurance is no different. Increasingly, those expectations mean better service, but much faster, as Dudarev outlines.
“The direction of the company always changes because we are always looking for ways to improve the consumer experience,” he says. “We used to connect consumers with advisors and an appointment would take between 24–72 hours. Now it takes less than 30 minutes.”
Related stories:
New platform an accompaniment, not competition for advisors: Sun Life
Empire Life introduces new online application for segregated funds
“We have been beta-testing for the last 12 months with a smaller group of advisors and went live at the end of September,” he says. “We are living in a very exciting time. The industry is going through a transformation where the consumer’s journey is truly becoming a priority for everybody.”
Insurance providers across the board are increasing digital offerings, but iAgent is unique in the convenience it offers customers. Life insurance is in the process of making its products more accessible for the public, and this platform appears to be the next stage in the industry’s evolution.
“The platform allows for consumers looking for a face-to-face meeting with an advisor to meet within 30 minutes of making an enquiry,” he says. “If you submit an enquiry, we call you back in under 20 seconds, and you will be offered an immediate meeting, or can decide to have it the next day.”
Using a geolocation app, iAgent matches advisors and consumers in the same location, thus reducing the wait time to under half an hour. The firm has partnered with insurer ivari and MGAs Financial Horizons, Hub Financial, IDC/Worldsource and PPI Solutions for the platform.
“Under those four groups are about 85% of independent advisors,” says Dudarev. “We are trying to add other distribution centres, but in order for the system to work the group has to have a truly national presence. That’s why these four groups are there.”
In operation for eight years now, Insurance Supermarket is an example of the progress life insurance is making in adapting to the challenges of the digital age. Consumers have certain expectations now, and life insurance is no different. Increasingly, those expectations mean better service, but much faster, as Dudarev outlines.
“The direction of the company always changes because we are always looking for ways to improve the consumer experience,” he says. “We used to connect consumers with advisors and an appointment would take between 24–72 hours. Now it takes less than 30 minutes.”
Related stories:
New platform an accompaniment, not competition for advisors: Sun Life
Empire Life introduces new online application for segregated funds
