Independent agencies boast a long history and culture of beinghighly effective at sales. However, that competency isn't alwaysmatched in their marketing efforts or the agency-technologydecisions that are made.

To remain competitive, agencies must now do two things. One,they need to leverage the data they are already collecting viatheir agency management systems and turn them into newopportunities by using the right marketing software; and two, theyneed to take a hard look at the technology they're using—includingtheir agency portal, the hardware (and software) producers use, andthe tools that streamline the agency's processes.

Is your agency website a few years old? If so, it's probablytime for an upgrade. Do you have a mobile app? If so, what does itoffer? And are you using e-signatures? What is your marketingstrategy? These often-uncomfortable questions are among those thatmust be asked by agencies of varying size. The marketing-strategyquestion, in particular, is one that can no longer be ignored.