Learn from Key Account Management expert Ed Powers how to manage your most important customer relationships. Ed Powers is a global expert in customer success and customer relationship management.

1. KEYS TO EXCEPTIONAL ACCOUNT MANAGEMENT
WITH ED POWERS5
Who is Ed Powers?
Having led account management and operations teams at a variety
of companies—from start-ups to large-scale enterprises—Ed Powers
has over 25 years of experience reducing customer turnover and
creating high-performing organizations.
The pioneering mind behind “Mindful” Customer Experience
Management, Ed uses the latest breakthroughs in neuroscience to
help his clients solve customer problems, deliver better value, and
create stronger relationships.
The result?
World-class customer retention and unparalleled brand loyalty.
kapta.com
Ed Powers: Customer Success Industry Leader
ed@se-oartners.com
Account Management isn’t an important part of business.
It’s an indispensable one.
Talented Account Managers mitigate churn, maximize spends, and keep clients
smiling all the way to the next contract.
Unfortunately, not all AM’s were created equal.
The difference between an average and outstanding Account Manager is the
difference between a floundering and flourishing client relationship.
To help make sure you’re an Account Manager of the latter variety, here are 5 Keys to
Exceptional Account Management as described by industry leader Ed Powers.

2. 1
You’re a Key Account Manager,
not a walking, talking product catalogue.
Your job is to be a relationship builder.
A partner in crime.
Someone who can not only help the client
complete campaign “X” from start to finish,
but provide a solution to problem “Y”—a
problem the client hasn’t even discovered
yet.
Where Vendors merely recite inventory and
list an associated price, Strategic Suppliers
listen, engage in conversation, and the
provide comprehensive solutions, not just
products.
“DON’T BE A ‘VENDOR’ --- BE A ‘STRATEGIC SUPPLIER’”

3. Your process needs to be perfect, plain and simple.
What is a perfect process?—one that employs active listening
to arrive at the root of client concerns.
Exceptional Account Managers are master listeners, constantly
keeping their ears to the ground in an effort to deliver better
value for, and build a better relationship with, the customer.
Part of being a master listener is knowing how to ask
questions. Nothing neuters a relationship faster than Yes/No
questions because they lead to Yes/No answers — answers that
offer no opportunity for connection.
While average Account Managers fail to ask the thoughtful,
open-ended question, exceptional Account Managers use their
active listening skills to craft intelligent questions that explore
the client’s position and get to the heart of their issue(s).
2 “CONNECT WITH YOUR CLIENT. DON’T LEAVE IT TO ‘YES’ AND ‘NO’”

4. The use of words like cultivate, nurture,
fertile, in the previous section wasn’t
without purpose.
Whereas salespeople (Hunters) think only
of securing the individual client kill,
Account Managers (Farmers) are patient,
adaptable, and vested in the kind of long
term growth that culminates in a bountiful
harvest.
See the big picture with each of your
clients. Don’t dwell on monthly, or
quarterly returns. Learn to look at each
client through an annual lens.
The seed may be small and pitiful now, but
with strategic sowing and careful
cultivation it could become the most
fruitful crop in your portfolio.
3 “THE HUNTER VERSUS THE FARMER”
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5. It’s easy to talk to clients when the news is good, but when it’s
bad?—not so much.
Transparency is at the heart of any healthy relationship and
exceptional Account Managers don’t mask the truth. They
provide their clients with complete access to campaign
details—positive or negative—at all times.
Success in Account Management means providing your clients
with access to the details – positive or negative – at all times.
Avoid any unnecessary subjectivity and keep the conversation
as objective and fact-centric as possible.
4 “SHOW IT ALL AS AN OPEN BOOK”

6. kapta.com
Being an open book is an important element in the formula for
client trust, but truthfulness alone is not enough.
Winning complete trust and securing a healthy client
relationship requires three additional components:
• Ability—you must demonstrate your skill
The client is entrusting you with campaigns, goals, and
thousands of dollars. It’s a scary proposition if your
competence is in question. You’ll only get one chance to
make a good impression so demonstrate deftness on
Day 1.
• Benevolence—it’s not about you
Astute Account Managers know that it’s not about them,
it’s about the client. Conveying compassion, care, and
consideration is an integral part of the job. The more an
Account Manager can meet the client on their
level—understanding their concerns and needs—the
more comfortable the client will feel.
• Integrity—stay true to your word
Ultimately, if you promise the client something, be it a
campaign result or weekly phone call, you have GOT to
deliver. In the game of Account Management, your word
is your bond—break it once and you’ll might survive, but
break it twice and that client relationship will be
tarnished forever.
5 “TRUTH VERSUS TRUST”

7. Becoming an exceptional Account Manager isn’t
for the faint of heart—it requires intelligence,
patience, and the ability to connect with customer
on a personal level—but it can be learned.
With time and practice coupled with the right tools, like Kapta,
upgrading your Account Management caliber from average to
outstanding is easier than you might think.
Kapta is a Key Account Management (KAM) platform
engineered to empower AM’s who want to over-deliver on
expectations, maintain vital accounts, and grow revenue all
the way through the final day of the quarter. By building
unbreakable bonds between Key Account Managers and their
most-valued clients, Kapta helps businesses create constant
growth within the pipeline.
To learn more about Kapta, Ed Powers, or intelligent Account Management,
please contact us at info@kapta.com.