Tracking insurance certificates manually is easy. All you have to do is input data in a blank spreadsheet and type until your eyes bleed and calluses grow on your fingertips. Then, you simply check your work. After that, you recheck because, well, you would not want lawyers knocking on your offices’ doors tomorrow, or the next day, or next week.
Is tracking certificates of insurance a massive struggle and a source of frustration for you? If it is any comfort, you are not alone.
Back in the year 2000, businesses kept track of their important information using spreadsheets. Perhaps, they also used Word documents and stacks of paper. If you had certificates of insurance to track, you use Excel. At that time, it was considered a breakthrough of sorts, as people were so used to typewriters and index cards.
Yet, things get old, including software. The passage of time demands constant change to remain competitive. Spreadsheets like MS Excel are still quite useful, but not for COI tracking. Manually tracking COIs is a tedious and time-consuming task. Monitoring 5, or 10 COIs is still manageable, but as companies grow, they will have to track hundreds, if not thousands of certificates. It is prone to many risks and errors; a misstep can lead to a lawsuit or a huge financial loss in case of a claim. Business owners only want to focus on growing their companies. Facing legal battles should be the least of their worries.
Does this sound like you? Guess what? Me too. Therefore, I had to do something about it.
These days, tracking insurance certificates can be easier, more efficient, and secure. All you need is software.
What is a Certificate of Insurance Tracking software?
For many businesses, insurance tracking software is a better alternative to Excel spreadsheets. It does only one thing: it tracks certificates of insurance for your business. This one thing, though, makes a lot of difference in how you run your business.
Nevertheless,…here are the 3 REAL reasons why you should switch to a
COI Tracking Software
You do not have to get rid of your trusty Excel spreadsheet. It still has plenty of features that you can benefit from. Still, it no longer serves its purpose when tracking your COIs. Here are the main reasons why.
1. You can focus more on your marketing efforts
Perhaps the greatest benefit of using a COI Tracking Software is the amount of money you can save from spending on manual tracking. This will eventually affect your bottom line.
Possibly the biggest cost to you when manually tracking your COIs would be what economists call opportunity costs. These are benefits that a business misses when taking one course of action over another. The money you could have spent on things that would have boosted your sales are being spent on employees who are manually tracking your COIs.
An example could be if you make $100,000 a year. Perhaps your gross income with expenses at $80,000 a year. The net income would then be $20,000, and your profit margin would be at 20%.
Now, if you were paying an employee to do mostly COI management, then you would be paying around $36,000 a year. Would it not be nice to reduce that amount and add it to your net income? On the other hand, much better if you can use the amount saved and add it to your marketing efforts. Setting aside that amount for marketing can land you clients that can pay you $180,000 per year each! That is a big turnaround from just making $20,000 a year to around $200,000, Correct?
Moreover, what about your $36,000 employee? He or she is now freed up to do sales calls that will drive top-line growth for your business.
You may be wondering, why this emphasis on marketing? Well, marketing will drive your growth. The one activity will put your brand out there. Like it or not, accounting or clerical work will not increase your sales. Marketing to a company is like food to a person; it will sustain your business for a long time. Another way to look at it is that if you are good at something, it is your responsibility to offer it to the public. Again, it is not the job of your Accounting Department. Your marketing people will do the job for you.
2. Improved productivity
Using a COI tracking software lets you automate tasks that were previously done manually. These tasks include renewal requests, compliance reporting, reviewing, and more. Say goodbye to piles of paper that pests like rats and roaches love, and time-consuming manual follow-ups. This allows your team to do other, more tasks that are productive.
With a COI tracking software working for you, you minimize risks while allowing you to maximize revenues.
3. Happier vendors and subcontractors
Getting new clients is only half of the battle. Retaining them takes as much effort as growing them. Thus, providing positive client experience is vital to your business’ growth. If your vendors and subcontractors are happy, your business is happy. Your vendors will find using COI tracking software very simple and easy. You can send emails and links that would upload certificates online to the insured person.
This simplifies the vendor experience, reading to less frustration.
There are many reasons why you should start using COI tracking software. I hope the few examples presented have helped you see the value of COI tracking solutions.
For more information, schedule a free demonstration with a COI Tracker representative by calling us at (262) 205 0222.