B2B Revenue and the (Ir)relevance of the Funnel
Originally published in Forbes Business Development Council Traditionally, one of the core concepts of sales and marketing is the sales funnel through which companies are supposed to move prospects from awareness through consideration to engagement, and finally to purchase. Here are three examples where this breaks How does funnel make sense if 67% of the sales cycle is completed on digital channels before contacting the company? Opportunities from existing customers in the case of cross-sell & upsell start at the bottom of the funnel. In case of ‘booked’ revenue, typical opportunities don’t get created most of the time, so funnel is not even in the picture here. Is the B2B Sales Funnel relevant anymore? One of the main issues with the sales funnel, especially in the B2B industry, is that the customer journey is no longer linear. Prospects no longer enter at just the top of the funnel. Customers come in at any stage and often jump stages or move back & forth between them. Since customer acquisition has changed within the B2B sphere, the sales funnel is a bit outdated. What happens in a conventional sales funnel? Marketing generates a bunch of leads and passes the qualified ones to sales who then attempt to win the deals. Several B2B companies offer not only many solutions, but solutions that involve long-term engagements with their customers. For such organizations, winning the deal is only the beginning. In certain cases, Key Accounts are further identified which are given additional attention. In order to bypass the inconsistencies that the ‘sales funnel’ approach brings, a shift in perspective might be necessary. What if B2B sales and marketing are seen from the perspective of distinct revenue streams? The 4 streams of revenue for a B2B Company There are four primary sources of revenue for any B2B company. New revenue – Opportunities from new customers Renewal revenue – Renewal opportunities from existing customers Booked revenue – Revenue contribution from existing contracts for a multi-year engagement. This is different from renewal revenue in the sense that product/services have to be delivered to realize the revenue. Opportunities rarely get created in the CRM for this stream of revenue. Cross-sell/ Upsell revenue – Cross-sell and Upsell opportunities from existing customers. The approach to each of these revenue streams is different. Depending on which of the four sources contribute to the most revenue in your organization, the approach changes. The major revenue streams will determine the sales and marketing strategy, and corresponding sales and marketing tech stacks. Which revenue stream is dominant in your industry? Industries/ Revenue Streams New Revenue Renewal Revenue Booked Revenue Cross/Up Sell Revenue Mid to Large Business Services 5-10% 5-10% 60-70% 10-20% Mid to Large B2B SaaS companies 15-25% 65-70% 5-10% 15-25% Mid to Large Manufacturing/Industrial 20-30% 5-10% 60-70% 10-20% Small companies / Early stage solutions 30-50% 30-50% 10-20% 10-20% Depending on the industry and size of an organization, its dominant revenue stream varies. For Mid to Large Business Services such as IT, Professional, Staffing, Marketing, Outsourcing, the dominant source of revenue is ‘Booked Revenue’ For Mid to Large B2B SaaS companies, ‘Renewal Revenue’ should be prioritized For Mid to Large Manufacturing/Industrial, ‘Booked Revenue’ is the most dominant source For Small companies – Early stage, commoditized or undifferentiated products/solutions- ‘New Revenue’ and ‘Booked Revenue’ dominate revenue streams. A point to note in all these different types of industries, cross-selling and upselling are often the second leading source of revenue. This stream is also the biggest contributor for the account growth. Revenue streams should shape your sales and marketing approaches. Depending on which revenue stream is most dominant in the industry, the sales and marketing approaches should change. Each type of revenue stream requires different teams and different aspects of sales and marketing to be prioritized. This does not mean that there is no overlap between the sources of revenue or the sales and marketing approaches they require. However, it does imply that optimizing and streamlining them can help your ROI. Winning the CFOs approval: How to Present RoI of a Key Account Management Software What should companies seek in a revenue platform? An ideal revenue platform enables a business to efficiently and effectively manage its revenue streams. Such a platform should have several key features that make it the go-to solution for businesses looking to optimize their revenue streams. 1. New Revenue Platform If you are looking to increase revenue from ‘New Revenue’ sources, it’s necessary to have a specialized tool that can help convert more deals by finding more leads with the aid of prospecting tools. Sales Tools for New Revenue A perfect sales tool for optimizing new revenue streams should ideally have Sales automation for repetitive tasks Visual sales pipeline management to track deals, manage sales stages, and monitor progress. Customer relationship management with a centralized database Sales forecasting with insights for revenue forecasting and trend analysis. Gong is a great example of this – it uses AI to analyze sales conversations and give you data-driven advice on how to close deals faster. Such a platform captures and analyzes data from customer interactions to help sales teams make data-driven decisions. In case of large deal sizes, a platform like DemandFarm’s Opportunity Planner makes large deal management easier. Such a platform provides a systematic and collaborative approach to planning and closing large, complex enterprise deals. This is done by integrating proven sales methodologies with strong stakeholder management to enable faster deal closures. Marketing Tools for New Revenue A perfect marketing tool for optimizing new revenue streams should have features including: Lead generation capabilities through various channels Marketing automation for repetitive tasks Customer segmentation to create targeted campaigns Analytics and reporting to track campaign performance, analyze trends, and identify opportunities for optimization. A tool such as HubSpot is an all-in-one marketing, sales, and customer service platform that helps businesses to grow and manage their customer relationships. Such a marketing tool enables businesses to create and track
The Ultimate Guide to Global Account Management: Framework, Strategies, and Best Practices
In the competitive landscape of international business, there was a company called WorldWideTech. With a strong presence in several countries worldwide, WorldWideTech had made a name for itself as a leading provider of cutting-edge technology solutions. As the company expanded its operations, it had high hopes for continued growth in the global market. However, the path to success was proving to be more challenging than anticipated. The management team quickly realized that they were facing a number of obstacles in their quest for global presence. Among the challenges was gaining visibility into various aspects of their strategic accounts, leveraging best practices from different teams, and institutionalizing processes and systems to ensure smooth operations across their international offices. The situation was beginning to look dire, and the company’s leaders knew that they needed a solution – and fast! This is where Global Account Management (GAM) comes into play. This approach offered a comprehensive framework that would help WorldWideTech tackle its challenges head-on and achieve its growth objectives. Intrigued by the potential benefits, the company’s management team decided to give GAM a try. By adopting a strategic approach, they hoped WorldWideTech would be able to build stronger customer relationships, increase sales, and ultimately strengthen their business. With a clear understanding of their global accounts and customized strategies tailored to each market, they would be able to overcome the challenges of cultural differences and local business practices. This Ultimate Guide to Global Account Management helps with exactly that! It provides the tools and knowledge to take Global Account Management to the next level and unlock your business’s full potential. Read Now: 4 Ways To Optimize Your Global Key Account Management Understanding Global Account Management Embarking on the Global Account Management journey may seem a bit daunting at first! But here’s a breakdown of what it includes, the importance it holds for businesses and an overview of a comprehensive Global Account Management framework. What is Global Account Management? Global Account Management (GAM) is a strategic approach to managing and nurturing relationships with key customers across multiple international markets. It includes the alignment of sales, marketing and customer service efforts to deliver a consistent, tailored experience to global clients. GAM aims to optimize the value generated from these key accounts, fostering long-term partnerships and maximizing profitability by understanding the unique needs of each market and customer. Importance of Global Account Management for Businesses It is crucial for businesses looking to expand into international markets to implement Global Account Management. Here are some reasons why: Sales growth: By nurturing relationships with key global accounts, businesses can capitalize on upselling and cross-selling opportunities, driving revenue growth. Customer retention: Strong account management practices result in improved customer satisfaction, leading to higher customer retention rates and reduced churn. Competitive advantage: Effective GAM strategies allow businesses to anticipate customer needs, stay ahead of market trends, and differentiate themselves from competitors. Streamlined operations: GAM encourages cross-functional collaboration, ensuring that various teams within the organization are working towards common goals. This leads to more efficient operations. Risk mitigation: By understanding the unique needs and preferences of each global market, businesses can better navigate cultural differences and local regulations, mitigating potential risks. Overview of Global Account Management Framework An effective Global Account Management framework is composed of several key components. When these are executed together it results in business success in international markets: Account segmentation: Identify and prioritize key accounts based on criteria like revenue potential, strategic importance and growth opportunities. Account planning: Develop customized plans that outline objectives, strategies, and account items tailored to the unique needs and preferences of each global account. Cross-functional collaboration: Encourage collaboration between sales, marketing, customer service and other departments to ensure excellence in customer experience. Global Account Management Performance metrics: Establish clear metrics to measure the success of your GAM strategies viz. customer satisfaction, revenue growth and customer retention. Cultural adaptation: Train your global account teams to understand cultural differences, navigate language barriers, and be respectful of local business practices. This helps build stronger relationships with international clients. Continuous improvement: Regularly review and adjust your GAM strategies based on performance metrics, feedback and market changes to ensure continued success. Let’s take a look at some important aspects of the Global Account Management framework to ensure that your business thrives in the global arena. Key Components of Global Account Management Framework A strong framework will better help you navigate the world of Global Account Management. This framework serves as the backbone of your international success. It will also help you navigate the many complexities of managing global accounts. Identifying and segmenting global accounts Before diving in headfirst, it’s crucial to identify and segment your global accounts. This process involves recognizing key customers. These are customers that not only show the most potential for revenue and growth but also have strategic importance. By prioritizing these accounts you’ll have a better understanding of how to allocate resources. You can also tailor your approach to each client’s unique needs, ensuring maximum return on investment. Developing account strategies and objectives After your key accounts are identified, you will need to develop customized strategies and objectives for each. This involves understanding the specific needs, preferences and expectations of each global account. Once you have this clarity, craft account plans – outlining objectives, tactics and action items customized to each customer’s requirements. This personalized approach will strengthen customer relationships and enhance customer satisfaction and loyalty. Establishing cross-functional collaboration and communication The success of your Global Account Management efforts relies on cross-functional collaboration and communication, this means ease of information sharing between the various teams involved in managing global accounts. Having regular touchpoints, sharing progress, and discussing challenges ensure that all departments have a clear understanding of what’s going on. They can, therefore, work together to ensure that your global clients always receive the best experience. Measuring and tracking performance metrics Clear performance metrics need to be defined to ensure that your Global Account Management strategies are delivering the desired results. Identify key
Connected Apps Ecosystem in Digital Account Management
A connected apps ecosystem in key account management involves the integration of your digital key account planning tool with other tools in your sales tech and marketing tech stack. This includes contact discovery tools, sales intelligence or conversational intelligence tools, marketing automation tools, customer success tools and revenue intelligence tools. Role of a connected apps ecosystem in digital key account planning A connected app ecosystem is critical to leverage every possible data point from the existing tech ecosystem to provide data-driven digital selling ability to sellers. When a lot of tools are used to keep track of your accounts, you will often operate in silos within your ecosystem. This leads to an increased chance of missed opportunities and ignored red flags, buyer intent to action and strategy. In turn, this affects customer retention and growth. How does sales enablement currently manage this data? Sales enablement teams are often spending hours of their valuable time collating data and processing it further for reporting. Making sense of this data and feeding it to the users on a periodic basis is time-consuming. Over time, the sales tech and marketing tech landscape for most B2B organizations becomes crowded. For a salesperson, each of these apps delivers value – sales intelligence tools, sales forecasting tools, customer success tools, marketing automation tools, Account-Based Marketing tools, and lead generation tools. Companies today have dozens of SaaS apps to solve many point problems in every department. As technological solutions become more easily accessible, the number of apps being utilized will only increase. How do you keep track of all of this data? Does it become overwhelming for the sales team? Check out DemandFarm’s free, on-demand Masterclass on ‘Making Account Plans Actionable, Measurable and Sustainable’ now! Challenges encountered with heavy sales tech stacks There are five main challenges that arise with heavy tech stack. They are, Non-optimal ROI from tools No Cross-Pollination of data No visibility into Risks and Customer Sentiment in the right context Excess time spent on maintenance App Fatigue from using too many tools Most of the sales tech and marketing tech apps will have data at an organizational and enterprise-wide level. For any user to extract the maximum value out of all, they would need to log into each of these apps individually. This can not only be a highly laborious task but also leads to data silos, productivity loss and what is commonly called ‘App Fatigue’. For any sales organization to make complete sense of the data generated by each of these disparate apps, it is important that they not only talk to each other but are also able to deliver contextual value at the right time for a sales or marketing person to maximize impact. If these data sources are contextualized to strategic accounts then key account managers gain better insights. Optimizing a connected apps ecosystem with your digital account planning tool A single place for Account Intelligence can serve as a perfect place to plug in critical data points in the right context of Account Planning. Integrating your Account Planning solution with other sales tech to enrich the data quality and plan your account strategy can lead to better results both in the short term and long term. When bringing all of these data together, additional value can be found in the form of actionable insights that can be extracted from these data silos. 1. Integration with contact discovery tools: The benefit of integrating with Contact Discovery Tools is to get auto-populated data within your account planning tool rather than having to build it from scratch each time. 2. Integration with sales intelligence and conversational intelligence tools: This will enrich the existing data of your key accounts. Such an integration would enable gathering intel from calls and surfacing it in various parts of your digital account planning tool for further analysis to help strategize and grow your key accounts. Accurate B2B buyer intent data allows you to identify exactly if and when a B2B prospect is actively considering, or looking to purchase your product or solution. This enables informed and timely campaign decisions for your sales and marketing team. 3. Integration with Marketing Automation tools: By integrating marketing automation tools with your digital account planning tool, Key Account Managers can get access to marketing data which helps in better qualification of leads, better conversions, better engagement and hence stronger relationships. When product demand, white space identification and targeted marketing data collectively comes together with your account planning data, you get good insights across your key account portfolio. 4. Integration with Customer Success tools: The benefit of this integration is to equip client-facing teams with key insights regarding customers’ post-sale journey. This brings in increased transparency and alignment. It can help view and track all relevant metrics from your customer success tool and digital account planning tool in one place for better planning. This further enables client-facing teams to formulate informed strategies. DemandFarm’s connected apps ecosystem DemandFarm optimizes your account planning in a connected apps ecosystem in the following manner: 1) By being native to Salesforce, DemandFarm ensures consistency and continuity in your experience 2) By working with your sales enablement team to gather use cases of how 3rd party application data can be brought into DemandFarm and made available at the right junctures enabling timely, appropriate interventions as needed for your key accounts. 3) By leveraging the data from these 3rd party apps, our insights engine can generate powerful and intelligent nudges, recommendations and contextual insights to make your teams more productive and impactful. 4) By specializing in key account planning and management, DemandFarm enables connection to multiple apps, leveraging data from them and contextualizing it to key accounts. Check out DemandFarm’s free & on-demand masterclass on digital account management on ‘Making Account Plans Actionable, Measurable and Sustainable’ here.
The Complete Guide to Digital Key Account Management in 2024
In today’s digital-first world, traditional Key Account Management (KAM) strategies are no longer enough to keep up with the ever-changing demands of customers. The B2B sector is evolving at an unprecedented rate, and it’s critical that companies adapt to this new landscape to stay ahead of the game. Research is increasingly showing that companies implementing a digital Key Account Management strategy outperform their peers. This means, developing a comprehensive digital Key Account Management strategy is no longer a ‘nice-to-have’ but a ‘must-have’ for any B2B company looking to drive revenue growth, strengthen relationships with their most valuable customers and improve customer satisfaction. So, what does a successful digital Key Account Management strategy look like? It starts with understanding the unique needs of your key accounts and developing a customized approach that leverages the latest digital tools and techniques to drive engagement and revenue growth. This includes the whole gamut – from leveraging data analytics to identifying customer needs and preferences to automating routine tasks to allow your sales team to focus on revenue-generating activities. Digital Account Management Masterclass This comprehensive guide is an excellent resource to help you develop a comprehensive digital Key Account Management strategy. It will take you through how you can define your digital Key Account Management objectives, identify your key accounts and utilize the latest digital tools to drive customer engagement and improve profitability. Watch Now: Insights on Digital Key Account Management by James Manno, VP of Sales Enterprise @ Qualtrics Understanding Your Key Accounts If you’re in business, understanding the importance of your key accounts is crucial. Your key accounts typically generate a significant portion of your revenue. They can help sustain your business over the long term. But, managing key accounts in the digital era required a unique set of skills and strategies By following these steps, you can develop a successful digital Key Account Management strategy: Understanding your key accounts is the first step in developing a successful digital Key Account Management strategy. It involves identifying who your key accounts are, understanding their business goals and objectives and developing a customer-centric approach. To identify your key accounts, you’ll need to analyze your sales data to determine which customers generate the most revenue for your business. Your key accounts may also include some customers that have been part of your journey for a long time. Or those that you’ve identified as having immense growth potential. Once you have a list of your top customers, you can then start to examine their specific needs and goals. This could involve conducting customer surveys, reviewing customer feedback, or engaging in one-on-one conversations with key decision-makers at these accounts. Once you have a better understanding of your key accounts, you can begin to develop a customer-centric approach. This involves tailoring your sales and marketing strategies to meet the specific needs and goals of each account. For example, if you have a key account that’s focused on sustainability, you might want to highlight the eco-friendly nature of your offerings in your sales and marketing material. Ultimately, the key to developing a successful digital Key Account Management strategy is to put your customers at the center of everything you do. By focusing on their needs and business objectives you can develop more effective sales and marketing strategies. You will also be able to build stronger relationships with your key accounts and create sustainable revenue streams for your business. Follow & Listen to Insights from The Shift Podcast by DemandFarm on Digital Key Account Management Developing a Digital Key Account Management Strategy Developing a digital Key Account Management strategy can be a complex process, but it’s essential for success in the B2B sector. To get started, it’s important to consider a few key factors. First, it’s important to understand the role of data and technology in your strategy. Using the right tools and technologies makes it easier for you to track customer interactions, identify buying patterns and tailor our approach to each key account. This may involve investing in customer relationship management (CRM) software, data analytics tools, or other technologies to help you gather and analyze customer data. Once you have a clear understanding of the role of data and technology it’s important to set specific goals and key performance indicators (KPIs) for your digital Key Account Management strategy. Your KPIs may include increasing customer engagement, improving customer satisfaction, or driving more revenue from key accounts. To achieve these goals, you’ll need to select the right digital tools and technologies to support your strategy. This might include tools for account-based marketing, social media management, email marketing or other digital marketing channels. It’s important to select tools that align with your goals and the needs of your key accounts. For instance, imagine you’re a manufacturer of industrial equipment, and you have a key account that’s a major player in the oil and gas industry. Here, you might want to focus your digital Key Account Management strategy on account-based marketing. The tools that would work best for you include LinkedIn advertising or content marketing to reach decision-makers in the oil and gas company. You could showcase how your industrial equipment can improve the operations and profitability of your key account. Additionally, your digital Key Account Management Strategy might involve implementing a customer relationship management (CRM) system. This CRM system could be used to track interactions with the key account, manage the sales pipeline and ensure that everyone involved with the account has visibility into the account’s history and current status. This helps coordinate and streamline the efforts of sales and account management. It also helps identify opportunities for cross-selling and upselling. Guide: Cross-selling & Up-selling Explained While selecting digital tools and technologies to support your digital Key Account Management strategy, it’s important to consider factors like scalability, ease of use, and integration with existing systems. For example, if you’re already using a particular CRM or marketing automation platform, it makes sense to look for digital Key Account Management tools that
Guide: How to do Opportunity Management in Salesforce CRM
Higher sales rates and revenue increase are the holy grail of IT product and services organizations, and thoughtful sales forecasting contributes a lot to it. with Salesforce Opportunity Management, they can structure their processes, enhance customer communication, and more. Opportunity management in the sales cloud offers all the necessary tools to close the biggest deals from anywhere. With intelligent alerts, teams can provide requisite attention by gaining insight into every deal and adjust forecast levels to reflect the new normal. With a sales path, teams can stay informed of where they are in the sales cycle, get tips on how to push deals forward, and easily view all open items in recent activities at every stage. Quick view simplifies the management of what is being done and what’s next – so that sales team members can stay on top of recent developments with a quick view, which makes it easier to collaborate with the larger team so everyone has what they need to close the deal. Tasks can be managed along with rich notes from existing workspace too. What is Opportunity Management in Salesforce? Details of a sales deal between the product/service provider and customer are captured in Salesforce Opportunity Management. The data helps sales teams manage all the deals with Salesforce, while being connected to stakeholders. Team members can access and share the information needed to close the sale, from anywhere. Existing information about completed sales is also present in Opportunity Management, which can provide insights into improving the processes so that future potential sales can be conducted more efficiently. Learn More: The 2023 Practical Guide to Sales Opportunity Management Start with: Setting up opportunities Opportunities can be created for existing accounts or through a lead conversion process. Not only this helps users to track changes in deal size, but also allows for the closing of dates with the help of Opportunity deal change highlights. Hovering over a highlighted opportunity gives more details about the updates, and updates can be visualized for opportunity amounts through the Opportunities List view and Kanban-view. Some of the key fields that help in tracking updates are made to an opportunity are: 1. Stage: This required field allows for opportunity tracking. A standard drop-down list of set values provided by Salesforce makes the selection easy, and they can be modified to suit the needs of the business. 2. Close date: Close date is a required field, and is crucial for forecasting. It is updated to the date when the opportunity is closed automatically. 3. Amount: This field displays the total cost of the opportunity under consideration. The sum total of opportunity products are shown, after they’re added to an opportunity. 4. Probability: The likelihood of the opportunity being converted, is reflected here. There is a default probability to close for each stage, going from a scale of 100% for a closed deal and 0% for a lost one. 5. Expected revenue: This read-only field is automatically generated by multiplying the probability with the amount. It can be a useful metric to use, while reporting the efficiency of the sales pipeline. Learn More: 8 Steps of Sales Opportunity Planning Moving to configurations Effective tracking and closure of opportunities can happen once the configurations are set according to the needs. Here are some configurations that can be set up: Update reminders can be leveraged by managers to send open opportunity reports to team members according to the hierarchy of defined roles. This ensures accurate and updated opportunities driven by precise forecasts. Big deal alerts are automatically sent as emails to customers, whenever an opportunity reaches a threshold amount and probability. Users can configure the ‘from’ Similar opportunities help in finding closed-won opportunities that match current opportunities for quick and simplified information access. Fields are configured in similar opportunities related lists so that users can see them easily. Utilizing opportunity-related objects Opportunity-related objects help in providing details about key stakeholders that are involved in a deal. They can be entered and tracked using opportunity’s related list items like track competitors, partners, and others who have a say in the deal closure. These related lists can be leveraged according to the business requirements: Opportunity teams help in leveraging members of different departments while working on deals. Team members can be designated as ‘internal’ or ‘partner’, with designated roles and access levels. Opportunity splits facilitate revenue sharing from opportunities and provide adequate credit to team members for their part in closing deals. Individual sales credits can be rolled into sales team member quota, and reports can be pipelined for an entire team. Partners simplify association of existing accounts to opportunities. Primary partners appear on the opportunity report, speeding up the mode of action that should be tailored to the specific requirement. Competitors’ fields can be leveraged to track market progress in the opportunity sphere. The list can be chosen from existing competitor names, or new ones can be added. Contact roles describe the role of every lead or touch point in converting the opportunity. By defining contact roles, sales team members can ensure everyone knows who to contact on the customer side. Field History Tracking comes into picture when users modify tracked opportunity fields, be it standard or custom. The change adds a new entry to the related list in Opportunity Field History. Details of changes to all entries are included, along with the details of the one making the change. Stage History adds a new entry when a user changes the stage, probability, close date fields, or the amount of an opportunity. The two lists together aid in the tracking of opportunity – as one chronicles field history, and the other keeps note of the changes to opportunity stages. Creating and managing opportunities The process of creating and managing opportunities on Salesforce is a feature-rich one, and these steps show how that can be achieved. Here’s a sequence that shows how opportunities with designated key accounts can be managed: Log into your Salesforce account and navigate
Key Metrics To Measure The Success Of Your Digital Key Account Management Program
A recent study has shown that B2B companies that prioritize customer experience generate higher revenues and profits than those that don’t. One key way to improve the customer experience for your key accounts is through a Digital Key Account Management (DKAM) program. With a well-designed digital Key Account ManageKey Performance Indicatorsment program, you can provide customized and seamless online experiences that drive growth got your business. However, simply launching a digital Key Account Management program isn’t enough. To truly reap the benefits, you need to measure the effectiveness of your program and optimize it for better performance. But what are the key metrics that B2B companies should be measuring to determine the success of their digital KAM program? As a sales leader or sales enablement leader, if this is a challenge you’ve been facing you’re in the right place. You’re about to discover actionable insights and key metrics to determine the success of your digital Key Account Management program. By tracking the right data and analyzing it effectively, you can optimize your program for business success. Download Whitepaper: The Impact of Digital Key Account Management on Sales Enablement Understanding Digital Key Account Management Digital Key Account Management is a strategic approach to managing your most valuable customers using digital channels. The main goal of digital Key Account Management is to improve customer experience, build strong relationships, and increase revenue by identifying and satisfying customer needs in a personalized manner. One of the biggest benefits of digital Key Account Management is that it allows companies to create a more effective and efficient communication channel with their customers. This type of relationship management enables businesses to identify and address customer pain points proactively and deliver customized solutions that meet their unique needs. This not only helps businesses retain their existing customers but also helps them generate more revenue by upselling and cross-selling products and services. However, implementing a digital Key Account Management program comes with its own challenges, one of the biggest challenges is identifying the right digital tools and strategies to implement the program successfully. Another challenge is ensuring that the Key Account Management team has the right skills and expertise to manage digital channels effectively. Despite these challenges, digital Key Account Management programs have been successfully implemented in different industries. For instance, a B2B manufacturing company can implement digital Key Account Management by leveraging digital channels to deliver timely and relevant content to help its customers improve their manufacturing process. Similarly, in a healthcare company digital Key Account Management can be successfully implemented to provide personalized healthcare solutions to its customers – specialized clinics and hospitals – based on the health profiles of the patients they treat and care for. Advanced digital health tech solutions are increasingly being integrated into these key account strategies, allowing healthcare providers to offer remote monitoring capabilities, personalized treatment plans, and data-driven insights that significantly enhance patient outcomes while creating stronger business relationships with institutional clients. Technology plays a significant role in enabling digital Key Account Management. There are several tools available to Key Account Management teams to help them manage their relationships with customers effectively. For example, Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tools help Key Account Management teams manage customer data, track customer interactions and create personalized customer profiles. Other tools such as marketing automation software, social media monitoring tools, and analytics software help Account Management teams deliver personalized content, track customer behavior, and measure the effectiveness of their digital Key Account Management program. Key Metrics to Measure Success in Digital Key Account Management Digital Key Account Management can boost revenue and profitability for B2B businesses, but measuring its effectiveness is critical. Here are some key metrics you should be tracking to evaluate the success of your digital Key Account Management program: 1. Revenue growth: The primary goal of Key Account Management is to maximize profitability from key accounts, therefore tracking revenue growth is a critical metric to measure success. Sales leaders can monitor revenue growth by tracking the percentage of revenue generated from key accounts over a given period. By setting revenue targets and analyzing the progress of each account towards that target sales leaders can identify areas that need improvement and take action to optimize sales strategies. 2. Customer retention rate: In the B2B sector, customer retention is critical to long-term success. Sales leaders can track customer retention rates by measuring the percentage of key accounts that continue to do business with the company over a given period. This metric provides insight into the effectiveness of the company’s overall sales strategy. It also serves to measure the effectiveness of the Key Account Management program in particular. By identifying accounts that are at risk of churn, sales leaders can take proactive steps to address challenges and retain the account. 3. Customer satisfaction: This is another important metric to measure the success of a digital Key Account Management program. Sales leaders can track customer satisfaction by using customer feedback surveys, Net Promoter Scores (NPS) and other relevant metrics. By analyzing the results, sales leaders can identify areas where improvements in the overall customer experience can be made. They can then work with their Key Account Management teams to make necessary changes. 4. Account Engagement: This measurement of this metric is crucial to the success of a digital Key Account Management program. Sales leaders can track account engagement by monitoring the frequency and quality of interactions between the Key Account Management team and key accounts. After a thorough analysis of the engagement data sales leaders can identify areas where Key Account Management teams need additional support or training to improve their engagement and overall effectiveness. By tracking these key metrics and analyzing the results, sales leaders and sales enablement leaders can gain a comprehensive understanding of the success of their digital key Account Management program. They can thus use the data to make better decisions for business success. Learn More: 6 Key Takeaways for a Successful Key Account Management Transformation Journey Key Challenges in Implementing
Best Practices for Developing a Digital Key Account Management Strategy
In today’s sales landscape, implementing a successful Key Account Management (KAM) strategy can often mean the difference between success and failure. However, with the rise of digital technology, traditional KAM strategies may no longer be enough to meet the needs of the modern customer. This is where digital Key Account Management (DKAM) enters the scene. By allowing companies to leverage data and technology digital Key Account Management provides a more personalized and customer-centric approach to sales. In fact, according to a recent survey, 84% of sales leaders believe that digital Key Account Management is crucial to their organization’s success. Despite this, many sales leaders and sales enablement leaders have challenges with developing and implementing effective digital Key Account Management strategies that align with their company’s goals and objectives. Whitepaper: The Impact of Digital Key Account Management on Sales Enablement Here, you’ll discover the best practices for developing a digital Key Account Management strategy. One that will meet the specific needs of your customers and drive sales success. From identifying account management key performance metrics and setting clear objectives to tailoring your approach to each customer and measuring your results – you’ll find all you need to know to succeed in today’s digital business ecosystem. Key Components of Digital Key Account Management B2B companies today are increasingly adopting digital strategies to stay competitive. For sales leaders and sales enablement leaders developing a Key Account Management strategy is essential. This helps with building strong and lasting relationships with key customers but also adapting to the changing needs of their customers. However, successful implementation of digital Key Account Management requires a deep understanding of its key components and features. Here are some fundamental elements of digital Key Account Management, including how it builds upon traditional Key Account Management practices and the essential components of a successful digital Key Account Management strategy. Listen to The Shift: #1 Podcast on Digital Key Account Management Overview of Traditional Key Account Management and its Translation to the Digital World: Traditional Key Account Management involves building strong relationships with key customers to drive long-term growth and profitability. However, in the digital age, businesses must also leverage technology to improve customer experiences and foster deeper relationships. Digital Key Account Management involves using data analysis and personalized communication to provide these exact results. By intelligently using digital tools and platforms, businesses can gain a deeper understanding of their key accounts’ needs and preferences, and tailor their approach accordingly. Key Features of Successful Digital Key Account Management: Effective digital Key Account Management involves several key features, including: Customer-centric approach: In the B2B sector, customers are looking for personalized solutions that meet their unique needs. A digital Key Account Management strategy should prioritize a customer-centric approach that puts the customers’ needs at the forefront. Data analysis: One of the advantages of a digital approach to Key Account Management is the ability to collect and analyze data. By analyzing customer data and interactions, sales teams can identify trends and opportunities to improve customer engagement and retention. Personalized communication: Effective and clear communication is critical to building strong relationships with key accounts. A digital Key Account Management strategy should include personalized communication that directly addresses the customer’s needs and preferences. Customer feedback: Gathering feedback from key accounts is essential to understanding their needs and identifying opportunities for improvement. A digital approach allows for easy collection and analysis of customer feedback. It thus enables sales teams to quickly adapt and respond to customer needs. These key components must be part of every digital Key Account Management strategy. By incorporating these features, sales leaders and sales enablement leaders will be on the path to providing exceptional customer service, building better relationships with key accounts and enhancing business performance. Developing Your Digital Key Account Management Plan B2B clients today conduct active research online. In fact, over 60% of all B2B transactions start online. Also, close to 90% of B2B CMOs believe that customer experience will be more critical in the industry in the years ahead. These statistics highlight the importance of a well-planned and executed digital Key Account Management strategy. To stay in the race and outperform the competition, businesses must think creatively and incorporate innovative approaches into their plan. Learn More: 7 Key Takeaways for a Successful Key Account Management Transformation Journey Here are some key steps to consider when developing your digital Key Account Management plan: 1. Set clear objectives and goals for your digital strategy: It’s important to start by identifying the key objectives and goals of your digital strategy. What are you hoping to achieve with your key accounts? What specific outcomes do you want to see? Having clear goals in mind will help you focus your efforts and measure your progress. 2. Identify key performance metrics and KPIs to track progress: Once you’ve established your goals, it’s critical to identify the account management key performance metrics and KPIs that will help you track your progress. Metrics that could be included are revenue growth, lead conversion rates, and customer satisfaction. By tracking these metrics over time, you can identify what’s working and what’s not and make adjustments as needed. Learn More: Key MetricsTo Measure The Success Of Your Digital Key Account Management Program 3. Create a framework for your digital strategy that aligns with company goals and objectives: It’s important to ensure that your digital Key Account Management plan is aligned with your company’s broader goals and objectives. To do this you will need to create an Account Management framework that takes these goals and objectives into account. This could mean including elements like your company’s mission statement, core values and strategic objectives. By integrating these elements into your digital Key Account Management plan, you can ensure that your efforts are in line with your overall business strategy. These steps will help you develop a comprehensive and effective digital Key Account Management plan that drives business growth. It also helps you build long-lasting relationships with your most valuable customers. Implementing Your
Role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Large Enterprise Account Planning
Did you know? The global AI market is valued at over USD $136 billion By 2025, as many as 97 million people will work in the AI space 48% of businesses use some form of AI to use big data effectively 83% of companies claim that AI is top priority in their business plans AI industry value is projected to increase over 13x over the next 7 years Netflix makes USD $1 billion annually from automated personalized recommendations In case you were wondering, the future is already here! Gone are the days of manually sifting through massive amounts of data to identify patterns and trends. We now live in a world where large enterprise account planning is no longer a tedious and time-consuming process. It is, instead, a streamlined and highly effective business strategy that provides companies with a significant competitive advantage. This is the difference that Artificial Intelligence (AI) has made. AI has the ability to process large amounts of data with ease, generate valuable insights and provide businesses with the tools they need to make informed decisions that accelerate growth and strengthen customer relationships. With AI, large enterprise account planning is transformed. The benefits are clear – improved efficiency, enhanced accuracy, and a more personalized approach to customer relationship management. From identifying potential sales opportunities to predicting customer behaviour, the power of AI is revolutionizing the way businesses plan for the future. It’s not about technology alone. Successful AI implementation requires careful consideration and planning. Businesses must have a clear and deep understanding of their customers and their unique needs, and the willingness to invest in the tools and resources necessary to make AI work for them. The good news is that real-world examples of successful AI implementation are already available. Companies that have embraced Netflix are seeing significant returns on their investments, including increased revenue, improved customer satisfaction, and reduced costs. The future of large enterprise account planning will only continue to improve with the power of AI. By embracing this technology and all its benefits, businesses can set themselves up for long-term success and growth. Read More: Analysts’ Predictions of AI for Sales, Account Management and Sales Enablement in 2023 Benefits of AI in Large Enterprise Account Planning AI technology offers a range of advanced benefits for large enterprise account planning. With the help of the modern tools and techniques that AI employs, businesses can gain deeper customer insights, optimize their account plans, and make better strategic decisions. Here’s how businesses can benefit from using AI in large enterprise resource planning. 1. Enhanced insights and data analysis AI can help businesses analyze large amounts of customer data with speed and identify patterns and trends. Using traditional data analysis techniques to perform these same tasks would be time-consuming and difficult. For example, machine learning algorithms can identify the most relevant customer attributes and predict which customers are most likely to make a new purchase or renew a contract. Businesses can gain a competitive edge and optimize their account plans more effectively through the use of advanced data analysis tools. 2. Improved efficiency and productivity Through the use of AI, many routine tasks and processes involved in account planning can be automated. This frees up time for sales and account management teams to focus on more strategic activities. For example, natural language processing (NLP) tools can analyze customer interactions and identify potential upsell and cross-sell opportunities. Also, automated lead generation tools can identify new potential customers using predefined criteria. By using these tools, businesses can improve their efficiency and productivity, thus ensuring that they achieve revenue goals more effectively. 3. Streamlined collaboration and communication Project management tools powered by AI are useful in helping teams collaborate more effectively and communicate more efficiently. Team members can have access to a centralized platform to access and share information. Workflows can be streamlined to ensure that everyone is working towards shared business goals. Advances virtual meeting tools can also be used to facilitate real-time communication and enable remote collaboration. This level of connection and accessibility has a positive effect on team productivity. It also reduces the time and costs associated with travel and in-person meetings. 4. Better risk management and decision-making By providing real-time insights into key performance indicators (KPIs) and identifying potential risks, AI can assist businesses in making more informed decisions. For example, network analysis tools can help companies identify potential risks in their supply chain and even predict when a supplier may become unreliable. Predictive analytics can help businesses anticipate market shifts and adjust strategies accordingly, minimizing the risk of lost revenue and possible damage to their reputations. 5. Increased accuracy and reliability Companies are always looking to identify their high-value customers and tailor their account plans accordingly. Working with AI-powered customer segmentation tools, this task is so much easier. These tools help businesses to segment customers based on a variety of attributes, such as demographics, purchase history, and engagement metrics. Advanced data analysis tools can also help businesses track the performance of their account plans. This data can then be used to develop and adjust their plans and strategies. Even as businesses gain a competitive edge and can effectively optimize their account planning through AI tools and techniques, it is important to note that there are challenges and limitations. These include data privacy concerns and the need for expertise in implementing and maintaining AI systems. Businesses that can overcome these challenges and utilize AI to its maximum potential in account planning will see significant benefits and achieve long-term growth and success. AI Tools and Techniques for Large Enterprise Account Planning AI has been able to effectively use the best and most advanced tools and techniques. Employing AI, therefore, gives companies deeper insights which help them drive growth. Some of the most popular AI tools and techniques used in large enterprise planning are: 1. Predictive analysis and Forecasting These are powerful AI tools to help businesses predict future trends and outcomes based on past data. By analyzing
The Do’s and Don’ts of Quarterly Business Reviews (QBRs)
Before the do’s and don’ts, let us be clear – Quarterly business reviews are not for every client that an organization has. QBRs require effort from multiple members of the sales team to get a clear understanding of how the service helps customers take their business strategy forward. Quarterly business reviews show what can be acted upon based on this understanding, and can be fine-tuned with help from customers. They are a useful tool for B2B product companies to evaluate their performance and make strategic decisions. Company leaders can review key metrics such as revenue, customer retention, and product usage, and identify areas for improvement. They also allow for open communication between different departments and can help to identify any bottlenecks or roadblocks that may be affecting the company’s overall performance. For companies to stay on track with their goals and objectives, QBRs provide insights to make any necessary adjustments to their strategy in a timely manner and ensure the continued growth and success of the product. Read More: Essential QBR Metrics to Track For Account Growth What are Quarterly business reviews? Quarterly business reviews (QBRs) for key accounts are regular meetings between a company and its important customers to review the status of their relationship and identify opportunities for growth and improvement. During these meetings, the company typically presents data on key performance indicators, such as sales and revenue, and discusses any issues or concerns that have arisen. The customer also has the opportunity to provide feedback on their experience and suggest areas for improvement. QBRs are an important tool for maintaining and strengthening key business relationships. Learn more: QBR Playbook for Sales and Account Management Leaders Why are QBRs important? Quarterly business reviews provide a regular opportunity to review and assess the performance of the business and identify areas for improvement. QBRs can also help product organizations to better understand their customers’ needs and preferences, and make necessary adjustments to their products and services. QBRs can help product organizations to: Monitor progress regularly. The process of QBR helps product organizations identify any areas that are underperforming or not meeting their expectations. Inputs allow product organizations to make necessary adjustments to their products and services to better meet the needs of their customers. Identify opportunities for growth and expansion, like new markets, product lines, or services that the product organization can explore to increase revenue and profitability. Improve customer satisfaction by regularly checking in with their customers to understand their needs and preferences. Product organizations can better meet the needs of their customers and increase customer satisfaction. Increase efficiency by conducting regular QBRs, and identify areas where they can improve their internal processes. This can help product organizations to increase efficiency and productivity, ultimately leading to increased profitability. Quarterly business reviews are important for product organizations as they provide a regular opportunity to review and assess the performance of the business, identify areas for improvement, and make necessary adjustments to better meet the needs of their customers. How to gauge an effective QBR? Apart from measuring customer satisfaction through surveys and feedback forms, progress can be tracked against agreed-upon goals and other methods. The service provider and customer organization should have agreed-upon ways to track and report that can be examined during the quarterly review. Evaluate communication and collaboration: The effectiveness of the quarterly business review should be evaluated based on the level of communication and collaboration between the Sales teams and customer organization. Track incident and problem resolution: Taking into account the number and severity of incidents and problems that have been resolved during the quarter, gives an indication of how the product is developing. Monitor service level agreements (SLAs): Performance against agreed-upon SLAs need to be reviewed as market circumstances change, to highlight if any changes are necessary. Review financial metrics: Cost savings, revenue, profitability and other financial metrics show if there are any avenues that can be leveraged. Assess the use of technology: Using tools that simplify business reviews can give sales teams more time to actually engage with the client meaningfully. Seek feedback: The customer organization should be given the opportunity to provide feedback on the effectiveness of the quarterly business review and the Sales team’s overall performance. businesses often use tools like survey platforms, embedded forms, or QR codes to collect post-meeting feedback quickly and efficiently. Solutions such as the QR Code generator make it easy to create custom codes that link directly to feedback forms. 4 Common mistakes to avoid while doing a QBR Business reviews should always be conducted in a strategic mode, not a tactical one. That rules out support requests and other business-as-usual practices to save time. A clear agenda keeps the discussion pointed, and keeping the discussion time-bound creates necessary urgency. Here are some common follies that can derail quarterly business reviews: 1. Not setting effective goals Quarterly business reviews are meant to foster growth, and the goals should reflect this. The meeting should be about both parties (the customer and the vendor sales team) deciding on the steps to achieve their most important goals. Starting with what both teams want to achieve in the next few quarters can give a definitive direction. The goals can be as simple as presenting actionable ideas to clients and get their buy-in, to the complex facets involving finance and production. Usage statistics and event summaries should reflect this aim so that the topics are kept in the conversation for the entire quarter. 2. Assuming customer needs Customer input on the agenda is a crucial part of a quarterly business review. Once the agenda is set, sharing it with the customer team and asking if there’s anything else they want in the business review keeps them involved. This skin in the game leads to productive discussions, and reduces efforts of sales teams too – as they don’t have to pull stats for something that the customer is not interested in looking at, right now. 3. Treating all customers the same Customers can
Quick Look into Relationship Mapping in 2024
Relationship Mapping is a visual representation of an account or customer’s organizational chart. It gives an idea of the kind of connections and influences each entity has over another. Relationship mapping ensures that there is clear understanding into the complex relationships within an organization when it comes to B2B sales negotiations. This enables account managers and sales leaders to identify the purchasing process, stakeholders and the influence of these stakeholders within the organizational hierarchy of your customers. The Need for Relationship Mapping If we are unaware of the key stakeholders, decision-makers, or influencers within the target client’s organization, there is a possibility of losing the lead and the entire deal in the highly competitive B2B world. In order to ensure that the bargaining power of your sales and account management teams don’t fall short of expectations, there is a need to be equipped with the ability to sell your products and also to push out other products to your clients. Importance of Customer Relationship Mapping To Retain Your Customers To Win New Clients To Sell More to your existing Clients Relationship Mapping primarily serves the purpose of achieving 3 main goals Generate more revenue from the existing set of clients Win new clients Protect your existing clientele When equipped with the necessary tools, Key Account Managers can arrive at the best possible outcomes during negotiations and generate increased revenue. Relationship Mapping helps identify newer and fresher white space opportunities for revenue generation and simultaneously strengthens older streams of revenue. 6-Step Process to Create a Relationship Map 1) Clarify Interests Before you begin the task of creating your relationship map, it is important to firmly state what your interests are. Every client-side team will have various positions and demands made by certain individuals or parties. These positions could stem from their needs, concerns, hopes, desires, and fears in the short term(2-3 months) , mid-term (1-3 years) and long-term (3+ years). 2) Identify all the Relevant Stakeholders Ensure that no stakeholder is left out. Knowing the organizational hierarchy and internal pecking order throughout the changes in a client’s life cycle is useful to be in a better position and defining goals during negotiations. This is why updating the relationship map is important. 3)Identify the Interests of the Stakeholders within the Account Identify and analyze relevant players and the interests of the client. List out their needs, concerns and fears to better understand the stakeholders involved with the account. 4)Identify the Relationship between the Stakeholders in an Account This requires knowing who the relevant players are, and what each player wants from the agreement. You need to identify and analyze all existing relationships between the parties and the type of relationships. 5)Identify Coalitions Identifying coalitions within the client organization can help you in your agreement. This helps determine whom to include and exclude in your negotiations. 6)Attack the Stakeholder Relationship Map with Strategy and Tact After the map has been created, it is up to you to make a clear plan of action for you and your team. Checkout these 3 strategies to employ your relationship map in action for your key accounts. Strategies for Growing Key Accounts Using Relationship Mapping 1) Bootstrapping Move from ‘easier’ parties to ‘harder’ parties. Exploit your personal and professional relations to finally arrive at your desired outcome. Easier parties are natural allies and harder parties need more influence from within the organization to come to an agreement. 2) Backward Mapping Identify to whom the decision-maker defers. Then, identify the person to whom that player defers. Keep doing this till you identify a player with whom you can influence easily. Individual relationship patterns and joint value created from your coalition influence the final decision-making process. 3) Pyramiding This strategy is the opposite of bootstrapping. Begin with the players who are hardest to influence. Often these parties are the ones who exert the most influence within an organization. This strategy allows you to ally yourself with parties that have so much influential power over others that once you have them on your side, you are almost assured that you will have no opposition. 3 points to consider while creating a Stakeholder Relationship Map Key account managers need to be proactive communicators and share critical information to ensure the success of ongoing actions. The following are three important points to keep in mind while designing a solution to a relationship map that adds value to your products and services. 1) Accessibility for All Every member of your team can have critical information on your client’s performance, preference, need gaps, relation dynamics, and so many more intangibles. 2) Real-Time Data Is Critical Make it a priority with your team to update the relationship map every time there is a tangible or intangible change within the client organization to stay up to date. 3) Regular Review of the Relationship Map It is necessary to conduct a monthly or quarterly review of it to ensure the credibility of data. What makes a good Relationship Mapping Tool? Creating a relationship map is only the first step of your journey. It is necessary to structure your thoughts and goals for a relationship map. A good stakeholder relationship map will help you answer the following questions:- What am I trying to achieve from this client partnership? Who among the clients and my organization would be affected by it? How can each one of the stakeholders from the client’s organization help or hurt my objectives? What can I do to leverage the entities that are helpful for my cause? What is the path I should take for any possible damage control in the future? Relationship Mapping for effective Key Account Management Key Account Management implies going above and beyond for building long-term relationships with a focus on the customers who make up the majority of the business’s revenue. A powerful solution that can assist Key Account Managers is the relationship mapping tool. A good relationship map is a tool that makes the best use of