The First Three Things to Automate
Don't try to automate everything. Start with these three high-volume workflows. Get them working. Build trust. Then scale.
Most agencies try to automate everything at once. Lead routing, follow-ups, renewals, service tickets, referrals—all at the same time. Six months later, nothing works and the project is dead.
Here's the better way: start with three things. High volume. Simple. Easy to measure. Get them working. Let your team trust them. Then add more.
This guide covers the three workflows every agency should automate first—and why they work.
Why These Three?
High Volume
You do these tasks dozens of times per week. Automating them delivers immediate, measurable time savings.
Simple Rules
No complex decision trees. No edge cases that break everything. Straightforward if/then logic that actually works.
Fast Wins
Your team sees results in the first week. Not the first quarter. That builds trust in automation—and momentum to do more.
Lead Routing & Assignment
Stop manually forwarding leads. Route them automatically based on type, source, or producer availability.
What This Automates
- Assign leads to the right producer based on insurance type (auto, home, commercial)
- Route leads from specific sources (referrals go to Account Manager, web leads to Sales Team)
- Round-robin assignment when multiple producers handle the same type
- Send Slack/email notifications so producers know a lead came in
Time Saved
2-3 hrs/week
Based on 50 leads per week. No more manually checking each lead and forwarding it to the right person.
Implementation Time
1-2 hours
Map your routing logic, build the workflow, test with a few leads. Most agencies go live same day.
Pro Tip
Don't try to handle every edge case on day one. Start with your top 3 lead types (e.g., auto, home, commercial). Route those automatically. Everything else goes to a default queue. You can refine later.
Initial Lead Follow-Up Sequence
Stop relying on producers to remember to follow up. Automate the first 3-5 touchpoints.
What This Automates
- Send an immediate "We got your request" email within 5 minutes of form submission
- Schedule a follow-up text/email 24 hours later: "Still working on your quote, here's what we need..."
- Create a task reminder for the producer: "Follow up with [Name] - Day 3"
- Send a final "Are you still looking?" message on Day 7 if no response
Time Saved
4-5 hrs/week
Based on 50 leads per week. No more manually sending "we got your request" emails or remembering to follow up.
Implementation Time
2-3 hours
Write the message templates (in your voice!), set up the timing triggers, test the sequence end-to-end.
Pro Tip
Don't use generic templates. Capture your brand voice first, then write messages that sound like you—not a robot.
The Architect can generate this entire sequence in 4 minutes once it knows your voice.
Service Ticket Routing
Stop manually assigning every service request. Route them to the right CSR automatically.
What This Automates
- Assign tickets to the CSR who manages that client's account
- Route "urgent" keywords (accident, claim, cancellation) to priority queue
- Send an auto-reply: "We got your message, [CSR Name] will respond within X hours"
- Notify the assigned CSR via Slack/email so they don't miss it
Time Saved
3-4 hrs/week
Based on 100 service requests per week. No more manually reading each ticket and assigning it to the right person.
Implementation Time
1-2 hours
Map CSR assignments, set up routing rules, configure auto-replies. Test with a few sample tickets.
Pro Tip
Start simple: route by account assignment. That covers 80% of tickets. The "urgent" keyword routing can come later.
If you want to get fancy, AI agents can read tickets, determine urgency, and even draft responses. But routing alone is a big win.
Total Impact: These Three Workflows
That's 468 hours per year your team isn't spending on robot work. That's capacity to grow revenue without hiring.
What Comes After These Three?
Once these are working, you've built trust in automation. Your team sees that it actually works. Now you can layer in more complex workflows.
Quote Follow-Up Sequences
7-14 day sequences for leads stuck in "Quoted" stage. Reminder emails, text nudges, final "are you still interested?" messages.
Renewal Reminders
90/60/30-day renewal reminder sequences. Automated but personalized with client name, policy details, renewal date.
Pipeline Audits & Cleanup
Weekly automated scans for stalled deals, missing information, leads that haven't been contacted.The Board does this automatically.
The key: Don't try to build all of this at once. Layer it in. One workflow at a time. Prove it works before adding the next one.
Ready to Build These Three?
The Architect can generate all three workflows in about 15 minutes total. In your voice. Ready to import.
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