In service-based businesses, success is defined by the quality of relationships built with clients. Two critical teams/departments responsible for fostering client relationships are customer success teams and account management teams. Though their roles often overlap, their objectives and approaches differ in significant ways. Both teams play a pivotal role in nurturing long-term client relationships, enhancing satisfaction, and driving growth for the organization.
This article explores the nuances of customer success vs account management, their individual roles, and how these functions align and differ. We will also discuss how businesses can leverage platforms like Moxo to bridge gaps and enable these teams to work together effectively.
What is customer success
Customer success refers to the strategic and proactive approach of ensuring that customers achieve their desired outcomes while using a product or service. Unlike traditional reactive support models, customer success is rooted in anticipating customer needs and creating strategies to address them before issues arise.
Goals of customer success teams
- Maximizing product or service value: Ensuring that customers understand and leverage the full capabilities of the product.
- Driving retention: Building trust and ensuring customers remain loyal to the brand.
- Creating upsell opportunities: Identifying ways to provide additional value through new features, upgrades, or complementary offerings.
Customer success managers (CSMs) act as strategic advisors, working closely with clients to align the organization’s offerings with the client’s broader goals. Their efforts contribute directly to higher customer lifetime value (CLV) and reduced churn rates.
Why customer success matters
- Retention-focused approach: Retaining an existing customer is often more cost-effective than acquiring a new one.
- Proactive problem-solving: By staying ahead of potential challenges, CSMs ensure smoother client experiences.
- Scalable growth: Satisfied customers are more likely to recommend your brand, fueling organic growth.
In a world where customer expectations are constantly evolving, customer success has become a key differentiator for businesses looking to stand out in competitive markets.
What is account management
Account management is centered on maintaining and strengthening the company’s existing relationships with clients. While customer success focuses on long-term strategy, account management handles day-to-day interactions and ensures that clients’ immediate needs are met.
Goals of account management
- Client advocacy: Representing the client’s interests within the company.
- Contract renewals and negotiations: Ensuring seamless renewals and mutually beneficial terms.
- Issue resolution: Acting as the first point of contact for troubleshooting and problem resolution.
Account managers (AMs) are often the primary liaison between the client and the company, managing communications, tracking deliverables, and addressing any concerns that arise during the relationship.
Why account management matters
- Responsive support: Quick and effective handling of client concerns builds trust and loyalty.
- Revenue protection: Account managers play a critical role in securing contract renewals and expanding account value.
- Client satisfaction: Ensuring consistent service delivery leads to happier clients who are more likely to renew contracts or make referrals.
Account managers serve as the operational backbone of client relationships, ensuring that everything runs smoothly and efficiently.
Similarities between customer success and account management
While customer success and account management serve different functions, their alignment is essential for delivering a seamless client experience. Both teams aim to ensure client satisfaction and retention, making collaboration a necessity.
Points of alignment
- Customer retention
Both customer success and account management teams are dedicated to ensuring clients remain loyal by minimizing churn. Customer success achieves this through proactive strategies that address potential issues before they arise, fostering trust and stability. Meanwhile, account management supports retention by maintaining strong relationships through consistent service delivery and responsiveness, creating a foundation for long-term client loyalty. - Upselling and cross-selling opportunities
Identifying opportunities to expand the client relationship is a shared priority for customer success and account management teams. Customer success leverages client insights to uncover needs and suggest value-adding features or services, aligning these opportunities with the client’s goals. Account management complements this effort by handling the operational side, such as negotiating terms and ensuring seamless execution, making upselling and cross-selling successful endeavors. - Feedback loops
Both teams play a critical role in collecting and utilizing client feedback to drive continuous improvement. Customer success teams gather insights to inform strategic product enhancements and address unmet needs proactively. Similarly, account management captures day-to-day feedback, ensuring immediate concerns are resolved while contributing to a broader understanding of client expectations that guide organizational strategy. - Client education
Educating clients on the product’s capabilities is essential for maximizing its value, a responsibility shared by both teams. Customer success focuses on proactive education, introducing features and best practices that align with the client’s long-term objectives. Account management reinforces this by addressing immediate concerns and providing guidance during everyday interactions, ensuring clients feel supported and confident in using the product effectively.
By working together, customer success and account management teams create a well-rounded approach to client engagement.
What makes customer success different
Customer success is a proactive and strategic function aimed at ensuring that clients achieve their desired outcomes while using a product or service. Unlike account management, which focuses on immediate needs, customer success teams anticipate client challenges and address them before they arise. This forward-thinking approach allows customer success managers (CSMs) to act as strategic advisors, aligning the company’s offerings with the client’s broader business goals. For example, a CSM might schedule regular check-ins to discuss how a client is leveraging new features or recommend tailored solutions that align with the client’s objectives.
One of the core differentiators of customer success is its outcome-driven approach. The primary goal is to deliver measurable value to clients over time, whether by increasing their efficiency, streamlining their operations, or reducing costs. This long-term focus extends beyond simply retaining clients—it ensures that they grow with the product and remain engaged advocates for the brand. For instance, a SaaS company’s customer success team might work closely with a client to implement a specific workflow that demonstrates clear ROI, thereby enhancing the client’s trust and loyalty.
However, customer success comes with its challenges. Scaling personalized strategies across a large client base without sacrificing quality is a significant hurdle. Additionally, quantifying the tangible impact of customer success efforts often requires advanced tools and cross-departmental collaboration. Addressing these challenges requires robust systems, such as a unified client portal or workflow automation tools, that allow CSMs to focus on proactive, value-driven activities. By emphasizing outcomes and building trust, customer success sets the stage for sustained growth and high customer lifetime value (CLV).
What makes account management different
Account management focuses on the operational and transactional aspects of managing client relationships. Account managers (AMs) serve as the primary point of contact for clients, ensuring that day-to-day needs are met and immediate concerns are addressed. This reactive approach allows AMs to resolve issues as they arise, providing a consistent level of service that builds client trust. For instance, if a client encounters a technical problem or has a question about billing, the account manager steps in to provide a solution promptly.
The responsibilities of account management extend beyond troubleshooting. AMs are also tasked with maintaining and strengthening client relationships through regular communication and advocacy. They manage key processes such as contract renewals, upselling, and compliance with agreed terms. By focusing on these transactional elements, account management ensures that the operational foundation of the client relationship remains stable. For example, during a contract renewal, an AM might work to secure mutually beneficial terms while also identifying opportunities to expand the account's value.
Despite its importance, account management faces unique challenges. Balancing the needs of multiple accounts simultaneously can be demanding, especially when client priorities and organizational goals are not fully aligned. Additionally, evolving client expectations require account managers to continuously adapt their approach to maintain relevance. Effective account management depends on having the right tools and processes in place to streamline communication, track deliverables, and provide timely responses. By excelling in these areas, account managers contribute significantly to client satisfaction and revenue retention, ensuring the longevity of client relationships.
KPIs and metrics customer success and account management teams track
Tracking the right KPIs is essential for evaluating the effectiveness of both customer success and account management teams, as it helps businesses measure their contributions to client satisfaction and overall growth.
Customer success KPIs/metrics:
- Net Promoter Score (NPS): Measures customer satisfaction and likelihood of referral. Customer success teams improve NPS by proactively addressing client needs and ensuring a seamless experience with the product. Regular check-ins, personalized support, and immediate resolution of potential challenges encourage clients to become brand advocates.
- Customer retention rate: Tracks the percentage of customers who continue using the product over a given period. By monitoring usage patterns and anticipating potential churn risks, customer success teams develop strategies to maintain engagement. Their efforts in onboarding, education, and value demonstration keep clients satisfied and loyal to the brand.
- Customer lifetime value (CLV): Estimates the total revenue generated from a customer during their relationship with the company. Customer success teams focus on aligning the product’s capabilities with the client’s long-term goals, driving continued usage. By enhancing the client’s success with the product, they increase the overall revenue generated per client relationship.
- Product adoption metrics: Measures how effectively customers are utilizing the product’s features. Customer success teams guide clients in discovering and utilizing product features through training, resources, and proactive recommendations. By ensuring clients maximize the product’s potential, they improve engagement and drive greater satisfaction.
Account management KPIs/metrics:
- Revenue growth: Tracks increases in account value through upselling or cross-selling. Account managers contribute to revenue growth by identifying upselling and cross-selling opportunities based on client needs. They ensure that the operational side of sales, such as pricing and contract adjustments, is executed smoothly.
- Contract renewal rate: Monitors the percentage of clients who renew their contracts. Account managers maintain strong client relationships through consistent communication and responsive service. By resolving concerns and advocating for the client, they make renewal discussions more favorable and seamless.
- Client satisfaction score: Gauges overall happiness with the account manager’s performance. Account managers ensure satisfaction by addressing client requests promptly and managing expectations effectively. Their ability to deliver consistent service and act as a trusted point of contact fosters long-term happiness.
- Issue resolution time: Measures the average time taken to address and resolve client concerns. Account managers streamline issue resolution by prioritizing client concerns and collaborating with internal teams for quick action. Their promptness in addressing problems strengthens trust and reduces potential disruptions in the client relationship.
By tracking these KPIs, both teams can measure their impact and refine their strategies for improved results.
How can customer success and account management teams work together
When customer success and account management teams collaborate effectively, the result is a cohesive and enhanced client experience.
Best practices for collaboration
- Define roles and responsibilities: Clearly outline the scope of each team’s responsibilities to prevent overlap and confusion.
- Leverage shared tools: Platforms like Moxo enable seamless communication, task management, and data sharing.
- Establish regular check-ins: Schedule recurring meetings to discuss client updates, challenges, and opportunities.
- Share data and insights: Create a centralized repository for client information that both teams can access.
By working together, customer success and account management teams ensure clients feel supported throughout their journey, from onboarding to renewal.
How customer success and account management teams use Moxo for business success
Moxo provides a unified platform that bridges the gap between customer success and account management, enabling seamless workflows and better collaboration.
Moxo’s key capabilities:
- Workflow orchestration: Automates routine processes, freeing up time for strategic activities.
- Centralized client portal: Offers a single point of access for all client interactions, reducing the risk of miscommunication.
- Real-time collaboration: Enables teams to share files, exchange updates, and manage tasks without delays.
- Analytics and reporting: Tracks critical metrics for both customer success and account management, allowing teams to measure impact and identify areas for improvement.
By adopting Moxo, businesses can transform their client engagement strategies, streamline operational workflows, and build stronger, lasting relationships that drive sustained success. Visit Moxo to get started.
Conclusion
Customer success and account management are distinct but interdependent functions that play vital roles in client retention and business growth. While customer success focuses on proactive engagement and strategic outcomes, account management emphasizes relationship maintenance and operational support. By understanding these differences and fostering collaboration between the two teams, businesses can achieve a seamless client experience and drive long-term success.
Moxo’s solution enables this collaboration, ensuring both teams can operate at their full potential. Visit Moxo to get started.
FAQs
What is the main difference between customer success and account management?
Customer success is proactive and focuses on helping clients achieve long-term outcomes, while account management is reactive and emphasizes day-to-day relationship maintenance.
Can one team handle both functions?
While it’s possible, separating these roles ensures that each team can specialize and focus on their respective goals, leading to better client outcomes.
How can Moxo help in managing both customer success and account management?
Moxo offers a unified client portal with workflow automation and real-time collaboration capabilities that streamline both functions.
How do customer success and account management teams contribute to upselling?
Customer success teams identify client needs and propose solutions, while account managers handle the operational aspects of closing upselling deals.
