Account Management vs. Account Services
By Monte Kraus, account executive
At Mad Genius, we deliver account management more than account services.
“Gee, Monte, what’s the difference between account management and account services?”
Great question. Let’s dive into that a bit.
The Functions of Account Services Team
At an advertising agency, the primary functions of account services are to (a) keep work flowing into the agency, (b) establish good relationships—more on this in a bit—with clients, and (c) to ensure agency output aligns with clients' strategic goals.
Account services meet with clients, propose solutions to business problems, and write briefs. They also act as liaisons, often presenting work to, and bringing feedback from, the client. Account services can be considered a client-vendor relationship and is regularly project-based.
The Functions of Account Management Team
Account management, on the other hand, is the process of managing and nurturing relationships with clients. It’s entirely about focusing on building strong relationships that lead to customer loyalty, and, hopefully, long-term revenue. It’s managing accounts with long-term goals in mind, for both the client and the agency.
That last piece is crucial, the bit about aligning goals for clients and the agency. Mad Genius wholeheartedly believes that we are not the right fit for every company out there. We can’t be, at least not if we’re honest. And that’s okay. We’re a really excellent fit for the ones with whom we do align.
And yeah, to be fair, there is a lot of account service in account management. The relationship, however, is the focus. Always.
The Three Pillars of Great Account Management
Great account management (aka client/agency relationship sculpting) is based on three pillars--
“Monte, what are those three pillars?”
I was literally about to go into that. Chill out a bit.
“Okay.”
Thanks.
“We’re just excited.”
I know. Me, too. Wait, “we?”
Anywho, great account management (aka client/agency relationship sculpting) is based on three pillars:
1. Relationships
At Mad Genius, each person on the accounts team works and owns their relationships. We endeavor to understand their goals from the inside—not just what they hope to achieve, but why they strive to achieve it. And it can’t be a facade. To truly cultivate a lasting relationship, the care must be genuine—it’s critical. We offer our clients a shoulder when they want it, honesty when they need it, and transparency every day.
2. Strategy
Once we understand the goals of our client, we develop strategies that will help them be successful. This is driven by experience and fueled by the relationship we’re investing in. If they thrive, we thrive. Being strategic with our clients also means crafting plans that make sense for our clients. This involves aligning the many creative tools at our agency to provide reasonable executions of strategies that work, while being good stewards of their budgets and their trust.
“Ahh, how sweet.”
Who even are you?
3. Project Management
Which brings us to project management. Despite what you may have heard, this is more than forwarding emails—at least, it is if you’re doing it correctly. We are here to be trusted advisors to our clients, not vendors. Once we’ve identified a path to success, we measure the performance of our work again and again, all while thinking proactively for our client. Getting from creative brief to results is one thing, but ensuring those results are the best they can be is the difference between servicing an account and managing a relationship.
Companies who look to agencies do so for an outside opinion and the expertise to solve a problem they’re experiencing. If all we’re doing is answering the phone and habitually putting through work orders, we’ve failed the client on both fronts. We would also probably hate our job because that sounds terrible.
“It totally does.”
Thankfully, Mad Genius.
I appreciate you reading. Now, I’m off to see a therapist.