How to sell to CTOs at Insurance companies
CTOs in the insurance industry are primarily measured on the speed of technology implementation and system reliability. They respond to outreach that shows a clear understanding of the specific challenges faced by insurtech, such as integrating legacy systems with modern technology. Demonstrating knowledge of their unique regulatory landscape and how it affects technology choices will capture their attention.
Written and maintained by the SoloRiff team, who build outbound software and run outbound with it. The figures below are our own: we measured 562 insurance company domains over public DNS on 2026-09-03. Last updated 2026-09-03.
What actually hurts
- integration of legacy systems
- delays in claims processing
- compliance with regulatory changes
- managing tech debt
The playbook
- 01
Identify recent funding rounds
Look for insurance companies that have recently secured funding. Use sources like Crunchbase or PitchBook to filter for companies that raised over $5 million in the last six months. These companies are likely looking to expand their tech capabilities and may be more open to discussions about new solutions.
- 02
Analyze tech stack changes
Utilize tools like BuiltWith or SimilarTech to identify insurance firms that have recently changed their technology stack. Focus on companies that have transitioned away from outdated systems as they may be in search of modern integrations and solutions to enhance their operations.
- 03
Leverage industry-specific pain points
Craft your messaging around specific pain points in the insurance sector, such as delays in claims processing or compliance challenges with new regulations. Acknowledge these issues directly in your outreach to demonstrate that you understand their daily struggles.
- 04
Reference recent regulatory changes
Stay updated on any recent regulatory shifts affecting the insurance industry. Mention these changes in your communications, emphasizing how your insights can help them navigate compliance while improving technology adoption.
- 05
Follow up after industry events
Monitor industry conferences or webinars where CTOs are speaking. Send a follow-up email referencing specific points they made during the event. This shows you are engaged with their interests and can lead to a more meaningful conversation.
Can insurance companies even receive your mail?
We measured the DNS of 562 insurance companies, sampled evenly across company sizes, to see how many authenticate their own email. It matters in both directions: a domain that does not authenticate is a domain whose team is used to mail going missing — and if your own domain is in the gap, yours is the mail going missing.
Publishes a DMARC policy of quarantine or reject — the domain actually asks receivers to act on failures.
The gap is the finding: 16.3% of 1–10-person companies against 88.4% of the largest — 72 points apart. Small companies are where the unauthenticated domains are, and small companies are who most cold outreach is aimed at.
Where does your domain sit?
Same three lookups, run live against your domain. Nothing is stored and nothing is emailed to you.
How this was measured
Company domains were sampled within employee-count bands, then queried over public DNS for SPF (TXT at the apex), DMARC (TXT at _dmarc.) and MX. One domain per company, deduplicated. Anyone can reproduce any single row of this with dig.
DKIM is deliberately absent. A DKIM key lives under a selector that cannot be enumerated from outside the domain, so a company with flawless DKIM under a name we did not guess would be counted as having none. That would measure our guess list, not the industry.
Domains with no MX record are excluded rather than counted as failures — parked and redirect-only domains would otherwise drag every figure down and make the result an artefact of the sample.
Sampled within bands, so this describes the population of companies, not of employees: a 10-person company counts once, as does a 10,000-person one. Each band is at least 60 domains; bands below that are not published. Figures are percentages of the sample, not of the whole industry, and we publish no company names — only counts.
Measured 2026-09-03. Re-measured monthly.
The full census across every industry — sortable, with sample sizes, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0.
Subject lines that fit
- Navigating insurtech challenges
- Streamlining claims processing
- Tech solutions for compliance
Questions
- Why do CTOs in insurance ignore outreach about new technologies?
- CTOs often receive numerous outreach messages that fail to address their specific challenges. Many proposals are too generic and do not demonstrate an understanding of the insurance industry's unique regulatory and operational landscape, leading to a lack of engagement.
- What are common objections from insurance CTOs?
- CTOs may express concerns about the integration of new technologies with existing legacy systems. They often worry about the costs associated with implementation and the potential disruption to ongoing operations, which can lead to hesitation in considering new solutions.
- How can I demonstrate value to a CTO in insurance?
- To demonstrate value, focus on how your solution can specifically address their pain points, such as improving claims processing efficiency or ensuring compliance with regulations. Providing case studies or examples from similar companies can also help illustrate your value proposition.
- What role do CTOs play in technology purchasing decisions?
- CTOs are typically key decision-makers in technology purchasing for insurance companies. They assess the technical feasibility, cost implications, and alignment with the company's strategic goals, making their buy-in essential for any new technology adoption.
Or have it run itself
SoloRiff does every step above on its own — finds the companies, finds the people, writes each of them individually, and handles the replies. Drop your URL and watch it work before you sign up for anything.
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