5 essential account manager skills and how to nurture them
Excelling as an account manager and handling the pressures of the job takes a specific set of skills. In this blog, we will discuss what top 5 attributes make a successful account manager in a marketing agency, and how managers can nurture these skills in their team.
5 key account manager skills to master in client services
Effective communication
It’s the foundation of any successful relationship, but effective communication is especially important for account managers. They need to be able to listen actively, ask questions, and communicate complex information in a clear, concise, timely way that is easy for clients, colleagues and stakeholders to understand.
What can you do?
➔ Get to know their communication style – Help them craft their tone and approach using whichever method they feel most comfortable using (i.e. email or in person). Once they have one form of communication nailed and they're super confident, it’ll make it easier to improve on other formats.
➔ Consider the world through their eyes – Covid lockdowns and the continued trend of home and hybrid working means there’s a whole cohort of people with little to no experience of being in an office environment. If someone is not communicating in a way you think is appropriate, try and understand it through the lens of: have they ever experienced the working world in this way? Is there something you can do to make their transition to the ‘in-person’ working world more seamless?
➔ Build confidence in the essentials – Provide communication training focusing on active listening, asking questions, and providing clear, concise information. You can also encourage team members to share feedback on communication styles and offer constructive feedback so they feel valued and part of the process.
2. Excellent time management & project management
As the person responsible for overseeing projects from start to finish, account handlers need to be able to manage their time effectively, prioritise tasks, and meet deadlines. This is so much more than a to-do list – although that's a great place to start – it takes strong organisational skills, attention to detail, and the ability to juggle multiple tasks all at once. Being able to delegate tasks to the right team members, monitor progress, and adjust timelines as needed is also vital for keeping projects on track.
What can you do?
➔ Provide training on time management tools and techniques – Timing plans aren’t always the answer! Help your teams become familiar with additional tools like the Eisenhower matrix to define essential and urgent tasks in addition to, or as an alternative to their usual go-to tools. Encourage team members to set achievable goals, monitor progress, and evaluate performance against targets regularly.
➔ The art of pushing back – Ensure your account managers know it's OK to raise their hand if they have too much to get through or a project is going to be too tricky to deliver within the given timescales.
3. Resilience to pressure
Working in digital marketing can be fast-paced and stressful. Account handlers need to be able to handle pressure and stress in a healthy way, but that’s not always easy. Having solid resilience means they will be able to bounce back from setbacks and adapt to changing circumstances more easily.
What can you do?
➔ Create a safe space to fail – So much pressure and stress comes from fear of failure – yet most people learn by making mistakes. Let your team know it’s impossible to succeed every time – and that’s a good thing.
➔ Dig a little deeper – Spend time with them to understand what's causing the pressure. Is it too many deadlines, poor communication causing confusion and uncertainty or something happening in their personal life that's impacting their job? Once you have a better idea of what’s happening, you can make a plan of action.
➔ Put the right tools in place – Provide training on stress management techniques, mindfulness practices, and emotional intelligence. Normalise taking breaks and provide opportunities for team bonding so that your account managers and executives can build relationships and support each other.
Influencing colleagues and clients
People with influence at work tend to be more trusted and recognised, and it’s a vital skill for strategic account management and customer retention. This takes strong interpersonal skills, the ability to build rapport and trust, and a deep understanding of the client's needs and goals.
What can you do?
➔ Help them build their influence – Encourage your team to get to know the characters and values of the people they work with. Understanding why someone does their job makes it easier to tap into that to guide them. The same approach is unlikely to work with everyone. Remind your team they don't need to be friends with everyone to influence them.
➔ Encourage them to become the expert in the room – This doesn't mean they need to know everything about everything, but they need to know the right people to bring in at the right time.
➔ Provide training on essential skills – Building rapport, trust, and negotiation skills are all part of being influential. Encourage your team members to work collaboratively with clients and colleagues, practise active listening, and understand the client's needs and goals.
5. Empathy
Having empathy for clients and colleagues is an excellent skill for establishing friendlier relationships, identifying someone’s needs and managing conflicts better. This requires active listening, a willingness to put yourself in another person's shoes, and a genuine desire to help. Empathy allows account managers to build trust and rapport with clients and provide excellent customer support, which is essential for long-term relationship success.
What can you do?
➔ Raise the importance of soft skills – The softer skills of client services are often overlooked but are just as important as the more functional skills. Encourage your teams to practise active listening, ask open-ended questions, and understand the client's perspective.
How else can you better support your junior account handlers?
At The Secret AD, we understand how crucial skilled account managers are to your business and customer relationships. If you found this article helpful and want to know how else you can better support your junior account handlers, then get in touch to discuss how bespoke account management training can help your Client Services team excel.
