The key component of a successful account manager is doing everything they can to ensure the job gets done.
Everyone has either heard of, or had an account manager work with them in some way shape or form, whether it’s a marketing account manager or something else entirely.
There are always questions around what an account manager does exactly. To be honest there is never a single answer to that question, as all businesses and account management roles differ.
To sum it up very simply, an account manager (AM) in a digital marketing agency needs to be a bit of everything, the first point of contact for you, the client. your voice within the agency and the voice of the agency to you.
Account managers are the go-between for all departments within an agency, they organise day to day jobs, manage budgets & oversee digital campaigns.
Account managers also occasionally need to rein in passionate team members (naming no names!) who champion their discipline or results above all else. As an agency we are always looking to deliver the best possible outcome, so an account manager needs to stay level headed and channel agnostic, to truly deliver the best solution for the client.
The key component of a successful account manager is doing everything they can to ensure the job gets done (on time & within budget ideally).
What can you expect from an Account Manager?
Ample knowledge
As mentioned above, AMs tend to have a little knowledge on a lot of things. They tend not to be the experts, but still hold an overall implementational understanding of the services being provided. As a client you should expect account managers to be capable of delivering updates & explaining results without the need of the channel experts, but we always invite these specialists to offer a more in-depth perspective where required.
Meticulous planners
Your account manager will also be doing a lot of planning. AMs need to plan for any future activity, whether that’s ensuring resources are available, moving budgets around where needed to most importantly ensuring the agency delivers the results to grow your business.
They hold the key to most information including timelines, targets, budgets and progress of campaigns.
Great communicators
Communication is a vital part of the role, and as a client you can expect AMs to also coordinate all the internal teams ensuring everyone is working together. AMs need to be able to communicate the intricacies of the work being undertaken, and fully understand your goals, ensuring that what is happening in the agency is working toward that.
Communication is a vital part of the role, and as a client you can expect AMs to also coordinate all the internal teams ensuring everyone is working together. AMs need to be able to communicate the intricacies of the work being undertaken, and fully understand your goals, ensuring that what is happening in the agency is working toward that.
How Account Managers are important to clients’ successes
Although they are not the technical experts, account managers are vital in helping you see success.
Account managers need to live and breathe your business, to really understand it, to know how it ticks and what you define as success. Knowing this arms an AM to speak to the experts doing the day to day work. If your account manager isn’t regularly asking you questions, or they don’t seem interested in your business you should flag this with someone more senior in the agency, whether that’s an account director or owner. Luckily, at Adido we love asking questions!
Building a relationship with you is the only way to perform an AM role, understanding what makes you tick helps the agency put forward future strategies & ideas.
Overall an account management role is a people & results role. Achieving success for you, the client, is the lifeblood of an account manager and delivering that good news to you is the icing on the cake.
