Hartford’s Annuity Sales Force Hits the Road with iPads

For those advisers who haven’t handled an iPad yet to conduct business, or have not been persuaded to work with annuities, The Hartford has its sight on you.The Simsbury, Conn.-based insurance company is piloting iPads for its annuity sales force. A dozen field wholesalers have fanned out across their territories since late January, carrying much of the product’s marketing materials with them on the tablet, said Timothy Benedict, a spokesman for The Hartford.

Could an annuity app be on the way from The Hartford? Future tools might include online training programs, sales and illustration tools and live video presentations, according to the company.

“There are definitely potential applications,” Benedict said in a telephone interview. “Depending on the results of the pilot, we’ll consider capabilities and marketing programs to fit with the new tools.”

The Hartford is the latest financial services company to embrace Apple’s popular tablet computer. Finantix has developed Wealth Apps for the device, and at its recent conference in San Diego, Calif., TD Ameritrade announced plans to launch a mobile application for the tablet later this year.

The Hartford is also running a similar nationwide test with its mutual fund sales force. It expects to run the annuity pilot through April, to test its impact on the sales process, and collect feedback from the wholesalers using the device.