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This white paper is cowritten by the editors of Selling Power, publishers of content for B2B sales leaders since 1981.
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Six Key Account Best Practices to Help Execute Your Sales Strategy | 3
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The SAM also needs to have credibility and the ability to marshal internal resources when necessary. Extensive technical expertise isnt necessary, but an aptitude to call in the right people at the right time is critical to a SAMs success in seizing opportunities that can further the relationship with the strategic account. The most successful SAMs are also skilled at relating to the needs of a wide range of individuals in the account and building consensus among them. These behaviors are quite different from a hunters; hunters often have an eat what you kill mentality. Tip: Study your best SAMs to better understand what makes them successful in their jobs. It is very helpful to use valid, reliable psychographic assessments, along with time and activity studies. Finally, accompany them on some calls to better understand the style and substance of their conversations with their clients.
3. Know the players inside the strategic account; build peer relationships.
Nothing will put a strategic account at greater risk than having only a single point of contact in the account or having a SAM own all of the relationships in the account. Building an account plan will help you identify all of the key players who influence the need or preference for your solution. LinkedIn is an amazing tool to help support this activity. If you are linked to your SAM and your SAM is linked to contacts in the account, you will have visibility into these contacts and the ability to connect with them. When people change jobs, they often update their LinkedIn profile quickly. If youre in their network, you and your SAM can manage the situation proactively. Tip: Its important to identify potential buyers and strong influencers early. One way to accomplish this is to establish executive sponsorship programs in which your senior executives build peer-to-peer relationships with executives in your strategic accounts. This muscle helps fortify the relationship and expedite decision making and protects you from changes in executive leadership or company strategy.
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4. Build dependency.
Ideally, you want to become part of the fabric of your strategic accounts organization in other words, you want them to be dependent on you. This dependence can be demonstrated in these ways: Operational dependence (e.g., channel partnerships) Technological dependence (e.g., Microsofts relationship with resellers) Business dependence (e.g., providing special terms or financing) Contractual dependence (e.g., asking for multiyear or automatically renewing contracts)
Tip: Sometimes, clients wont be 100% satisfied, or theyll hire new, key personnel wholl introduce new biases and preferences. If theyre dependent on you for their business, however, it will be difficult for them to sever ties without giving you a chance to make things right.
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Tip: Again, choose your SAM carefully based on core competencies. The SAM needs to be much more than a farmer. He or she needs to be a consultant, an educator, an advisor, and above all must possess strong business acumen. These skills can be developed, but many require specialized training and coaching to become truly authentic, confident, and effective in the role of a SAM.
Conclusion
It is easy to get distracted from the fundamentals necessary to execute your sales strategy. While there are an unlimited number of initiatives around people, process, and technology that can help you reach your goals, few will be as impactful as establishing key clients as strategic accounts and managing them well. Before you embark on your next strategic initiative or brainstorming session, ask yourself how much potential exists within your strategic accounts and what you need to do to protect and grow these assets. In the end strategic account programs will provide consistent, stable revenue that will help you sustain long-term growth and success for your company.
Richardson: Sales Training & Strategy Execution Richardson helps leaders prepare their organization to execute sales strategies and to achieve business objectives. We have the expertise and resources to help you scale your initiative quickly and confidently across your entire sales force and supporting functions. With you, we establish sales best practices, evaluate talent, build capability and consistency through world-class training, and sustain necessary change. We ensure your solution reflects your unique culture and values, which drives rapid adoption and lasting results. Learn more at www.richardson.com , or call us at 1-800-526-1650.
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