In my last blog, How to Increase Lead Conversion to Sales, I discussed the often unsung hero of generating revenue for your agency. It’s not necessarily more leads. Increasing efficiency and productivity in the agency is a necessity. Therefore, what many agencies actually need is much better lead conversion into sales, or a higher closing ratio. I shared a few strategies that we have found to work really well, but we need to take it a step further. Strategies and tactics are great, but for your closing ratio to really take off, leading to an increase in revenue, you have to foster the right environment in your agency that is conducive for growth.

We are constantly surveying our clients for what is working best, and those efforts glean a lot of practical wisdom. Our best agency clients, who consistently grow revenue while becoming more efficient and productive, are moving the needle on retention of clients, and are cross-selling their current book are all doing four very important things that make everything in the agency work more effectively.

Set and Track Sales and Activity Goals for Agency and Individuals

Read any sales book (or any book on success in general) and you find that you must set targets or goals to shoot for and reward your people for achievement. Any leader will tell you that if you can’t measure something, then you can’t manage it, or have any impact on the results. Hear me out though, I am not saying to micro-manage your staff. Your agents are professionals, but they work for YOUR agency, and thus should be on the same page with you on agency goals to keep the business thriving. Most agencies I talk with have no idea how many leads they have worked, are working, have thrown away, how many closed, nor what marketing efforts were successful or not. So how can you affect what you can’t get your arms around? That leads me to number two.

Utilize a CRM System to Automate, Manage, and Measure Leads

If you haven’t heard the term, it means a Customer Relationship Management system. Your website likely says you want to be a client’s agent for the long haul and build a long-term relationship, right? So how can you communicate effectively with your prospects, those not quite ready to buy, your current clients, and unsolds? How can everyone on your team work leads through a consistent sales process that you know has been proven to get the best results? How can you easily and efficiently get reporting and ROI information on all aspects of your marketing and sales efforts? CRM. Jamie Grenney, VP Marketing at Infer, wrote about CRM for 2015 saying, “We’re entering an arms race powered by data…to help you understand which prospects are most likely to convert and impact revenue…to tell employees where to focus their energy. Businesses that are first to leverage these services will emerge as victors.” I predict it will be an epiphany much like when you bought your first agency management system. You will soon wonder how you ever ran your business without it.

Create a Proactive Sales-Centric Culture

Most agencies I talk with in my travels have, after many years in the business, fallen into the rut of a “customer service” culture. Is there something wrong with excellent customer service? Of course not. You need to avoid becoming “reactive,” as opposed to proactive. You’ve probably seen it and didn’t even realize it. Someone on your staff takes a call from a client, takes care of him, and never even asks if he could take a look at other lines of business. Do your people ask for referrals and current email addresses? Do you invite them to “like” and even contribute to your Facebook page, assuming you have an active one, of course? Most agencies are leaving a lot of revenue on the table simply by being in a reactive rut. I can hear now many CSRs crying foul, exclaiming, “I’m not in sales!” Wouldn’t it actually be just excellent customer service to let a client know that they could save 15% by bundling additional lines of business? Growing revenue is everyone’s job, regardless of what you call it.

Make it Fun

Surveys by PGI, reported by Business Insider, show that 60% of Baby Boomers and 88% of Millennials want a fun and social work environment. We have found that people like to buy from agencies they deem to be fun and engaging, rather than boring and stodgy. Many of our client agencies make YouTube videos celebrating birthdays and holidays, community and charity events, and even highlighting local businesses (their commercial clients). Here are a couple of examples: Happy Birthday from Highpoint Insurance and Shop Local Style by Barber Insurance have over 4,000 views. Remember this: fun goes viral. There is also abundant evidence that Payscale.com reported that shows workplace fun actually increases worker productivity. No one wants to work in a dull agency, or worse, a pressure cooker. A place of encouragement and fun breeds staff that are happier, healthier, more motivated, and productive. And that is good for the bottom line.

There are some key strategies, as mentioned in my last blog, for increasing lead closing ratios, but additionally, everything you do is more effective if you foster the right environment for growth.