The account manager plays a pivotal role in any business. But over the course of time, the role has evolved with the rise of Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) companies. With this evolution, the role of a SaaS account manager has not been the same as that of an account executive.

The account managers related to SaaS companies are now more into customizing the customer workflows rather than just the finance part. They have become a people’s person and have been focusing on customer retention for their companies. 

Are you looking forward to working as a SaaS account manager but are doubtful about your skills? Well, then you surely have a look at these 5 signs which will clarify the haze and open the doors for you to work at the position effectively. 

1. Out-and-out Account Planning 

• You should have a strategic approach towards the growing customer base and create plans for retaining the customers. 
• This includes a plethora of tasks such as customer relationship management (CRM), clear revenue system, relationship goals, and many more. 
• You should be capable of keeping a track of Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR) churn %, Customer churn %, and Contract Renewal Rate of the client being managed. 
• Also, having a good idea about up-sell revenue and cross-sell revenue will encourage the expansion of your existing business and uplift your customer base. 
• To keep the account plan running smoothly, you should take monthly or quarterly business reviews. Through these reviews, you’ll be able to demonstrate your customer thoroughly, take proper feedback, and work to bestow them with the best services from your side. 

The yearly churn rate for SaaS businesses serving large organizations varies from 6% to 10%. 

2. Exemplary Knowledge About Project Management 

• In SaaS companies, a client is always looking for someone who’s good at managing the projects and generating astonishing outputs, hence you need to be excellent at project management. 
• The first step towards this is to know in and out about your service and give the best possible support to your clients. 
• With proper knowledge, you can readily adapt projects from any domain and meet the expectations of the client. 
• Irrespective of the project management methodology used by your company, you should be able to integrate your own skills, manage the tasks efficiently to meet the deadlines, and complete the project in time. 
• Make sure to be in constant communication with your clients regarding the progress of the project and take continuous reviews to deliver better success. 

3. Proficient in Whitespace Analysis 

• In spite of the existing services provided by your company, you should be able to analyze the additional services and products that could furnish more value to the customer. 
• You should have in-depth knowledge about your competitors and influence the customer greatly to choose your company over them. 
• Not just that, but you should be able to keep a track of the customer’s lifestyle and maintain a higher Customer Happiness Index (CHI) which generally comes from customer engagements and satisfaction. 
• You should be capable of selling the software with every customer interaction along with your sales representatives and proactively stay in touch with them. This helps you to develop a healthy bond with the customers. 
• You should focus on the intricacies of the services and provide consistently exceptional support to the customers. 

About 25% to 30% of the executives that are directly in contact with the clients are now being compensated on the basis of customer retention metrics. 

4. Potential to Bring Healthy ROI from the Customer 

• This is one of the prime motives of a SaaS account manager and this will test your real abilities to go all-in for your customers.  
• You need to have up-to-date knowledge about your customer and have a clear determination to go out of the way to bring in a feature or updates for a particular customer. 
• Strong customer relationships and elite customer support will decide the fate of the ROI from the customers. You should be the ultimate guide for your customers and lend them a helping hand in every situation. 
• Along with that, if developing a strong Net Promoter Score (NPS) is an easy task for you, then your clients undoubtedly will recommend your services and tools to others. 
• If you are confident enough with your bonding with the customers, then your company is sure to achieve great heights with your assistance. 

The revenue per employee has been steadily increasing in the SaaS industry and has been considered as a key measure in understanding the efficiency of the business. 

5. Ability to Monitor and Run the Service Successfully 

• A SaaS account manager is primarily responsible for building connections, renewals, and growth of the services and you shouldn’t fail in any of these. 
• Knowing about the industry news, networking, and maintaining good communications with your clients will make you aware of the latest trends and be selective about picking them for your company. 
• Always follow up with both the internal and external people associated with your company, ensure to take team meetings, be a trusted advisor, and support everyone around. 
• And to make everything running smoothly, you should be able to constructively make use of the GPCT (Goals, Plans, Challenges, Timeline) model. The model will ease your job of identifying the prime objectives and how to accomplish them. 
• You should be technically sound to be the link between the clients and the developers. This may include connecting marketing users with testimonials or connecting product development with beta testers. 
• You should always inform your clients about a particular feature that will turn helpful for them or maybe provide them with superior training for the same. 

Over 55% of the SaaS companies rate Customer Retention as the key metric to measure. 

This gives you a clear idea of the fact that account management is not just about market insights, but about developing healthy relationships with the customers, take the utmost care of their requirements and provide them with the best services.

In recent years, the role of an account manager has been bifurcated into a customer success manager because account managers already have a great in-depth understanding of the company’s clientele.   

Well, if you have got all of these high-achieving signs to be an ace SaaS account manager, then what are you waiting for? Look out the best SaaS companies out there suiting your needs and join them now. 

WRITTEN BYRakhin V

Rakhin has over 10 years of experience driving business development and client services. In his prior roles, he stayed close to customers to understand their requirements and help them achieve their business goals. He is passionate about customer success.

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