THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY

Account management, or as I like to call it, relationship management, is the art of selling to support the workings of the customer. With this understanding the accountmanager must systematically steer each customer to purchase themost profitable products and services. This is truly an art andnot a science; thus, the act of account management requites an abstract

approach to administration and counsel. Yes, counsel, a word many

times absent from the account management job description. It’s a

job description that can also be called The Good, The Bad, and

The Ugly. In the movie of the same name, three charities

represented the three personality types. Many times these types

will reveal themselves in the account management relationship.

The Ugly refers to the type of person you must interact within

the company in order to accomplish your mission. That person believes there was no reason to make a change to yourproducts or services. Or believes your products or services do notmeet the needs of a department or division. That person is the one inmeetings who objects to everything you say and pushes back every

proposal you create. That person can hold the title of manager or vice

president or sometimes president. Any future business will have
to go past him or her. How does one win with the ugly?

The Bad refers to that unknown enemy. The enemy that is unseen and unheard. The one that has two employers, the company thatemploys the person and the product/service that has his or herdevotion. That person would win twice if he or she could gettheir solution in the door. It may be the product/service the person has used foryears or it can be the newest thing in the market today. Whateverthe driver, your goods are not good for that person. How does one win with the bad? The Good refers to your ally. That partner whohas outlined the goals of your products or services and sees the valuethey provide to the department/company goals. The person you havebefriended and can call on with new ideas and innovations; he or sheis welcomed and given an open interview. How does one win withthe good?FeaturesLet’s start with the hardest one first, The Good. Yes, I know youthink this is the easy one but it is not. Someone in this category isclearly open to your ideas, products, and creations. Here is the badpart; the person is also open to others’ ideas, products, and creations.If the person is of any value to you, it is because they are a sponge

of information sourcing. Information that can and will support the

person’s driven goal factors, whatever they are. You must feed the

person great, timely, and, many times, cost-cutting ideas. If you

don’t, he or she will find them elsewhere. Ideas that will grow his

or her business, division or department, thus growing the person’s

wallet. Now for The Bad. The bad is the easiest of the three.

Answer these two questions: What is the product or service that

intrigues The Bad? What is the newest item on the market today

that all are talking about? Once you find the answers to these two

questions, sell against the answers. Those products/services are your

competition. The Bad is also the one that seeks education and enlightenment. The Bad is a good place for a beta test of a new feature, but it must live up to thehype. The hype is very important to The Bad. The Bad can becomea great ally, but only through time and by comparing the differencesbetween your offering and the answers to the two questions. The Uglycan be a different animal. The Ugly will never express his or her

true feelings about the products/services. The Ugly will never have a

solution to the problem. The Ugly just knows that your solution is

not what the company should invest in at the time. The Ugly is

always looking for the bigger, better deal/product/service. When

talking with The Ugly, talk on two things in tandem, i.e., the present

and the future. Simultaneously you must make a move in words

from speaking on two levels. When you talk about the features of

your products/services today and the benefits derived you must also,

in the same breath, talk about the future feature applications of your

products in his or her business for years to come. You must show a

history of the evolution of your product/service. The Ugly is not big

on references from others that have used the products/services in the

same manner, but he or she does not want to be the first out of the

box to have used it. The Ugly will test you time and time again

before relenting.

Action to be takenaccount management or relationshipManagementKnow your customers. There is no need to get hung.

~ by mimsmorningmeeting on April 7, 2007.