How To Become A Successful Key Account Manager?

A key account manager is a great asset to the company. Therefore, every company requires one to keep their firm steady and going. The basic job of a key account manager is to manage clients. So you have to ensure that you’re driven to be able to succeed in this field. Keeping a client happy and satisfied, and attached to your firm for the long run should be your motto. And this is what every company sought after. 

For this, you have to ensure that you don’t lose many clients and hold on to those you have. Growth is a very substantial factor for any firm. But the basis of growth is to keep on holding to what you already have. If a firm starts losing clients, that would be an indicator of its downfall. A key account manager has to focus on this arena and ensure that this doesn’t happen. The key account manager is responsible for all the clients that a firm loses and also all those he earns. 

What does a Key Account Manager do?

A key account manager has the role of making clients stay with the firm. And that should be done with profit. So, a key account manager aims at grabbing hold of the clients that a firm has and maximizing the profit return. Generally, the work of a key account manager is accessed using two terms. 

• Retention: Which refers to the number of clients that you’re keeping with the firm. Every manager aims at keeping this number high.
• Churn: The number of clients you lose. This number is expected to be less.

Now, as a key account manager, you have to look deeply into the clients’ requirements and assess how the firm can help them more. So, you have to focus on their requirements. Also, you can ensure that you reduce the margin of profit that they’re getting from the firm so that the firm can profit. Re-assess how you can make the most out of the products that you have and sell that to your clients. Tell them how you can help them more using some other products of the firm. The key motive is to get more business, by hook or by crook.

Key Account Manager Role 

The major role of the key account manager is to exceed the set targets by the firm and ensure good business for the company. For this, he might have to do a surplus than the required amount of meetings and calls with the client.  The basic motive for the key account manager should be to be able to communicate effectively. You have to talk to a client in such a way that he is persuaded by what you say. 

Additionally, you also have to communicate internally within your group to tell them the status of your conversations with the clients. Therefore, being able to communicate effectively is the heart and soul of this job. You have to be able to lead the conversation alone. Being a key account manager requires you to be in charge of the situation whether you’re in a group or alone. Also, you have to set achievable goals and reach them effectively. 

Skills to be a Key Account Manager

A key account manager needs to have many interpersonal skills. One of the most important skills that are expected of a key account manager is communicational skills. Key account manager job description describes effectively why communication is a must and has to be relied upon. Additionally, you have to be a hard worker. The clients are never easy to persuade and neither do they want to spend any money. Getting it out of their pockets is a big challenge and you should be up for it. 

To ensure that you’re skilled to be a key account manager, ensure that you look for business and can get business out of every place. Also, you need to be well equipped with technological tools to help you with your meetings. Negotiation is something that runs within the key account manager job description. Without good negotiation skills, you’ll not be able to do what you’re aiming at. A very important factor for you should be to understand sales and to understand how they work. To generate sales out of a situation, you should know what is feasible and what is not. Without knowledge in this matter, you’ll certainly make some very poor decisions. 

How to improve your chances?

Nobody is born a key account manager, everyone works to become one. But what can you do to fit into the key account manager role? Start training. Read books, hear podcasts, join courses. Do everything in your reach to know more about this side of the business and to explore your chances in it. 

By reading books of well-accomplished authors, you’ll be able to test the waters and understand what being a key account manager is about. Additionally, doing a course on the same will give you more insight about it and will enhance and develop the skills that are required for this job. Through this, you’ll be able to ensure that you get a thorough idea of what you’re going to become. You can also seek mentorship from someone who has been working in this field or who possesses the knowledge of this field.

Being a key account manager is all about the hustle with the client. If you’re in for it, then you can make a good career for yourself out of this. If you’re a person who connects with people quickly, this might be a great opportunity for you to try your skills out. With the required knowledge and practice, you can ensure that you become a great key account manager. It is not required for you to be on the field to get practice necessarily. You can also increase your exposure by going through some training or course lessons that revolve around this field. With that, the career of key account manager would be waiting for you.

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