Sick of just surviving? Want to grow your business? Here aresome of the top issues to consider once you're serious aboutgrowing your agency or your personal revenues.

• Have a defined sales process. Following aprocess every day makes one vital ingredient consistent in futuresuccess: predictability! This allows you to identify thestrengths, weaknesses, and what is and isn't working, and to makemodifications along the way. Without a process we have no ideawhere we'll end up. We need to measure and know thesuspect-to-prospect ratio, the conversion rate from prospect todiagnostic appointment questionnaire, and the sales success ratewith full presentations to prospects. Know these numbers and theaverage targeted revenue per account. This process, if followedregularly, makes annual production, sales activity management, andpipeline flow all very predictable.
• Have a defined agency culture. Professionalagents know that prospects need to be qualified. They approachevery contact with the client as an opportunity for revenue (crosssale, referral, upsale). They realize that the commoditization ofpersonal auto and small business insurance means they must gobeyond the noise of price-driven sales and approach insuranceholistically. They manage insurance and risk avoidance programs anddon't simply serve as a vendor selling policies. And they don'taccept the old “call in” business opportunities without verydiligent qualifying.
• Go deeper with fewer. Knowledgeable agenciesand producers understand the need for raising the revenue peraccount, eliminating the competition, and deepening their clientrelationships. Rather than being a vendor, they build deeper, morevaluable relationships with fewer people. Their revenue increasesbecause instead of filling orders, they're selling the six to ninelines of coverage most preferred customers are buying today. Thisagency is more efficient, more profitable, and has better carrierrelationships. Insurance vendors spent $6 billion last yearadvertising against you, but they'll never have the time or thetalent to build strong relationships in the community and become atrusted advisor providing individual, specialized guidance in riskmanagement.

• Use structured customer contact. The averageP&C customer lives on your shelf for seven years. The primaryreason they leave you is that you ignore them. Having a structuredprogram for seeing the top 10%, top 20%, and the midrange 50%solidifies the relationship and provides multiple opportunities tosell other lines of coverage. It allows us to ask for referrals andhave them serve as references (ambassadors, if done correctly) insupport of new client acquisition. Contact the top 10% once amonth, top 20% once per quarter, and the mid-range accounts atrenewal and mid-term. Assign the bottom 10% to 15% to agencies inyour community that are vendors looking to quote business. Feedthem what they think is their market and they'll be too busy tobother your best accounts!
• Cross selling budget and revenue target is amust. You need resources reserved to “grow what you have.”The average producer could double her revenues if only she soldevery product she had access to. You can tell the professionalsalesperson from the order taker by measuring the number of linesof business per account. If we are going to take the time tomaximize the sales opportunity, why not slow down and leverage itfor every dollar possible? Having a weekly, monthly, and annualbudget of the revenues generated from cross selling and trackingseparate from the new business number assures a focus on thissegment of the agency revenue lifeline.
• Become an expert. Pick two or three classes ofbusiness and become an expert in them. Identify mentors who canteach you their business. Build relationships and trust, which willgenerate referrals.
• Target market focus. By developing uniquevalue-added, in-depth knowledge of specific industries orsocioeconomic ranges, you're creating the holistic approach tomaximizing relationships, which drives you directly into thenatural and desired target market approach.

• Add talent! Because generations differ intheir decision making processes, you need generational talent thatcan relate to the various buyers. Young talent also brings themodern approach to technology, the use of social media, and theability to solicit a wide variety of buyers. Successful agenciesare diversified. You need the resources, budget, training acumen,and financial wherewithal to attract and retain new talent. Ourindustry is aging, but there are significant opportunities to bringin new talent. If you haven't considered it, maybe it's time tolook at strong organic driven new growth.
• Partner with a handful of carriers that fit yourmarketing strategy. The days of having the “wall oftrophies” from all those carriers is over. Production requirements,increasing demands from the agency plant, carriers buildingalternative distribution systems, and reduced commissions for thelower tier are all putting financial pressure on small independentagents. By partnering with a few carriers, focusing on theirappetite guides, and becoming efficient in writing the classes theywant, you'll accelerate the agency development and growth.
• Understand we are about to enter the fastestenvironmental change we have ever seen. If you haven'tread the McKinsey report on independent insurance agents, read it. Wehave seen this dynamic change in the business model of travelagents and real estate, and we are seeing the beginnings of it inthe independent agent model. There has never been a betteropportunity for the strong to get stronger and the willing to getbetter.