For B2B companies, managing customer relationships is critical for sustaining growth and profitability. However, as business complexities have increased over time, legacy account planning approaches like spreadsheets and paper files are now inadequate. This has led many organizations to adopt more advanced account planning software solutions.
In this blog post, we will explore the progression of account planning technology and how it has transformed relationship management for modern B2B enterprises.
Traditional Account Planning Methods
For decades, businesses relied on manual and paper-based processes to manage their accounts and clients. This worked to some extent because the volume of information exchange between the limited number of clients was lower. Tools like spreadsheets, online documents, notebooks, and binders, to name a few, were sufficient for tracking customer data and patterns.
For instance, businesses would leverage spreadsheets as makeshift CRM platforms to organize and filter customer data. So, all the incoming user data and other relevant details, like key contacts, purchasing patterns, and previous sales figures, would be manually logged in grids and tables.
What did teams use to channel internal plans and keep everything on track? Customized paper planners and notebooks could have been used to map out extensive account plans and activity timelines.
Yes, these processes were intuitive and did not need much expertise to master. However, with increasing business volumes, managing spreadsheets and other manual data sources was getting clunky.
Data was being siloed rather than integrated, leaving humans to connect the dots across various sources.
Challenges And Limitations
Since traditional planning methods relied heavily on manual documentation and updating, they were prone to human error. Moreover, the bigger concern was that errors would accumulate from the ground up to the latest versions of data. Another issue was sustaining data integrity.
Moreover, the modus operandi in most businesses was that the internal teams would use spreadsheets and similar tools to finalize their plans and SOPs. Then, someone leading the teams would review, and that was it.
However, these plans and agendas were localized. Changes to reflect other stakeholders’ viewpoints were difficult to incorporate. So, there were inconsistencies across customer-facing teams.
Imagine wanting to change entries in a few spreadsheets. But these spreadsheets are linked to other databases and spreadsheets. In such cases, there was a huge possibility of data inconsistency during updates.
Moreover, traditional techniques provided little visibility into progress and performance. Without holistic overviews, identifying issues and opportunities for improvement was a struggle.
The Emergence Of Early Digital Solutions
It was not until the late 1990s, that businesses began to realize that account planning methods needed to change. There was an urgent need to shift from scattered rows and columns to a more centralized structure that could store the data. Moreover, digitization of data has been a big boon for companies.
Customer relationship management (CRM) and sales force automation (SFA) platforms started the revolution. They provided:
- Centralized account profiles
- Contact records, and
- Consistent activity logging.
Users could now access up-to-date customer details from one central dashboard instead of wasting their time piecing together manual binders. While these platforms focused on data capture rather than strategic analysis, they were instrumental in enhancing transparency in operations.
However, it quickly became clear to software providers that there was potential for deeper account planning automation. Beyond just digitizing and storing data, the next evolution would apply AI and analytics to actively optimize planning activities based on insights learned over time.
This ushered in a new generation of intelligent tools.
Evolution Of Modern Account Planning Software
In the 2010s, rapid innovation in analytics and AI triggered a new breed of automated account planning tools. These modern tools aim to drive more predictive and prescriptive capabilities by learning from customer data and behaviors over time.
Whereas early CRM systems focused on data consolidation, the latest platforms apply machine learning algorithms to uncover micro-patterns and guide optimal account strategies tailored to each customer.
For example, the software can track account lifecycle milestones across thousands of customers to identify the most effective sequences of touchpoints for deals to progress to close.
Equipped with analytics engines, account planning software can serve up recommendations to ensure high-value accounts receive right-timed, personalized outreach.
According to Prolific, user data also empowers the software to spot early warning signs when relationships show signals of turning high-risk. Across the customer journey, smart functionality works 24/7 to keep account managers on the best path.
Moreover, modern tools aim for complete workflow automation. Based on account insights, platforms can trigger automated tasks like sending relevant assets to prospects, scheduling follow-ups, or adjusting revenue projections.
This enables account managers to scale planning activities. Time once spent documenting manual spreadsheets can now be focused on high-level strategy and client relationships.
The number of businesses incorporating AI grew by a staggering 44% in 2018.
In essence, the latest wave of software aims to be an account manager’s trusted planning advisor, applying data and machine learning to handle administrative tasks while recommending ways to nurture every customer for repeat, expanded business.
For businesses in the B2B circuit, it is the need of the hour to exploit this wave of account planning tools.
Continue Reading:
Wow, amazing blog layout! How long have you been blogging for?
you made blogging look easy.