Being an independent insurance agent today is vastly different from what it was a decade ago. With new technology constantly reshaping the industry, agents now have access to an incredible variety of tools designed to streamline their workflows, boost efficiency, and ultimately help them write more business. But with so many platforms out there, it can be tough to know what’s worth the investment and what’s just another login you’ll soon forget.
Here’s a breakdown of some of the core tools every agent should have in their digital toolbox—and how each one can help you grow and scale your book of business.
Agent Portals: Your Digital Command Center
An agent portal serves as your primary gateway to your carrier or broker relationship. It’s where you quote, bind, manage submissions, review underwriting feedback, track commissions, and access training resources. A good agent portal is intuitive, responsive, and seamlessly integrates with your agency management system or CRM, making your daily operations more efficient.
Here are some ideas of what to look for in an agent portal:
- Easy access to quoting and binding
- Real-time updates on applications and submissions
- Marketing and sales resources at your fingertips
- Integrated chat or support options
- Carrier or product filters to make cross-selling easier
Whether you’re writing personal lines, commercial lines, life, or excess & surplus (E&S), a solid agent portal eliminates guesswork and can save you hours every week. The one we recommend, which our affiliate agents use, is called Atlas.
Raters: Fast Quotes = More Sales
Once your foundation is set, the next tool to streamline your workflow is a rater. Time kills deals—and your quoting process can either be a bottleneck or a growth engine. That’s where raters come in. Raters allow you to submit one form and receive real-time quotes from multiple carriers. Not only does this save hours of rekeying, but it also gives your clients fast, competitive options—making it easier to close the deal.
Personal Lines Raters:
Here are some of the best personal lines (PL) raters we’ve come across:
- EZLynx – One of the industry’s most trusted PL raters, EZLynx offers real-time auto, home, renters, and umbrella quoting with integrated lead management and comparative rating.
- PL Rating by Vertafore – A powerful rater with excellent AMS integration, PL Rating is ideal for agencies that are already in the Vertafore ecosystem.
- ITC TurboRater – This rater offers quick comparative quoting for personal auto, home, and renters, and has a simple interface.
Commercial lines (CL) involve more variables, so specialized commercial raters are designed to let you enter business information once and receive quotes from multiple carriers in real time.
Commercial Lines Raters:
For commercial lines, look into the following raters:
- Tarmika by Applied Systems – A powerhouse CL rater built specifically for commercial quoting, particularly for small businesses.
- Bold Penguin – Ideal for commercial quoting with an emphasis on speed and efficiency for small commercial and E&S markets.
- Semsee – Another CL rating tool that stands out for its ease of use and solid carrier relationships.
- Talage/Compass – Designed to simplify quoting and submission for commercial lines, particularly in niche markets.
Pro tip: Use raters as an efficient way to pre-qualify clients, present comparison options, and, as a result, reduce your quoting time from hours to minutes.
Life Insurance Raters: Faster, Smarter, Paperless
Many agents shy away from life insurance because of the traditionally slow, manual process. But modern life raters change the game. With platforms like Back9, quoting term, whole, or IUL policies becomes quick and painless—even for agents who don’t specialize in life.
Back9 Insurance
Back9 is a life insurance rater that offers digital tools designed to streamline quoting, application, and case management processes.
- Provides instant quotes across multiple life carriers
- Offers digital e-Apps and built-in underwriting tools
- Includes medical pre-screens and digital health assessments
- Easily integrates into your website or sales flow for embedded quoting
This is a fantastic tool for cross-selling to existing clients or tapping into the life insurance conversation during major life changes—births, weddings, home purchases, or new businesses.
CRMs: Manage Leads, Automate Follow-Ups, and Scale
Once you’re generating quotes and issuing policies efficiently, the next step is to make sure no opportunity slips through the cracks. Your CRM (Customer Relationship Management system) is more than a digital rolodex—it’s your sales engine. The right CRM can help you automate client communications, stay on top of renewals, and never let a hot lead fall through the cracks.
Top CRMs for Independent Agents:
InsuredMine and BetterAgency are two of our most recommended CRMs for our affiliate agents:
- InsuredMine
- Designed specifically for insurance agents
- Combines sales automation, email/text marketing, renewal tracking, and reporting
- Syncs with many major AMS platforms
- Offers customizable dashboards and client engagement tools
- BetterAgency
- Built with the agent-producer in mind
- Comes with prebuilt sales and service automation workflows
- Handles lead tracking, quote follow-up, policy management, and renewal campaigns
- Easy to set up and use—even for solo agents or small teams
Bonus features: These CRMs also often include client portals, text messaging capabilities, and task reminders. They’re essentially virtual assistants that never sleep!
The Bottom Line
Independent agents thrive when they have the right tools at their fingertips. From agent portals and raters to modern CRMs, these platforms help you work smarter—not harder. You don’t have to overhaul your entire tech stack overnight. But if you’re still relying on sticky notes and spreadsheets, now is the time to test one new tool. Many of these platforms offer free trials, demos, or partner discounts—so you can explore without a long-term commitment. With the right systems in place, you’ll write more business, serve more clients, and get more of your time back.