Brainshark Offers Web Marketing Tool For Less

By Mark E. Ruquet

NU Online News Service, Jan. 17, 10:52 a.m.EST?A technology marketing tool that appears to be gainingpopularity in the life insurance sector may soon be available toproperty-casualty agents sometime this year.[@@]

Brainshark Inc., of Waltham, Mass., is a Web-based market andeducation presentation tool that is being used by life insurancecarriers to send marketing materials to life brokers over theInternet in the form of presentations that supply PowerPoint slidespaired with audio material.

The system also allows for sophisticated tracking of end userproduct interest.

Irwin J. Hipsman, sales executive for the company, explainedthat unlike live Web presentations that can involve almost an hourof a producer's undivided attention, Brainshark allows marketers toproduce short product information pieces through PowerPoint.

The insurer or broker can add to the presentation with avoiceover through a phone call after loading the PowerPointpresentation to the Brainshark site.

These presentations, that can run up to 10 minutes, allowmarketing representatives to deliver their presentations tointerested parties utilizing conventional Web technology and mediaplayers.

With an e-mail to the broker, marketing representatives canalert them to the presentation. Brokers can then look at thepresentation whenever they wish, anywhere they have a link to theInternet. He or she can then pass the presentation on to others fortheir viewing.

The broker who is passing the presentation onto other producers,if they desire to, can personalize the opening introduction to thematerial, Mr. Hipsman said.

Carriers also get immediate feedback on product interest withtracking reports that can tell them how many producers viewed thepresentation and for how long. In some cases, carriers can alsoknow who viewed the presentation, allowing marketing people to makefollow-up calls to producers who fill out attached requests forinformation.

For carrier clients, the service runs $15,000 for a one-yearlicense and an additional cost for viewing blocks. Most carriers,he said, purchase 25,000 viewing blocks, which can run anywherefrom 50 cents to $1.50 per individual view. He noted that mostviewing is done within the first five-to-seven days of release.

"An insurer will know quickly if anyone is paying attention totheir product," noted Mr. Hipsman.

The technology is designed for those who are not technologysavvy. After creating the PowerPoint presentation, downloading it,and picking up the phone to Brainshark and leaving the voiceover,the rest is delivered by Brainshark.

The company has come up with a less costly version that brokerscan use for their internal marketing that runs around $5,000.

The five-year-old company has been busy establishing itself inthe life field, but Mr. Hipsman said the company hopes to beginoffering its product to the p-c sector some time this year.

He added that its product is not reserved exclusively for thelife business. It is offered to other businesses already, such aspublishing, and is open to inquiries. The company also offerstraining and consulting services.

Additional information is available at www.brainshark.com.