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Topic: Quoting

Webinar: The Future of Group Benefits Quoting

Posted on by Ideon

How are quoting platforms transforming the ancillary and voluntary benefits space?

Carriers and brokers are rapidly evolving their engagement—and third-party quoting platforms are at the heart of this shift. Join this webinar as experts from Guardian, Acrisure, and Ideon explore how these platforms are shaping the future of group benefits quoting.

🗓 Date: Tuesday, Oct. 22
🕒 Time: 1:00 PM ET
👉 Register here.

What you’ll learn:

  • The rise of quoting platforms and their role in benefits distribution
  • How carriers are partnering with platforms to reach more brokers
  • Key opportunities in the small group market
  • Success stories and trends
  • How APIs and automation are streamlining group benefits quoting

How carriers use quoting platforms to boost ancillary benefits sales

Posted on by Ideon

Summary

Market-leading ancillary and voluntary benefits carriers are leveraging digital quoting platforms to increase sales and expand their reach. These platforms simplify the quoting process for brokers, particularly in the small group market, and connect carriers to new opportunities, By integrating with these platforms, carriers are ensuring their products get more visibility and fostering stronger broker relationships.

A growing number of carriers selling ancillary products for employee benefits are overcoming initial concerns about third-party quoting platforms, embracing them and discovering a significant source of incremental sales. 

In the earliest days of these platforms — which enable brokers to gather quotes from multiple carriers — some insurers were concerned that their products would be reduced to a line on a spreadsheet. They wanted brokers to continue to get quotes from their reps or their websites, allowing them to build a relationship with agents and highlight the unique benefits of their products.  

Brokers, though, resisted the time-consuming process of gathering multiple quotes one at a time. Many had already used quoting platforms in personal and commercial lines and wanted the same convenience when pitching benefits plans. The platforms make preparing a client proposal much faster, and typically integrate quite well with agency management systems.  

Although brokers initially used the benefits quoting platforms to manage the complexity of group health policies, many appreciated how the platforms also streamlined quoting for ancillary products. They could find the right plans and add them to a proposal in a few clicks. 

The result: Carriers that chose to work with the quoting platforms discovered that they’re generating incremental sales. Rather than undercutting their existing relationships, the platforms connected carriers to brokers they had never worked with before.  

Success stories: Carriers are thriving by partnering with quoting platforms 

Principal Financial Group, for example, began distributing through quoting platforms as part of a strategy to convince brokers to add its ancillary products to group medical proposals. “A lot of brokers are finding their medical compensation is getting squished, so we can make it easy for them to add more lines of coverage,” said Eric Weiford, a senior relationship manager at Principal, in an Ideon webinar.  

“Platforms are not the enemy,” he added. “They get more eyes on our products from people who don’t know us today but will in the future.” 

The advantage is particularly powerful in the small group market, where the efficiency of quoting through platforms radically improves the economics for both brokers and carriers. 

“Efficiency is king, especially with small groups,” Elek Pew, Head of Digital Partnerships at Beam Benefits, told Ideon. “We pride ourselves on meeting distributors where they are. If they use a third-party system to quote business, we’ll find a way to integrate with that platform.” 

Beam’s modern, digitally-native systems and APIs allow it to generate custom quotes for any size group, even when it is connecting to brokers through a third-party platform. 

“There’s a huge opportunity to deliver real-time, custom underwritten rates to small groups, especially through quoting platforms,” said Hannah Thompson, a Beam senior solutions architecture manager, in the webinar. “We can provide really sharp rates that only large groups could benefit from in the past.” 

Exploring the quoting platform landscape 

More quoting platforms are entering the market each year, bringing a range of tools designed to enhance the quoting process for brokers and carriers alike. Some of the existing platforms in this space include: 

Additionally, some brokerages, such as Word & Brown, have developed their own proprietary platforms to further streamline the quoting process. 

Getting started: Integrating with quoting platforms  

Before carriers start working with benefit quoting platforms, they must decide how they will distribute their product details and rates. Those with up-to-date systems can connect in real time over an API. Carriers can also send their rates to the platforms in spreadsheets or other formats. Some have found that juggling communication with multiple platforms and keeping rates up-to-date can get cumbersome. 

A more efficient alternative? Carriers can work with data solutions companies like Ideon. A carrier simply provides its rates — in whatever format is convenient — and Ideon will distribute them to dozens of platforms over its proprietary API connections, providing brokers with a seamless quoting experience. Whenever carriers upgrade their systems to support quoting over APIs, Ideon can facilitate two-way communication to enable customized, underwritten quoting and other advanced services. 

Even for technologically advanced carriers like Beam, working with Ideon to get its products on quoting platforms provides the broadest possible distribution. “We’ll connect to third-party platforms directly if that’s their preferred method,” Thompson explained. “Some will say, ‘We want to connect through Ideon,’ and we’re more than happy to make that happen. 

“It makes our jobs a lot easier knowing we have a trusted player in the middle.”

Expand your reach to today’s leading quoting platforms, without any technical development. Carriers can reach out to Ideon here to get started.

Myths vs. Reality: Why Benefits Carriers Partner with Quoting Platforms

Posted on by Ideon

Over the past few years, leading ancillary and voluntary carriers have increasingly partnered with third-party quoting platforms. These platforms, favored by benefits brokers, allow for the quoting of plans from multiple carriers and streamline the proposal process. For brokers, it’s a way to save time, get more efficient, and offer more benefits options to their employer clients.

In this rapidly evolving landscape, it’s crucial to separate fact from fiction when it comes to partnering with third-party quoting platforms. Here, we debunk some common myths and present the realities of why carriers should embrace these platforms for a more efficient and expansive distribution strategy.

Myth 1: Working with Platforms Means Being “Spreadsheeted”

Reality: While carriers fear their plans will be reduced to a mere price comparison, the reality is that brokers already use spreadsheets to compare plans. By partnering with third-party platforms, carriers can ensure their value propositions are highlighted alongside their pricing. These platforms often have advanced features that showcase the unique benefits and differentiators of each plan, beyond just the cost. And besides, you can’t win if you’re not in the game – quoting platforms, at worst, are a way to get more visibility for your plans.

Myth 2: It’s Technically Challenging and Time-Consuming to Partner with Platforms

Reality: Integrating with third-party platforms might seem daunting, but solutions like Ideon make the process straightforward. Carriers get connected with multiple platforms through just one integration, and in many cases there’s zero technical work for the carrier. This not only saves time but also reduces the complexity and cost associated with building individual connections to each platform. Getting started with platforms isn’t nearly as challenging as carriers expect.

Myth 3: Brokers Would Rather Work Directly with Carriers

Reality: Brokers prefer the efficiency and convenience of using third-party platforms for quoting multiple carriers at once. These platforms provide a one-stop-shop experience that simplifies the quoting, comparison, proposal, and selection process. By being present on these platforms, carriers can meet brokers where they work and facilitate easier access to their products, increasing the likelihood of being included in proposals. Ultimately, it means greater opportunity for more sales.

Myth 4: Third-Party Platforms Decrease Control Over the Quoting Process

Reality: Carriers can maintain control and visibility over the quoting process even when using third-party platforms. Many platforms provide insights into who is quoting their products and allow carriers to receive detailed data back from the platform, including sold-case information. This transparency ensures carriers are not left in the dark and can continue to manage their business effectively.

Myth 5: Carriers Need Direct API Connections to Platforms for Fully Customized, Underwritten Quoting Experience.

Reality: Carriers often think that direct API connections to each platform are necessary to offer customized, underwritten quotes. However, Ideon enables carriers to provide fully customized, underwritten quoting experiences across multiple platforms without requiring individual integrations. As Hannah Thompson from Beam Benefits highlighted, API integrations allow carriers to “ingest census data, which means we can provide custom, underwritten, real-time bindable rates to these platforms.” Ideon facilitates this process through a single connection, accelerating time-to-market and ensuring a scalable and efficient way to meet the demands of brokers and employers.

Why leading carriers partner with quoting platforms

The ancillary benefits market is evolving, with third-party quoting platforms becoming integral to the distribution strategy. Brokers are increasingly relying on these platforms to quickly and efficiently quote plans from multiple carriers. As this trend continues, it’s crucial for forward-thinking carriers to engage with the platform ecosystem to stay competitive.

Partnering with these platforms offers several advantages:

  • Broader Reach: Carriers can expand their distribution network and reach more brokers and employers.
  • Increased Efficiency: The digital quoting process is faster and more efficient than traditional methods.
  • Enhanced Customization: For highly advanced carriers that are exploring quoting APIs — some even with custom underwriting functionality – quoting platforms provide a channel to get these modern capabilities into the market. Brokers appreciate the ease of use and comprehensive quoting capabilities, leading to stronger relationships.

Getting Started

The best carriers are already working with third-party platforms and optimizing their workflows to enable efficient quoting. Brokers want it, the ecosystem is growing, and the results speak for themselves.

Something to keep in mind: Platforms are eager for more carrier partnerships without the need for direct integrations. Ideon is a powerful option to facilitate these partnerships.

Carriers, through Ideon, can work with numerous platforms and maintain visibility into their quoting activity. And in many cases, carriers are even receiving sold-case information back from Ideon, creating a seamless experience from quote to proposal to sold case to enrollment.

The bottom line: There’s a fast, easy way for carriers to make this shift, ensuring they remain competitive in an evolving market. Embrace the transformation and join the growing number of carriers benefiting from third-party quoting platforms.

Expand your reach to today’s leading quoting platforms, without any technical development. Carriers can reach out to Ideon here to get started.

Ideon Insights: Guardian’s Josh Weaver on APIs and digital partnerships

Posted on by Ideon

Welcome to Episode 3 of Ideon Insights, our monthly interview series featuring thought leaders and innovators driving the benefits industry forward. In this episode, we sat down with Josh Weaver, Head of Digital Ecosystem & Partner Management at Guardian Life, a leading provider of life, disability, dental, and vision insurance and other group benefits.

In this Q&A, Josh explains how Guardian leverages technology to enhance the benefits experience, their focus on API connectivity and strategic tech partner selection, and their collaboration with middleware solutions like Ideon. He also dives into Guardian’s real-time quoting capabilities, winning business in today’s small group market, and more.

Watch the full episode of Ideon Insights here. Below we’ve highlighted five key moments from the conversation.

IDEON: How do you evaluate and choose benefits technology partners?

JOSH WEAVER: To me, it all starts with value. Guardian is really focused on the overall well-being of our plan holders. So really, the first piece is, you want partners that are focused on the same thing. Are these partners focused on really improving the experience for our plan holders? Number two, we think about the entire lifecycle of a member, and really how do we, through connectivity, engage with these partners—API preferred—to create a better experience than Guardian could provide alone.

 

Do you select partners based on their connectivity capabilities?

If you’re not an API-enabled partner, there has to be a very unique value prop you’re bringing to market for us to want to partner with you in a commercial or a more strategic manner. If I fast forward five, six, seven years from now, I think you’re going to see API connectivity is replacing EDI.

So really, if you’re not on a modern technology stack, then you’re not necessarily the companies that we’re looking to partner with moving forward. 

 

​​Does connectivity impact which carrier a group chooses?

Benefits are still an extremely important part of the conversation. But it’s also around, as an employer, how does working with Guardian make my life easier? Do they work with my benefit administration platform? Do they offer online EOI or EOI API?

You’re seeing plan holders and brokers, when they’re recommending carriers to clients, they’re looking at not just what benefit package makes the most sense, but really what’s going to fit all of their needs. You’re seeing the technology, and that ecosystem-partnership piece, being just as important as the benefits conversation. If you have a subpar value prop with a platform, oftentimes the broker is not even going to recommend you or even look to quote you.

 

How does Ideon fit into Guardian’s digital strategy?

Guardian has the ability, through Ideon, to connect with multiple platforms that, for us to connect with each one of these individually, it’d be such a massive investment and endeavor. Working through Ideon allows us to get with more platforms faster.

As a carrier, there are only so many API connections you can build. So, the middleware allows us to access a greater number of platforms, which ultimately empowers the employer to be able to pick a broader set of platforms that are going to work well with Guardian. From our perspective, engaging with middleware really is about reaching more clients in the ecosystem they choose.

Just through the lens of BenAdmin and enrollment, the more connectivity you have, the better. There may be a reason that an employer chose a platform that Guardian is not integrated directly with. That’s fine. And that’s where the middleware allows us to really have that connectivity and expand our portfolio.

 

What digital solutions has Guardian implemented in the small group space?

I think an area that we’re really starting to push into—and push forward with Ideon—is really around real-time quoting capabilities. For us, if we think about the small group segment, a lot of brokers and group general agencies want to be empowered to self-quote, they want to be able to do it on their own time, on their platform.

And so really, utilizing that real-time quoting technology is an area that we are continuing to focus on. We feel like to create that shop through purchase through implemented-with-Guardian experience, where it’s a one-touch sales process, quoting technology is important. It can be a differentiator in the market.

 

Stay tuned for new episodes of Ideon Insights each month. Subscribe to our newsletter below to stay in-the-know about Ideon and receive our latest content directly to your inbox.

Five takeaways: Ancillary quoting and the rise of 3rd-party platforms

Posted on by Ideon

Third-party platforms are modernizing how brokers quote voluntary and ancillary benefits, providing an intuitive digital experience to instantly quote and select multiple carriers and lines of coverage.

Sounds amazing, right? Some carriers have embraced this transformation, partnering with tech platforms to ensure their products are distributed to brokers via today’s growing digital ecosystem. But for others, there’s been hesitancy to adopt a 3rd-party strategy.

What factors are leading to these varied outlooks and strategies?

Ideon, an API company that connects carriers and platforms in an easy and scalable way, recently hosted a webinar where a panel of experts explored the evolution of ancillary benefits quoting, the value of 3rd-party partnerships, the digital demands of today’s brokers, and more.

In this blog, we highlight five key takeaways from the event, which featured:
–   Jeremy McLendon — Sr. Vice President at MyHealthily
–   Hannah Thompson — Sr. Manager of Solution Architecture at Beam Benefits
–   Eric Weiford –– Sr. Relationship Manager at Principal Financial Group

A full recording of the webinar is available for download, here.

1. The fear of spreadsheeting is overblown.

One prevalent reluctance among carriers, as they consider offering their products through 3rd-party platforms: Won’t this just lead to my plans being spreadsheeted?

All three panelists agreed — spreadsheeting is happening regardless, and carriers may as well empower it through distribution and great digital experiences.

“Distribution means some change in tradition,” McLendon said. “You’re probably going to be spreadsheeted as it is. So why not win and do it a little faster?”

Beam approaches spreadsheeting from a similar perspective, Thompson said. “Cool, put us on the spreadsheet, especially if that broker is getting a quote through a digital platform where we’re API-connected. Spreadsheeting is unavailable, but the shift over to API quoting is making it a lot more advantageous to carriers like Beam.”

“If brokers and general agents aren’t doing that, they are going to lose that business at some point anyway,” Weiford added. “From a broker’s due diligence, they have to spreadsheet every now and then.”

2. API-powered, fully-underwritten quoting is the new frontier.

APIs allow carriers and platforms to communicate and exchange information in real time. The technology is becoming favored for a range of benefits-related tasks, including enrollment, EOI decisions, claims, and more.

Recently, APIs have made their way to the ancillary quoting space, allowing users of platforms like MyHealthily to generate instant, underwritten quotes based on group-specific criteria. The platform submits group information via a carrier API, and the carrier’s algorithm spits out underwritten quotes, all within seconds.

“We have prioritized platforms that can connect to our APIs,” Thompson said. “Through API quoting integrations, we can ingest census data, which means we can provide custom, underwritten, real-time bindable rates to these platforms.”

3. There’s untapped potential in the small group market.

Digital quoting solutions were historically available only in the large group space, but according to Thompson, that’s beginning to change.

“That ability to deliver real-time, custom, underwritten rates through an API connection—or even via Beam’s own tools for small groups—it’s huge, it’s an underserved market,” Thompson said. “The ability to provide really sharp rates to small groups, in a way that the large group space has benefited from in the past, is a unique opportunity for our industry.”

Like Beam, Principal has designed its digital strategy to win business down market and bring modern technology to small businesses.

“Our bread and butter is in the small group space,” Weiford said. “We’re constantly having conversations with the intermediaries who are adopting these platforms, looking at what is and isn’t working, so we can be agile in trying to make things work for them and for Principal.”

4. Getting started requires gaining organizational alignment.

Custom underwriting is seen by many carrier reps as a differentiator. So, internally, how do carrier executives get buy-in and explain the value of 3rd-party quoting?

“Distribution via 3rd-party platforms is only going to get more eyeballs to your products,” Thompson said. “And that hopefully means more RFP conversions for your team. The way we position it internally, is if a broker is going to go through a platform, we will still associate a rep to those opportunities. Oftentimes, there’s still consultation that needs to happen, from the rep to the broker, to ensure the broker is positioning the product appropriately. We still plug our reps into that flow.”

Carriers, Weiford explained, can alleviate concerns among their reps by including them in conversations about third-party quoting, explaining that it will lead to more opportunities, and showing them detailed reporting. But, it might take time for total organizational buy-in.

“Adoption isn’t always there at first,” Weiford said. “When reps start seeing that they can get additional swings, then it starts getting a little bit more palpable. And then you start showing them reports, ‘hey, here’s 100 new opportunities, go win that business by working with the broker.’ Platforms are not the enemy—you’re working alongside them.”

5. The right strategy and partnerships can mitigate scalability concerns.

For third-party platforms that have ancillary quoting functionality, scaling up can be challenging. Platforms want to offer brokers lots of carriers and products, but doing so requires partnership discussions, relationship management, and technical integrations.

“We tend to be carrier-agnostic, as we want to offer a large marketplace to our brokers,” McLendon said. “But constantly vetting and integrating with carriers can take time away from our development team. We look for the carriers that are willing to adopt early — from our experience, those are the opportunities where we can grow together.”

Ideon, McLendon explained, has helped MyHealthily solve the scalability problem.

“Working with partners like Ideon, a middleware so to speak, is nice because it allows us to integrate with more carriers more quickly. That way we can take on other projects.”

For carriers, the value of working with Ideon is similar. It enables them to integrate with numerous downstream quoting platforms without building direct integrations to each system.

To watch the full webinar recording, click here. To learn more about how Ideon helps carriers and platforms grow in the ancillary quoting space, contact us and we’ll be in touch.

Ideon Insights: Beam’s Elek Pew talks distribution strategy as a tech-focused carrier

Posted on by Ideon

Welcome to the second episode of Ideon Insights, our monthly interview series featuring thought leaders and innovators driving the benefits industry forward. In this episode, we had the pleasure of speaking with Elek Pew, Head of Digital Partnerships at Beam Benefits, an ancillary benefits provider known for its innovation and digital-first approach.

In this Q&A, Elek provides insights into the evolution of the benefits technology ecosystem and the unique advantages that come with being a digitally native carrier. He also delves into how Ideon complements and enhances Beam’s digital distribution strategy, enabling seamless integration and collaboration within the industry.

For Elek’s complete thoughts on digital distribution, partnership strategy, and more, watch the video here.

Below we’ve highlighted six key moments from the conversation.

 

IDEON: How has the transformation of benefits technology informed your distribution strategy?

ELEK PEW: Technology is really at the forefront of everything today. Efficiency is king, especially in the small group market. We see that brokers care most about being really quick and efficient, so we pride ourselves on meeting those distributors where they are — whether that’s XYZ quoting or enrollment platform, or Beam’s own digital tools.

If they use a third-party system to quote business, we’ll find a way to integrate with that platform whether it’s through Ideon or directly. We’ll meet them where they are.

 

The benefits ecosystem is getting more complex. How do you choose the right partners?

There are a few things we think about when it comes to partnership strategy.

    • Do we potentially have access into a limited marketplace, where Beam is one of three or four benefits providers? 
    • What does the partner’s technology stack look like in terms of their ability to integrate? If a new partner comes to us and says, “we’re already integrated to Ideon” — that’s great for us. We know there’s not a ton of work to activate that new partner, compared to a net-new direct connection.
    • How do they think about API connectivity? Are we living in a file-based world? We’ll meet people where they are, but that’s definitely something we think about.
    • Are they willing to offer all of our product lines? Beam was historically a dental-first company, but now we’re focused on Beam as an ancillary benefits provider.

 

How does Ideon fit into your distribution strategy?

We definitely see the value in the partnership with Ideon from a middleware standpoint. As Beam has transitioned from Beam Dental to Beam Benefits — bringing on voluntary life, accident, hospital, and critical illness — our ability to turn those products on through one connection to multiple players in the ecosystem is game-changing. It’s a powerful thing that we want to continue to invest in.

We’ll connect to third-party platforms directly if that’s their preferred method, but we’ll meet folks where they are. Some will say, “we want to connect through Ideon,” and we’re more than happy to make that happen. It makes our jobs a lot easier knowing we have a trusted player in the middle, ensuring that our data is presented accurately and the data Beam gets back is in top fashion.

 

What are the advantages of being a newer, tech-focused benefits carrier?

Beam is well positioned in the market because, at our core, we’re a digitally native company. The idea of exposing our core functionality—enrollment, admin, quoting, etc.— and embedding our products into the benefits ecosystem really is inherent in how Beam has built core capabilities.

We’re able to go to market really quickly with new platform integrations because we’ve built our systems with the concept of exposability in mind. Now that the market is moving to third-party platforms, we’re well positioned to be able to connect and meet distributors where they are in the marketplace.

 

Why are rating APIs valuable for Beam and brokers?

Without a rating API, rates could only change once per quarter and it didn’t allow for customization — rates were prepackaged.

With a rating API like the one we’re building with Ideon, we’re able to take in real-time census information and generate a rate based on that specific employee population. We’re able to arrive at much sharper rates because we have more information about the group. It also enables our back office operations to be more efficient because we receive information about the group from that initial employee census.

With an API, we know it will only return rates and plans where Beam will 100% be able to offer the plan — rates are always bindable.

 

What’s a benefits technology trend you’re excited about over the next few years?

Instantaneous policy issuance — Beam is moving there, and I think the benefits industry overall will move that way, following in the footsteps of the P&C space. The group installation process is still painfully manual today.

The industry has made a lot of progress in terms of carriers accepting enrollment information from platforms and loading it into carrier systems, and we’re seeing instantaneous quoting making its way to the market with rating APIs. The next step is to bridge the gap between the two — take a quoted product, win it, turn it into a bindable policy, then have it ready for employees to enroll in coverage. That experience — quote to bind to enroll — we’re now seeing the foundation that will allow us to get there.

Stay tuned for new episodes of Ideon Insights each month. Subscribe to our newsletter below to stay in-the-know about Ideon and receive our latest content directly to your inbox.

Meet Brix — Now part of the Ideon ecosystem

Posted on by Ideon

At Ideon, we’re regularly expanding our network of carriers and technology platforms, from industry leaders with 100+ years of history to startups at the forefront of health and benefits innovation. We’re proud to introduce a new addition to the Ideon ecosystem: Brix, a group life insurance carrier offering affordable plans to small businesses.

In this video, John Flueckiger, Brix’s founder and CEO, shares the origin story of Brix, insights on their digital strategy, and how working with Ideon enables third-party platforms to quote Brix’s plans.

Here are three key takeaways from the video:

  • Brix offers an easy and inexpensive way for small businesses to provide life insurance coverage to their employees.
  • Through partnerships with other insurance providers, Brix offers employees the opportunity to enroll in additional life insurance coverage tailored to their individual needs.
  • Brix leverages technology and agile distribution to provide a seamless digital process for brokers and employers. And, by leveraging Ideon, Brix gains representation on some of the leading third-party quoting platforms for group benefits brokers.

To learn more about Brix, check out the video and visit Brix.co. Platforms interested in quoting Brix products via Ideon’s API can contact us, here.