BACKGROUND:
Steven Aldrich launched Interactive Insurance, an online insurance.com portal, in July 1995. Less than 1-year later, Aldrich sold the company to Intuit, Inc for $10 million and in the summer of 2000, Aldrich transitioned from his role as general manager, QuickenInsurance, to general manager, Quicken.com (www.quicken.com). The reason Aldrich sold Quicken Insurance to Intuit was because he was having problems convincing insurance carriers to join his services. In selling the company to Intuit, which is well known and well respected brand, Aldrich would dramatically increased the company's credibility with both suppliers and customers.
1995, the US insurance market was a $270 billion dollar market. By 1996 the growth of life and auto insurance had slowed and the industry was large, inefficient and fragmented. Consumers found the decision to purchase insurance confusing and time-consuming. Insurance policy features, quality of service and cost varied among casualty insurance providers. Insurance carriers sold products through agents who received a commission for each product sold.
English: This bubble map shows the global distribu...
English: This bubble map shows the global distribu...
The headquarters of Intuit Inc. in Mountain View, ...Agents provided value to the carriers by; generating leads, educating the consumer, providing personalized customer service, collecting information and processing applications and evaluating claims. Agents provided value to the consumer by; providing a one-stop-shop for insurance needs, providing a single point of contact for selecting the right product for the right price to meet the insurer's needs, enabling a single point of data entry and storage profiles and enabling efficient processing of applications and purchases.
ANALYSIS:
The Internet was becoming an attractive alternative distribution channel for less complex insurance products including automobile, term life, homeowner, individual health and renter insurance. The insurance industry was slow to take advantage of this new business model but analysts predicted that the online insurance industry showed significant market potential. As Aldrich transitions into his new role as general manager, Quicken.com, strategies need to...