Habit 32: Develop an “Account Plan”, at the Beginning of an Account Relationship

November 29, 2016 Selling Comments Off on Habit 32: Develop an “Account Plan”, at the Beginning of an Account Relationship

To continue with the “Account Development Habits”, let’s look at Habit 32: Develop an “Account Plan”, at the beginning of an account relationship.

When I talk about the “Account Plan”, many people think I am talking about an “Opportunity Plan.” An account plan is simply a description of where you believe a new account will grow. So, in the very beginning of an account relationship, you should evaluate the account’s grow power and determine if, in fact, you should focus a lot of time on the new account or not.

I can’t tell you how many sales people simply forge ahead with a new account. They feel they’ve done their due diligence, as they’ve found a new account, and they are very happy with that fact. There could be 1000 reasons why a new account is a poor investment of time but, very few salespeople actually asked themselves the questions that are necessary, to be sure that new account is worth any time investment whatsoever.

Assuming that you have developed a new account using the “Target Account” process described in our May, 2015 Newsletter, you know, at least, that the new account is in a similar industry to accounts with which you have had success so there probably is opportunity for you at the new account. But you do not know for certain.

You do not know if a competitor has the business locked up. You do not know whether your personality or communication style or sales approach will be successful in this account. You need to answer these questions and others before you invest in the new account.

The basic question is: Will the account grow or not? Is there a one-time sale potential or is there potential for your business to grow to a level that will pay for the investment necessary to develop the account?

This is a very important function in account development and one that virtually all but the “Top Performers” neglect to perform.

“A Habit” is not work, but just a thing that is done every day and developing an “Account Plan”, at the beginning of an account relationship is critical to your success in sales and can easily become a Habit.

TIME MANAGEMENT.  For Top Performers every task is planned and focused on the goals that earn the results.  Top Performers plan and then engage.  They act on their plans, they work hard and they get results.

Coaching these skills is a critical part of what we do.  We are here to help you develop and implement your Strategic Plan and coach and develop the skills to implement the plan successfully.

We are having great success coaching and implementing these methods and skills and our clients love it!