Though attending Applied Net in person offers a much more interactive approach to the conference, the best part about it being virtual is the fact that it makes it easier to attend multiple sessions back-to-back and re-watch them to gain full understanding of the subject matter. This year, Applied Net was once again filled with fantastic sessions full of knowledgeable material to help enhance your Applied Epic experience. There were many new updates, features and capabilities being rolled out this year. Below we share some of the Epic highlights we’re most excited about and what you can expect from Epic with the recent updates that have been released:
1. Expanded Email Templates
One update that we were most excited to see was the enhanced functionality of the Email Templates. Prior to this latest release, this feature was very limited. Now you can create an email template directly from Outlook which attaches to the client file in Epic. There is also an option to add an email template with Marketing reports. You can set up these templates with your agency’s branding as well as configure templates based on certain workflows to streamline email messaging.
2. EZLynx – Applied Merger
It was announced earlier this year that Applied was acquiring EZLynx, which would bring greater automation in carrier rating and broaden marketing opportunities for agencies. This is integrated with Applied Epic, and it was announced at AppliedNet that by December, there will be 100 Carrier options. EZLynx is a popular rater especially for Personal Lines producers, so this further enhance the comparative rating experience.
3. Indio Submission Activities
Agencies using the Indio integration will now have a more seamless flow between Epic and Indio marketed submissions with the new activity update. You can now enable submissions created in Indio to be associated to Epic activities. When a submission in Indio is updated (for example: submitted, accepted, declined), you will be able to see this status on the activity screen. Viewing the status of a marketed account in Epic, and the ability to push information back and forth between the two platforms, streamlines discussion and workflows between Account Managers and Sales Personnel.
4. Applied Epic Benefits
Many exciting updates came to Applied Epic specifically for the Benefits Department. In the past, Epic was very limited to the type of Benefits-related information that you could put in an application. Now, there are Benefits-specific details in the Accounts Detail section that will then trickle down to the policy. You will also be able to enter $0 premium when reconciling Direct Bill commission statements – previously, you had to enter a non-zero amount in the premium field, which did not provide accurate reporting.
Now, the reports generated will be much more accurate as you will not have a stand-in premium in those fields. Lastly, you will be able to turn on Direct Bill Download for Benefits/Life & Health policies, which will certainly save time by reducing the need to manually input commission statements and reducing your E&O exposure. You will need to contact the carriers you want to receive downloaded commission statements from and ensure you system is set up correctly to receive them.
5. Expanded Sales Automation
Sales Automation is a built-in Epic integration and a very helpful tool for managing your sales pipeline and set your goals for the year. But not every agency is set up for a standard calendar year. Now you can configure your Epic system by selecting Fiscal or non-calendar year if that is your agency’s preference. This will allow a more accurate picture of your sales goals and provides a further tailors Epic to your agency’s needs.
The wonderful thing about Applied Epic is that it’s always evolving and finding ways to improve and expand its capabilities to fit the needs of its agency user base. Applied Net this year once more offered opportunities to grow your knowledge and learn more features and unique ways to enable Applied Epic to meet the needs of your agency. At KiteTech, we always look forward to learning new processes and best practices that we can then pass on to our clients. If you would like to learn more about our Epic Consulting Services and how we can help you get the most from your Applied Epic system, contact us at consult@kitetechgroup.com to schedule a free consultation!
Kellie Uhlhorn
Agency Consultant
