Account manage your clients

Account manage your clients

Account Management has become a bit of a buzzword lately.  A lot of literature is being published on the subject, and new Account Management departments are formed in various companies.
However unless Account Management is done with care, caution and respect for the client, it can backfire, both internally and also with the client.  There are several challenges and Account managing requires a coordinated effort between the salespeople and the Account Managers. 

The most difficult part is allocating commissions and benefits from each account.  Naturally, salespeople want to move on, make more sales, and increase their commission.  How do you get them to spend more time with the client ?  How will the salesman be attentive and on call after a sales is made?  A salesperson, after he or she makes the sale, may not interested in the products or services come through, or when the payments will be made. That level of attention can be offered by the Account Manager.

In todays multi-national markets where a client may have premises across the globe,  it is an Account Manager's responsibility to communicate the necessary information between all departments, and all branches. In that way the sale and payment is safeguarded. For example products or services may be delivered in San Francisco for a company with its headquarters in Zurich. It is the Account Manager who makes sure that information reaches the appropriate department for payment.  An Account Manager informs all parties involved until all the products and services are delivered and paid for and makes sure that the “buy in” occurs at all levels and branches. 

Without that essential buy-in the following scenario is a frequent outcome.
A salesperson makes a sale in London directly to the CEO of a company and the marketing department.  The most important branch of this corporation is in Dubai, where there is a booming economy, but the Vice President in Dubai is not informed of this sale and is not involved in the process.  The sale and the project may not go through, because the VP is resisting, as he has not been invovled in the sales decision. The company  CEO doesn’t want to clash with the person responsible for the most profitable region and the sale is dropped.  It is the Account Manager's responsibility to forsee and avoid such losses by keeping in close contact with the client at all levels.

If applied correctly account management can generate substantial income from existing clients creating long term partnerships.  After all, long term partnerships build a steady income stream and create a good reputation in the marketplace.