Great Ideas For Determining If An Account Really Is Key

If the pharmaceutical company designates one of its clients as a key account, what criteria is it using to determine this? If this decision is based simply on financial data, then it is likely that the company’s entire account management philosophy is flawed. Look at it from the point of view of a designated key account. What if the client looks at the association on the basis of dollar values alone and believes that it is not based on the provision of high-quality services and on the establishment of strategic importance? No matter how hard the executive tries at an interpersonal level, it is not possible to mask how a pharmaceutical company designates the true meaning of this relationship.

The key client understands why it should be designated as “key,” whether that is purely to do with revenue levels or not or whether, as more likely, it is a product of strategic positioning as well. As such, it will be looking for a special level of attention from the company and an element of leadership in the industry.

Always maintain a two way association between the company and the client. Where competition is rife, options are always available and the company must ensure that it is always doing more than could be expected of it. This requires a philosophical integration through all staff levels and this can be sometimes difficult to achieve. This is why a pharmaceutical consulting firm remains a good investment for the company. Due to the amount of experience that they have built up, pharmaceutical consultants can be really knowledgeable and can even understand a client’s requirements better than the company itself. Consultants should be engaged to help train staff at all levels, to bring them up to speed with the necessary intricacies of dealing with clients.

For example, a client will often be looking for the company to be proactive, to be always looking for ways to improve the relationship and to help the client act on data and information that they already have. Interaction in this way will not necessarily result in a direct revenue increase and therefore if the sales executive is only motivated by revenue related bonuses, this level of incentivisation may not work in everyone’s best interests at all.

Remember that these situations are often far more subtle than this would suggest, and even the most sophisticated incentivisation schemes can fail to meet their targets. A lot of experience is called for in this situation and each key account must be handled carefully and with precision.

Hidden costs are often involved and the pharmaceutical company must understand that it should be very sparing in its designation of “key” account status. Always read between the lines and assess how strategically important the relationship could be, far above bottom-line figures and revenues. In our modern business world, pharma consulting firms are on point here and can help to reveal the reasons and circumstances that can affect a company’s decision and help to safeguard the company’s best interests in the beginning.

Alan Gillies is the Managing Director of L2L Consulting, specialising in enabling pharmaceutical companies to achieve new heights of productivity and performance, throughout all levels of management and revenue generating activities.