22 Aug 029: Not your average CEO…Meet Louis Ziskin, founder and president of LA based DropIn Inc.
Louis Ziskin is definitely not your average CEO. He’s the founder and president of West Hollywood-based DropIn Inc.., a company that is changing the way the insurance and automotive industries do business by providing on-demand remote video inspection.
DropIn’s technology can be accessed via an app or, like a scene from a futuristic sci-fi movie, it can be paired with video-equipped drones that can remotely inspect and evaluate the damage to residences and commercial buildings.
Louis has had an entrepreneurial spirit his entire life. From his early beginnings when he launched a global supply chain venture, Louis cultivated an international network of suppliers delivering product to a demanding and complex market.
While lucrative, this business model resulted in some unanticipated consequences… a 12-year prison stay.
Louis, now a philanthropist who speaks nationally about causes like anti-recidivism and addiction recovery, was convicted in 2001 for the largest-ever U.S. government seizure of the drug commonly known as Ecstasy.
As well as driving the DropIn business forwards at a relentless pace, he now devotes his time to the Backpacks for Kids Foundation and is a frequent public speaker in support of anti-recidivism.
1:25 – Recording from Louis’ office and background on his business, DropIn.
4:13 – Applying an example of how DropIn can be useful to both insurers and the insured.
5:51 – Preventing insurance fraud with DropIn.
7:24 – Key elements of the software.
9:14 – How this can benefit customer service and other parts of insurance companies.
11:03 – Positioning DropIn within the existing scope of the insurance companies’ operations and making it easy to use.
12:52 – Louis’ approach to dealing with insurance companies and how he addresses their pain points.
14:33 – Offering a simple solution to a massive problem in the insurance operational model.
17:54 – The industry being developed around drones and how DropIn fits into that as well as other possible uses for the software.
20:13 – The scope of the industry Louis is tapping into and detailing benefits for both insurers and the insured.
24:38 – Examining other industries that could benefit from the technology DropIn employs; the uses for automotive dealerships.
27:22 – Applying the software to car repairs and how this technology differs from existing video chat services.
30:03 – Using existing technologies in a new process.
31:09 – This business comes down to how it’s executed, how well it works for the drone pilots.
35:34 – Focusing on certain verticals when there are potential applications in almost any industry.
38:42 – Adding in layers of service that can differentiate between other providers.
39:58 – Seismic changes in business operations and efficiency due to this technology.
42:19 – Louis’ thoughts on bringing investments into DropIn and how his criminal background affects his business.
44:50 – Work that Louis does with people who struggle with similar criminal issues.
47:35 – Benefits of not having any venture capital involved at this early stage.
48:55 – Being able to more effectively help people because he’s been through serious struggles.
50:24 – Desiring a sense of purpose over money.
52:59 – Embracing the fact that DropIn is a startup and using that as a way to help companies.
53:49 – The rapid fire questionnaire.
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