You're an account manager with a pipeline to manage. What are the top-rated tools for making your job easier?

Utilizing a CRM properly(properly being the key word!) will allow you maintain a repeatable process. It eliminates guesswork and the potential to say “oh no, I owe that person a call!” A healthy CRM process looks like: *Properly timed tasks for next steps on ALL opportunities *Relied upon dashboards to monitor progress and weaknesses *Data to show that you or your team are lacking in tangible projects or overwhelmed by too many of them(yes, this is a real thing!) A CRM will provide the blueprint for your clients, your active projects, your historical data and your overall outlook. If you think a CRM is a time suck or bother to your day to day process, you’re doing it wrong!

I'm in the recruiting space and 1/2 of my team is located offshore. We have the business version of Grammarly, and it has been life-changing. Not only does it correct grammar and spelling, but it allows you to choose a tone and manipulate your writing with AI. I use ChatGPT daily to cut my meeting prep time in half, but Grammarly helps strengthen our overall writing skills. We get in-the-moment coaching and weekly analytics on common mistakes. When recruiting American candidates, we have seen an increase in our email acceptance rates from our offshore recruitment team. We also love the snippets feature, which allows you to save messages you commonly send out instead of going into a Google Doc to copy/ paste. Brilliant!

Account managers are expected to use Cloud based SAAS CRM software to manage his/her sales pipeline, manage his customer territory as well as get full visibility on the performance of the territory. The CRM software also helps provide insights to Account Managers on nudges to explore new upsell/ cross sell topics with the customer as well as give insights on whet to focus immediate efforts in closing a Sale and increasing performance. Account manages are expected to highly disciplined in the usage and with their customer interaction updates so as to help cross functional visibility to progress the deals to the next stage of the Sales cycle.

Pipeline visualization is paramount in my role as an account manager. Using CRM, I meticulously track and monitor client interactions, but for my top clients and critical information, I go beyond screens. I print details and display them on my whiteboard. Constantly visible while working, it ensures my top clients are top of mind. This visual reminder enhances focus, making it impossible to forget key details. It's a simple yet powerful technique, seamlessly integrating digital and tangible strategies for effective client management.

One thing I found helpful - Data Pipeline Visualization -Keboola: A data pipeline management tool suitable for both novice users and experienced data scientists. It is known for its scalability and efficiency in managing ETL/ELT pipelines. Visual Flow: An ETL/ELT data pipeline tool that provides intuitive drag-and-drop functionality for building and managing pipelines. It leverages the scalability and efficiency of Spark ETL for processing large volumes of data.

I have listed out some in my experience : The top-rated lead scoring tools for account managers include various software solutions such as EngageBay, Zoho CRM, Brevo, Mailchimp, HubSpot, Freshsales, Drift, LinkedIn Sales Navigator, Salesforce, Monday sales CRM, Marketo Engage, and Active Campaign.

Lead scoring tools like Leadfeeder, LeadIQ, and Lusha are indeed invaluable for an account manager. They streamline lead prioritization, ensuring time and resources are allocated efficiently. These tools enhance pipeline management by pinpointing high-potential leads, optimizing engagement strategies, and personalizing interactions. However, it's essential to complement these tools with robust CRM systems like Salesforce or HubSpot for comprehensive lead nurturing and conversion tracking. Ultimately, the fusion of lead scoring tools with a reliable CRM maximizes productivity and boosts sales effectiveness, making the account manager's job significantly more manageable.

In my opinion, effective tools for managing a sales pipeline include CRM systems like Salesforce or HubSpot, which provide comprehensive customer management features. Additionally, project management tools like Asana or Trello can help organize tasks and collaborations. Communication platforms such as Slack or Microsoft Teams facilitate team coordination. Moreover, analytics tools like Google Analytics or Mixpanel enable data-driven decision-making. Finally, email tracking tools such as Mailchimp or Mailtrack help monitor email engagement and optimize outreach strategies. Integrating these tools can streamline workflows and enhance productivity in managing a sales pipeline.

Calendar scheduling is absolutely crucial in my role as an account manager. With a multitude of clients and up to 10 daily meetings, an organized scheduling scheme is paramount. Calendly is my go-to, but mastering other avenues is an ongoing process. Balancing client meetings, CRM upkeep, lead generation, and handling unexpected issues demands a strategic approach. It's about finding the sweet spot, ensuring that every aspect of my responsibilities receives the attention it deserves, creating a rhythm that maximizes efficiency and client satisfaction.

Among the plethora of tools available, Calendly stands out as a top choice for account managers. Its user-friendly interface streamlines meeting scheduling, reducing the back-and-forth hassle. Integration with CRM software enhances workflow efficiency, while automated reminders ensure meetings are never missed. Doodle's collaborative features are commendable for team coordination, and Acuity Scheduling's customizable options cater well to diverse needs. However, Calendly's comprehensive features, seamless integration, and ease of use make it a standout tool for managing pipelines effectively.

One of the most overlooked tools in any situation is yourself. You can have every tool listed above at your disposal but if you do not have the discipline, consistency, and process to effectively utilize them you will never get the results you desire. Think about what you excel at, those tools are already in your personal toolbox. Now look outward, to those that excel and have tools you need to become more skilled with. Whether it be follow ups, information entry, initial outreach etc... Then learn from those who have tools in their box stronger than yours, and learn how to make them your own.

Understanding why you measure your pipeline in the first place and the metadata available from the metrics will provide insight the numbers themselves don't. Sales pipelines are a representation of future actions, decision making, manufacturing capacity and associated workloads. Success rate, pipeline value and growth metrics all show an increase in effort and luck. But the type of opportunities and generation rate show us if we are following our play to win strategies and being discerning or catchall

Make sure You have assessed the opportunities correctly and there is a fit between what you sell and the challenges of the buyers. Make sure you have proactive sales process to follow and facilitate the buyers process. Build a strong business case for every opportunity based on the value you can deliver