Our Blog

We’re insurance experts and insurance-technology experts, if we do say so ourselves. So, we think we’ve earned the right to have opinions here and there. And we believe we should share those opinions with the people in the industry we serve. That’s why we created this blog. We want to share what we know and what we’ve seen. We want to share what works and what doesn’t. We want to give you the benefit of our experience so you don’t have to come by your experience the hard way. Most important, we want you to think of us — and this blog — as a resource. Please come back often. There’s no telling what you’ll find on any given visit. But we’ll do our level best to ensure it has value to you, to the industry, and to the work in which we all share, one way or the other.

Back to School

Back to School

By R. Christopher Haines, President and CEO It’s that time of year again. Did you go to the store with your mom and get a few new pairs of stiff, ugly, darker than they should be, blue jeans? The kind that won’t look cool until they’re washed every week until about...

Get Some Help

Get Some Help

By R. Christopher Haines, President and CEO Easy for me to say. I’m not in your shoes. But I’ve been there. The big project all comes down to you. The success or failure rides on your shoulders, and you don’t want to let anyone down. But there’s a lot of work. The...

I Survived

I Survived

By R. Christopher Haines, President and CEO I didn’t think I was going to survive. But I did. It was rough, but I’m here to talk about it. I made it through four nights on vacation with no cell service. The Glacier National Park area of Montana is special to us and is...

It’s Half Over

It’s Half Over

By R. Christopher Haines, President and CEO Well, 2018 is halfway over. Right now most of you are probably thinking something like, “Thanks Mr. Obvious.” But regardless of how evident this fact is, it’s still hard to believe. Kids will be back to school before we know...

I’m Not Going to Do It For You

I’m Not Going to Do It For You

By R. Christopher Haines, President and CEO What do you expect when you hire someone to help you? Let’s say you’re painting your house. Do you want to stir the paint while the painter paints? Do you expect to do the painting while the painter stands on the ground and...

The More Things Change, the More They Stay the Same

The More Things Change, the More They Stay the Same

By R. Christopher Haines, President and CEO In case anyone had any doubts, everything is still the same. I can confirm this after spending last week at IASA in Nashville. For those not aware, IASA is the Insurance Accounting and Software Association’s national...

I Need a Crystal Ball

I Need a Crystal Ball

By R. Christopher Haines, President and CEO Anyone who reads the rambling nonsense that I put out every couple of weeks knows my dilemma with trying to describe our implementation services. They’re hard to explain. There’s no way around it. We created handouts and...

Indirect Anxiety

Indirect Anxiety

By R. Christopher Haines, President and CEO I suffer from Indirect Anxiety. I’m not even sure it’s a real thing. But I’ve got it. And you might, too. Here’s a perfect example. I’m waiting on a flight recently at an airport and a woman is talking on her phone. Nothing...

My Out of Body Experience

My Out of Body Experience

By R. Christopher Haines, President and CEO Well, I recently experienced an out-of-body experience. I didn’t get abducted by aliens or flat-line on an operating room table – it was much worse than that. I was at a convention, but I wasn’t attending the convention. As...

What’s the Worst that Can Happen?

What’s the Worst that Can Happen?

By R. Christopher Haines, President and CEO With many things in our lives, we have to take a leap of faith. These are usually minor things for which you prepare as well as you can but still just have to see what happens. This might be trying a new recipe, getting a...

Who’s Buying from these People?

Who’s Buying from these People?

By R. Christopher Haines, President and CEO I know I’m like a broken record on this stuff. I know some of my good friends are salespeople, and a big part of my own job is sales. But some salespeople drive me nuts. I have to wonder what kind of people actually have...

The People of Insurance

The People of Insurance

By R. Christopher Haines, President and CEO As part of my role at Marias, I spend a lot of time on the road visiting companies or attending insurance conferences. Many weeks we host customers, prospects, and partners who visit our office. Through all of this, I get to...

A Disney Way of Life

A Disney Way of Life

By R. Christopher Haines, President and CEO This week’s blog comes to you from The Most Magical Place on Earth – Walt Disney World. My family is spending time at a place we really enjoy. We alternate between visiting here and Disneyland, are Disney D23 Fan Club...

Is the SaaS Honeymoon Over?

Is the SaaS Honeymoon Over?

By R. Christopher Haines, President and CEO This post is likely to get me written off as being biased because we sell hosting. Maybe I am biased. On the other hand, we wouldn’t sell anything I didn’t believe in. And one thing I don’t believe in is insurance software...

Are System Issues Killing Your Brand?

Are System Issues Killing Your Brand?

By R. Christopher Haines, President and CEO Your insurance company is everything you ever hoped it would be. You’ve got nice products to offer your policyholders. You offer a variety of coverage options that not many can compete with. You treat your producers fairly...

You’re Going to Test That, Right?

You’re Going to Test That, Right?

By R. Christopher Haines, President and CEO Software needs to be tested. End of story. Nothing you can ever say will make that fact not true. And as a guy who sells software testing, I’m not even trying to get you to buy it from me. But you have to get it somewhere....

Ready. Get Set. Go!

Ready. Get Set. Go!

By R. Christopher Haines, President and CEO Okay. The excuses are over. No more blaming the holiday season and being too busy. No more saying we’ll get to that later in the year. And we can’t say the year hasn’t been good and the budget is blown because it’s a new...

See You Next Year

See You Next Year

By R. Christopher Haines, President and CEO Well, it’s that time of year again. The time for shopping, family, good meals, and resolutions. It’s also the time at which everyone is saying a lot of, “Let’s do that after the 1st.” To say 2017 was a challenge for me and...

Evaluation Time

Evaluation Time

By R. Christopher Haines, President and CEO Nothing quite says the holiday season like turkey, Christmas trees, and performance evaluations — everyone’s favorite time of the year, at least for two of the three. Ideally, we’d be doing reviews some other time of the...

Don’t Screw Up the Turkey

Don’t Screw Up the Turkey

By R. Christopher Haines, President and CEO I’ve been in some pretty high stress situations in my life. Throughout my career, I’ve worked some pretty important projects, taken some huge risks, and spoken at conferences in front of large crowds. Through almost two...

Don’t Ever Forget

Don’t Ever Forget

By R. Christopher Haines, President and CEO Last week Cambridge University announced it believes it’s discovered a way to stop negative thoughts and, someday, remove bad memories altogether. I totally get the reasoning for this and the desire to develop this...

Buddy, You Give Sales a Bad Name

Buddy, You Give Sales a Bad Name

By R. Christopher Haines, President and CEO You know who these guys are. They know who they are. Or maybe it’s scarier if they don’t. But I can tell you one thing: They give the rest of us who need to sell stuff a bad reputation. This example takes the cake: We had an...

Well, That’s Vague

Well, That’s Vague

By R. Christopher Haines, President and CEO Does anyone else sell a service that’s hard to explain? You know what it is. Your prospects think they know what it is. But it’s hard to convey what this service actually entails. The real issue is that the service is hardly...

Tradeshows: The Best of Times, the Worst of Times

Tradeshows: The Best of Times, the Worst of Times

By R. Christopher Haines, President and CEO I’m guessing many of you have worked or attended tradeshows in your careers. I’m no different. We just wrapped up working one of our bigger shows of the year. This show was great for us, but they all have their ups and...

Trouble with your IT Vendors? Maybe it’s you.

Trouble with your IT Vendors? Maybe it’s you.

By R. Christopher Haines, President and CEO You could classify our organization as an IT vendor. Though we provide services relating to IT, we’re usually positioned between companies and their IT vendors. So we see it all: the good, the bad, and the ugly. I’m usually...

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Marias Technology
25 East Wright St
Covington OH 45318