What is Swivel Sync?
Swivel Sync is a service available with Premier and Enterprise subscriptions. It securely connects to supported carrier and institution websites to automatically pull policy and account values and record them directly into your Swivel CRM.
What Swivel Sync Updates
Swivel Sync... |
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DOES automatically update supported policy and account values | DOES NOT automatically create new policies or accounts in Swivel CRM |
DOES detect when a policy is no longer found on the carrier portal website | DOES NOT update policy statuses (e.g. In Force, Surrendered) or policy dates |
DOES update supported policy values regardless of the product name or type stored in Swivel CRM | DOES NOT create or update contribution or withdrawal transaction entries |
🔍 Tip: Anything Swivel Sync does not update automatically must be maintained manually in your Swivel CRM. This includes creating new policies, updating policy statuses or dates, and recording contributions or withdrawals.
Device Shipping
Devices are shipped via FedEx Ground and usually arrive within 3 business days. You will be provided a tracking number once Swivel has shipped your device. Use it to track your order or Contact Sales for additional assistance.
Before You Get Started
Confirm the following before beginning device setup. Meeting these requirements upfront prevents the most common sync issues.
Hardware
Your Swivel Sync device shipment includes:
1 Swivel Sync device
1 power cord
1 ethernet cable
You will also need:
An internet connection and secure network
Access to your router
Access to an outlet near your wifi router
Permissions
An Owner and/or Manager user permission role in Swivel is required to complete device setup. Click here to learn more about 🔗 Swivel User Roles.
CRM Data Requirements
Swivel Sync updates existing records in your CRM — it does NOT create new ones. For a policy or account to sync successfully, all three of the following must be TRUE:
# | Requirement | Description |
1 | Policies and accounts in Swivel CRM | The policy or account must already be stored in Swivel and associated to a contact record. Swivel Sync will not pull in new records from the carrier website automatically. |
2 | Policy or account has product status indicator of Pending or Open | Each product status in Swivel has an underlying indicator — only products set to a Pending or Open indicator are eligible to sync. |
3 | Policy or account number matches the carrier or institution website | The policy or account number stored in Swivel must match exactly how it appears on the carrier or institution website — including any leading zeros, spaces, or extra characters. Even a small difference will cause Swivel Sync to return a Not Found result. |
🔍 Tip: Before setting up Swivel Sync, run a Product Report filtered by carrier to review your stored products. Confirm product numbers are accurate and statuses are configured to the correct Pending or Open status indicators for all policies you expect to sync. Cleaning this up first will save significant troubleshooting time later.
Step 1: Device Setup
Configure Device
Plug in the power cord to the Swivel Sync device and to an outlet near your wifi router.
Plug in the ethernet cord to the Swivel Sync device and your wifi router.
Press power on the front of the device.
Log into your Swivel account at portal.swivelcrm.com
Navigate to the Swivel Sync tab on the left side navigation menu.
From the Dashboard tab > Device Health section > click +New Swivel Sync Device button.
Locate the serial number on the bottom of your device and enter it exactly into the Serial Number field. ⚠️ Important: The serial number is case-sensitive.
Click Create Device.
🔍 Tip: You should see a heartbeat within 30 minutes of plugging in your Swivel Sync Device and entering the Serial Number.
Monitor Device Health
Navigate to the Dashboard > Device Health section and confirm your device is online.
You can also confirm your device is online by navigating to the Device tab > checking the Last Heartbeat.
🔍 Tip: Device not coming online or Last Heartbeat shows 'never'? See 🔗 Troubleshooting Swivel Sync Device Setup.
🔍 Tip: Questions about Swivel Sync Device security? Visit the 🔗 FAQs: Swivel Sync article.
Step 2: Connect an Institution & Add a Login Source
🚧 Important: You must have an Owner and/or Manager user permission role to complete device setup.
A connected institution represents an insurance carrier or financial institution stored in your Swivel account and connects (or binds) that institution to the corresponding Swivel Sync plugin. Each supported Swivel Sync carrier/institution has a dedicated Swivel Sync plugin.
A login source represents each unique agent or advisor login required to access data from the corresponding carrier or institution. Data accessed includes policy or account numbers and values.
Navigate to the Institutions & Sources tab > click Connect Institution button.
Select a Swivel Sync Plugin.
Select the corresponding Carrier/Institution.
Click Save.
Once you connect an institution, you can now add the login source(s). From the Institutions & Sources tab > navigate to a connected institution > click the +Login Source icon.
Go to the Source Name field > Enter a descriptive name for the login source (e.g. Allianz - Agent Smith).
Go to Source Username > Enter the username associated with this login source.
Click Save.
Repeat steps 1–5 for each supported Swivel Sync carrier or institution you wish to sync.
🔍 Tip: To access a current list of supported carriers and institutions, please visit 🔗 Swivel Sync Carriers & Institutions.
Step 3: Link Sources to Swivel
Once you've connected your supported carriers & institutions and created your Swivel Sync login sources, you're ready to log in to each source using your agent or advisor institution credentials. Delegate access credentials may also be used.
🔍 Tip: Linking sources is a daily task. Check your Swivel Sync Dashboard each day to confirm all sources are linked and values are updating consistently.
For credential setup guidance and link session durations by carrier, see 🔗 Best Practices for Managing Login Sources.
For session durations by carrier, see 🔗 Estimated Link Session Durations by Carrier.
Link Sources
Access the Institutions & Sources tab to link your sources in either of the following ways:
From the top navigation bar, click the Sync button > Institutions & Sources
From the main navigation menu, click Swivel Sync > click Institutions & Sources tab
For each unlinked source, click the Link button.
When the Link pop-up window appears, enter your login credentials to access the institution.
Click Link.
For institutions that require 2-factor authentication, you will be prompted to enter the authentication code sent by the institution.
Once your credentials are authenticated and successfully linked, click Done.
Complete steps 2–6 for all unlinked sources until the dashboard reflects all sources as Linked.
What to Expect After Your First Link
Once a login source is linked, Swivel Sync runs automatically in the background until the carrier or institution session times out. The length of time to update all policies for a given carrier varies depending on three factors:
The carrier or institution
The carrier's link session duration
The number of syncable policies for that source
Initial syncs typically complete within 1–5 days depending on the carrier session timeout policy and the volume of policies to update. If a login source becomes unlinked before all policies are updated, Swivel Sync pauses where it left off and resumes automatically the next time the source is linked.
🔍 Tip: Don't worry if you don't see values immediately. Check the Swivel Sync Dashboard to track sync progress and confirm sources stay linked.
Step 4: Force Sync a Policy
Force syncing means prioritizing a specific policy or account to update on demand, rather than waiting for Swivel Sync to reach it in the regular daily queue. It's the fastest way to pull the most current values from the carrier or custodian for a single policy or account.
Once a login source is linked, Swivel Sync queues all of your syncable policies and accounts and works through them throughout the day. Force syncing lets you jump that queue for a specific policy now — useful both for confirming Swivel Sync is working end-to-end, and for giving yourself a record with fresh values to use in the next step.
🔍 Tip: Force sync is also useful any time you need updated values right away — for example, before a client review appointment or when preparing the Swivel Summary.
Force Sync from the Contact Record
Navigate to a contact record with a Sync-supported policy or account.
Find the policy or account you want to sync.
Click the Sync button.
In the Sync pop-up, select the appropriate login source if more than one exists, then click Sync.
Watch the policy's sync attempt status update
In Progress — Swivel Sync is updating the policy now
Queued — another policy is currently being processed; yours is next in line
Success — the policy has been verified, updated, and is ready to view
Not Found — the policy or account can't be identified or located
Once you have at least one (1) policy with a success sync attempt, you can continue to Step 5.
🔍 Tip: 🔗 For full details, including how to force sync from the Swivel Sync Report, see Force Syncing Policies & Accounts.
Step 5: View Synced Values in Swivel Summary
Steps 1–4 complete your Swivel Sync setup. Step 5 shows you how to surface those values in Swivel Summary — a separate but related configuration.
Now that Swivel Sync is delivering policy and account values automatically, you’ll want to configure how those values roll up on Swivel Summary — the client-ready view that consolidates all of a client’s policies and accounts in one place.
🚧 Important: You must have an Owner and/or Manager user permission role to complete device setup.
📌 Note: Mapping selections affect what your clients see on the Swivel Summary. We recommend having your compliance team review and approve your mappings before relying on Swivel Summary externally.
Confirm Sync Values are Mapping Correctly
This section walks through mapping Product Line Totals — the most common starting point. The Map Values modal also includes Snapshot Totals and Estate Overview sections, which are covered in the linked articles below.
Use the steps below to map values for one product and verify everything is working end-to-end. You’ll repeat this process for each product your organization offers.
Navigate to a client's record with a Sync-supported policy or account.
Click the Swivel Summary button.
Find a specific policy or account.
Click the Map Values button.
For each total listed on the left-side column, select a value from the dropdown to map. The dropdown shows values already configured for that product — including any values delivered by Swivel Sync.
Click any product line total on Swivel Summary to view an itemized calculation breakdown by product, policy/account #, value, and amount. Use this to confirm your mappings are pulling the values you expect.
🔍 Tip: Mapping for a product is a one-time setup. The configuration auto-applies to all other policies or accounts of the same product offering. For example, all Allianz 222 policies will share the same value-to-total mappings.
🔍 Tip: Not sure what to map? Browse the 🔗 Swivel Summary Value Mapping Examples collection for carrier-by-carrier starting points. Always confirm mappings with your compliance team before publishing.
Next: Configure your full Swivel Summary
The Map Values modal includes additional sections — Snapshot Totals and Estate Overview — each controlling a different part of the Swivel Summary display. For full setup details, see:
🔗 Swivel Summary - overview, viewing, print view and branding
🔗 Snapshot for Swivel Swivel Summary - Snapshot Totals, Overview and Estate Overview
🔗 Summary Totals for Swivel Summary - Product Line summary totals, value-based vs. transaction-based mapping
For full step-by-step instructions on configuring your Swivel Summary, reference our entire Swivel Summary collection.