ICI SUMS UP DIGITAL PAYMENTS IN ONE WORD : SIMPLICITY
Client Profile : ICI Insurance for KAIA Based on an interview with Megan McNary , Director of Finance
ICI Insurance has been serving Kansas families and businesses ( under various names ) since 1885 . Licensed in 48 states , ICI has 48 employees in six locations . The agency ’ s business is 68 percent commercial and 25 percent personal . Life , benefits , and a workplace safety program comprise the balance .
The agency started accepting digital payments in May 2019 . Megan explains : “ We wanted to offer clients ease and convenience . We didn ’ t have a lot of folks asking for it , but it was hard having to say , ‘ Sorry , we don ’ t accept credit cards .’”
How ICI selected PayPolicy Megan set out to find a payment portal that ’ s easy to use and integrates with their management system . ICI uses Applied Epic , and Megan got to know prospective vendors through Applied Net conferences . ICI interviewed a few others , but ePayPolicy blew the competition away — with its simplicity . “ Anyone can use ePayPolicy , whether you ’ re tech-savvy or not ,” Megan says .
Client adoption of ePayPolicy ICI has two payment-related goals : 1 ) to get more direct bill clients and 2 ) convert more agency bill clients to digital payment . Digital payers are still a minority at ICI . Most choose ACH over credit card payment , “ likely because it ’ s $ 3 per transaction vs . 3.25 percent .”
Favorite feature “ I can ’ t pick just one favorite ,” Megan laughs . “ I like so many things about ePayPolicy !”
She says clients find it incredibly user-friendly . “ We have the ‘ pay online ’ button on our website . There ’ s a direct link from invoice straight to payment .”
Megan ’ s finance team also likes the simplicity and the friendly and knowledgeable customer service . “ We haven ’ t had many challenges , but you always have questions with a new vendor . We ’ ve always received a response from ePayPolicy the same day .”
ePayPolicy benefits “ Technology is evolving . Offering payment convenience through technology is crucial to growing the agency ,” says Megan .
For her team , digital payments are more efficient than checks . She explains , “ When a check comes in , it has to go through so many hands in our agency . Checks require a lot of extra steps and work .”
With ePayPolicy , it ’ s “ great to just be notified when a transaction has gone through .”
On the horizon at ICI Megan is excited about the new ICI Connect app , rolling out soon . The app will be a link between ICI clients , ePayPolicy , and Epic . “ Everyone uses apps , right ?” She reasons that as clients use the app , they ’ ll happily use it to pay their invoices .
Of course , there will always be clients who want to mail or drop by with a check . ICI will always take checks . Meanwhile , Megan expects to see more ACH and credit card payments once ICI Connect is up and running .
Advice to other agencies If you ’ re skeptical about offering digital payments , “ I would challenge you to schedule a demo or talk to someone who ’ s using ePayPolicy — including me .”
" ePayPolicy makes less work for clients and for us ." — Megan McNary .
19