If you have to chase customers, you’ve already lost their attention. In this episode of Scouting for Growth, Sabine VanderLinden speaks with Dr. Robin Kiera, founder of Digital Scouting and one of Europe’s most recognized FinTech and InsurTech influencers, about what the industry still gets wrong about selling. Robin’s career started on the streets of Hamburg, selling insurance policies on commission. Between him and the CEO of Allianz were 27 layers of hierarchy. Between him and the customer? Just the pavement. That experience exposed a painful truth: there was a huge gap between what insurance could be — protection, purpose, support — and what it often felt like in reality: transactional selling disconnected from real customer needs. Fast forward to 2017. Robin launches Digital Scouting as an after-work hobby. No cold calls. No purchased lead lists. Just thought leadership, blogs, conference insights, and relentless content sharing across borders. The result? A 400,000-strong audience and clients standing in line. The shift was simple but profound: move from pushing products to attracting attention. Robin argues that friction tolerance is collapsing. It’s not just Gen Z. Everyone expects seamless, intuitive experiences. Insurance ecosystems in Germany, France, the UK, and the US often operate in silos, despite powerful use cases emerging globally. Robin made it his mission to bridge those gaps — scouting innovation internationally and bringing ideas home. His career pivot shocked many. Leaving a stable corporate role at Allianz to join a young gaming company triggered concern among peers. But security can be misleading. In his view, entrepreneurship carries risk — yet so does stagnation. The lesson? You can always return to corporate life. You cannot reclaim missed opportunity. Robin also challenges the industry’s self-image. Many claim to “consult” rather than sell. But outcomes matter. At the end of the year, revenue reveals the truth. Building Digital Scouting wasn’t without mistakes — but growth was organic. Credibility was earned, not bought. Authenticity, consistency, and global curiosity fueled expansion. This episode is essential listening for: Insurance leaders struggling with digital engagement Startups seeking authentic audience building Executives navigating career reinvention Marketing teams rethinking thought leadership strategy Because in a digital economy, attention precedes transaction. And the insurers who learn to educate, inspire, and engage — rather than interrupt — will own the future. The question is not whether insurance needs better marketing. It’s whether it’s ready to earn attention instead of demanding it.