Previous BC7 encoders optimize for maximum quality and entirely ignore (more like externalize) the encoded data they output. Their encoded output is usually uncompressible noise to LZ coders.
It's easy to modify existing encoders to favor specific BC7 modes, p-bits, or partition patterns. You can also set some modes to always use specific p-bits, or disable the index flag/component rotation features, and/or quantize mode 6's endpoints more coarsely during encoding.
These changes result in less entropy in the output data, which indirectly increases LZ matches and boosts the effectiveness of entropy coding. More details here. You can't expect much from this method (I've seen 5-10% reductions in compressed output using Deflate), but it's basically "free" meaning it doesn't slow down encoding at all. It may even speed it up.
Quick test using the bc7enc_rdo tool:
Mode 1+6: 45.295 dB, 7.41 bits/texel (Deflate), .109 secs
Command: "bc7enc kodim23.png"
BC7 mode histogram:
1: 8736
6: 15840
6: 15840
Mode 1+6 reduced entropy mode: 43.479 RGB PSNR, 6.77 bits/texel (Deflate), .107 secs
Command: "bc7enc kodim23.png -e"
BC7 mode histogram:
1: 1970
6: 22606
Difference image (biased by 128,128,128) and grayscale histogram:
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