Operations Improvement Archives

Advice for a New Agency Founder

Posted on February 17, 2023 by Jason Kanigan

"Any advice for a new agency founder?" This was a real question posted in a large agency group yesterday.

My Answer: Focus on REVENUE GENERATING ACTIVITIES.

Playing around with your website is not a revenue generating activity.

Fiddling with your offer is not a revenue generating activity.

Similarly, writing copy is not a revenue generating activity.

Cleaning the company bathroom is unquestionably not revenue generating activity. Yes, I have seen founders try to hide from their business by doing this.

However, getting conversations with qualified prospective clients is revenue generating activity.

new agency, open door, unlock new business, unlock new agency, open new business

Image by Photo Mix from Pixabay

Focused Advice for a New Agency Founder

Know and apply the difference between Pay Time and No Pay Time. As a result, do non-revenue generating activities in No Pay Time.

Also, do not believe that "being busy" is "being productive".

Set a specific money target and go for it. "Trying to make as much money as possible" is no target at all and dumb. Your subconscious needs a target. To survive, you need a money target. Those who don't set a specific money target (which you can achieve and then raise) tend to lose a little or a lot of money month after month until they have to go back to a j-o-b.

Therefore, set your money target for at least 2X of what you thought. You are responsible for EVERYTHING now. You can't go down to the company storeroom and pick up a pack of pens and a notebook. You have to pay for all that stuff now. You need more money than you think.

If you're not talking to at least two qualified prospects a day, you're bound for failure.

The Four Systems Every Agency Founder Needs To Be Concentrating On

Every business needs four systems:

Hardly anyone I've known over the past dozen years in the agency game thinks that way. They make things up as they go along. Then they end up with a sloppy set of processes and outcomes, and in fact are not even thinking of processes to make up systems at all. At that point they wonder why the business is slushy.

Be thinking every day about how you are accomplishing these four systems. How are you executing them, written in plain language first and then applying technology last? How can you improve them?

Advice for a New Agency Founder—What They Won't Tell You

Your business needs eyeballs (Traffic) and a way to turn some of those eyeballs into buyers (Conversion). Don't buy anything unless you understand EXACTLY where it fits in, in either generating Traffic or helping you with Conversion. Is there a hole in Traffic or a hole in Conversion that this thing can help you fill?

So many people buy a tech solution or other offer because the sales copy made it sound cool. They get things off Appsumo because "it's a deal". They have no idea where it fits into Traffic or Conversion, and therefore they never use it. I have watched people make this mistake again and again over 10+ years. Markedly, I have watched some specific people stay in the wrong mindset and remain broke for 10+ years. Don't be one of them.

Your job is to get at least two conversations with qualified prospects a day. "Qualified" means they admit they have a problem you can fix and want help fixing it; the size of the problem warrants your involvement; and they have a personality you can get along with. If you do this, you'll get 10 conversations a week. That's over 40 a month. Even if you suck as a salesperson, over a month you should land at least one client by accident. That's called a "laydown", someone who was waiting for someone like you to come along and wants to give you the money.

What New Agency Founders Need To Understand About Sales

A final mindset thing: There are without a doubt people out there who WANT to Give You The Money. They have money and they are desperately seeking Talent. "Please," they are praying, "send me someone COMPETENT who I can give this money to in exchange for them taking this Serious Problem off my hands." Understand, therefore, that they want this problem taken care of more than they want the money. Broke strugglers have an impossible time understanding this. Imprint it on your soul. Someone out there is desperate to give you money right now. You don't have to convince, force, or fool them into hiring you.

Print this out and tape it up in front of you in your work area. In addition, read it at the start of your day, the middle of your day, and the end of your day. Do not expect your mind and your memory to remember a darn thing on its own. For that reason you have to keep the instructions, the vision, the outcome you want right in front of you.

When I have not kept these principles in front of me over the past dozen plus years, I have forgotten them. That has led to trouble.

>> Jason Kanigan is a strategist who works with agency owners to increase the profitabilty and effectiveness of their organizations. Book a consultation with Jason here <<

Feedback Loops: The Bane of the Experienced

Posted on March 23, 2022 by Jason Kanigan

emotional roller coaster broken feedback loop

Feedback Loops are the #1 challenge killing businesses I've seen in over 25+ years professionally. From startups through $100MM multinationals, feedback loops are the Achilles Heel of every organization.

I have also noticed that the awareness of this issue is a clear indicator dividing newbies from experienced executives. If you want to progress, you'd best start looking for broken or missing feedback loops...and fixing them.

You’re going to encounter this problem at every stage as you grow. It is not going to go away. You are not going to magically resolve it.

Photo by Pixabay from Pexels

Discovering and Resolving Broken Feedback Loops Is A Never-Ending Challenge

As your organization grows to each different size and shape, the feedback loop issue will rear its ugly head again and again. What worked before will break and things will start falling through the cracks again. You'll feel like you're on an emotional roller coaster when a feedback loop issue is near.

Here are a few areas where broken feedback loops impact your business:

> Accurate data needed to make decisions based upon

> Client updates and communication

> Information exchange ** between departments of your own business **

> Communication lines breaking

> Spreadsheets not getting updated in a timely manner

> Projects not updated or followed up on⏤the ball will NOT be moved down the field

> Individuals becoming sulky or afraid or overprotective of their interests or silo-izing and withholding information from other people inside and outside of your organization (it happened between the CIA and FBI pre-9-11 and they’re supposedly on the same darn side…think you’re immune?).

All this and worse will happen as you strain to grow. Do you recognize any of these symptoms?

This Is A People Problem, Not A Technical Problem

And I caution you now: what you think is a Technical problem is actually a People problem. It’s no accident the very first episode of my show is about this issue: You have a People problem, not a Technical problem.

Be ever watchful for the feedback loop problem.

When information is not accurate or available when you need it⏤you have a broken feedback loop.

When people are withdrawing from conversation and not sharing the truth with you⏤you have a feedback loop problem.

When the processes and systems you put in place are demonstrably not being followed⏤you have feedback loop issues.

Again, these are the bane of organizations tiny and massive, from little startups through large multinationals. I’ve seen and operated inside of all kinds, and there they are: the broken feedback loops again.

These issues will not fix themselves.

You must resolve them. They are the #1 problem you can solve in your business, because they lead to swift, accurate communication; fast decisions; good client relations; happy interpersonal culture in your business; and more multiplicative results. There is nothing more important once you are driving revenue that you could be working on than fixing broken feedback loops.

This is an epidemic to be identified and stamped out.

And you must take personal responsibility. Your COO, when you have one, should also be taking personal responsibility in doing so. And so on, embedded into your culture. If people are afraid to speak up, you’ve created that broken feedback loop and I implore you handle that killer problem right now.

What evidence have you seen of missing or broken feedback loops in your organization?

>> Want to explore where and how broken feedback loops are damaging your organization, its performance, and your client and partner relationships? Book a call with Jason to discuss. <<

Salesperson Success: A Clear Picture of What It Looks Like

Posted on March 29, 2021 by Jason Kanigan

Salesperson success provided as a clear picture to sales staff is what’s missing in most organizations. What the poor salesperson normally gets is this:

No targets
No coaching
No managerial involvement
No feedback loop
Just a “Here’s your desk, your phone, your computer, the product manuals and the price list… off you go!”

I’ve seen it for over 20 years.

A salesperson is not like a cactus—you can’t simply put them in a corner, feed them leads like water from time to time, and expect them to succeed.

However, as a salesperson it will be most helpful for you to understand you’re running a mini business-within-a-business. You have the same issues as any founder, and you need the same systems working for you.

cactus without leads picture of salesperson success

Photo by Taryn Elliott from Pexels

The Systems of Salesperson Success

The place for you to begin is developing a revenue target.

Whether you know it or not, even if you’re on straight salary, you have a money target. This target must be met every month and it well exceeds what you are paid. Even if your employer hasn’t really thought about it...which is dangerous. And if you have a commission portion of your income, this is even more important.

Thus, to have a chance to achieve and exceed this target, you need to know your numbers.

You also need to be supported by the same four systems every business needs.

The first system is lead generation.

The second system is qualification.

The third system is conversion.

And the fourth system is fulfillment.

As a salesperson, just like a founder because you’re running your own mini business-within-a-business, you need to pay attention to these four systems.

The Four Systems Salespeople Need To Handle

Consider: how many leads need to come into your view so that you have a chance of success... which means hitting your revenue target?

Do you know?

Does the company provide you with that number of leads?

Or is it insufficient flow, and you need to figure out a way to drive leads on your own? (This is not such a bad situation as it may seem, since at least one other key system is taken care of for you: fulfillment. As long as the capacity is available and your employer is competent, you do not have to worry about delivery of the result your offer promises. This is a great relief and one reason to not start your own business.)

Is it clear how to separate those people the organization would prefer as customers from those who they would rather not get into a relationship with?

Is the process of turning some qualified prospects into buyers written down and understood? Is it put into practice the way it is documented?

And can you trust that the orders you take will be delivered upon in a high quality and timely manner? (As an example, I once took an order in the construction industry based on a specific delivery date requirement. I had gone to the production manager and asked to ensure this date was possible. Weeks later when the date came and went, I was the one who received the angry blast from the disappointed customer who was now badly delayed by our failure. The production manager shrugged when confronted. I quit soon afterwards as I could no longer trust their fulfillment system.)

Clarity On The Picture Is Key for Winning As a Salesperson

Getting clarity on and belief in these four systems is critical to your picture of salesperson success. You will hold this picture up as the standard by which to guide your actions.

Don’t have enough leads coming in from the company to hit your revenue target? Now you know you need to do something to get them.

Unsure how to qualify good prospects from bad? Now you know you need to do some information interviews inside your company to find out.

Struggling with converting qualified prospects into customers? Now you know you need some sales training and coaching.

Taking orders without being certain your employer can fulfill them in a timely and high quality fashion? Better get that taken care of.

Imagine the sense of personal power you’ll have when you absolutely know these four systems are handled. Every month, right on schedule, the right number of leads enters your funnel. You or your automated system (hint) filters them so the majority of your effort—remember the 80/20 Rule—goes into speaking with qualified prospects and converting some into buyers. You do this in full confidence and harmony with the fulfillment departments of your employer, who you trust to deliver a great experience and outcome for the buyer.

This is the picture of what salesperson success looks like, and the four systems that combined are the engine to support it.

>> Click here to book a consultation with Jason Kanigan <<