Account Management
Quote: “Proper account management all but guarantees crazy good client satisfaction. Happy clients support agency business and individual employee promotional objectives.”
What is This Section About?
This section of Trainer University outlines the foundation of proper account management.
Why is This Section Important?
Proper account management maps to Trainer Communications’ internal goal of maintaining clients for a minimum of 2.5 years. Delivering and exceeding promised results in a timely manner increases the likelihood of client contract renewal which in turns supports agency financial and growth plans.
Account Management First you must know about “Crazy Good Client Satisfaction.” This phrase is all about making sure our clients are exceptionally satisfied with the team and the work we do for them. It’s all about results! Our goal is to make sure that our clients stay with us for as long as possible (a minimum of 2.5 years is our goal), and we are constantly working closely with them to make sure that they feel we are strategic, not “order takers” and deliver phenomenal results on a consistent basis.
In the spirit of “Crazy Good Client Satisfaction,” Trainer has four key pillars that we stand by:
Set Goals: Metrics Matter
Unlike other PR agencies, Trainer Communications has its Metrics Matter approach (described in other section) that defines and measures our public relations and marketing results. These metrics guarantee that our clients will receive the results they agreed upon before we begin work on their account. This strategy eliminates the “guess work” that happens with accounts especially in the planning stages and helps define goals early on in the account. By the time you are ready to begin, you know exactly where you are going and what the goals are for each account.
Manage Expectations
Public relations is not an exact science and helping to manage your clients’ expectations continuously throughout the life of the account will ensure that both you and the client are satisfied. No one likes surprises so bringing up results that may fall short, or a hot media issue to your client as soon as possible will help your client understand the situation and build trust with the team on the account. To this end, Trainer believes in full transparency in the account work we perform. Our clients have every right to see who we have pitched, what releases we have written, and the last analyst we have spoken with. This eases any tension a client may have about the level of account work we are providing them.
Exceed Results
With Metrics Matter, it’s easy to see what the team needs to provide the client to achieve those goals. But more importantly, we want to exceed those goals. We believe that Crazy Good Client Satisfaction comes from delivering above and beyond what the client expects and what will help drive their business (especially leads). By checking the Metrics Matter scorecard on a weekly basis, we are able to steer our account teams in the right direction to deliver on those goals and in many cases exceed results.
Superior Communication
We are always communicating with our clients. Having a high level of communication with our clients builds trust, keeps the account moving forward, and enables us to do more in a day for our clients than most agencies can get done in a week. We have a two-hour time period (an SLA – service level agreement) during which all client emails and phone calls must be returned. We hold weekly team meetings and, on average, call or email our clients several times a day. We make ourselves available on Skype, Yahoo IM or any other tool our client uses in order to make ourselves accessible. Not being able to get a hold of someone on the team, or missing a critical change in strategy or timing of an announcement can strain our relationship with the client. Trainer understands that we are partners with our clients, and having a high level of communication allows us to work hand-in-hand with them on the account.
What is This Section About?
This section of Trainer University outlines the foundation of proper account management.
Why is This Section Important?
Proper account management maps to Trainer Communications’ internal goal of maintaining clients for a minimum of 2.5 years. Delivering and exceeding promised results in a timely manner increases the likelihood of client contract renewal which in turns supports agency financial and growth plans.
Account Management First you must know about “Crazy Good Client Satisfaction.” This phrase is all about making sure our clients are exceptionally satisfied with the team and the work we do for them. It’s all about results! Our goal is to make sure that our clients stay with us for as long as possible (a minimum of 2.5 years is our goal), and we are constantly working closely with them to make sure that they feel we are strategic, not “order takers” and deliver phenomenal results on a consistent basis.
In the spirit of “Crazy Good Client Satisfaction,” Trainer has four key pillars that we stand by:
- Set goals - Metrics Matter
- Manage Expectations
- Exceed Results
- Superior Communication
Set Goals: Metrics Matter
Unlike other PR agencies, Trainer Communications has its Metrics Matter approach (described in other section) that defines and measures our public relations and marketing results. These metrics guarantee that our clients will receive the results they agreed upon before we begin work on their account. This strategy eliminates the “guess work” that happens with accounts especially in the planning stages and helps define goals early on in the account. By the time you are ready to begin, you know exactly where you are going and what the goals are for each account.
Manage Expectations
Public relations is not an exact science and helping to manage your clients’ expectations continuously throughout the life of the account will ensure that both you and the client are satisfied. No one likes surprises so bringing up results that may fall short, or a hot media issue to your client as soon as possible will help your client understand the situation and build trust with the team on the account. To this end, Trainer believes in full transparency in the account work we perform. Our clients have every right to see who we have pitched, what releases we have written, and the last analyst we have spoken with. This eases any tension a client may have about the level of account work we are providing them.
Exceed Results
With Metrics Matter, it’s easy to see what the team needs to provide the client to achieve those goals. But more importantly, we want to exceed those goals. We believe that Crazy Good Client Satisfaction comes from delivering above and beyond what the client expects and what will help drive their business (especially leads). By checking the Metrics Matter scorecard on a weekly basis, we are able to steer our account teams in the right direction to deliver on those goals and in many cases exceed results.
Superior Communication
We are always communicating with our clients. Having a high level of communication with our clients builds trust, keeps the account moving forward, and enables us to do more in a day for our clients than most agencies can get done in a week. We have a two-hour time period (an SLA – service level agreement) during which all client emails and phone calls must be returned. We hold weekly team meetings and, on average, call or email our clients several times a day. We make ourselves available on Skype, Yahoo IM or any other tool our client uses in order to make ourselves accessible. Not being able to get a hold of someone on the team, or missing a critical change in strategy or timing of an announcement can strain our relationship with the client. Trainer understands that we are partners with our clients, and having a high level of communication allows us to work hand-in-hand with them on the account.