Ben Madick of Matic
An exclusive Tech Tribune Q&A with Ben Madick (co-founder and CEO) of Matic, which was honored in our:
Tell us the origin story of Matic – what problem were you trying to solve and why?
I started my career in lending within the banking industry and then later co-founded a risk management company for mortgage lenders. I continuously saw home closing delays because the required homeowners insurance wasn’t in place. I knew there had to be a way to embed insurance into the homeownership experience and make the process faster, less painful, and more transparent for all involved. Matic (short for automatic) came together in 2014 and officially launched in 2017. Today, our digital insurance marketplace has 36 A-rated home and auto carriers integrated into over 50 distribution partnerships. We built a proprietary quoting engine where customers can receive personalized insurance quotes and purchase a policy online, or through one of our licensed advisors, in minutes. This saves our customers hours of work researching their options and an average of $625 annually.
What was the biggest hurdle you encountered in your journey?
One of the biggest challenges was trying to digitize, automate, and integrate two complex industries – banking and insurance. Organizations tend to only want to work with other companies who have “done it” before. Getting partners and insurance carriers to anchor our business and believe in our mission was a crucial part of our success. The other big hurdle for us was going to market. We needed to be able to tell our story and back it up with solid data in order to provide value to our distribution partners.
What does the future hold for Matic?
As we look forward, our mission remains the same – to simplify the world of insurance for our customers and partners. To do so, we will continue to enhance our digital platform experience and venture into new product verticals. We’ll also continue to build our partnership portfolio. We started with distribution partners in the mortgage origination and servicing industry, and have now grown into areas such as real estate, personal finance, auto companies, and home builders.
What are your thoughts on the local tech startup scene in Columbus?
We decided to move our headquarters to Columbus in 2017 because of the growing tech startup scene and we love the city. Columbus has one of the largest universities in the U.S. and the city has a rich history of well-established insurance companies. The combination of those two things provides an amazing talent pool for an insurtech startup like us. We’re proud to be a part of this community and excited to see what comes next.
What’s your best advice for aspiring entrepreneurs?
There’s no replacement for hard work and grit when you’re an entrepreneur. It doesn’t matter what idea you have – if you don’t have a strong work ethic, you won’t be able to successfully maneuver through the entrepreneurial journey. You also need to have an open mind to see people and situations from different perspectives. Learn from your mistakes, believe in what you are doing, and keep moving forward.