TECHNOLOGY

WITH DIGITALLY RECORDED CALLSSmart, cost-effective software automatically records

all phone calls and stores them as MP3 files

90 ROUGH NOTES

By Dave Willis

A ccess Insurance Groupis not afraid oftechnology. In fact, thefirm embraces it. “We

have dual monitors for all of ourstaff,” says Jim Sklarchuk, presidentof the Edmonton, Alberta-basedbrokerage. “I’m actually thinkingabout getting a few of my peoplethree monitors.” The organizationalso uses scanning, electronicdocument management, desktop-based outgoing and incoming faxing,a third-party renewal softwareapplication and another vendor-supplied tool to drive commercialproposals and submissions.

To serve its four locations, thebroker uses a Citrix server. Its phonesare centralized, with calls goingthrough headquarters andtransferred to employees in otheroffices. Some transfers go 4,000kilometers or 2,500 miles. “We haveone employee whose husband got agreat job offer in Newfoundland,where they were from originally,”Sklarchuk explains. “We set her upwith a computer and with telephoneservice through the computer, and shelooks after the clients she had here inEdmonton from there—probably inher bunny-rabbit slippers.”

The phone system, of course, hasvoice mail. But that’s not all. “It keepstrack of voice mail as an e-mailattachment, so we can take a messagewe received and attach it directly to aclient file in our agency managementsystem,” Sklarchuk says.

Access Insurance Group is in goodcompany. “A lot of agencies are

BigsStockPhotos.com and photos.com

an automated assistant that helpsstreamline business process, explainsJohn McDonald, blueC802 chieftechnology officer. Among its keyapplications are intelligent digitalphone call recording and a recentlyintroduced module that allows cellularphone call routing and recording.

The software automaticallyrecords all calls coming into andgoing out from an agency and storesthem as MP3 files, which require arelatively small storage footprint.“The system scales down and is costeffective with as few as five or sixphones. It also works for customerswith multiple sites and hundreds ofphones,” McDonald says.

“It’s phone-system agnostic,which means it can connect to anytype of phone system and recordcalls,” he adds. “And because it onlyrequires connection to the telephonewiring in the back office, it costs less

and is easier to implement thanother solutions.”

The use of MP3-based technologyhelps make it affordable, Aderholdnotes. “What really got Blue Gooseinterested in this was that this is asolution that will work for a broadrange of agencies. Previously, thetechnology had been very expensive.”

Access Insurance Group findsseveral benefits in using blueButler,including staff training. “One employeehad been working very hard on howshe came across to customers on thephone,” explains Jennifer Donohue,personal lines manager. After anencounter with an angry customer, therep wanted to see what went wrong.“We listened to the conversation andshe was able to pick out exactly whathad upset the customer.”

Customer interaction is a two-way street, Sklarchuk adds. “I recalla client complaining about us being

“The phonesystem keeps trackof voice mail as ane-mail attachment,so we can take a

message wereceived and

attach it directly toa client file in our

agencymanagement

system.”

—Jim SklarchukPresident

Access Insurance GroupEdmonton, Alberta, Canada

MARCH 2009 91

capturing phone voice messages,” saysKeith Aderhold, president ofCharlotte, North Carolina-based BlueGoose Technology Solutions, Inc., aninsurance-focused solution providerthat works to make agencies, carriersand MGAs more cost effective andefficient. But it’s just the tip of thecall recording iceberg.

“An effective recording protocolcalls for capturing all incoming andoutgoing calls,” Aderhold emphasizes.“If you go to court and say, ‘Well, I’vegot this phone call that says this,’ butyou’re not recording all calls, how doesthe judge know there’s not another onethat says something different?”

Training and documentationThat’s where blueButler iDR can

help. The product, developed byKitchener, Ontario-based blueC802,Inc., and marketed by Blue Goose, is

rude,” he explains. “We listenedagain to the conversation and theexact opposite was true—the clientwas extremely rude.” Sklarchukbelieves he may have e-mailed theclient a copy of the conversationalthough he can’t recall whether heheard back.

“He said/she said” situations gobeyond tone. “You may have a clientcall in and say, ‘I want to replace my’95 Pontiac Sunbird with a 2001Malibu but keep the same coverage,’ ”Sklarchuk says. “Against our advice,say the client turned down collisionand fire and theft, just keeping theliability only.”

Six months later, the client reportsthe car stolen and wants the insurerto pay up, insisting he asked for theftcoverage. “We can go back and listento the recording and resolve that rightaway,” Sklarchuk notes, with apotential E&O situation averted.

Aderhold adds, “I can’t tell youhow many times we’ve talked toagents who said, ‘Gosh, I wish youcalled me last year with this product.I’m right in the middle of a lawsuitthat this could have prevented.’ ”

It’s easy to find calls. They’re time-and date-stamped. Client caller-IDinformation is in the record, along withthe CSR’s extension or phone number.

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“Plus, the CSR can attach the call tothe client record in the agencymanagement system,” Aderholdexplains. “This integration, which we’veworked hard to achieve, makes theproduct work quite well in an agency.”

Attachment can occur on the fly orafter the fact. “A CSR might have anidea that a particular call is one shewants to attach,” Aderhold says. “Allit takes is clicking an icon in the trayto link it to an activity.” It’s also easyto go back and link it later, he adds.

Blue Goose provides training onthe blueButler digital recordingtechnology and integration, althoughnot a lot is required. “You’re lookingat two or three hours worth oftraining,” Aderhold adds. “It’s easy toimplement and easy to operate.”

Audio signatures boost businessThe use of digital recording goes

beyond documenting servicetransactions and routine calls. “Westarted in the insurance market with afocus on quality control and reducingE&O exposure,” McDonald explains.“In working with other industries, likeenergy and cellular and telecom resell,where there were fewer regulations inplace, if the business wanted to switchcustomers from one supplier toanother, they were able to record thatverbal contract. We thought it could benatural for insurance, too.”

Sklarchuk had the same thought.“Jim is a leading-edge guy in themarketplace, and he saw he couldtake his business to the next level,”McDonald recalls. His interestresulted, in part, from competitiveforces. Sklarchuk explains, “InCanada, we have financial institutionsthat own insurance companies. Ofcourse, they have more resources toput into technology. They were takingtelephone-recorded applications” andactually binding coverage over thephone using audio signatures.

“In order for us to compete, we had to provide similar services,” hecontinues. The technology was inplace. All he needed was a go-ahead.“My challenge, frankly, was to go toour insurance companies and get theirauthorization to do telephone-recordedapplications.” He did just that.

He encountered the samequestion from each insurer: “Is thesuperintendent of insurance okaywith it?” So he contacted thesuperintendent, who said it was okaywith him if it the carriers were. “Ittook a year or so to get it running,”Sklarchuk recalls. “All it takes isgetting your biggest markets to goalong with it, and everyone elsefollows suit.”

Aderhold says, “We haven’t seenany pushback from carriers inCanada or the states.” That’sprobably because it can boostefficiency—in process and sales.“Often, people are shopping or justlooking around,” he adds. “Thisallows agents to say, ‘Would you liketo buy this now?’ If they agree, youcan enter into that digital audiocontract and have an audiosignature. The customer knows thatyou’ve done this and realizes he nowhas a legal, binding contract withyou. That takes him off the market.”

The two-way nature of thetransaction makes binding possible.“You can’t bind business via voicemail or e-mail because that’s one-waycommunication. You don’t have ameeting of the minds,” explainsMcDonald. “A phone call, because it’sa discussion between two people,represents a verbal contract.”

Recording security is key. Theregulator okayed recorded verbalcontracts, as long as a securerecording system was used, McDonaldnotes. “You need to be able to showthe audio file was kept secure andthat nobody tampered with it.”

Making new workflows workTo get employees engaged, Access

Insurance Group offered incentiveswhen adopting audio signatures.Every telephone-recorded applicationgenerated a bonus. “It was to helpthem get over that hump, that fear,”says Donohue. “It was somethingnew,” particularly for industryveterans who for decades wererequired to get a signed application.

Compliance scripts also representeda hurdle. “Some people looked at thescript as being a nuisance,” Donohuerecalls. Now, she says, some reps havethe script almost memorized.

Sklarchuk says younger workers—those who aren’t as engrained intradition and who grew up withnewer technologies—are somewhatmore comfortable with the workflow.That said, even those with initialreluctance are picking it up.

“A third of our new business is done by telephone-recordedapplications,” Sklarchuk explains. “Andsome 40% to 50% of that goes rightfrom the quote to the application inone call, as opposed to several back-and-forth conversations.” ■

For more information:Blue Goose Technology

Solutions, Inc.Web site: http://www.bluegoose.us/

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