Top 10 Current Trends in the Field of Account Management
The advent of new technologies and a new work landscape (thanks Covid) in 2020 has brought many changes to the role of account manager. These are the top 10 trends that are happening in response.
1. Remote Work
Perhaps the biggest trend for any industry in 2020 is the shift to work from home. Covid-19 has placed greater emphasis on personalized video communication, including embedding video in emails to prospective clients. This allows account managers to stand out among the email inbox noise and prospects get to see your face for a more intimate human interaction creating a deeper connection and trust.
2. Continuing Education
New technologies and AI are being implemented everyday and account managers must be able to adapt to these changes. Software and processes require training and education in order to learn how to effectively and efficiently use them.
3. Execute KAM
Account managers must be able to allocate their time effectively to the accounts that generate the most revenue. These important accounts can be prioritized using the KAM strategy, allowing account managers to rank their clients based on a series of criteria in order to determine who they should focus on. Processes need to be adjusted for KAM versus non-KAM clients.
4. CRM Software
Thanks to CRM software, all client data is consolidated into one place. Account managers can use CRM to look at customer data for important insights on how to make client focused decisions, improve customer support and revenue growth, obtain greater data insights, track the customers life cycle to determine if they could be added to the KAM list and for upsell opportunities, and automate tasks such as sending out regular reports to clients.
5. Training Millennials
It’s hard to believe that Gen Z is entering into the work force already, which means that millennials are making the move into management positions. Specific training strategies aimed at millennials will ensure that they are ready for the responsibility of leading and managing.
6. Targeted Content for Lead Generation
Heavy competition and an increase in the number of people involved in decision making means that high quality, specific content must be created for potential clients. Clients want to see that account managers have done their homework and present in depth insights that are curated specifically for their unique problems.
7. Social Media for Lead Generation
In order to create targeted content for prospective clients, an account manager should utilize all avenues possible to collect data, including social media. By checking out a companies social media page, insights regarding engagement opportunities or company updates can be discovered all from postings. This can also work in the reverse fashion. Any brands that have interacted with your social media pages can be contacted for business dealings.
8. Hyper-Targeted Advertising
The digital age has increased advertising avenues beyond the traditional methods of TV and radio. Consumers can be more effectively targeted online, resulting in a shift to more focused advertisements. Account managers need to be confident in communicating to clients that targeted advertising can create a better ROI than the more traditional forms of advertising used in the past.
9. Cross-Channel Collaboration
Account managers need to understand how each service in their company works in order to communicate the value each process brings to the client. No client will be able to understand the technical terms or acronyms associated with every process, so the better the account manager works with each department to have a full understanding of what they do, the more informed and confident the client can be.
10. Maintaining Previous Client Relationships
Just as important as landing a new client and establishing business with them, is the follow up after the business has been completed. Checking in from time to time with previous clients to maintain a relationship keeps the door open for more work to be completed in the future and sets you apart from the competition.