How to Win in Key Account Management


Book Description

There is a growing requirement for truly successful and effective Key Account Management (KAM) in the ever increasingly competitive global market. Increased digitalization requires improved personal communication to make a difference. Key account business is made between people. Stakes are high. The potential reward with a key account is tremendous while cost of people is considerable and the required time to get to success is getting shorter and shorter. This is not a theoretical book. It is all about how to do it in real life. Regardless if you are a beginner or if you are already experienced in the business, there are ideas and inspiration to pick up. The reader gets a lot of practical tips: How to analyze, plan and influence. How to work in teams, local and global. How and when to look at partnership. How to sell professionally and effectively. How to set pricing, negotiate and follow up. How to manage problems. How to use the right attitude. How to increase the probability to win in every step. Everything explained in a down to earth language, with a lot of examples and a twinkle in the eye. Whether you take the book from scratch and do everything in it, or use your current work methods and add or change what can be improved, it will help you in increasing the probability to win. And that is what it is all about.




Key Account Management


Book Description

"This book is crammed with distilled, practical wisdom for key account managers and their directors. Organizations claiming to practise key account management should equip everyone involved with a copy, so they really understand what they are supposed to be doing. Anything less is just old-fashioned selling." Developing successful business-to-business relationships with more customers in highly competitive markets requires processes and skills that go beyond traditional selling activity. The very best state-of-the-art strategies are set out clearly in this book by intentionally known authors who have worked at the highest levels with more key and strategic account managers worldwide than probably any other leading advisors. Based on the hugely influential KEY CUSTOMERS it looks at: Why has account management become so critical to commercial success? What are the key challenges and how do successful companies respond? What part does key account management play in strategic planning? How do companies build profitable relationships with their customers? How does key account management actually work? What does a successful key account manager look like and what skills does he/she need? How should key account managers be evaluated and rewarded? How do companies achieve key account management? By addressing these key questions Woodburn and McDonald provide tools and processes for success honed by tough consultancy projects with the boards of some of the world's leading companies. The book stresses the elements that really matter - from developing a customer categorization system that really works and analyzing the needs of key accounts; to understanding the new skills required by key account managers and ensuring that key account plans are implemented. The 'real world' approach is backed by tested principles and the latest research from the renowned Cranfield School of Management. Key Account Management comes from authors who have taught leading companies how to approach their most powerful and demanding customers and still make money. It is essential reading for all senior management with strategic responsibility, for key or strategic account directors, and for marketing and sales executives. The clear and authoritative approach also makes it an outstanding text for the serious MBA and executive student as well as business-to-business company directors and key account managers.




Insight Selling


Book Description

What do winners of major sales do differently than the sellers who almost won, but ultimately came in second place? Mike Schultz and John Doerr, bestselling authors and world-renowned sales experts, set out to find the answer. They studied more than 700 business-to-business purchases made by buyers who represented a total of $3.1 billion in annual purchasing power. When they compared the winners to the second-place finishers, they found surprising results. Not only do sales winners sell differently, they sell radically differently, than the second-place finishers. In recent years, buyers have increasingly seen products and services as replaceable. You might think this would mean that the sale goes to the lowest bidder. Not true! A new breed of seller—the insight seller—is winning the sale with strong prices and margins even in the face of increasing competition and commoditization. In Insight Selling, Schultz and Doerr share the surprising results of their research on what sales winners do differently, and outline exactly what you need to do to transform yourself and your team into insight sellers. They introduce a simple three-level model based on what buyers say tip the scales in favor of the winners: Level 1 "Connect." Winners connect the dots between customer needs and company solutions, while also connecting with buyers as people. Level 2 "Convince." Winners convince buyers that they can achieve maximum return, that the risks are acceptable, and that the seller is the best choice among all options. Level 3 "Collaborate." Winners collaborate with buyers by bringing new ideas to the table, delivering new ideas and insights, and working with buyers as a team. They also found that much of the popular and current advice given to sellers can damage sales results. Insight Selling is both a strategic and tactical guide that will separate the good advice from the bad, and teach you how to put the three levels of selling to work to inspire buyers, influence their agendas, and maximize value. If you want to find yourself and your team in the winner's circle more often, this book is a must-read.




Great on the Job


Book Description

Great on the Job offers a much-needed "people skills" primer and masterclass in all facets of workplace communication Do you know how to ask for help at work without sounding dumb? Do you know how to get valuable and useful feedback from your colleagues? Have you mastered your professional elevator pitch so that every time you meet someone, they remember and are impressed by you? If you answered "no" to any of these questions, you need Great on the Job. In 2008, Jodi Glickman launched Great on the Job, a communications consulting firm whose distinguished client list includes Harvard Business School, Wharton, The Stern School of Business, Merrill Lynch, and Citigroup. Now, Glickman's three-step training program is available in book form for the first time. With case studies, micro strategies, and example language, readers will learn communication skills that can be practiced and implemented immediately. In today's economy, it's not typically the smartest, hardest working or most technically savvy who succeed. Instead, the ability to communicate well is often the most important precursor to success in the workplace. So whether you're a star performer or a struggling novice, Great on the Job will give you the building blocks you need for every conversation you'll have at work.




Playing to Win


Book Description

Explains how companies must pinpoint business strategies to a few critically important choices, identifying common blunders while outlining simple exercises and questions that can guide day-to-day and long-term decisions.




Successful Key Account Management In A Week


Book Description

Key account management just got easier 'This little book is a real gem' Professor Malcolm McDonald Key account management is increasingly important and must keep pace with its customers as they continually develop and evolve, often resulting in increasingly sophisticated buying structures. The key account manager therefore requires a wide variety of skills in order to be successful; this is not only an important job role in its own right, it is often a stepping stone to career development, leading to more senior management jobs. Successful Key Account Management In A Week is a week long course. On Sunday you are encouraged to Know your customer as success depends on a relationship that is both rewarding and valuable. On Monday you will Analyse your growth opportunities. The competitiveness of the company must be appraised to enable the identification of sales growth opportunities and all major accounts should be compared in appeal and position to give an indication of the strategy to be adopted for customers. On Tuesday you will Measure profits by account. You will be shown how to measure the profitability of major customers and to draw up league tables to enable profit improvement strategies. On Wednesday you will Plan for success, building on the analysis of growth opportunities and profit measurement already considered, to result in a best judgement final plan. On Thursday you will learn to Negotiate to win-win; success relies on understanding the difference between negotiation and selling and being able to conduct negotiations to produce a win-win situation in which the objectives of both sides are considered. On Friday you will look at Control activity levels and the monitoring of standards of performance to enable the presentation of plans and progress, allowing the measurement of success against these plans. And finally, on Saturday you are reminded to Manage relationships with an introduction to the Relationship Model which describes how business with a customer changes as it moves from a transactional or short-term sales achievement, to collaboration with long-term customer value and retention. 'This little book is a real gem, which you should read, use and keep handy for continuous reference. If you follow the straightforward guidelines in this book, your company's future is assured' Professor Malcolm McDonald, Former Professor of Marketing and Deputy Director, Cranfield University School of Management




Major Account Sales Strategy


Book Description

An Arsenal of Shrewd Tactics and Winning Strategies to Make You a Major Account Sales Success Knowing how to get to the decision maker, deal with the competition, understand buyer psychology, and service the client--these are the keys to success when you need to nail down major accounts. Now, for the first time, here's a book of practical, proven-effective strategies and tactics for the entire major account sales cycle. Based on Neil Rackham's exhaustive research, the strategies you'll find here will enable you to . . . Tailor your selling strategy to match each step in the client's decision-making process. Ensure that you won't lose your customers because you'll know the psychology of the buyer and how to respond to their doubts. Gain entry to accounts through many different windows of opportunity. Deal with competitive situations, take on bigger competitors, and win using strategies that the author's meticulous research shows are employed by the most successful salespeople. Handle negotiations, concessions on price, and term agreements skillfully and effectively. Offer the ongoing technical and maintenance support that keeps your major accounts yours. From a world-renowned sales innovator, this first-of-a-kind A-to-Z presentation of major account strategy puts sales success in your hands. Make it yours today. Read Major Account Sales Strategy.




Mastering Account Management


Book Description

You're up to 55% more likely to win business with an existing customer than with an outside prospect. Mastering Account Management is your blueprint for winning long-term business with your highest potential buyers (your customers). From selling millions in high-end video services and managing projects in the New York advertising world, Dan Englander learned that most companies don't take the right steps to farm repeat business. Instead of focusing on time-consuming lead generation tactics, a replicable account management process will produce better and faster returns. Englander's 102-step guide will show you how to create one for your business. Learn what the top account managers do: Systematize repeat business. Achieve flexibility and freedom by keeping a barrier between sales and customer or client service. Build long-term partnerships by prioritizing experience over output. Make life easier by leveraging new apps, tools, and high-tech shortcuts. Maximize networking referrals. Mastering Account Management will give you the right framework for winning more deals, delighting your customers, and achieving peace of mind. It's equal parts sales and customer service, with a healthy sprinkling of technology. Those who enjoyed Spin Selling and The Art of Client Serviceare sure to gain a lot from this book, as will fans of the The 4-Hour Workweek. Order Today and access a library of digital resources!




Critical Selling


Book Description

Master these top-performing sales skills to dominate the marketplace Critical Selling is a dynamic and powerful guide for transforming your sales approach and outperforming your competition. This book is based on Janek Performance Group's, an award winning sales performance company, most popular sales training program, Critical Selling®. Let authors Justin Zappulla and Nick Kane, Managing Partners at Janek, lead you through their flagship sales training methodology to provide you with the strategies, skills and best practices you need to accelerate the sales process and close more deals. From the initial contact to closing the deal, this book details the winning strategies and skills that have supercharged the sales force of program alumni like OptumHealth, Santander Bank, Daimler Trucks, California Casualty, and many more. Concrete, actionable steps show you how to plan a productive sales call, identify customer needs, differentiate yourself from the competition, and wrap up the sale. You'll also learn proven techniques for building rapport, overcoming objections, dealing with price pressures, and handling the million little things that can derail an otherwise positive sales interaction. Sales are the lifeblood of your company. Are they meeting your expectations? What if you could exceed projected sales figures and blow your competition out of the water? This book provides the research-based framework to ignite your sales team and excite your customer base, for sustainable success in today's market. Let Critical Selling® show you how to: Connect with customers on a deeper level to build trust Present a persuasive and value-based solution tailored to your customer’s needs Handle pricing pressure, doubt, and objections with confidence Utilize proven methodologies that help you close the sale Sales is about so much more than exchanging goods or services for cash. It's about relationships, it's about outperforming the competition, it's about demonstrating real value, and it's about understanding and solving people's problems. Critical Selling shows you how to bring it all together, using proven techniques based on real sales performance research.




Key Account Manager's Pocketbook


Book Description

The new, 2nd edition of the Key Account Manager's Pocketbook gives practical advice on how to keep and develop important customers, thereby maximising ongoing revenue streams, reducing sales costs, improving investment planning and increasing market knowledge. It opens by describing the key account manager's role and then goes on to describe how to rise up the so-called customer perception ladder, moving from a simple commodity supplier to developing a solid, long-term business partnership with your key customers. The author next explains how to develop the 'key account development plan', how to increase your influence with the decision-maker in your key account (relationship management) and how to win new business. The final chapter runs through the essential steps of key account handling. There are short exercises throughout which, if carried out, will help to reinforce the key learning points.