D on’t fall victim to the shiny object syndrome , which is what many owners do. Be patient, block out the noise, and involve your teammates in making the best decision. Tactical Tech By Chris Paradiso SIX AGENCY TECH TOOLS Making sure you have what you need in place to satisfy customers and grow your business M ost agency owners started off in the insur-ance industry as salespeople and most have had massive success at sales. Not only are they really good at selling, they understand insur-ance policies and love sitting down with prospects/ clients to educate. Most importantly, agency owners know how to build trust and grow long lasting rela-tionships and is why over time they have become an owner. The area most agency owners struggle with is technology—one of the most important ingredients in scaling your agency and helping your agency’s bottom line. Infrastructure is key My opinion is that the core of your agency runs off six pieces of technology. These six tools are critical to your success, whether you are a three-person shop or a 100-plus-person firm operating in multiple locations. These include: 1. Agency management system 2. Customer relationship management tool (CRM) 3. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) system 4. Net Promoter Score (using ClientCircle) 5. SentiMeter ® score from DONNA (an AI platform to identify unhappy clients and a platform that identifies other sales opportunities) 6. Agency mobile app We’ll explore these and see what you need to con-sider as you put each to use in your own operation. does not own your agency data. The second thing to understand is what else your management system connects with when it comes to other technology. To be useful, your management system must “play nice” with others, because it matters to the customer experience. Agency owners and team members should under-stand the ins and outs of an agency management system before purchase. Do your research, but most importantly, do not simply pick the management system that is the cheapest or the most expensive. Choose the one that you believe is going to suit your agency in 10 years. One major mistake I’ve made is that I have been on four different agency management systems over the past 20 years. I didn’t look ahead 10 years; I picked the system that worked for my agency that day, and that error has caused me many issues. Invest in making sure you are on the right sys-tem for your agency. Another major tech tool your agency needs is having the right CRM. For our agency, we wanted a CRM tool that was easy to use and that had integra-tion with our management system. The second most important thing we wanted in our CRM tool was the ability to have a sales cycle within it. Our agency knew exactly what we wanted out of our CRM; I would challenge you to sit down with your team and identify your CRM must-haves, and then go on the search for the right company. The basics The well-equipped agency starts with the right agency management system for your firm. One very important question is: Which management system 48 Newer add-ons Your VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) phone system is particularly important, especially if your agency employs virtual assistants or other people in other states. Every agency needs a good VoIP system. ROUGH NOTES
Rough Notes May 2024: Page 48
