Most agencies have one of two challenges: they have too much or too little work. These challenges go to the core of being a good employer. Because you want to provide a stable basis for your team and your customers. Moreover, you want to aim for predictable turnover, so that you as an owner or management team know whether you will achieve your turnover targets for 2025. But without a clear plan it quickly feels like you are lagging behind. The key lies in a good balance between your sales funnel and capacity planning. Where do you start and how do you avoid the biggest pitfalls? I will explain that to you in this article.
Stop putting out fires
Every agency is familiar with the constant search for the right balance between workload, turnover and team capacity. Too much work causes stress, missed deadlines and dissatisfied employees and customers. Too little work leads to loss of turnover and dissatisfied employees. The cause is often a lack of overview; Without insight into your capacity and sales, you are mainly putting out fires and you lack control.
Do you recognize these pitfalls? Then it’s time to take back control and create a stable foundation for both your team and your customers.
- Intervening too late: you only notice that your schedule is no longer filled when it is already too late. This could mean that your team is out of work or that you have to make last-minute contacts with customers.
- No insight into your sales cycle: how long does it take on average to acquire a new customer? Without that insight, your planning can quickly go wrong, because you don’t know when to start recruiting customers.
- Plan too optimistically: it seems attractive to take on a lot of work. But if your team becomes overloaded, quality declines. Think of deadlines that you do not meet or assignments that are completed.
The winning combination: balance between sales and capacity
Predictable turnover starts with predictable work. It is important to find the right balance between sales and the capacity of your team. This starts with a good overview of your team capacity and a plan to fill gaps in time with new assignments. This way you keep the workload under control and you are able to plan ahead. You can achieve that balance with the following two steps.
Step 1: gain insight into your capacity planning
Start with your team. With clear capacity planning you know what is and is not possible. Do you have a clear productivity standard for every employee? Then use that as a basis. Make sure each team has enough work to meet their productivity standards. Put regular customers and retainers in your planning and look several weeks ahead. Are any holes visible? Then your next step is sales.
Step 2: provide sufficient sales opportunities
Recruit the right orders in time to fill gaps in your capacity planning. The fastest solutions can be found in your current customer base; they already know you and know the quality you deliver. At the same time, work on a strategy to acquire new customers.
- Existing customers: retaining customers is easier than acquiring new customers. Check with satisfied customers to see if follow-up orders are possible, such as starting a new campaign or help with their existing projects. You get the most security if you take out retainers or subscriptions. This way you make the assignments (and your income) even more plannable.
- Old customers: You have undoubtedly worked successfully with certain clients in the past. Re-establish these contacts and see if they can use your help again.
- New customers: create a sales strategy to acquire new customers. For example, consider the type of work and clients that match your objectives. Also map out how long it takes on average for someone to become a customer of yours, so that you can start on time to keep your work inventory up to date.
Best practices: gain control over your turnover and growth
Do you want predictable turnover and room for growth? Then overview and flexibility are indispensable. With a combination of planning ahead and responding intelligently to opportunities, you create peace in your team and satisfied customers. Let these best practices help you increase and maintain your control:
- Look 3-6 months ahead: agencies that plan ahead have more peace and structure. This prevents ad hoc work and ensures that your team is ready for new assignments on time. So check your capacity planning regularly and make sure you fill the gaps in time by collecting the network from existing and old customers.
- Use a dynamic overview: the schedule changes every day. Therefore, use a dynamic overview in which you broadly summarize your sales and capacity. This allows you to see at a glance whether you can still accept that new assignment, or whether you need to make adjustments to recruit additional assignments.
- Stay flexible by planning a maximum of 80%: always leave room for ad hoc requests and unexpected changes. For example, plan 80% of your capacity, so that you have room for emergency jobs, project overruns or internal matters.
And remember: capacity gaps are not always a problem, but also an opportunity. Fill the space with things that strengthen your team, such as additional assignments and new customers. Or use the free time to delve deeper into new trends – valuable knowledge that can help you with your customers later (when work picks up).
Make 2025 your year with predictable turnover
Good employment practices start with looking ahead. By aligning your sales strategy and capacity, you create peace in your team and ensure satisfied customers and room for growth. This is how you make 2025 a successful year – with a stable team and happy customers as a result.
Source: www.frankwatching.com
