Strategic Account Management Association

OCTOBER 14, 2021

By Saleh Al-Ben Saleh, Strategic Account Manager, Emerson. A while ago, I came across a discussion about the optimal way to capture strategic customers in a customer relationship management (CRM) tool in a way that enables effective, efficient account planning using account planning applications or tools. Explain the “why.”

Account Planning 520

Account Planning CRM Account Management Decision-making 520

Upland

MARCH 29, 2023

Relationship management in sales is all about delivering value and understanding the people and problems at play within accounts – both from prospective and current customers – in order to help solve their greatest challenges. What is relationship management? Enter the importance of relationship management.

CRM 195

CRM Management Stakeholders Decision-making 195

Account Manager Tips

OCTOBER 11, 2021

15 Reasons Why You Might be a Bad Account Manager Bad key account managers fail to build business relationships and achieve results. Here are fifteen signs you might be a bad key account manager and how to turn yourself into a good one. Too reactive A bad key account manager responds to situations instead of controlling them.

Account Management 246

Account Management Key Account Management Management Suppliers 246

Hubspot Sales

APRIL 9, 2025

Not all sales shortcuts are created equal. Sales Shortcuts 1. Source My former colleague from Serpstats sales team learned this the hard way. I explored this topic with Shannon Smith O'Connell , Operations Director (Sales & Team Development) at Reclaim247. Imagine the majority of your prospects are finance managers.

Decision-making 98

Decision-making Stakeholders Finance Software 98

Hubspot Sales

FEBRUARY 13, 2024

One of the big questions on that front is, “What's a shareholder versus a stakeholder?” So, to help you get a better sense of what shareholders and stakeholders are and how they differ, I've put together this handy guide. Table of Contents Shareholder vs. Stakeholder What is a shareholder? Here we go. Here are the key points.

Shareholders 111

Shareholders Stakeholders Government Suppliers 111

Mike Kunkle

FEBRUARY 27, 2023

.” Nowhere is this more out of control than in the sales profession and our very own subset of sales enablement. Not All Sales Enablement is the Same Sales enablement is not the same everywhere. (For Not All Sales Enablement is the Same Sales enablement is not the same everywhere.

Sales 57

Sales Onboarding Publishing Transportation 57

Account Manager Tips

AUGUST 14, 2022

21 free courses for key account managers to boost your skills now A key account manager has to grow and retain their clients. Find out what those skills are, along with 21 free courses to help you become a better key account manager. Need more help to improve your key account management skills? Table Of Contents.

Key Account Management 246

Key Account Management Account Management Emotional Intelligence Management 246

Mike Kunkle

APRIL 8, 2023

In this post, I’m going to share some simple concepts that I’ve seen deliver radically improved results across a sales force. And by “radically,” I mean improve opportunity management effectiveness and skyrocket win rates by 25-40%. To start, assess the Buyer Type for each stakeholder. Let’s dig in.

B2B 243

B2B Sales Decision-making Stakeholders 243

Hubspot Sales

MARCH 13, 2025

According to a 2023 survey of over 450 sales leaders, 91% of their teams missed quota that year. And even with revenue up in 2024 , reps are still struggling to meet their sales goals. Getting stuck on YTD sales. Projecting a sales cycle ahead of time gives sellers a better chance of making their numbers.

Meetings 95

Meetings Sales Stakeholders Decision-making 95

DemandFarm

NOVEMBER 22, 2024

Do you know how the top key account managers (KAMs) become the top KAMs? Key Focus Areas for High-Impact Account Management Teams 1. This insight-driven approach uncovers opportunities that might go unnoticed, turning account management into a proactive rather than reactive process.

Key Account Management 52

Key Account Management Account Management Management Stakeholders 52

Upland

APRIL 20, 2023

How can effective account management help you defend and grow revenue? Here’s where having a sales account management strategy becomes indispensable. Through account management, your team can seek to establish themselves as trusted advisors to customers. First, a quick primer – what is account management?

Account Management 195

Account Management Management Account Planning Decision-making 195

Brooks Group

FEBRUARY 10, 2025

77% of B2B buyers report their last purchase was complex, involving multiple stakeholders. More stakeholders means longer sales cycles. Sellers need sophisticated communication and consultative skills to understand varying stakeholder needs. Decision-making time, compared to five to seven years ago, has increased by 60%.

B2B 76

B2B Emotional Intelligence Value Proposition Stakeholders 76

Upland

MAY 18, 2023

Account planning and effective account management strategies are about much, much more than your key accounts. That said, any account manager worth their salt has a strategy for their key accounts. Sales map example for smaller accounts. Sales maps for key accounts tend to be quite complex with many stakeholders.

Key Account Management 195

Key Account Management Account Management Management Account Planning 195

DemandFarm

OCTOBER 23, 2024

This process involves multiple product demonstrations, engaging with IT, procurement, and finance stakeholders, and significant customization to meet the client’s needs. Enterprise sales are characterized by growing competition, more complex buyer journeys, and increased sales cycle times by over 50%.

Key Account Management 40

Key Account Management Account Management Management Procurement 40

Hubspot Sales

DECEMBER 24, 2020

More sales can mean more revenue and a bigger profit for your business. However, as sales numbers grow, companies pass the point of being able to fulfill every order as soon as it's made. The result is what’s known as a “sales backlog.". Sales backlog is unavoidable. But, a sales backlog isn’t necessarily negative.

Management 140

Management Sales Investors Suppliers 140

Holden Advisors

OCTOBER 7, 2021

Talk to your internal experts in sales, product management, marketing, or marketing research, to understand how your customers use your product today. Always look for new ways that your customers might use your product or for other stakeholders that might benefit from your solutions. Step 5: Create sales tools.

Procurement 369

Procurement Manufacturing Negotiation Stakeholders 369

Upland

AUGUST 25, 2023

An influence map is a visual tool that helps you identify and understand the stakeholders who have a say in your project or decision. It can be used to: Identify the key stakeholders who need to be engaged in order to achieve your goals. Understand the relationships between stakeholders and how they influence each other.

Stakeholders 195

Stakeholders Decision-making Sales Leadership 195

Hubspot Sales

SEPTEMBER 12, 2024

Very rarely did a sale require just a single signature, which meant the sales process and accompanying assets needed to be built around a variety of personas. These selling points are powerful because they’ll also make managers themselves more successful, helping them climb the ladder and reach their career goals.

B2B 116

B2B B2C Decision-making Software 116

DemandFarm

MARCH 31, 2025

For years, Key Account Management (KAM) has been confined within the walls of CRM systemsSalesforce, Microsoft Dynamics, and HubSpot. The logic was straightforward: if customer data already lives inside a CRM, why manage key accounts elsewhere? Key Account Management is not an extension of sales. Read on to know why.

Key Account Management 52

Key Account Management Account Management Management CRM 52

ProlifIQ

DECEMBER 18, 2024

Leveraging AI In Pre-Sales and Post-Sales Processes Account research has historically been cumbersome, taking hours to find the different details you need to make a strong pitch to your target accounts. AI is being used across every function now, but the pre-sale process is a terrific place to bring AI into your process and workflow.

Account Planning 52

Account Planning Management Value Proposition Account Management 52

Strategic Account Management Association

FEBRUARY 3, 2022

But as a provider of a robust set of sales management and methodology capabilities , our teams work with some of the biggest sales organizations in the world. The foundational principles that move the needle are ones familiar to any sales leader: relationships and insights. Our intent is never so transactional.

Account Planning 400

Account Planning Supply Chain Prioritization Digital Transformation 400

Mike Kunkle

AUGUST 30, 2023

In the ever-evolving landscape of business, the Sales Enablement profession has reached a pivotal crossroads. To firmly establish the function as required and themselves as integral players in their companies, enablement experts must be equipped to prove their worth by improving sales results and bolstering profitability.

Leadership 293

Leadership Stakeholders Decision-making Sales Training 293

DemandFarm

DECEMBER 27, 2024

Behind every high-performing sales team is a manager who doesnt just oversee but inspires, strategizes, and drives impactful results. Sales management today demands more than ever beforeits a delicate balance of leadership, technology, and insight. What sets exceptional sales managers apart?

Sales Management 40

Sales Management Management Decision-making Negotiation 40

Red Star Kim

JUNE 27, 2023

At the recent PM Forum online workshop on campaigns, thought leadership and project management there were 17 delegates from legal, accountancy and insolvency firms located in London, Belfast, Sutton Coldfield, Manchester, Newcastle, Cambridge and Dubai. Take time to scope Scoping is a key aspect of project management.

Leadership 130

Leadership Management Stakeholders Communication 130

Nutshell

SEPTEMBER 18, 2024

Navigating the complexities of B2B sales, especially with high-value enterprise deals and multiple stakeholders, can be challenging. The Miller Heiman Sales Process is designed to tackle these difficulties and guide you through the sales process. Table of Contents What is the Miller Heiman sales process?

Stakeholders 126

Stakeholders Sales CRM Value Proposition 126

PandaDoc

MARCH 25, 2025

The sales process varies greatly depending on the purchase. Its a decision that requires research, deliberation, and often, multiple stakeholders. In this article, well explore the challenges of complex sales and the strategies your team can use to close deals more efficiently. What is considered a complex sale?

Sales 52

Sales Supply Chain Decision-making Stakeholders 52

Mike Kunkle

FEBRUARY 5, 2023

“As in other studies we’ve done, this year’s enablement study found that sales process and sales methodology adoption rates above 75% resulted in above-average gains for revenue plan attainment, quota attainment, and win rates, with a big boost at adoption rates greater than 90%.” increase in revenue plan attainment 17.1%

B2B 231

B2B Sales Decision-making Negotiation 231

Upland

NOVEMBER 28, 2021

Get more sales references without launching a traditional reference program. Even when organizations acknowledge their sales reference processes could be better, it can be an overwhelming problem to confront. Why are targeted sales reference important? A pragmatic approach to sales references. Will it require new hires?

Sales 195

Sales B2B Software Software 195

DemandFarm

MARCH 31, 2025

In the past, account managers spent significant time on manual tasks like logging customer interactions, scheduling meetings, updating CRM records, and manually tracking stakeholder engagement. It can also help predict the likelihood of a deal closing based on past sales cycles and buyer engagement levels.

Account Management 40

Account Management Key Account Management Management Account Planning 40

Hubspot Sales

MARCH 14, 2022

Sales orgs stand to gain a lot from incorporating project management principles into their operations. While sales project management is loosely defined and often overlooked, sales leadership should at least consider folding the core tenets behind it into their broader objectives and sales reps' day-to-days.

Management 98

Management Stakeholders Facilitation Sales Leadership 98

DemandFarm

OCTOBER 15, 2024

So is AI expected to eat up your Key Account Manager’s jobs as well? It depends on your Key Account Management (KAM) maturity level, your approach to your KAM program, your goals, and how you want to roll with the AI punches. Enter: AI in Key Account Management Today’s AI is much like Harvey Dent, the DA of Gotham City.

Key Account Management 52

Key Account Management Account Management Management Decision-making 52

Hubspot Sales

NOVEMBER 18, 2020

Sales leaders, be honest — you're curious about what your peers are up to. The ability to share information with other leaders, or to ask "how are you managing?" If you don’t have the time or resources to commission your own data, you’re in luck because we’ve compiled a list of important data points sales leaders need to know.

Sales Leadership 142

Sales Leadership Leadership Sales B2B 142

ProlifIQ

OCTOBER 30, 2024

KAM Technology & Use Cases in 2025 KAM technology plays a crucial role in supporting these best practices by providing powerful tools and features that streamline and enhance key account management processes. Interested in seeing a Key Account Management solution to help you retain and grow key customers?

Key Account Management 52

Key Account Management Stakeholders Account Planning Account Management 52

Account Manager Tips

NOVEMBER 14, 2022

How Data Analysis Adds Value to Key Account Management Data analysis has quickly become a valuable tool for just about every type of business. The more data you generate and process, the bigger the opportunity for data analysis and management. Data analysis is changing how key account management is delivered.

Key Account Management 130

Key Account Management Account Management Management Profitability 130

Upland

MARCH 23, 2023

Having trouble setting accurate sales forecasts or seeing close dates consistently sandbagged to next quarter? Regardless of the size of your company, the sales leader gathers sellers and runs them through the standard set of questions. Ultimately, the challenge of sandbagging is that of unreliable sales forecasts.

Account Planning 195

Account Planning Sales Decision-making Sales Environment 195

Account Manager Tips

JUNE 23, 2020

Phil is an account management and sales professional professional with a wealth of experience and wisdom he's distilled into The Tenets of Account Management. These guiding principles have served Phil well and I know they will help you find success as a key account manager. What are the Tenets of Account Management?

Key Account Management 182

Key Account Management Account Management Management Suppliers 182

Flevy

OCTOBER 25, 2022

This calls for an Integrative approach to Managing Innovation. Various aspects of the Innovation process have to be integrated through a cohesive Innovation Management Strategy that gels well with the individual strategies of these aspects. Integration of Stakeholders. Integration of Stakeholders. Integration of People.

Innovation 98

Innovation Management Energy and Utilities Digital Transformation 98