August 15, 1998 News

Senior Market Sales, Inc., Launches Internet & Electronic Commerce Marketing and Development Division in Virginia

Alexandria, Virginia -- Omaha-based Senior Market Sales, Inc., (SMS), an insurance marketing company focused on niche markets, announces the creation of its Internet and electronic commerce marketing and development division, SMS Interactive.

Located in Alexandria, Virginia--one of the nation's newest telecommunications centers--SMS Interactive is poised to take advantage of the opportunities available in the insurance industry by forging new ground in online insurance marketing and sales.

"This is the perfect time to go into insurance marketing on the Internet," says Hershel Kleinberg, Division President of SMS Interactive, and the son of Milton Kleinberg, Founder and President of SMS. "Compared to other financial businesses, the insurance industry is currently behind the technology curve, particularly in the area of online sales." SMS Interactive will lead the insurance industry into the 21st Century by targeting expanding online markets and developing practical electronic commerce solutions one specialty niche market at a time.

By designing and developing its web sites and electronic commerce applications in-house and from the ground up, SMS Interactive will be able to control costs and flexibly adapt its systems and approaches quickly and efficiently to keep pace with the inevitable changes in Internet and electronic commerce trends and technology. Also, by initially focusing on specialty niche insurance markets where the company has experienced sustained growth and proven success, SMS Interactive can establish a commercial web presence quickly and confidently.

Although the electronic commerce solutions designed and implemented by SMS Interactive will make it simple and convenient for web-savvy consumers to purchase insurance products online, the growing network of nationwide independent insurance agents established since 1984 by SMS will also benefit tremendously.

"Whether we like it or not, in the future most insurance will be purchased directly or indirectly through the Internet," says Milton Kleinberg, founder and president of SMS. "The question is what part will agents play? While some insurance companies are bypassing agents, our aim is to develop strategies that promote agent sales and services via the Internet."

For example, SMS Interactive is laying the groundwork to provide a convenient centralized database of forms, client policy histories, and streamlined web-based services to help agents reduce paperwork, while saving time, labor, and money.

The senior Kleinberg adds that while "it is quite clear that the Internet will change the insurance business in ways that we cannot predict ... we plan to be successful and make sure our agents don't get left behind."

Originally established to serve the insurance needs of seniors, SMS created its Flagship Financial Services (FFS) division in order to expand beyond the senior insurance market into other niche markets that are financially based and broader in scope.

As the twenty-first century approaches, SMS continues to expand beyond its current markets by developing an increasing number of innovative and diverse proprietary products to satisfy the special needs of its growing national sales force of independent insurance agents and their clients.

The creation of SMS Interactive is proof of the company's commitment to growth and innovation in a global marketplace, made more accessible every day by advances in technology and innovative marketing. In embracing new technologies, new products and new markets, SMS continues to forge its own path and heed its own advice: Successful People Do Those Things That Failures Refuse To Do.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Brian Cook
Interactive, Inc./WorldTravelCenter.com^SM
1630 Duke Street, 3rd Floor
Alexandria, VA 22314
Phone: 1+703.299.6001
Fax: 1+703.299.1788
Email: brian@insuractive.com