They don’t just want a supplier; they want someone who understands their business well enough to add value to it and help it grow. We guarantee 100% privacy. You cannot rely on short-term solutions to get you through. Because of this, the traditional sales-buyer relationship simply will not work. A sales rep is typically responsible for prospecting to find new clients and meeting their sales quotas by converting prospects into buying customers. He’ll work with sales to respond to RFPs. The average customer and the strategically valuable customer have entirely different needs, expectations, and priorities. Use this easy communication guide to learn the RIGHT and WRONG ways to interact with each behavior style. This is a key difference between traditional B2B account management and customer success teams. Think of him as a go-between the sales and accounts departments. Account Manager Overview. Whether your business has a dedicated team of account managers or you’re relying on your sales reps to fulfill both roles, you should be sure your people have the skills necessary to build and maintain long-term relationships with key clients. On the surface, account management and sales have a similar set of goals: build strong relationships with clients and increase profitable revenue. With a normal sales approach, key customers are unlikely to view their account manager as more than a pencil pusher looking to boost their sales numbers. It’s a small distinction, but it matters in some important ways. Key sales accounts are the ones where the majority of revenue is generated from. The supervisor is someone who oversees the employees and regulates them to work assigned to them. Key account managers should visit or call their key customers regularly so they can tailor their services to them and be sure they are on track to achieving their goals. Some companies use both titles to describe the same job, according to O*Net OnLine. Unsubscribe at any time. Key Differences Between Supervisor and Manager. A key account manager looks after the entire relationship with the company’s most important clients. Account managers are the liaison between a business and its existing clients. The Differences Between Hiring a Sales Manager vs. Account managers keep customer service and customer success top of mind. We’ve highlighted the key differences between the two, with the intent of helping you understand elements of each, and how they work in tandem. Depending on the size of your company and sales force, the two roles may be combined. I am a world-renowned Growth Architect, Consultant, Author, and Keynote Speaker and have helped drive exponential growth across the entire customer lifecycle for more than 1000 companies worldwide I wrote the Customer Success book which you can buy at Amazon. by Eliot Burdett | Apr 26, 2012. Obviously the CSM is a post-sales role (although the boundary between customer success and sales isn’t always so clear), but I’m often asked where account managers (AMs) fit into the equation. If you need help growing your company or would like me to speak at your event, please contact me. It is a commitment and a promise to work for your customer, and this requires changes throughout your company, not just within your sales department. On the surface, account management and sales have a similar set of goals: build strong relationships with clients and increase profitable revenue. This means that you must establish and grow long-term relationships with your key accounts, usually by adding more value to the relationship you have with them. They want more service, more ideas, more understanding, and more results, for you and for themselves. While they share much of the same language and concepts, key accounts differ significantly from sales relationships. Account managers service and sell to many existing customers. ©2020 The Brooks Group. Client Management Software A strong sales representative will typically have a “hunter” mentality, and should have the skills to move a prospect through each stage of the sales process: The role of an account manager requires more of a “farmer” mentality. Key account managers know how to give their key customers and themselves high growth rates and returns over the long-term, instead of just the highest price. After a prospect has converted to a customer, the account manager focuses on nurturing the relationship and helping it grow to its full potential. Additionally, they become familiar with new sales opportunities through data … Key customers want a business partner. Security Statement And he’ll work with project teams to realize project delivery. Difference between Business ... One strategy is to partner at a key point your ... in the closing part of the sales process. How to go about building long lasting sales and key account management skills is the topic for another piece, but the fact remains: your team needs the skills to implement key account plans and implement them well. In the end, the line between key accounts and sales often ends up blurry, at best, account managers fail to become the strategic partners they aim to be, and key accounts continue to churn. Account managers are present in all sorts of businesses, from traditional manufacturing to the most modern industries. Account management training emphasizes the following skills needed to be successful: Both Account Management teams and Sales teams have the end goal of increasing revenue, but the paths they use to get there can be very different. By understanding the differences between key accounts and sales, you can begin to change the way you approach your key business relationships and start focusing your efforts on what matters most to them. Account executives and account managers have many similarities in terms of skill sets, educational backgrounds, and, at times, even daily responsibilities. Even if your sales team is responsible for strategic account management, it’s important to understand the different skills required so that both roles can be executed successfully. One other distinction that can be made is between the account manager and a key account manager. Acting as a partner in the success of a business’s operations places key account managers in an indispensable position. Boulder, CO 80302, Account Management Software She can drive sales managers who merely put out fires day to day to flourish as visionaries who can motivate their team and generate results for their sales organizations. 885 Arapahoe Avenue The Account Manager. By developing a keen understanding of their key customers’ goals, account managers can then work to develop a customer-centric approach that is designed to help them achieve those goals. They are the big ones, giving big (in terms of money and quantity) business. Most executives aren't able to differentiate between top salespeople and top account managers - and there is a huge difference! Both sales and account management are critical roles, but not every company will have a dedicated team of account managers. Account managers and sales representatives are members of a company’s sales team. Key Account Management (KAM) often gets lumped in with regular account management activities, but the truth is that the differences between the two are vast. This individual is responsible for developing relationships with clients to acquire new business and network with existing customers to retain their business. A project manager must do the following on a project-by-project basis: Ensure that project requirements are clearly understood by all involved; Set and communicate deadlines for key tasks, negotiating both with account managers about client needs and with creative staff about the time they need to do a thorough job Traditional sales customers only care about the transaction. Lisa Rose is a Group Vice President of Sales at The Brooks Group. (Learn the key differences between selling and strategic account management here: 5 Ways Strategic Account Management and Selling Are Different.) Listen to what Laura Lloyd, RVP of Sales… Site Map | Privacy Policy | Cookie Policy | Terms & Conditions, Get Free Sales Leadership Tips and Insight, IMPACT Selling for the Complex Marketplace, Brooks Talent Index Scientific Validation, Consulting & Professional Services Sales Training, Why Coaching Requires a Common Sales Language, Helping Sales Managers Become Sales Coaches, Gaining Early Buy-in from Your Sales Team, Strategic Account Management training program, Request Strategic Account Management Training Info Packet Now →, Build Your Brand: Five Ways to Improve the Impression You Leave with Buyers, The behavior tendencies and preferences for each of the 4 behavior styles in the DISC model, Ways you can improve communication with each style, Communication approaches that may potentially cause conflict with each style. Earnings. Account executive is more concern with executing day-to-day affairs and ensuring customer satisfaction of assign specific group of key clients. However, these two positions remain distinct. A client services manager is an account manager with a heavy sales orientation. As always, there will be some variation to what a specific job or role requires because every company’s environment and goals are unique. A key accounts manager oversees clients that have passed through the lead, prospect, proposal and first time customer stages to more of a partnership level for re-evaluating their growing needs and future expectations. meeting their sales quotas by converting prospects into buying customers The following are the major differences between supervisor and manager. Successful key account managers regularly plan business opportunities and strategies with their key customers. The Differences between Key Account Management and Traditional Sales Published on April 13, 2016 April 13, 2016 • 109 Likes • 7 Comments Download this helpful ebook on how to create powerful engagement plans for your key accounts or sign up for a demo of Kapta. Pre-Sale vs. Post-Sale The top producer on your team has been pushing for a promotion and you need a new sales manager. This can include project management, negotiation and strategic planning. Account management is a client-facing, post-sale role. works as assistant to account manager. However, while both account managers and sales representatives sell products and services, they differ in their responsibilities and relationships with customers and other members of the sales and marketing team. Learn More. All Rights Reserved. Sales vs. Account Management. Generally, a client will remain with one account manager throughout the duration of hiring the company. Some of the top responsibilities for the client services manager include: While every industry can benefit from customer success strat… Once the deal is won, the account manager continues to build a strategic relationship with the customer—ensuring they’re achieving the highest level of satisfaction and advising them on long-term growth strategies. Product managers and sales managers want the same thing — to make customers happy and to grow the business. Additionally, Customer Success Managers generally have responsibility for a larger number of customer relationships than traditional B2B account managers, but it varies widely based on the type of SaaS products they provide. Strategy: Narrow focus on creating and capturing specific opportunities: Broader focus on creating value for account over and above specific opportunities, often including value co-creation, customer satisfaction improvement, rigorous application of company resources, and operational and structural alignment with account direction and needs