Anyone Know Online Life Insurance Comparative Rater

[Robert Barney]

Just remember Bob, you sell an annual or multiyear license. Microsoft sells it as a one time product. Now, they are going that way with Office, and I'd be curious to know what traction it has gained. But Windows, Office, etc. have always been sold as a unending license, no renewal necessary.

Microsoft has negotiated continue service for XP with certain large entities. For example:

Dutch government pays millions to extend Microsoft XP support | ZDNet

and

Windows XP support will be available after April 8

Don't you think, if Microsoft offered a continuing support deal for XP users, at a reasonable annual fee, many would bite? I'd pay $50 per year, until I transitioned out. And I just bought some new computers and the Windows 8.1 cost me $100. It's their fault they don't have a continuous stream of revenue from XP.

On a sidenote, I will continue to run XP on a number of computers. I still have some 16 bit software I routinely use, that won't run on 32 bit OS.

Wordstar is still the best text editor on the planet.

Also, as computers continue to progress, software needs to keep up. I doubt there are many who want to go back to DOS or Windows 3.1.

No disagreement there. But what ever happened to the customer is always right. Some people have better things to do then buy new computers and transfer the software over. And it's not like it's an easy job. We're a software company and it took about 2 weeks of work to get our back office stuff moved to 8.1. Some of the updated programs we use, were not as backward compatible as the vendors claim they are. You can spend a lot of time fixing little bugs.

On another note, Compulife continued to offer DOS software long after Windows was introduced. Believe it or not, when we pulled the plug, there were some subscribers who still said they like DOS better than Windows. Heck, I liked DOS better than windows.

And for the record, I do have a subscription to Compulife. About the only thing I wish is that it were as easy to change the amount of coverage as the term period and that it could do table ratings.

Face amount can be selected from the drop down menu, or you can click at the start of the face amount field, which will put your cursor in front of the first number. For example, imagine you want $650,000 of life insurance. Click the down button, select $750,000, then click in front of the 7. Now type the number 6. Your done.

Suppose you want $10,000. Click the down button, select $50,000, click in front of the 5 and press 1.

If you want $5,000, select $50,000, click between the 5 and the first zero, and press the delete button.

Let me know if some of those tips are helpful.

While we don't store the various table ratings in the system, you can do a table rating. Watch this video:

Compulife® Software Tutorials

 

[Tahoe Ray]

Face amount can be selected from the drop down menu, or you can click at the start of the face amount field, which will put your cursor in front of the first number. For example, imagine you want $650,000 of life insurance. Click the down button, select $750,000, then click in front of the 7. Now type the number 6. Your done.

Suppose you want $10,000. Click the down button, select $50,000, click in front of the 5 and press 1.

If you want $5,000, select $50,000, click between the 5 and the first zero, and press the delete button.

Let me know if some of those tips are helpful.

While we don't store the various table ratings in the system, you can do a table rating. Watch this video:

Compulife® Software Tutorials

Not speaking for Vol, but I'm guessing that he's looking for a functionality that a lot of us might like to see...

I'd like to have the ability to show 500k/750k/1m etc. on the same spreadsheet.

As an aside, I think compulife is great in general.

 

[Robert Barney]

I'd like to have the ability to show 500k/750k/1m etc. on the same spreadsheet.

I get that request fairly frequently, and I guess I just find the whole concept confusing. Our most popular presentation/quote is the Pick 12 spreadsheet, which will accomodate up to 12 column of vertical numbers, on a single landscape page. I find it hard to imagine how complicated it would be to parachute different face amount labels onto the page, without it becoming enormously confusing for the consumer.

In response I have always advocated building one Pick 12 quote at one face amount, and then using the "re-file" option to build the same quote (same companies and products) at a different face amount. Here's how it works.

You build the first Pick 12 quote at say 500,000, by individually picking and filing in the products you want. You go to Pick 12 (F5) and email or print the quote.

Now you go to the client screen (F1), change the face amount and go back to the Pick 12 directly (F5). The program will recognize the change in face amount and ask if you wish to refile. If you say yes, and choose one of two options, then the exact same quote for the different face amount is automatically built. You email or print that quote.

Do it again for $1million.

You end up with 3 pages but I just think that is much simpler and less confusing than mixing all those face amounts on a single page.

Some people suggest we could make the Pick 12's simpler by using company name shortforms, product name shortforms, etc. I have always believed that it is important to use full names and that feeling was confirmed when I received a letter from the Texas Deparment of Insurance some years ago. They complained that the quotes in our software were not showing the FULL company names, and gave a couple of examples where we were leaving off a word like "company" or "insurance", due to the length of the name. At that point I adopted some of the shortforms that A.M. Best was using, where length was a problem. Ins is short for Insurance, Co for company, NY for New York, etc. I responded and explained all that to Texas, and they seemed to be satisified with the effort we made.

By contast I have seen some short forms like "Genworth" used at the top of a quote column. Which Genworth?

So when you look at a quote, and realize all the stuff that you need to get on it, you realize you have limited space leftover. We just need to find a balance between maximizing the space and doing the best we can.

If someone wanted to mock up a quote that they think is better, I would certainly review that. You can email it to [email protected].

 

[WinoBlues]

Not speaking for Vol, but I'm guessing that he's looking for a functionality that a lot of us might like to see...

I'd like to have the ability to show 500k/750k/1m etc. on the same spreadsheet.

As an aside, I think compulife is great in general.

Second. Especially for more of a money purchase. Showing something like a $1,000,000 10 yr, $750,000 20 yr and a $500,000 30 yr. As it is now I have to do it in a simple email or yellow pad if face too face.

----------

.......In response I have always advocated building one Pick 12 quote at one face amount, and then using the "re-file" option to build the same quote (same companies and products) at a different face amount. Here's how it works.......


.

Bob, doing the refile, it does not requote using banding differences. Company A may be better than company B at $500,000 but at $1,000,000 company A is better.am I incorrect?

Same disclosure as the other guys. Long time subscription

 

[Robert Barney]

Bob, doing the refile, it does not requote using banding differences. Company A may be better than company B at $500,000 but at $1,000,000 company A is better.am I incorrect?

Yes, I take your point. But that means you would probably be better with this quote (see the three attached).

I created those quotes using the multiple category comparison.

Now if you wanted the top 4 products for each of those 3 categories, and those 12 put into Pick 12, then you could do the multiple category comparison, and limit it to the top 4 for each of the categories - 10, 20 and 30.

That would give you 12 results.

You then click on the first product (highlight it in blue), then shift click on the last product, which highlights all 12. Right click and those 12 go into Pick 12, and the system goes right to Pick 12.

Would not take very long to build 3 Pick 12 spreadsheets for those 3 different face amounts. Only down side, 3 pages instead of 1, but then you would never get all that info on one page.

I just think two face amounts on the same page is just very, very confusing.

 

[VolAgent]

Bob, what I want is a box to change the face amount while at the comparison page. I don't want to have to exit it, go change the face amount and run it again.

So if I am talking to someone and they say, 500k is too much, I can change it to 250k just as easily as I can change from 20 year to 10 year or to GUL.

 

[Norwayguy]

Let me begin by saying that Quotit currently has a FANTASTIC on-line life insurance quotation system. It's the best in the industry and that's all I have to say about it.

Wonder if I am reading between the lines correctly.

 

[WinoBlues]

Wonder if I am reading between the lines correctly.

I was thinking the same thing.

 

[Robert Barney]

Bob, what I want is a box to change the face amount while at the comparison page. I don't want to have to exit it, go change the face amount and run it again.

So if I am talking to someone and they say, 500k is too much, I can change it to 250k just as easily as I can change from 20 year to 10 year or to GUL.

The default setting for the client and comparison windows (two separate windows) should have the comparison windows on the left, with the client window just behind and to the right. (neither should take up the full screen)

To change the face amount from a comparison, you simply click on the client window behind, which brings it forward. Now change the face amount.

Next, click on the comparison page, which is to the left and behind the client page. The comparison windows will come forward and in doing so will automatically detect the change in face amount and re-display the comparison with the new face amount.

NOTE: Call me at 888-798-3488 if you can't follow any of these examples. I will be happy to step through them with you on the phone.

----------

Wonder if I am reading between the lines correctly.

I was thinking the same thing.

I will only say that sometimes we are required by agreement not to comment.

 

[Norwayguy]

The default setting for the client and comparison windows (two separate windows) should have the comparison windows on the left, with the client window just behind and to the right. (neither should take up the full screen)

To change the face amount from a comparison, you simply click on the client window behind, which brings it forward. Now change the face amount.

Next, click on the comparison page, which is to the left and behind the client page. The comparison windows will come forward and in doing so will automatically detect the change in face amount and re-display the comparison with the new face amount.

NOTE: Call me at 888-798-3488 if you can't follow any of these examples. I will be happy to step through them with you on the phone.

----------

I will only say that sometimes we are required by agreement not to comment.

That's a definite noncomment comment