Auto Insurer Case Study Microsoft - Esurance

Esurance has been serving the public with on-line auto, homeowners, renters, health, life, and motorcycle insurance products since 1999 when many companies were still trying to figure out if the internet was important. Today, Esurance is available in 30 states, and over 90% of the U.S. population can order their products. There auto insurance rates in NYC and other large cities in the US are among the lowest.

As a leader in internet insurance marketing, Esurance continues to outpace other companies in the use of new technologies. Using the Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5, two new mobile applications for customers were recently rolled into the services it offers. These changes were implemented in just six weeks, and are based on the Microsoft Visual Studio® Team System 2008 Team Suite for the Windows Mobile 6.1 operating system

Paul Sykes, Development Manager at Esurance, asserted, “We want to be available to our customers however they want to reach us,... and [Visual Studio 2008] is the most complete development environment available.” As a result, text messaging has been added to the methods by which the company will communicate with those who have the appropriate application. Increased electronic communications also reduces the amount of paperwork generated, allowing the company to fulfill another part of its mission, to be environmentally friendly.

In addition an app called AutoWatch has been implemented, with which customers can actually see photographs on their mobile device that show the car being repaired, while still in the body shop.

“We are making good on our anywhere, anytime value proposition,” added Srinivasan. Esurance seeks to enhance customer satisfaction, thus mitigating the high cost of acquiring new customers. When customers stay with one company longer, the cost of maintaining their accounts decreases. Happy customers actually save the company money. Another money-saving feature is that allowing customers to manage their policies through on-line and mobile devices reduces the number of call-center employees needed. These savings can be passed on to customers.

As more and more people become comfortable with using mobile devices, Esurance wants to be recognized as a trusted leader in the field of customer service on such platforms. This will place them in an advantageous position to gain new customers. Esurance plans to evaluate how customers use the new tools, and to extend their functionality. Silverlight, another Microsoft product, is already being tested to provide further options.

Behind the scenes, Esurance has been taking a good look at other ways Microsoft products can help them. Updating to SQL Server data management software has prepared the company for an upgrade of its back-end environment using high-performance computing (HPC) on a Windows HPC Server 2008. Generating new actuarial tables and keeping pace with the ever-changing data of the insurance business, the HPC management capabilities are a perfect fit.

Microsoft products are at the forefront of a general industry shift to a software plus services model. Capabilities, choices, and flexibility are the three big goals the Microsoft intends to provide to their clients.