The Top 3 Reason Why Your Account Planning Process is Broken (And How To Fix It)

Top 3 Reasons Why … Your Account Planning Process is Broken (and how to fix it)

Áine Denn, EVP Customer Experience

Áine Denn Executive Vice President &

Co-Founder

Account Planning Challenges Understanding the customer’s strategy and how they measure success.

Conducting account reviews and coaching to drive behavior.

Prioritizing accounts to ensure we focus more time on those with potential.

Identifying the “White Space” (areas of opportunity where your solutions can add value to the customer).

Executing our account plans.

Mapping the organization’s political landscape to identify and nurture the right relationships.

Using a common language, processes and tools to drive scalability.

Your Account is a Marketplace

Create, develop, pursue, and win business that delivers mutual value

for you and your customer

Cost to retain existing and acquire new customers2

6 Times More Costly to Acquire

100% 200% 300% 400% 500% 600%

Account Planning helps Growth & Retention

Source: (1) Marketing Metrics, (2) Bain & Company

0% Existing

Customer New

Customer

25% 5% - 20%

60% - 70% Likelihood of winning business in existing and new customers1

maximize revenue from key accounts 53% gain access to key players 54% uncover customer business problems 61%

Some facts about Account Planning ...

Sales Reps who say they can … Increase quota attainment by …

Source: Dealmaker Index Global Sales Benchmark Study

3 Things to Consider

Research for Insight

Integrate for Velocity

Focus for Impact

Understanding the Customer’s Strategy

The way customers buy is changing

“The age of the customer is upon us. Buyers are more demanding, informed, value-sensitive, and have more choices available to them than at any other point in history.” Forrester, The Selling System in the Age of the Customer, March 2014

The Customer Lifecycle

Source: Account Planning in Salesforce, Daly 2013

1. Prospect

2. Customer

1. Prospect

2. Customer

3. Loyal Customer

4. ______________

1. Prospect

2. Customer

3. Loyal Customer

4. Former Customer

How much does Price act as a driver of customer defection?4

Customer’s View

Vendor’s View

0% 25% 50%

Account Planning helps Growth & Retention

Source: (1) Marketing Metrics, (2) Bain & Company, (3) US SBA, US CC, (4) Rightnow Technologies

0% Customer Service

Product

68% 25%

Drivers of customer defection3

Source: Forrester Executive Buyer Insight Study

What’s the Problem? Executives don’t believe that salespeople are well prepared to engage with them...

…because they know about their own offerings, not the realities and needs of executives.

Salespeople are knowledgeable about:

Source: Forrester Research

Their own products and services

Buyers’ roles and responsibilities

Buyers’ specific business

Questions buyers ask

40% 36% 43% 71%

Sales / Marketing / Customer Misalignment

Little Business Context

Not Customer Focused

Product Centric

No Insights Inside

Sellers Sell Only What They Know…

The Alignment Triangle

Marketing

Customer

… It should really be all about the Customer

Things Customers Care About …

Pressures

Obstacles

Initiatives

Solutions

Pressures

Obstacles

Initiatives

Customer Insight Map

Solutions

Pressures

Obstacles

Initiatives

TRANSFORMED BUSINESS CONVERSATIONS

Dealmaker Align Solution Components

Pressures

Initiatives

Obstacles

Solutions

Customer Insight Map

Key Messages

Insights

Sales Tools

High Yield Questions

Competitive Positioning

Objections

Map the buyer’s Goals, Pressures,

Initiatives, and Obstacles.

Attach issues to

individuals

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http://content.thetasgroup.com/demo/political-map-express

Political Mapping

Conducting Account Reviews

Front Line Sales Managers should balance……

Sales Coaching Improves Performance

Coaching Improves Productivity1

Source: 1 SEC/CEB, 2 Gallup

Coaching Increases Customer Loyalty2

Why Sales Managers Don’t Coach

Source: Sales Management Association

0% Don’t Value

Coaching Not Enough

Time Don’t Know

How to Coach Sales Reps Don’t Ask

Role of Sales Leadership in Peer Review

Before •  Set expectations with presenting & reviewing teams:

•  Rules of engagement

•  Expected outcome of the peer review

During •  Engage the team to prevent multi tasking

•  Evaluate the critical thinking and preparation of the presenting team and the reviewers

After •  Follow up with the team on vulnerabilities, ideas, and actions

Understand the Plan

Review the Plan

Improve the Plan

Peer Review Process

Present the Plan (30 minutes)

Present the Plan 1a

Questions & Answers (10 minutes)

Answer Questions 1d

Listen till the END 1b

Ask Questions 1c

Understand the Plan Understand

Vulnerabilities (20 minutes)

Identify Vulnerabilities &

Recommendations

Consider Plan Vulnerabilities &

Recommendations

Review the Plan

Update the Plan 4

Recommendations for Improvement

(30 minutes)

Recommendations for Improvement

Improve the Plan Peer Review Process

Reviewers : 4 Perspectives The Customer – as a key player

Competitor – as you competitor

Sales Manager – on behalf of the company

Partners

TAS / Dealmaker coach

Revenue Objectives

Business Development Objective

Cross-Account Objectives

Prioritizing Accounts

Focus for Impact

Importance to Customer

Us Future Potential

Current Opportunities Previous Business

Revenue Contribution Profit Contribution

Current Importance Future Importance …

Segment the to prioritize The image cannot be displayed. Your computer may not have enough memory to open the image, or the image may have been corrupted. Restart your computer, and then open the file again. If the red x still appears, you may have to delete the image and then insert it again.

Focus for Impact

Find Mutual Value: Prioritizing segments that are

Important to You and to your Customer

Top 3 Reasons Why … Your Account Planning Process is Broken (and how to fix it)

Áine Denn, EVP Customer Experience

The Top 3 Reason Why Your Account Planning Process is Broken (And How To Fix It)

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Transcript of The Top 3 Reason Why Your Account Planning Process is Broken (And How To Fix It)

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