238. Effective Account Management Strategies, with Jenny Plant

The Innovative Agency

Intro

Today's episode of The Innovative Agency dives into the importance of account management skills for agency owners and leaders. Our guest, Jenny Plant, discusses the common focus on new business rather than nurturing existing client relationships. By listening, you will discover why caring for current clients is crucial for agency success.

What you will learn in this episode:

• A brief description of what account management means in agency environments.

• How account managers can identify qualified talent.

• How to grow specific accounts using account management techniques.

• The best ways to leverage different skill sets in specific roles.

• How to plan effective strategy sessions with your clients.

• What it takes to grow accounts organically as an agency.

Bio

Jenny Plant left Publicis LifeBrands (a global healthcare communications agency) as General Manager in 2010 to start Account Management Skills Ltd, a training company dedicated to helping agency account management teams retain and grow existing client relationships.

Her client retention and growth for agency training has been running since 2016, promoted and endorsed by the Pharmaceutical Marketing Society.

Jenny’s career in account management spans 30 years and includes working in both network and independent agencies.

It also includes agency acquisition management, relationship audits for agencies and her current role as agency board advisor for strategic branding agency Made Brave. She has worked client-side in marketing for a pharmaceutical company in Barcelona, Uriach and Iberia Airlines in London.

Jenny spent three years as a student of Sandler sales training and has a CIM Diploma in Marketing and BTEC Diploma in Business & Finance. She is an authorized partner for Everything DiSC by Wiley.

Jenny hosts the “Creative Agency Account Manager” podcast dedicated to helping agency account managers improve their account management skills.

Resources:

• Website: https://accountmanagementskills.com/

• LinkedIn Personal: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennyplant/

• LinkedIn Business: https://www.linkedin.com/school/account-management-skills/

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AccountManagementSkills/

• Twitter: https://twitter.com/jennyplant