What Is the Point of Recruiting Hundreds of Agents When Only 10–20% Ever Submit a Case?
Many agencies proudly announce their headcount.
200 agents.
300 agents.
500 agents.
But look closer. Only 10–20% are actually submitting cases. The rest are silent — until their names quietly disappear from the roster. This is not scale. This is leakage. And it is a symptom of a broken operating model.
Headcount Is Not Capacity
Recruiting more agents does not automatically create more output.
If:
- 80–90% never close a deal
- Progress is invisible
- Intervention happens too late
Then the agency is not growing. It is rolling the dice at scale. The industry has normalised this:
- Silence is tolerated
- Inactivity is ignored
- Failure is discovered only at resignation
By then, it is already too late.
The Real Failure: No Early-Stage Monitoring
Most agents do not fail suddenly. They fade.
Month 1: Confused
Month 2: Uncertain
Month 3: Discouraged
Month 4: Detached
Month 5: Gone
Yet many agencies only measure one thing: Did you submit a case?
If the answer is no, nothing happens — until the agent disappears. That is not management. That is abandonment.
What Should Be Measured Instead (Especially Early On)
Sales is a lagging indicator. By the time someone submits a case, the work has already been done weeks or months earlier.
What agencies should monitor — especially in the first 3–6 months — is leading indicators:
- How many listings were sourced
- How many calls were made
- How many appointments were attended
- How many follow-ups were completed
- How many viewings were conducted
These activities are controllable. Closings are not — especially early on.
If someone is doing the work but not closing yet, that is a coaching problem. If someone is doing nothing, that is a direction problem. Without data, both look the same.
Why Most Agencies Don't Do This
Because manual tracking is painful. Spreadsheets get ignored. WhatsApp updates are unreliable. Managers rely on memory and gut feel. So agencies default to the easiest metric:
Sales or nothing.
This creates two problems:
- Good effort gets punished
- Early failure goes unnoticed
Both drive attrition.
ACN Changes the Measurement Game Entirely
In an Agent Cooperation Network (ACN) model, contribution is no longer binary. Not everyone needs to close immediately. Agents can contribute through:
- Listing sourcing
- Lead generation
- Appointment setting
- Viewings
- Operations and coordination
With proper infrastructure, these contributions are automatically logged. The system creates a visible contribution score — not just a sales ranking. An agent who sources 10 listings but closes 0 deals is no longer invisible. They are valuable. And the system proves it. Instead of “sales or silence,” agents see:
- Where they rank
- How they contribute
- What they need to improve
This is not motivational talk. It is game mechanics applied to professional work. Agencies can now:
- Set achievable, role-appropriate KPIs
- Reward effort before results
- Identify who needs coaching — early
- Separate lack of skill from lack of effort
People are measured on progress, not just outcomes.
Reward Effort Before Results
If you only reward closings:
- New agents feel useless
- Seniors hoard opportunities
- Cooperation collapses
If you reward contribution:
- New agents stay engaged
- Skills develop faster
- Teams become functional
Points, credits, or internal recognition for:
- Listings brought in
- Calls completed
- Appointments attended
These are not “soft metrics”. They are the work. Sales is simply the final conversion.
The Uncomfortable Question Agency Owners Must Ask
If 80% of your agents are silent:
- Is the problem really them?
- Or is it the system you put them into?
A business model that depends on:
- Massive recruitment
- Minimal monitoring
- Late intervention
- Silent exits
Is not a talent model. It is an attrition model.
Rethinking the Agency Business Model
Yes, many agencies need to relook at how they operate. Not by:
- Recruiting faster
- Offering higher splits
- Lowering standards
But by:
- Monitoring progress monthly
- Setting staged, achievable KPIs
- Measuring effort, not just sales
- Building cooperation into the system
With proper architecture, small teams outperform large headcounts.
The Role of Infrastructure
This level of visibility, fairness, and cooperation is almost impossible to run manually. That is why agencies need infrastructure — not more motivation. Platforms like ListingMine already embed:
- Activity tracking
- Contribution scoring
- ACN-style cooperation
- Transparent performance dashboards
This allows agencies to build relevant, modern business models instead of relying on churn.
Final Reality
Recruiting hundreds of agents means nothing if only 10–20% ever submit a case. Silence is not laziness. It is often an unmeasured struggle. Agencies that win the next decade will not be the biggest recruiters. They will be the best operators — measuring progress early, rewarding contribution fairly, and building systems that turn effort into outcomes. Because growth is not about how many agents you recruit. It is about how many you actually develop.
