February 28, 2022
Nicole Simpson’s business is built on helping clients create pathways out of poverty by providing comprehensive finance education and tools. As the president and founder of Go Fund Your Life in Columbus, Ohio, Nicole embraces technology to serve her small business clients while building relationships to help them protect their finances.
Nicole describes her business as an education and resource firm that happens to sell insurance. Go Fund Your Life helps protect the clients’ assets, including getting small business owners the insurance they need to protect their dreams.
The Challenge: Meeting Small Businesses with a Solution They Deserve
Buying small business insurance traditionally has been a slow and tedious process. It’s not uncommon to have lots of back and forth with questions, risk reviews, and information exchanged between not only the agent and client, but the agent and carrier, dragging the process out for days or even weeks.
“I previously had to go through a ton of research and paperwork with some of Coterie’s competitors trying to determine a property’s risk class and other information,” Nicole said.
With the low premium of many small business policies and the time it takes to bind coverage, small business insurance has not been a priority for agents. However, as a supporter of her community, Nicole knew she had to find a solution to protect the risks of local small business operators.
“Being in business is a risk, it’s a high-risk thing to step out and say, ‘I’m not going to clock in anywhere. I’m going to make my own rules and run my business,’” she said. “Chances are you’re going to make some mistakes, but we don’t want that to derail your plans.”
The Tools: Quote Snapshot, Broad Appetite, Fast and Easy Coverage
Nicole turned to Coterie Insurance to make writing small business insurance profitable, especially for new businesses.
“Coterie has made it very, very easy for me because of the online self-quoting process and also now the Quote Snapshot with the buy now button. It has cut down a ton on back-and-forth communications. I can get in front of more people and quote business faster,” she said.
In fact, Nicole has supercharged the small commercial segment of her book of business so much that she’s hiring two new commercial producers. Nicole said Coterie’s system is easy to use and intuitive, and she credits the Coterie dashboard with her ability to expand her business and hire new staff to specifically write on Coterie’s platform.
“Coterie has made me a better agent because I have more tools to help people,” she said. “When you’re working with start-ups, they are smaller premium, and it’s key to work efficiently and quickly.”
In addition, Coterie’s appetite includes 80 percent of the small business market, so Nicole can easily write most of the small business insurance that passes through her office. This cements her reputation as a small business advocate in her community.
Not Just Another Insurtech
Nicole is committed to serving her community. As part of that mission, she works with a unique lending program that requires nonstandard wording on certificates of insurance (COI). Customized wording on COIs was not a feature Coterie previously offered.
After Nicole explained the importance of the program in her community, Coterie agreed to add this capability per her request.
“When I went to Coterie with the news that the lender absolutely needed the language, a Coterie representative called me that day and worked through it quickly,” she said.
Designed for Agents
“I would tell agents who are not using Coterie that you better get on the ball—Coterie is the perfect hybrid for clients who want to go online and have an agent.
I’m so proud to work with Coterie because they’re a new advanced, progressive insurtech,” Nicole added. “I know I’m at the cutting edge.”
