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Key Accounts Needs to Identify Distributor Needs

by Lee

We recently kicked off research for an upcoming whitepaper of the needs of broker/dealer gatekeepers, a follow-up to our "Beyond Key Accounts" whitepaper from 2005. Today we had a great internal brainstorming session in which we identified three issues to address in the whitepaper. In each of these issues, Key Accounts groups today are often a bottleneck for distribution success.

1) Key Accounts groups can aid firms in developing profitable products by better understanding the needs of their distribution partners. Today, product opportunities are often missed.

2) Key Accounts groups can aid in ensuring optimal shelf space by better supporting the research teams at distributors. Today, research teams are not properly supported by most firms. A few have recognized the need for more sophisticated skills among their Key Accounts team and have hired CFAs or even PhD-level Key Account Managers.

3) Key Accounts groups can aid firms in getting the most out of their Sales & Marketing initiatives by better managing the relationships with their counterparts at distributors. Today, a lack of understanding leads to inadequate support, often meaning that it is near impossible to get a phone call returned or a piece of literature approved.

We look forward to speaking with Key Account Managers, Gatekeepers, Research Analysts, and others as part of our research over the next couple months to identify ways in which firms can "break" the bottleneck.