Introduction
Agent Ave has been a godsend for Oakwood Insurance Agency. Oakwood agents are better equipped to provide accurate and up-to-date information to their clients using the timesaving go-to resource for centralized carrier data and required forms.
Agent Ave has also improved Oakwood’s work culture and quality of customer service.
Problem
With multiple branch office locations, Oakwood Insurance Agency struggled to keep their agents on the same page with carrier data.
Agents were given copies of condensed underwriting guidelines to reference when working with clients but were often required to go online to the carrier’s website to access more up-to-date information, since keeping copies of the underwriting guidelines current was a real challenge.
The lack of centralized carrier data and the time-consuming struggle to research for accurate information impacted the quality of Oakwood’s customer service and business processes.
Solution
Oakwood Insurance Agency was introduced to Agent Ave in October 2015. Staff members at Oakwood were intrigued by the concept of centralized carrier data.
After subscribing to Agent Ave for over a year, Maryann Leerhoff, an Operations Manager, who oversees all of the Oakwood agency locations and trainings stated, “Everyone working off the same information in the agency has been a real benefit. Carrier contact information is more detailed and more accessible… and one place to keep commonly used documents that carriers require has been helpful; Agent Ave has been a godsend.”
The implementation of Agent Ave into Oakwood’s everyday business operations has also directly impacted Oakwood agents. Leerhoff confirms there is less frustration from agents, and they keep Agent Ave open all day on their desktops as a “go-to source for information.”
Additionally, the platform addresses gaps unresolved by Oakwood’s current client agency management system.
“Agent Ave complements what we’re doing with our agency management system which is really great at managing information for our clients but not really great at managing the information for our companies,” Leerhoff explains, “Agent Ave marries the two pieces together. More importantly, subscribing to Agent Ave to keep carrier data in a centralized, accessible format has been a time-saving investment improving the quality of Oakwood’s customer service.
“One of the worst things you can do as an agent is spin your wheels working off outdated information and not being on the same page with the carriers.”
So having all that information at your fingertips is such a timesaver,” Leerhoff says. “Agent Ave really allows us to focus on the client and not spin our wheels searching for information. We don’t quote the wrong carrier and then have to backtrack… And, the secure login and password storage for each of our associates really increases the security for the agency,” ensuring customers’ data at Oakwood is always protected and a priority.
Conclusion
With its time-saving centralized data capabilities, storage for carrier documents, and secure login features, Agent Ave has provided Oakwood and its agents a versatile resource to organize underwriting guidelines and improve their customer service to effectively drive sales.
Maryann Leerhoff commends Agent Ave for being “a powerful organizational tool” and foresees a long-term investment in the platform.
2017 Agent of the Year
MIAB Honors owner Bruce Sogn, of Oakwood Insurance Agency,
Coon Rapids, MN as its 2017 Agent of the Year.