Investors Are Poised to Disrupt the Tech-Averse Insurance Industry

Investors have set their sights on insurance tech. Ripe for disruption, this antiquated industry has a large and confusing domain known for its poor customer satisfaction and, in this age of swipes and clicks, limited technological innovation.

A much-needed leap into the 21st century could change this.

A serious shift in insurance is possible as investors examine the potential value of insurance tech, a currently weaker component of the industry. Since 2010, investors have funneled an estimated $2.12 billion toward this prospect. Of those funds, more than half rolled in during the last two years, with $556.5 million coming in 2014 and $831.5 million in 2015 — and we’re not even talking a full year here; that’s just from January to May.

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4 steps to building trust in any marketplace

Marketplaces are becoming more intimate, and this intimacy requires a certain level of trust between the buyer and the seller. No one wants to part with his hard-earned dollars if he doesn’t trust the person on the other end of the deal.

But trust doesn’t happen at first sight. And it’s even harder in Silicon Valley, where the market is saturated and businesses must stand out to build trust. The 2015 Edelman Trust Barometer signaled that trust in technology had declined, with the majority of respondents feeling that greed or profit fueled innovation — not the betterment of society.

The burden is now on the marketplace to build this trust. San Francisco-based Airbnb uses an insurance guarantee, while Santa Monica-based TrueCar built transparency and competitive pricing into its platform. These companies knew that consumers wouldn’t use their services if trust were absent.

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