Streamlining Insurance Quoting and RFQs with Salesforce Cases and Email-to-Case

Salesforce Cases and Email-to-Case provide powerful tools for streamlining insurance quoting processes and Request for Quotation (RFQ) intakes. By automating case creation from emails and providing comprehensive tracking capabilities, these features help organizations manage quoting workflows more efficiently and deliver faster responses to customers and partners.

Understanding Salesforce Cases and Email-to-Case

Salesforce Cases enable organizations to manage, track, and respond to customer inquiries systematically. Cases can handle various scenarios, from product issues and service requests to sales opportunities and quote requests. The Case object provides a centralized location for tracking interactions, managing workflows, and ensuring timely responses.

Email-to-Case automatically converts incoming emails into Salesforce cases, enabling organizations to capture customer inquiries directly in Salesforce without manual data entry. This automation ensures that every email is tracked, assigned, and managed according to your business processes.

Simplifying Insurance Quoting Processes

Creating insurance quotes requires gathering essential information from customers and processing it according to underwriting criteria. Salesforce Cases and Email-to-Case streamline this process by automating case creation and providing a structured workflow for quote generation.

How It Works:

Partner sellers send an email to a shared inbox with the client’s insurance requirements. Salesforce automatically converts this email into a trackable case, capturing all the information in a structured format. This enables insurance companies to:

• Organize Information: All quote request details are captured in a single case record
• Track Progress: Monitor quote status and response times
• Collaborate: Enable team members to work together on quotes
• Respond Efficiently: Generate and send quotes directly from Salesforce
• Maintain History: Keep complete records of all quote-related communications

Automating RFQ Intakes

Businesses often receive numerous quote requests from potential buyers, requiring efficient management and prioritization. Salesforce’s Email-to-Case feature automates this process, ensuring that every RFQ is captured and tracked.

Automated RFQ Processing:

When partner sellers send RFQs via email, Salesforce automatically creates cases for each request. This automation enables your team to:

• Capture Details: All RFQ information is automatically recorded in Salesforce
• Draft Responses: Create quote responses based on detailed RFQ information
• Send Replies: Respond directly from Salesforce cases via email
• Ensure Accuracy: Capture every detail from the RFQ, ensuring accurate, reliable responses

This streamlined method eliminates manual data entry, reduces errors, and ensures consistent handling of all RFQ requests.

Tracking RFQs and Quote Status

Salesforce Cases provide comprehensive tracking capabilities for both RFQs and quote responses. Each case maintains a complete history of interactions, enabling businesses to:

• Monitor Lifecycle: Track each quote request from initial inquiry through final response
• Keep Stakeholders Informed: Ensure all team members have visibility into quote status
• Prevent Confusion: Maintain clear records of all communications and decisions
• Improve Collaboration: Enable teams to work together effectively on complex quotes

How Email-to-Case Works for Insurance Quoting

Step 1: Quote Request Email

The broker sends an email to the company requesting a quote for insurance plans. The email should include:

• Broker name and contact information
• Company name and details
• Type of insurance plans requested
• Employee or member census information (date of birth, gender, and other relevant data)
• Prior claim data, current plan information, and other relevant details

Step 2: Automatic Case Creation

The company receives the email in a shared mailbox. Email-to-Case automatically routes the email to Salesforce, where it’s created as a case. The case is assigned to a representative or a Salesforce queue based on your assignment rules.

Step 3: Case Queue Management

The case queue provides inventory management, prioritizing cases based on:

• Availability of underwriters and sales support teams
• Group size or other business criteria
• Advanced Option: Use Einstein AI to help prioritize cases
• Advanced Option: Use OCR or form data extraction to create structured Salesforce data from email attachments

Step 4: Case Processing

Cases are worked in order received or based on custom criteria such as:

• Company size
• Urgency of request
• Product complexity
• Advanced Option: Use NLP or AI to extract data from emails and documents, helping prioritize cases based on urgency and other structured data

Step 5: Information Gathering

The representative requests additional information from the broker as needed. All email communications are sent from the case context, ensuring that all team members with case access can see the full conversation history.

Step 6: Quote Delivery

The representative generates a quote and sends it along with sales collateral from the Salesforce case. The quote and collateral are sent to the broker via email and should include:

• Type of insurance plans being quoted
• Premium for each plan
• Terms and conditions
• Other relevant plan information

Advanced Capabilities

Einstein AI Integration

Salesforce Einstein AI can enhance the quoting process by:

• Prioritizing Cases: Automatically prioritize cases based on urgency, value, or other criteria
• Data Extraction: Extract structured data from emails and attachments using OCR and NLP
• Recommendations: Suggest appropriate products or pricing based on historical data

Integration with Order Management

For organizations using the Order object (see our guide on Structuring Medical Plans with the Order Object), cases can be linked to:

• Opportunities created from quote requests
• Orders generated from approved quotes
• Implementation workflows

Best Practices

1. Standardize Email Format: Provide brokers with templates for quote requests
2. Use Queues Effectively: Organize cases by product type, region, or complexity
3. Set Service Level Agreements: Define response time expectations
4. Track Metrics: Monitor quote response times and conversion rates
5. Continuously Improve: Gather feedback and refine your process

Real-World Benefits

Organizations using Email-to-Case for insurance quoting report:

• Faster Response Times: Automated case creation reduces processing time
• Better Tracking: Complete visibility into quote request status
• Improved Accuracy: Structured data capture reduces errors
• Enhanced Collaboration: Team members can work together on complex quotes
• Scalability: Process more quotes without proportional staff increases

Resources

• Salesforce Help: Email-to-Case - Official documentation
• Salesforce Help: Cases - Case management guide
• Structuring Medical Plans with the Order Object - Order management guide
• The Story of Salesforce Joe - Enterprise implementation case study

Conclusion

Salesforce Cases and Email-to-Case provide powerful tools for streamlining insurance quoting and RFQ processes. By automating case creation from emails, organizing information systematically, and providing comprehensive tracking capabilities, these features help organizations manage quoting workflows more efficiently and deliver faster, more accurate responses.

Whether you’re processing insurance quotes, managing RFQs, or handling other customer inquiries, Email-to-Case and Cases provide the structure and automation needed to improve efficiency, accuracy, and customer satisfaction.

Implement Email-to-Case for your quoting processes and transform how you handle quote requests.