Companies have shifted their focus from high growth at any cost to customer retention and growth through cross-sells and upsells. In fact, 67% of businesses are skipping customer acquisition in favor of customer retention. This puts a lot of pressure on Key Account Managers (KAMs).
KAMs require specialized training given the complexity and value of what they do, but often only receive sales training and product training. Then they are left to learn account management skills on their own.
Account managers are the glue that binds your VIP clients to your business and ensures customers receive value by meeting their goals. This boosts retention and lifetime value. This is a tall order, especially now. That’s why it’s essential to support KAMs to ensure success.
Support for Key Account Managers
There are several forms of support that KAMs need to succeed including an engaged KAM team, a KAM process and technology, and KAM-specific training. Let’s look at these briefly:
Encourage Teamwork
Account managers can’t succeed without teamwork. Customer retention and growth is a team sport that doesn’t happen in isolation. KAMs need the support and participation of the entire organization to:
- Work strategically
- Effectively help customers see value by achieving their goals
- Become a trusted advisor to VIP accounts
- Boost account retention and advocacy
Support your account managers by encouraging and promoting teamwork in a customer-centric environment. When everyone on the team, including client services, technical support, sales, marketing, and product development, understands that they all play a part in the customer’s success, they’re more likely to actively participate.
This frees up the account manager to focus on what they do best while coordinating and communicating with the internal team on a day-to-day basis, as well as in routine internal account review meetings.
Leverage a KAM Process and Technology
The complexities of key account management can be overwhelming without a clear process in place. This leaves account managers wasting valuable time thinking about what’s next instead of simply moving on to the next well-defined step. Plus, not establishing a KAM process can lead to inconsistencies between account managers and across the organization.
Don’t leave this to chance. Make it easy for KAMs to know what to do and when by providing them with a well-defined path like our KAM Process™. This is a proven methodology for transforming customer relationships by knowing more, planning better, acting strategically and effectively to deliver value, and measuring progress.
This cyclical process keeps account managers on track and ensures they’re able to forge deeper, more trusted relationships with their accounts. It also increases rep productivity by eliminating hesitation to consider if they have forgotten anything or what should happen next.
Implementing a KAM process in the organization is one way to support account managers.
Then, adding KAM-specific software further boosts account manager productivity. It not only guides account managers through the pre-defined process and automates many mundane administrative tasks to free up time for strategic planning and customer engagement.
KAM-Specific Training
With so much at stake, why leave KAMs to figure out the best way to accomplish all the tasks involved in account management? Account management-specific training takes the guesswork out of being a successful account manager.
KAMGenius Plus is an immersive, interactive training program designed specifically for Account Managers. It is the best tool and form of support for account managers.
KAMGenius Plus creates world-class account managers who become an indispensable resource to their customers and build plans that blow out their yearly numbers.
Account managers who participate in the KAMGenius Plus live, small-group training:
- Create customers for life
- Become a customer champion
- Understand more about their customers than ever before
- Uncover hidden risks and opportunities within their accounts
- Drive deep engagement with existing customers
- Become the trusted partner that customers never want to leave
KAMGenius Plus is a comprehensive KAM certification course consisting of more than 30 videos and 5 live sessions. This training content is created by the world’s leading experts on customer engagement, key account management, and client service.
KAMGenius Plus includes:
Video Courses
Section 1: Course Introduction (2 videos)
What you’ll get out of this course, and why Key Account Management matters to you and your organization.
Section 2: The Fundamentals (2 videos)
Learn the basics of Key Account Management and how to overcome roadblocks to your success.
Section 3: KAM Tools (5 videos)
The videos in this section will highlight how to better use the tools you are probably already using, (Account plans, QBRS) and new tools to add to your repertoire.
Section 4: KAMGenius - Advanced Concepts (9 videos)
Take your KAM skills to the next level with a deeper understanding of customer dynamics and important tools.
Section 5: Brain Friendly Key Account Management with Ed Powers (7 videos)
Ed Powers will show you how to use brain science to identify and understand customer needs, get buy-in, advocate for change, and get the results you and your customers want.
Section 6: KAMCon Talks (7 videos)
Learn directly from expert talks from KAMCon events over the years.
Section 7: Additional Resources (2 videos)
Learn powerful tools and mindsets on how to reframe customer relationships and set yourself up for long-term success.
Examples of Live Training Course content includes:
(Each session is 60 minutes long and delivered via Zoom)
- Session 1: How to Thrive in a World Where Customer Expectations Have Changed
- Session 2: Customer Knowledge
- Session 3: The Power of Tracking Customer Goals
- Session 4: How to Use QBRs for Your Competitive Advantage
- Session 5: Creating Your KAM Success Strategy
Give or Get KAM Support Now
Whether you are a key account manager or want to support your KAM team, there is no better time to get started than now. With so much riding on KAM performance, it is time to build a customer-centric culture, develop a KAM process, and start using the right tools. Then build a firm foundation of KAM know-how to take the guesswork out of being an account manager to become the trusted advisor your customers truly desire.
Keep an eye out for our announcement of the next cohort of KAMGenius Plus key account management training.
