Get your FREE 30-day trial.
Please complete all fields.
While working with a major corporation and their key account managers recently, I asked them this question: “What do you bring to your accounts that someone else from your company couldn’t do more effectively, efficiently or at a lower cost?”
You can imagine the look on their faces. Each one thought they personally were the key to the relationship at the accounts they sold to. I pushed them again on the question and you could see light bulbs turning on around the room.
These very successful key account managers suddenly began to realize that most of what they do could be done by someone else in their company or merely transmitted to the account via the Internet. Too many companies and far too many account managers are stuck using an old business model when it comes to account management. I like to compare it to the difference between checkers and chess.
Below are four critical steps each account manager must do now if they want to be successful and – more importantly – remain successful:
Account managers are quick to say they do this already, but few actually do it. What and who are your customer’s customers? What is motivating them to make their decisions? What options do they have? What will the customer base look like two years from now?
These are all questions that must be answered. The reason is simple: If your customer doesn’t have a market to sell to, then you don’t have a market to sell to.
It's key to have meaningful relationships that extend minimally two levels above and one level below the level you interface with regularly. One of the first questions I ask a key account manager is, “Who are the people two levels above and one level below your contact?”
Typically, they’re quick to name those above, but many times they have no clue as to who is below. That’s sad, because what they essentially don’t know is who might be the one to replace the person with whom they currently interact.
Worse yet is the account manager typically does not have a meaningful relationship with these people. The only thing they know about them is their name. The best insights into a major account are almost always going to come from people other than those the account manager interfaces with on a regular basis.
If there aren’t good relationships, then you have to ask yourself again the question I asked at the beginning. What value does the account manager bring that couldn’t be delivered by someone else?
I’m not talking about the things that might impact what you sell to them. I’m talking about the total company. I would expect every key account manager to already know the issues that may impact what they sell to the account.
I’m talking the big picture. Why? You might be selling aviation fuel and feel life is good, only to find the flight company you’re selling to is suddenly in a cash crunch to the leases on their aircraft. I’ve watched far too many account managers place the blame for a loss of business on something beyond their control.
Yes, it might be outside of their control, but with the proper knowledge and planning, they could have prevented the loss from being an issue. The same goes for being able to identify upside opportunities. Being on the front end of opportunities and working with the account to maximize them is an ideal position.
Yes, this is something you probably have not heard of, but I will argue it is often the most important factor. "Four-legged” is a term I use to describe two people. Simply put, it means the business does not rely solely on the account manager, but there is another person equally capable of dealing with the account.
This goes beyond the conventional human resources term “succession planning,” because I believe strongly both people need to be involved regularly. The reason to have two people is because they will uncover different information by developing different relationships. Yes, the second person is many times the account manager’s superior, which is fine, but it means they have to be intentional about carving out the time to spend with the account.
There you have it! These four critical steps to account management aren’t just about success in the today’s environment, but also success in tomorrow’s environment. Now back to my original question: “What do you bring to your accounts that someone else from your company couldn’t do more effectively, efficiently or at a lower cost?”
If there is something that can be done better by someone else, then make the change and make the change now. Allow the account manager to focus not on maintaining a routine, but on uncovering and building new opportunities.
About the author
Mark Hunter, “The Sales Hunter,” is author of High-Profit Selling: Win the Sale Without Compromising on Price. He is a sales expert who speaks to thousands each year on how to increase their sales profitability. He was named one of the Top 50 Influencers in Sales by Top Sales World. To receive a free weekly sales tip and read his Sales Motivation Blog, visit www.TheSalesHunter.com. You can also follow him on Twitter, on Facebook and on Linkedin.
