Software

[midwestbroker]

In the past I had used a basic organizer program (what you get in the $9.99 software section). I made 2 users, one for sales and one for potential clients.

Was not the most effective system but it worked.

I have a CRM system now with Humana, but I keep back-up with excel sheets.

 

[Bob_The_Insurance_Guy]

I have used www.freecrm.com for the past 18 months, and have had no problems with them. It is free, and I can access it, no matter where I am.

I am able to set up databases, scripts, tracking of commissions, and scheduling. I am also able to upload documents (Personal Data Sheets, Census Forms, etc.) that I can access. The format is not that of ACT, but that does not matter to me.

I also use www.plaxo.com as a parallel, but Plaxo is mainly to keep track of upcoming birthday cards.

Since using the script feature, alongside the database, I find myself talking myself out of less sales. It keeps me on track.

 

[Frank Stastny]

Contact Management Software

I have been following this thread and I hope you all don't mind me putting in a plug for a program I developed. "Your Insurance Office".

I am an insurance agent who in 1995 had his "great indext card system" fail. (It actually began failing the day I created it, I just didn't know it at the time.) I tried using Excel and Outlook and they helped but still weren't what I needed.

I searched the internet and could not find a program that gave me the information I felt I needed, was simple and fast to use and was what I felt was affordable. So, eleven years ago I hired a programmer and began building my own Contact Management Program (CMP).

Now, agents across the US and in eight foreign countries are using it. Each time the program is upgraded it is done so with the advice and suggestions of agents using the current version. It actually is a CMP developed by insurance agents for insurance agents.

I don't want to wear out my welcome as a new member of this forum so if any of you have any questions you can contact me at [email protected] or call the number shown below.

Frank

 

[STIBROKER]

Frank this is on the edge of spam and was about to delete your post but before I do you might be able save your post if you can turn down the spam knob and shoot straight with us as far as why you think this is so great and a little more info,,,,,,,lets start with how much a month for the whole ball of wax....graphs and all

 

[Frank Stastny]

Sorry about that. Thanks for the reply and the second chance.

The program sells for $286.00. That is for the single user version and it is a one time fee. No additional charges.

There is a long list of functions and features, almost all of which have been requested by agents using previous versions. I will list what I believe are some of the more important ones.

I noticed one agent said he used a particular program for his birthday lists. "Your Insurance Office" (YIO) has a client birthday report that will show all clients and spouse's that are having a birthday during the month selected. It also prints special mailing labels that have the day of the month in the upper right corner of the label so the agent can do all the letters or cards for that month at the same time and then mail them out in a timely fashion.

It has its own built in Mail Merge allowing agents to send letters to groups or clients and prospects. Specific client and prospect data can be synced to a PDA. Entries made in the Comment box are automatically date/time stamped. There are several fields in the program that allow the user to change the title of the field and use that field for specific information that will be helpful.

YIO also has its own calendar that not only shows the agents insurance appointments but also allows personal appointments and tasks to be entered. The agent can use this as their one and only calendar and not have to keep both a business and personal calendar. Specific client and prospect information and all appointments can be exported to Outlook with the click of a button located on the Main Menu.

It contains both a Client and Prospect database and numerous reports can be printed from both databases. All of the data in both databases, with the exception of the information in the Comment box, can be exported to any program that accepts comma separated value (CSV) format. If an additional report is required that is not built into the program the data can easily be exported to Excel and created there.

Anyone who can use a mouse and a keyboard can load YIO and begin working in it immediately. There are no special computer skills required. If a user has questions, support is unlimited and toll-free.

The Free downloadable Demo is the actual full-working version of the program. It is locked to limit a total of ten records. However, those can be deleted and ten more added. The agent can do this as often as necessary to test all functions of the program.

The User Guide is written in plain English by an insurance agent, not "computerese".

Your Insurance Office has been upgraded four times. The last time was in June, 2005. When agents using v4.0 tell me that they need more functions to make their job easier I will have the guys who program for me start working on v5.0. We are already kicking around some ideas for the next upgrade.

Frank

 

[cadylou]

So? How's that different that other programs?

Can you cite specific differences between what you've described & ACT!, Goldmine, Maximizer & others? They all offer mail merge capability, notes that are dated, PDA synch, etc. They also offer customizable template elements & the ability to customize the reporting functions.

I'd be very interested in the biggest differences that set it apart & possibly make it more effective for insurance. If you can do that, I might buy it.

 

[Frank Stastny]

The biggest difference is that "Your Insurance Office" (YIO) is already set up for insurance. ACT, Goldmine, etc need to be "programmed" to give an agent the information they feel they need.

I guess for an agent who has an extensive computer background and has the time to develope their own program that wouldn't be a huge advantage. However, for an agent who doesn't have a computer background and/or the time to invest, YIO is an easy to use, already set up alternative.

If an agent makes one sale using YIO, their first years commission from that sale will most likely more than pay for the cost of the program. From that point forward they are using "Your Insurance Office" for "free". Selling one policy will take a lot less time than developing a program.

Many YIO users are former ACT users. They tell me that YIO already has what they need and is much easier and quicker to use.

Time is money and insurance agents don't make any money trying to either develope a program or spending hours learning how to use a complicated one. YIO is "Point and Click" with the features and functions that successful, producing agents, over the last eleven years, have told me they need to make their job easier and to make more money.

You sound very knowledgable about the other programs. Try the Demo and make the comparison for yourself. That will probably answer your questions much better than I can. The Demo is a full-working version of the program and it is Free.

I would never suggest that an agent buy any program without first fully testing it. If they can't easily work in the Demo then they should probably look for another program to purchase.

 

[Sam]

Frank,
Firstly, welcome to the forum. I don't think it is spamming if you are pitching your product in a thread that someone else started about this exact topic. It will be nice if you stick around and make contributions of knowledge even on threads that do not affect your sales.

I have a few questions:

1. With group health business, can I enter a group, and their info, and then specific information for each enrollee in the group?

2. If so, is there any limit to the number of subscribers? If I have a group of 100 employees, can I run a search for a name of one employee and pull up their info, and my notes?

3. Can I track commission for an agency and also for writing agents, showing what the total comp is for each, based on each sale?

 

[Crabcake Johnny]

I'm downloading the demo now - looks very nice.

 

[Frank Stastny]

Melmunch3
Thanks for the welcome.

In the clients database there is a Group Company field. If you sell policies to employees of Bob's Tool Co. you can create a record for each employee and put Bob's Tool Co. in the Group Company field. This will allow you to print a reord for Bob's Tool Co. showing all the employees that you have insured.

Then create a separate record with Bob's Tool Co. in the last name field in the record. In this record you can put the necessary information you need to have about the company.

There is no limit to the number of records that can be created. The guys who program for me said that once a user gets 100,000 records they may notice their computer running a tad slower. Around a million records there will be a noticeable slow down. (Wouldn't it be nice to have your computer running really slow?)

Searching for an individual employee's record is as simple as entering their last name in the Find field at the top of any record or in the Main Menu. (YIO also has a search tool and will filter/sort.)

Although YIO does have some commission tracking functions they are very basic. It isn't going to give you the information you requested.

I'm trying hard to keep YIO affordable and "point and click". We have talked about developing detailed commission tracking but as a separate module at an additional cost. However, if we ever do it would be a long way down the road. I get very few requests from agents for detailed commission tracking.

All of the data in both the client and prospect databases can be exported to any program that will accept comma separated value (CSV) format. That is an option that some agents who want more detailed information have used.