According to founder and CEO Phillip Naples, Layr’s white label branded platform for brokers and agents has a few unique features.
“The platform that we provide addresses the whole insurance journey for both the business owner and the broker.” Most other platforms, Naples explained, “target a specific pixel, if you will, of the supply chain or issue.” “From quotation to claims, we’ve got it all.”
Layr is a start-up based in Atlanta that employs artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to help brokerages and agencies manage their small commercial books of business more efficiently. It took three years to develop and has a white label component that allows brokers and agencies to tailor the platform’s appearance to their specific needs.
On March 22, Layr reported that company has raised $10 million in a Series A fundraising round from HSCM Ventures, Sandbox Industries, and Hannover Digital Investments, as well as The Graham Agency, Broker Tech Ventures, and others.
According to Naples, the money is a validation of the work Layr and its staff have done thus far and will accomplish in the months ahead.
“I’m quite glad for the chance because now we have a runway to demonstrate what we hope will occur,” Naples added.
Layr was founded six years ago and now employs about 50 individuals. It had already raised a $5 million seed round and an early financial infusion of roughly $500,000 in addition to the current funding. The funds will be utilised to quadruple Layr’s present employees and expand its market reach among insurance agents and brokers, among other things. More technological advancements are also in the works.
The white label platform
The company’s primary technology, according to Naples, is a white label platform that is branded for insurance broker and agency partners and can automate their operations in a matter of hours. The goal is for its customers to be able to provide property/casualty insurance to small business owners at a lucrative scale. Programming isn’t required, and agents and brokers don’t require engineers to be on hand.
“We can essentially spin them up overnight because it doesn’t need to write a single line of code or interface with any APIs,” Naples added. “For them, it’s zero code.”
The platform assists business owners in identifying what sorts of coverage they require and why, as well as predicting which insurers will accept coverage at a particular price or premium.
Signing up
“For an insurance firm or broker, counselling a small business owner is really cost prohibitive because there aren’t enough commission revenues in there,” Naples explained. “Our technology can help lead that customer and fill that hole.”
Clients of agencies and brokers also get a cutting-edge digital experience, and agents and brokers can attest to having the digital technologies that customers are increasingly seeking.
Layr created a simple method for brokers and agencies to sign up for the platform and integrate it into their operations.
When broker/agency partners sign up, the company requires a few basic items, including basic data from agency management systems and insurance licences that prove regulatory approval to do business in specific regions or states. Logos and colour schemes are also necessary in order to tailor the platform for each client.
The ultimate effect is that the cloud-based platform for individual clients is morphed to seem like their corporate identity, and their businessowner customers have no idea Layr exists at all.
“And then all of their welcome emails go out to each and every one of their clients, [informing them that] they can go recover their accounts and begin engaging with their insurance,” Naples explained.
The platform can be ready to go in 30 minutes if all of the core data and corporate identification aspects are in place, yet it provides partners/clients a 30-day to 60-day implementation window because extracting data out of AMS systems can be difficult. As a result, some individuals require full-time assistance, according to Naples.
In terms of payment, Layr uses a usage-based method, charging the broker a “micro percent” each month based on the amount of premium on the site. Clients also have the option of purchasing a premium finance solution at renewal or when purchasing new coverage. If clients want greater flexibility in how they pay, Layr’s insurance carriers will help them do so through the platform, which will generate additional money for the company directly from insurance,” Naples said.
Layr currently has more than 30 broker partners on the platform, with over 4,500 individual insureds, according to Naples.
Small businesses all the way
Finally, Naples stated that he hopes to develop Layr into a tool that assists small firms that require the same insurance as large corporations but struggle to acquire the same support.
“My ultimate aim is to get Layr to the point where we’re able to enable all of the insurance distributors – agents and brokers – to successfully support these small businessowners,” Naples added.
