The Role of Account Management in Customer Growth and Strategic Goals
Milind Katti, co-founder and CEO of DemandFarm, talks about the importance of account management and relationship building in growing existing customer revenue and achieving strategic goals.
00:00:03 Milind Katti is the co-founder and CEO of DemandFarm, a software company that provides B2B key account management solutions. He has a background in sales and marketing and has been in the industry for over a decade. DemandFarm was acquired by Ziff Davis in 2018.
📅 Milind Katti is the co-founder and CEO of DemandFarm.
📚 DemandFarm provides B2B key account management solutions.
📈 DemandFarm started as an inside sales outsourcing company and later became a performance marketing company.
00:06:16 Milind Katti, co-founder and CEO of DemandFarm, discusses the evolution of their business and the importance of account management in growing existing customer revenue and achieving strategic goals.
Milind Katti's journey from selling trucks to co-founding a performance marketing company.
The evolution of the business models, digital marketing, and customer solutions over 12-13 years.
The definition and importance of account management in growing existing customer revenue and helping them achieve strategic goals.
00:12:29 Milind Katti, Co-founder & CEO of DemandFarm, discusses the challenges in account management and the need for digital account plans. He highlights the importance of continuity, institutionalizing account planning, and gaining valuable insights from account plans. Account planning must be dynamic and adaptable to changing circumstances.
Account plans used to be non-digital and individual-driven.
DemandFarm provides software tools for digital account planning.
The challenges in account management include continuity, institutionalization, and insights.
Account planning needs to be dynamic and adaptable.
Relationship mapping is vital in account management.
00:18:42 Milind Katti, Co-founder & CEO of DemandFarm, discusses the importance of relationship mapping in account management and how it helps account managers understand and visualize their relationships with customers. He emphasizes the need to go beyond superficial interactions and truly empathize with customers' problems to build strong relationships.
🌳 Visualize your account relationships through a relationship map or knock chart.
🤝 Account management is more than just building superficial relationships.
🔍 Identify white spaces in your account and take action to fill them.
00:24:57 Milind Katti, Co-founder & CEO of DemandFarm, discusses the evolution of India over the last 15 years, including its growth in IT and business processes. He also highlights India's digital interventions, such as online education and the rise of unicorns.
🏏 Cricket is the largest game in the world.
📈 India has evolved and experienced significant growth in the last 15 years.
🌱 India has become a leader in digital interventions and education.
💡 Automation and AI play a role in strategic account management.
00:31:10 Milind Katti discusses the complexity of decision-making in sales and account management. He suggests using data insights to enhance human decision-making and create 'Iron Man' account managers.
🤖 Different types of decisions require different levels of complexity and automation.
💼 Account management requires a balance of data insights and human decision-making.
🦸♂️ Goodness and collaboration are important for success in business.
00:37:24 Milind Katti discusses the importance of being a good account manager in the business world, emphasizing the need for knowledge, collaboration, and leadership skills.
📌 Marquetto used to have a ruthless sales team but has now transitioned to a more sustainable and disciplined approach.
🔑 DemandFarm focuses on helping B2B companies, especially mid-size to large enterprises, with their account planning and management.
💼 Key skills for a great account manager include being a well-rounded general manager, being a strong collaborator, and having domain expertise in the industry.
Want to deep dive into this video?
