Why do we need account managers anyway?

I was chatting to one of my clients yesterday about the benefits of introducing account management in their agency for the first time.

When you start an agency as a small, agile agency team it's manageable for everyone in the business to be responsible for client management.

As an agency grows and more clients are acquired, it becomes unsustainable.

Not because they can't.

They're often the expert practitioners who can talk most proficiently about their subject matter expertise with the client.

They can manage client requests, address client needs and solve client issues perfectly well.

But if you want client relationship longevity and hence account growth, delivering a good service on time and on budget and giving the client a great experience is only the beginning.

You need to be proactive as well as reactive.

You need to be looking ahead as well as delivering flawlessly now.

You need to continually delight and surprise the client with business relevant suggestions, ideas and insights.

But how do you stay business relevant?

• By understanding the client, their role, what success means for them, how they measure success (and are measured by their company)
• By staying close to their changing business needs, keeping on top of what their business is doing, how their market and competitors are changing and how their customers needs are evolving
• By being situationally aware of the environment they operate in and predicting what they could be doing next - or what they should avoid doing next
• By staying ahead of the trends in your area of expertise so you can be the first to bring them to the client proactively to help them capitalise on future opportunities and avoid potential future challenges
• By suggesting new, innovative ideas and useful insights beyond the current scope to help them make informed decisions not just right now but in the near future.

But who has time for that??

A well trained account management team unshackled from project management and set up for success.

In the absence of this, if everyone in the agency continues to do an excellent job of being reactive you'll probably retain your clients...... for a while.

But what happens when your competitor calls your client and asks them if they're aware of the imminent market changes that are about to happen and suggests some ideas for helping them navigate the situation?

Wouldn't they take the call? (I would)

Remember your client is on someone else's prospecting list.

Loyalty to your relationship is one thing but your client's survival (in their position/market/industry) is another.

We need to help them stay relevant and current to fortify your position.

If you don't have a dedicated account manager, please consider it.

And if your account managers aren't being proactive enough, check out the 'steps to success' in this chart.

My one year Account Accelerator [TM] training and coaching programme is designed to give those responsible for account growth the entrepreneurial skills to support the growth of your client accounts and your agency.

I’m enrolling for my March intake now - and places are limited.?DM me if you'd like to see if it could be the right fit for your account management team.