Yes, Account Planning Can Help You Win More Often

Whether you call it account planning, strategic account management, account management, key account management, or strategic account planning, you know that to plan and strategize about how to maximize revenue from your customers is a worthwhile endeavor. When implemented effectively, it can deliver very sweet returns for both you and your customer.

Before you continue reading, think about these questions:

1. What % of your annual revenue comes from existing customers?
2. What is your win rate when selling to an existing customer compared with the win rate when selling to a new customer?
3. What is your average deal size when selling to an existing customer compared with the average deal size when selling to a new customer?
4. On average what % of your solution portfolio do you sell to each customer?
5. What is your average sales cycle when selling to an existing customer compared with the average sales cycle when selling to a new customer?

When you consider these questions, you will probably recognize that you get a considerable proportion of your business from your existing customers, and that this business is often easier to win, deal sizes are larger, and your sales cycle is shorter than when selling to new customers. And when reflecting on the fourth question, you possibly recognize that you are not selling as broadly or as deeply as maybe you could.

Win More Often

Account planning can help you to win more often. In fact your win rate in existing customers should be seven times greater than your win rate with new customers. Average deal sizes should be greater and sales cycles shorter. These are just some of the benefits we have seen other organizations achieve through effective account planning.

When you put the customer at the center of your planning through a structured account planning process you will also see non-competitive deals, better customer loyalty, increased understanding of the customer’s business, and better executive access, all leading to a sustained profitable relationship for you and your customer.

Your Account is a Marketplace

Account planning can help you to maximize the return you get in an existing key account or new strategic account. An account planning methodology can be your compass as you navigate your marketplace. Your mission is to build long-term business relationships in a complex marketplace that enable you to create, develop, pursue, and win business that delivers mutual value.

In order to create the long-term relationships that you need, you must be able to understand the complex marketplace that is the customer. Understanding the customer allows you to identify and create value for them, because you understand their needs and know how to address them. In turn, you create value for your company because you can identify, develop, and pursue new opportunities in the account long before your competition has any inkling of those opportunities.

Thinking of a customer account as a marketplace gives you reason to pause and think strategically about where in the marketplace you should focus.

• Are there market segments that are more attractive than others?
• Are there some that you should avoid?
• How will you know?

Looking at your account as a marketplace will encourage you to apply proven go-to-market principles to consider the market landscape, the total addressable market — the amount being spent by the customer with all suppliers in all areas that are applicable to all of your solutions — and to analyze the competitive landscape, uncovering incumbent players and emerging entrants.

Based on the market requirements — which are really the customer’s business needs — you can prioritize and focus your efforts and reflect on where your short-term and long-term focus should be. A structured account planning approach challenges you to reflect on go-to-market partners and how to market to the account, creating initial awareness that you can subsequently translate into interest in, and preference for, your company and its solutions.

Strategy + Methodology

The methodology behind account planning is an evolution of the sales skills you have used in the past. As you reach for greater account penetration, longer lasting relationships, higher levels of customer satisfaction, and a true partnership with your customers, a different approach is required. It will be an augmentation of solid opportunity management — but on a broader scale, combining research, marketing, business strategy, competitive analysis, and very targeted positioning to leverage your unique sustainable differential advantage as you seek to uncover opportunities that can deliver mutual value — value to you in tandem with value to your customer. As you participate in the race for greater revenue, Account planning is more a marathon than a sprint — but gets you over the line faster.

Account planning is a strategic imperative that goes beyond traditional selling tactics. The benefits that accrue go beyond simple revenue numbers, and point to an approach that must be focused not just on greater revenue as the sole arbiter of strategy. When account planning is executed well, customer satisfaction increases. Customers who are more satisfied buy more from you, and do so without calling your competitors first. Customers who are served well are easier to retain, and therefore it is easier to make your revenue targets year after year.

When you do account planning, you get to understand the customer’s business, you sit with them on their side of the table, and you strengthen your ability to shape their thinking and business strategies.

A happy customer is hostile territory for your competitors to enter. Switching suppliers is expensive for the customer and they will do so only if they feel you are not serving them well and fairly. Your ability to monitor, measure, and react is greater if you are closer to the heart of their business, understanding their corporate goals, and motivations. It takes investment, research and hard work, but this is the price of customer retention and growth.

The benefits of account planning are available to all companies. Maximizing revenue from your existing customers is the single most effective way to grow revenue.