Here's a different spin on the old joke that on the Internet no one knows you're a dog: "On the Internet, no one knows you are a $100 million carrier," says Matt Josefowicz, group manager of Celent's insurance practice. The Web allows small and midsize insurers to stand toe to toe with their larger brethren, and agent portals have become a key way for carriers to market themselves to independent agents. "Some smaller carriers have invested in their agent service sites and have been able to compete with larger companies because of that," he indicates. "On the other hand, they don't get any slack from their independent agents. The good news is they can compete effectively; the bad news is they do have to compete."

Portals are enabling carriers to handle more business, enhance customer service, improve business processes, understand business trends, and more. Like many companies, when State Auto first developed an agent portal back at the beginning of this decade, the portal started out as brochureware. The Columbus, Ohio-based property/casualty carrier eventually began to expose billing and claims information to agents. State Auto's next initiative was to deliver quoting and issuance along with customer service options. "Once we got an XML-based rating engine, we made that available to agents who could get quotes and request issuance," says Doug Allen, vice president and director of information technology with State Auto. "We also provided the ability for [agents] to do their endorsement transactions."

Portals create an opportunity for insurers to better understand their agents, build a relationship with them, help agents establish goals and objectives, and ultimately supply information concerning compensation and commissions, remarks Paul McDonnell, senior vice president, managing director, and insurance segment leader for BearingPoint. He notes his consulting group has seen tremendous acceptance of portals. "It clearly is becoming the vehicle for companies to provide services to their base of constituents," he says.