Want Technology to Work for You? Put Processes First.

Anything you incorporate into your organization – whether it’s new hires, marketing initiatives, or technology platforms – is only as good as the process behind it. We all understand the basic concept of that – but are we really doing it?

Some questions for you

How many hands would raise if I asked you these questions:

Have you ever spent your business budget on a technology platform claiming to have “everything,” but when you purchased it, you felt like you were sold a bag of goods?
Have you ever started a marketing initiative only to feel like it fell flat three months in?
Have you ever hired a sales rep, account manager, or administrator, thinking they were the PERFECT fit, and six months in (without any training), they don’t seem to be doing well?

Did you answer YES to any of the above questions? Then I’ll ask this question:

Did you have a thought out, documented process in place to ensure the success of your technology, marketing, or hiring initiatives?

The majority of the time, the answer to having a well-documented process is a resounding NO. As an employee benefits agency owner, you’ve got enough on your plate – let alone having the time to create a process that ensures something works correctly, right?! And this is where it’s easy to get sucked into the claim any one platform will “do it all for you”!

However, before purchasing a shiny new object, spending all of your budget on a one-size-fits-all marketing platform, or hiring a new person because you think it’ll save you time and money, I highly recommend taking time to think on it first.

Avoid making a knee-jerk decision about technology or a new hire when things get hectic, or you feel you’re behind the eight ball when it comes to getting things done.

Take some time to think

Take some time to think about the WHY and the WHAT: the WHY behind your feelings and the WHAT behind your clients’ experience. Outline the picture of how you want your agency or client experience to run. Then take a step back and see if the solutions you have in place (technology, marketing, etc.) are getting you where you’d like to be.

For instance, if you’re thinking about marketing automation, start by getting a clear picture of what you want automation to look like in each area. Here are some examples of what that could look like:

Sales: “I want to track all prospects, including pipelines, emails, activities, etc. and set tasks/reminders for myself to follow up. I’ll check this daily and have a firm grip on where I’m at in the sales process for each prospect. Additionally, I’ll be able to collect data for those leads that aren’t in the pipeline, but I’d like to keep in touch with.”

Service: “I want a central place for clients to submit requests; it will filter/notify my team, and then whoever it’s assigned to can manage that process to completion. The request goes through an automated system, then, once completed, is stored in my Agency Management System.”
Marketing: “I want my prospects segmented by job role (HR, C-Suite, Executive) and to be able to send them content that targets that role throughout the sales process. I’ll have a system that qualifies leads and notifies me when they are ready to be contacted. I’ll track this process to the point of completion then move them to my Agency Management System. Additionally, I’d like all of our clients to receive consistent email communication – maybe even have a consistent flow of automated content going to them throughout the year.”

Get a clear picture

Once you have that clear picture of your WHY and your WHAT, you can decide what technology pieces will do the job for you. Sometimes it’s one system, and sometimes it’s a few. You just have to determine which process goes with which kind of technology. It might sound daunting at first, but once you’ve taken the time to do it, your life will be so much easier!

Instead of running around like a chicken with your head cut off, find ways to be more effective, more proficient, and more productive by SLOWING DOWN and creating a process around what you WANT to have happen. THEN, determine what technology you need and whether or not you need a new hire.

You might think creating processes takes too much time and costs too much money. I’d be willing to bet you lose MORE money and time by NOT creating processes and investing in bad hires and unnecessary, unused technology.

Need help in creating a good plan? Check out our Annual Agency Planning Guide. 👇👇👇