Retaining clients requires more than good reactive support and strong products. It requires proactive account management, anticipating client needs, and constantly strengthening the relationship.
But without the data and technological resources to support those goals, you can't offer the top-tier service needed to make key account management successful. In a recent report from McKinsey, they underlined the importance of software, saying that " A winning KAM strategy today requires a sophisticated and mature digital experience combined with the human touch where needed."
Learn more about the tools and platform capabilities you need to support your KAM team.
Data management is the process and workflows your organization uses to input, organize, and store data. Good data management practices make your data more secure while leaving it accessible and easy to use for authorized parties. This gives your organization the ability to find insights and identify sales opportunities in the data while minimizing your risk of data loss or theft.
Tools used in data management include a CRM, KAM software, the cloud or other server structures, and your cybersecurity tools.
Focusing on data management can resolve these weaknesses or barriers in your company:
It's important to look for key account management platforms that give you and your team members the flexibility to input and organize information from multiple sources. As a Director of Key Accounts, you also need to be able to generate reports, create holistic views that show trends across multiple accounts, and receive alerts when a key account's health is jeopardized.
If the platform is universally accessible, it can also help keep everyone informed in real-time and ensure everyone is operating from the same knowledge base.
Software integration is the ability of tools to speak to each other, share information, and trigger workflows so processes can be automated or streamlined.
Prioritizing integration ensures that your team has fewer manual, time-intensive processes to manage. It also allows your team to offer more robust solutions and relationships. Some of the specific pain points this capability can address include:
Integration capabilities are especially important for companies with a lot of data in their sales pipeline. A CRM is primarily used to organize leads and convert them into new business, while a KAM platform allows key account managers to strategize and build relationships with key accounts.
These two platforms need to speak to each other so KAM teams can identify opportunities early on and add them to their pool of accounts. Revenue teams that primarily rely on the CRM also benefit from this integration so work is properly divided and they can monitor overall account health.
When the two systems communicate, you also don't have to worry about accounts slipping through the cracks if they're on the periphery of key account status or the relationship changes over time.
Robust client management tools can also help maintain your organizational hierarchies. Licenses with different permissions grant different users the ability to view information, change information, and assign roles or tasks to team members.
Users all need universal access, but they also need managers and directors with the power to change the organizational structure, assign tasks, and break down potential communication barriers from the back end of the tool.
A strong organizational hierarchy addresses these two areas:
Some organizations still need to have fragmented teams, either because the organization is so large that change takes time or because the data regulations surrounding your specific industry are narrow and everyone has specific restrictions for managing client support.
Your client's organization may also have fragmented teams. By maintaining an org chart, you can ensure all communications go to the right client representative for a strong relationship and order fulfillment.
Org charts also play an important role in upswell opportunities. Your KAM team knows who to reach for approvals, who to work with to ensure a new order fulfills the client's needs and anyone else who should be involved in the process.
At Kapta, our KAM platform is built to integrate with your existing tools and give you complete control over your client data for fast communications and strong relationship management. Contact us today to learn more about our platform or browse our blog for KAM strategies and insights.