Big News! YBM Agency Shortlisted for the 2026 Jay Chiat Awards

YBM Agency has been shortlisted for the Jay Chiat Awards 2026 in the AI Strategy category for "Building the Intelligence Layer for Local Business." The shortlisted work is based on our projects with East Coast Granite & Cabinet Connect and reflects a strategy that we have been developing for a long time.

Inside AI Transformation Strategy

East Coast Granite and Cabinet Connect are operating across more than 24 showroom locations. That created a complex environment where leads, sales activity, follow-up, reporting, and customer communication all needed to work together.

Our approach was to build an i-Sell Agent around these real operational problems. Instead of replacing the sales team, the system helped support faster response, better organization, and more consistent follow-up.

The system connected different parts of the customer journey, from marketing touchpoints to lead handling and appointment activity. It helped turn separate processes into a more unified workflow across all locations.

The project was built as a cross-platform strategy, not a single-tool experiment. Paid ads, organic visibility, reporting, CRM workflows, lead response, and follow-up all needed to work together.

The impact was measurable. Response time decreased from 48 hours to under 12 hours. Qualified leads increased from 416 to 2,000 per month network-wide. Lead-to-appointment rate grew from 3.4% to 13.8%, a 306% increase.

"The lesson is simple: growth becomes easier when marketing and sales are connected."

Local businesses do not need more disconnected tools. They need faster response, better lead visibility, clear reporting, and systems that reduce manual work.

Next Stop: New York City

The winners of the Jay Chiat Awards 2026 will be announced on October 5 in New York City. Reaching the shortlist is already an important achievement, and the final announcement will be the next major moment for our team.