9 Habits of Highly Successful Key Account Managers

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Habit 4: Engage

The level of engagement with the customer is a measure of the strength of the key account relationship. But the way project and purchase decisions are made requires a new model of engagement by key account managers:

1. Earlier – getting involved earlier is essential for the key account manager who wants to influence the customer’s strategy, or requirements. However it goes against the trend where buying organizations are delaying talking to vendors. Those account managers who wait until the customer calls risk finding themselves in a competitive tender situation where the pressure is on price.

2. Higher – key account managers want to access and engage with those senior executives who have the power to shape budgets and priorities. They must be comfortable dealing at C Level (e.g. CTO and CFO). This is a challenge however, and access to senior executives is a privilege rather than a right.

3. Wider – engage with the cross-functional buying team and the multiplicity of stakeholders with diverse requirements and motivations. In particular the ‘new buyer’ in terms of procurement and finance.

4. Deeper – a meaningful engagement with customers is a key sales challenge. It requires collaborating with customers in the process of matching needs with the supplier’s solutions. This requires that the key account manager is seen as a trusted advisor, rather than ‘just another salesperson.’

The required level of engagement goes beyond email and telephone calls. Key account managers know that relationships are not built that way. It requires face to face contact too. But this is time intensive and presents challenges given the multiple locations often involved and constraints in terms of travel budgets.

So, let’s examine the 5th habit: Understand.