Key or strategic accounts are your most important clients. Not only are they your most important clients, they are also the ones at most risk of attack from your competition. If they are important to you then they will certainly be attractive to your competitors. Therefore, managing and developing key accounts is an essential skill if we want to stay ahead of the competition!

The day to day activities of your second-tier accounts can often distract you from looking after your most valued clients.

Key Account Management (KAM) cannot be left to chance or the potential consequences could be disastrous. Developing strategic account management techniques and key account managers should therefore be a priority in ensuring you not only protect existing clients from competition but more significantly build long and sustainable relationships resulting in excellent customer retention, improved sales, increased margins and ongoing customer loyalty.

Understanding and practicing key account management principles is essential for the long-term viability of any organization operating in today’s dynamic, fast-moving and competitive environment. Equally important is the identification and strategic implementation of KAM principles in targeted accounts.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this course, you will be able to:

• Identify the success factors for key account strategic selling.
• Build relationships with key stakeholders.
• Plan and implement targeted key account business plans.
• Identify your personal interaction style; assess your preferred style,
• Behaviours of key decision makers and officers on your accounts and adapt your style to meet their buying style and process.
• Recognise the importance of creating a multi-level contact approach with your target Key Accounts.
• Understand how to maximize potential business opportunities.
• Realise the importance of developing the customer relationship towards a partnership basis - and managing it as such.

Module 1: Understanding Key Account Management

• Defining Key Accounts and Key Account Management
• Understanding Roles and Responsibilities of Key Account Managers

Module 2: Developing a Key Account Strategy

• Evaluating the potential of each account
• Buying cycles and their impact on your sales strategy

Module 3: Profiling Key Account

• Personal and Technical Factors
• What is more important; Size vs. Potential?
• What is an ideal customer?

Module 4: Understanding the client’s business requirements

• Customer business environmental analysis
• Researching client information

SWOT and Pestle (client and us)

• Assess Client Culture
• Key financials and market drivers

Module 5: Managing Key Account Relationships

• Understanding the organizational structure of your account
• Influencing and negotiating with multiple contacts
• Identifying cross selling opportunities
• Productive meetings and how to achieve them

Module 6: Analysis of how the account positions us as a supplier