Strategic account development is a sales skill that separates good account managers from great account managers. Strategic account development focuses on developing strategic partnerships with clients that see benefits for both parties.
The ability to grow the existing account base strategically is critical to the success of many sales organisations, yet some overlook the importance of strategy in their overall account management approach.
Strategic account development gives you a deeper understanding
Strategic account development enables you to evaluate your competitive strengths and see yourself through the eyes of your customers, ultimately giving you a deeper understanding of their needs. This can give you an insight into other solutions you can provide for your customers without them initiating the search for a provider.
Through this deeper understanding, you can also analyse the organisational structure and internal pinch points to streamline your route to key decision-makers and influencers.
Strategic account development shortens the sales cycle
By strategically nurturing your existing accounts, you can turn what was once a transactional relationship into a strategic partnership and ultimately shorten the sales cycle to close deals faster and more efficiently.
Strategic account development builds strong relationships
Strategic account development enables the account manager to build strong enterprise-level relationships with their clients and develop deeper trust and understanding over time. These relationships can often be a crucial aspect of retaining and growing accounts over long periods.
Clients are more likely to buy more and/or stay with suppliers with whom they have existing positive relationships over a competitor.
Strategic account development reduces acquisition costs
Successful sales start with high-quality research which can often be the part of the sales process that takes the most time and effort (and expense).
With the bulk of the required research completed through your original sales cycle and the information you’ve gathered through your account management, you have less work to do to close the sale which in turn reduces your overall acquisition costs.
Strategic account development helps you prioritise resources
All account development is not equal. Not all clients have the same potential value to the business – which is where strategic account development can make all the difference to organisational success.
Strategic account development focuses on analysing existing accounts and identifying those with the greatest growth potential for your business. You can then use this information to prioritise your resources to make the best use of everyone’s time and work towards your long-term business objectives.
Think Selling Sales Training specialise in sales training designed to elevate everyone’s performance - from entry-level sales reps to high-level account managers.
Gain the critical sales skills and knowledge needed to turn account growth into predictable strategic account revenue development within your entire portfolio with our Strategic Account Development course. In this course, we also introduce attendees to our 360 account development methodology that helps sales teams and account managers systematically review and grow their accounts.
Register now or get in touch for more details.