Insurance comparison websites and direct providers have threatened the business model of the traditional insurance agency, but two enterprising brokers are hoping to reclaim a seat at the table.
Nga Nguyen and Geoff Stooke have 20 years of insurance experience between them, and have watched startups and small businesses make significant purchasing mistakes from direct providers time and time again. The producer’s role as a trusted adviser is being discounted, they feel, and as a result, small businesses aren’t receiving adequate service.
To remedy that, they decided to create RiskAdviserMatch.com. An online service, the platform allows individual producers to register and create on online profile detailing their offerings, specialization and even their personality. The hope is that business owners looking for an experienced risk adviser will use the site to find a partner, thus providing qualified leads for registered brokers.
The site’s functionality also allows businesses with existing policies to compare other offerings in the event they find something better.
“We’ve done some heavy coding, put in a lot of hours and a lot of passion, and we’ve come up with something we think is really good,” Stooke told
Insurance Business. “Our algorithm is based on the industry, sector, location and industry expertise, as well as a personality component that makes our site less of a B2B service than a P2P one—people to people.”
"It's really sort of a qualified lead generator," he added.
Although Stooke and Nguyen are both located in Australia, they’ve set their sights primarily on the US market. To facilitate the site’s Feb. 14 launch, Stooke traveled to California’s Bay Area to speak with producers about his product.
The feedback? Overwhelmingly positive, he says.
“I had the good fortune to meet with several insurance brokers and talk about what we want to achieve, and there was overwhelmingly positive feedback,” Stooke said. “Brokers are really looking for a credible online presence they can embrace, and that’s what we provide.”
“It’s really exciting and I was really encouraged by my time in California,” he added.
Since its launch, RiskAdviserMatch.com has enrolled more than 100 brokers in Australia and has even added some US brokers in California and Maryland.
The service is free for interested producers as part of the site’s launch, Stooke said. The first 300 who register will receive 50 free credits—the equivalent of 50 matches with prospective clients.
Eventually, Stooke hopes he and Nguyen will be able to relocate to the United States and run a business that will bring producers into the online scene where many have struggled to find a home.
“Nga and I have been brokers ourselves and we feel we’re representing our global broker family,” he said. “We don’t want to see the commoditization of the industry take hold. Producers add so much value, and deserve to be able to cut through the noise and confusion of the online space.”
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