Agency In A Box: The Starters Kit

Thanks to advances in technology, and an innovative way of using it, starting an independent agency takes on a whole new light with Financial Keyosks “Agency In A Box.”

The Carpentersville, Ill., Internet financial services provider is putting its back-room agency knowledge to work for those producers looking to break out from their own captive or mega-agency setting.

“There are a lot of agents frustrated in their current environment,” observed John Dawson, chief executive officer for Financial Keyosk. “They are frustrated in the corporate strategy where [the major brokers] are buying up mid-sized agencies across the country. When they do, the smaller mom-and-pop agencies [affiliated with them] dont want to move upstream with this new group. Then there are the dynamics taking place in the captive carriers today, where they are squeezing their agents on commission and what they can write.

“Things like that are causing agents to reevaluate their business,” he continued. “What Agency in a Box does is remove all the barriers for an agent to start a new business. It allows them to leave their current environment and start selling tomorrow.”

Without a lot of start-up costs, such as leasing office space, hiring customer service representatives, and the investment in a lot of office equipment, an experienced agent can now go out on his own with just a lap-top to do business, Mr. Dawson said.

In “Agency in a Box” there is an assortment of insurance property-casualty products for the small commercial and personal lines client, and access to life and health through 20 different major carriers, Mr. Dawson explained.

The number of carries is especially important when an agent realizes that carriers are not anxious to hand out contracts to producers without a long, proven track record with a substantial amount of premium to show for it, he said.

In addition to access to the number of carriers for the fledgling agent, there is support for the agency.

A call center staff is up, running and available to help with every step of the business process, from filing forms to dealing with customer service requests.

Technology is key here, not only in filing applications but also in keeping up with customer contacts. When the agent logs onto Keyosk, he immediately receives an update on the customer service transactions that have taken place over the course of the day.

Additional help is available via the sales and accounting tools within the Keyosk system, the company said. They are designed to help the producer with each aspect of selling insurance products, even those products he or she might not be that familiar with.

“If the agent does not have expertise [in a line], we have licensed agents in our call center who can act on behalf of the agent as the trusted advisor,” Mr. Dawson pointed out.

“Agency in the Box” is not open to just anyone, Mr. Dawson emphasized. The company, which is owned by Zurich North America, headquartered in Schaumburg, Ill., requires the candidate to fill out an application, which can be found at www.keyoskconnected.com. Financial Keyosk then follows-up with the applicant. If the agent is determined to be “a good-fit” after an interview, he or she is invited to join.

“We do not plan to accept all comers,” Mr. Dawson emphasized. “We are not training agents. We want experienced agents who want to make the move and who feel there are too many barriers. We just removed the barriers.”

Part of the dropping of the barrier, Mr. Dawson said, is that Keyosk builds its brand around the agent, providing the producer with such items as business cards, letterhead, promotional gifts, and a laptop computer.

“We give them all they need to run the agency and let them just sell,” Mr. Dawson noted.

Mr. Dawson went on to explain that agents can expect to make commission 30 to 40 percent higher than what they are currently getting. This is possible, in part, he said, because of the savings found by eliminating an agencys “back-room” costs.

Also, within a few years after opening his or her business, the agent owns the book, which is an added inducement for captive agents.

“We are confident we have built the most efficient insurance agency selling model,” Mr. Dawson said.

Financial Keyosk is licensed in 48 states. The provider is not licensed in Hawaii and Alaska. Currently, only personal insurance products are available in the Midwest, but that is expected to change in the future, Mr. Dawson said.

Reproduced from National Underwriter Property & Casualty/Risk & Benefits Management Edition, August 19, 2002. Copyright 2002 by The National Underwriter Company in the serial publication. All rights reserved.Copyright in this article as an independent work may be held by the author.

Special Reports /

Agency In A Box: The Starters Kit

Related Stories

Recommended For You