Better Case Study

About the company

Meeting all homeownership needs

Better is a family of companies serving all homeownership needs. Better believes that homeownership should be fast and transparent for everyone and they are redefining the homeownership process from the ground up. From mortgage rates to home repair estimates, Better provides customers with a one-stop online shop to meet the needs of all aspects of homeownership.

“Our company is exceptional at finding customers that are looking for a mortgage or to refinance and then supporting the adjacent businesses that they naturally need as part of that process,” says Nick Taylor, Head of Better Real Estate.

Better is an industry leader for servicing mortgages. We are a nationally ranked, top rated mortgage company, a top 50 lender in the US, and we are the number one fully digital lender.

Nick Taylor

Head of Better Real Estate

the problem

Unlocking a customer need

Better customers use the platform to purchase homes, refinance their mortgages, or secure a home equity loan, and all three of those processes require proof of homeowners insurance.

That meant that customers who were actively on the Better platform had to go elsewhere to purchase homeowners insurance and then return to Better to provide proof of insurance. Better recognized this experience gap and wanted a way to provide its customers with access to homeowners insurance that is both affordable and accessible in their moment of need.

About four years ago, Better embarked on a path of creating an insurance agency within Better that could provide a more traditional route to enable the insurance sales transaction. Better worked with other insurtechs to incorporate homeowners insurance policies into the platform, but the process remained fragmented for the consumer and forced them away from the branded Better journey.

Better realized it needed a partner that could build a truly distinct digital insurance experience unlike anything that was available on the market. They were looking to embed a fully digital homeowners insurance program with a partner who could provide flexibility and customization in order to offer customers a consistent, branded experience within the Better platform.

“Our ultimate goal for Better Insurance is to make the process of purchasing home insurance better, faster, and easier than anybody has ever done before,” says James Parks, Senior Manager of Better Cover.

the solution

Building a roadmap to autonomy with Sure

To get its new embedded homeowners insurance program off the ground, Better asked: Should we build, buy, or partner? Building is too hard and expensive. Buying is too hard because nobody has a solution that provides the right fit. Partnering was the right way to go.

So Better selected Sure as its strategic partner to launch its new embedded homeowners insurance experience.

In Sure, Better found the ideal partner that offered the only one-stop-shop to meet all their needs delivered through its distribution technology as well as the carriers already on its network with insurance products at the ready.

That’s when Sure added the third leg of the partnership stool to bring Sure’s longtime insurance partner Toggle®, a member of the Farmers Insurance® family, into the fold, who had a homeowners insurance product connected to Sure’s insurance infrastructure network.

“When we started Better Cover, we had insurance agents who engaged with the borrower. We kept getting feedback from our customers that they wanted an autonomous experience. They didn’t want to mull over options or speak to agents, they really just wanted to get the process done in five to ten minutes,” Nick shares.

“It was then we realized that we weren’t suited for those types of customers yet. That is how the relationship with Sure, and then later Toggle®, all started. It was then we asked ourselves ‘Can we meet this customer need for a more self-service experience?’”

This is a partnership that strategically and thoughtfully caters to where the Better customers are at today and where they will be tomorrow. “The product and the ongoing development is a dynamic process. We can’t view this through one lens and consider it finite,” James says. “Things change and insurance changes, even state to state. Over time, we plan to iterate. There are a lot of things that we can implement and a lot of ideas that we’ve spoken about with Sure and Toggle® that can happen.”

Better Insurance

Better Insurance was transformed from a disjointed insurance sale to an embedded insurance experience that lives within the Better platform. With Better’s customer base and platform combined with Sure’s technology and distribution expertise, the partnership creates an embedded insurance experience that is leading the next wave of digital insurance innovation. Sure manages the end-to-end process and APIs that enable Better to seamlessly integrate its cutting-edge embedded insurance infrastructure technology into Better Insurance, while Toggle® provides the underwriting and insurance expertise surrounding the insurance product and claims.

About 35% of borrowers are first time homebuyers.

In most insurance purchase instances, there is a forced interaction with an agent to get a complete understanding and picture of the customer’s needs. The latest release of Better Insurance provides a more autonomous process for those customers who are looking for it. “About 35% of borrowers are first time homebuyers. During the mortgage process, we prompt the borrower to let them know that they need to pick a home insurance option. A number of customers prefer our recommendations because they are first-time borrowers,” Nick shares.

However, the economy is constantly changing. Even just a couple of years ago, mortgage rates were lower and people were eager to get the rates locked in quickly. People were not as price sensitive as they currently are. Consumers are much more cautious with how they’re spending their money and Better is making sure to accommodate those customers using Sure’s omni-channel customer capabilities.

Deploying Quote Assist™

Milestone transactions that occur once every 10-15 years, like buying a home, means that the customer doesn’t have a lot of experience, which can mean a lack of trust in their own knowledge and decision making. A few months after launching Better Insurance, Better customers gave feedback that there is actually a need for a little bit of hand holding. “While people want a more autonomous process, they benefit from that coach to help walk them through the options,” Nick says. To that end, Sure had an off-the-shelf option from its stable of industry-leading solutions that enable the offline to online transition to happen seamlessly for both the customer and the insurance product being offered.

Sure offers the best of both worlds – full autonomy for the consumer or a hybrid of digital blended with physical through its proprietary technology Quote Assist™.

Quote Assist™ was born from the idea that while there’s no stopping the march towards fully digital insurance experiences, sometimes a little human touch is still helpful.

Quote Assist™ solves for this by empowering agents to quickly and easily facilitate quote generations that are sent directly to consumers, allowing them the opportunity to interact with agents while still managing their own digital transaction.

“There is a segment of people who, when the timing is right, want zero interaction or limited interaction with an agent. That is why we went the original route and set it up for autonomy,” James says. “But now, using Quote Assist™, we can also offer the ability to have engagement with these clients to help facilitate their insurance needs. Sure is enabling us provide the best of both worlds.”

Thanks to Sure, Quote Assist™ empowers the Better team to engage with the customer, help generate a quote for them, and also see that quote. This iteration offers transparency and visibility between the customer and the Better agent. Better works with about two dozen carriers and has the ability to do quoting with them. With Quote Assist™, they can actively engage with clients and properly advise them in their moment of need.

the outcome

White label innovation, enhanced user experience, and growing partnerships

Better consistently works towards the best products for their customers and Sure is helping to achieve this.

“We are committed to being a one stop shop for a mortgage borrower and it is advantageous to offer optionality to customers when they’re looking at home insurance,” Nick says. “If the best option for customers is Better Insurance through the partnership with Sure and Toggle®, we are making sure that more customers are getting visibility in order to consider it strongly.” Better enables a lifetime value proposition for customers.

The three-way strategic partnership between Better, Sure, and Toggle® are dependent upon aligning on customer needs and communication.

We prioritize communication and being thoughtful in how we approach things … open communication lines have been fantastic on Sure’s end. I can’t even stress that enough. The team is so open and willing to hop on a call when we need it.

James Parks

Senior Manager of Better Cover

With Sure, Better retains control over their customer experience and has created a revenue stream for the business that previously did not exist.

“Our ultimate goal for Better Insurance is to make the process of purchasing a home insurance policy better, faster, and easier than anybody has ever done before and I think we’re on the right path to that,” James says. “What we offer from a systems standpoint for client-facing infrastructure is fantastic. There isn’t a lot of competition that exists today in that space.”

There is not another white label insurance product that has been fully embedded in this way. While other tech-enabled insurance companies have built online experiences on their own platforms, none have the capability to build fully branded embedded homeowners insurance programs for brands.

Better and Sure, are changing how home insurance is distributed and reaching customers in a completely innovative, efficient manner. Importantly, by partnering with Better, Sure is providing a roadmap and repeatable framework for other brands that want to build adjacencies in insurance, be it homeowners insurance, auto insurance, or beyond.

How Better became the first online mortgage platform to offer embedded homeowners insurance

Meeting all homeownership needs

Better is an industry leader for servicing mortgages. We are a nationally ranked, top rated mortgage company, a top 50 lender in the US, and we are the number one fully digital lender.

Unlocking a customer need

Building a roadmap to autonomy with Sure

Better Insurance

Deploying Quote Assist™

White label innovation, enhanced user experience, and growing partnerships

We prioritize communication and being thoughtful in how we approach things … open communication lines have been fantastic on Sure’s end. I can’t even stress that enough. The team is so open and willing to hop on a call when we need it.

Download now, read later.

How Better became the first online mortgage platform to offer embedded homeowners insurance

Meeting all homeownership needs

Better is an industry leader for servicing mortgages. We are a nationally ranked, top rated mortgage company, a top 50 lender in the US, and we are the number one fully digital lender.

Unlocking a customer need

Building a roadmap to autonomy with Sure

Better Insurance

Deploying Quote Assist™

White label innovation, enhanced user experience, and growing partnerships

We prioritize communication and being thoughtful in how we approach things … open communication lines have been fantastic on Sure’s end. I can’t even stress that enough. The team is so open and willing to hop on a call when we need it.

Download now, read later.

Sure, I want the monthly newsletter!