Account Management in Media

Objective

To build the confidence and resourcefulness of those charged with responsibility for day to day client contacts in effectively managing both client and internal relationships in the interests of producing great work.

Benefits

•  Delegates will be given insights to help them create relationships built on trust, respect and mutual understanding, enabling quality work to be developed and implemented
•  They will increase their confidence and ability to clearly identify client needs, to negotiate for time and to motivate internal departments
•  The practical and media-specific emphasis of the course will ensure that all delegates will have readily applicable tools and insights to take back with them

Content

Before the course, delegates will be asked to submit in confidence their job descriptions and any issues they have in relation to managing the accounts on which they work. The material will then be used as the basis for examples, exercises and discussion on the course.
The course is modular in design, incorporating a combination of talks, exercises and interactive discussion. The 6 modules are grouped under the acroynym SPRUCED:

Structure
        •  Client: identifying the approval process, discriminating between gatekeepers and decision makers and why they need to be handled differently
        •  Agency or Sales Department: what's the formation and how defined is your role?
        •  Man marking
Process
        •  How do you work?
        •  Is it clear, defensible, explained to clients and upheld?
Review
        •  The importance of regular, unavoidable feedback
Understanding
        •  Ways to better understand the business, the job and the nature of the client
        •  Precision Questionnning (NLP)
        •  Listening skills
        •  How you can help in getting to a good brief
Communication
        •  Mechanisms
        •  Protocol
Education
        •  Ways to take responsibility for educating your clients in what you do
Direction
        •  Developing or contributing to a plan for the account, covering financial (growth, profitability, cash flow), service, social and quality of work goals

Time will also be allocated to discussing the issues raised by delegates and ideas and strategies to resolve them will be developed.

Target

The course is aimed at media people who have begun to manage a client account(s). Intermediate level course, typically for media people with 3-5 years experience.

Format

This is a one-day intensive course, with all the necessary breaks for light refreshment built in and held at a convenient central London location. Delegates should find the course to be completely relevant to their career development as well as being practical and fun.

Facilitator

The course is run by Richard Longworth who spent the first sixteen years of his working life in advertising, culminating in the position of Director and Head fo Client Service at Lowe Howard-Spink. His training experience began whilst in advertising as he was responsible for accoutn management training at both Abbott Mead Vickers and Lowe's and he was a member of the training and education committee of the IPA, chairing, tutoring and lecturing on a variety of their courses. He has run his own consultancy for over ten years and combines 'doing' (marketing and communications strategy consultancy) with training.

CPD Value