---
title: "Every Distributor Should Have a \"Key Account\" Maintenance Plan!"
description: "For distributors, customers are the most critical link; the more frequently they order, the higher the distributor's sales. While small customers face less competition and are easier to win, key accounts are targeted by all competitors and must be prioritized. Since 30% of key accounts contribute 70% of sales, distributors should focus on them, using service and strategy to increase their order volume—a 10% increase from key accounts often outweighs a 30% growth from smaller ones."
author: "李锋"
publisher: "New Distribution"
email: "zhaobo258@gmail.com"
telephone: "+8615854817671"
published: "2020-07-20"
language: "en"
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# Every Distributor Should Have a "Key Account" Maintenance Plan!

> For distributors, customers are the most critical link; the more frequently they order, the higher the distributor's sales. While small customers face less competition and are easier to win, key accounts are targeted by all competitors and must be prioritized. Since 30% of key accounts contribute 70% of sales, distributors should focus on them, using service and strategy to increase their order volume—a 10% increase from key accounts often outweighs a 30% growth from smaller ones.

**Click "Read Original" for details.**

**For distributors, the most critical link is customers. Good customer management means higher order frequency, leading to greater sales.** Small customers face less competition and are relatively easy to secure. However, key accounts are the focus of all competitors, so distributors must prioritize them.

It's well understood that 30% of key accounts contribute 70% of sales. Therefore, it's essential to capture key accounts and boost their order volume through service and strategy. A 10% increase in key account sales often surpasses a 30% growth from smaller customers. Hence, assign your most capable salespeople to maintain key accounts and treat them with priority.

Distributors can increase sales by enhancing service to key accounts, which involves two main aspects: **first, how to position key accounts in different channels; second, what strategies to adopt to maintain these accounts once identified.**

#### -01-
**Positioning Key Accounts in Different Channels**

To capture key accounts, you must first define the criteria for identifying them. Three universal criteria apply across all channels: **high sales volume, high profit, and high potential.** All three are indispensable. For instance, a secondary wholesaler might have large sales but low profit and little potential, so they wouldn't be a key account.

These are the broad criteria; positioning varies by channel. Below, we analyze how to determine key accounts across four channels.

**For modern trade, use data analysis to identify the top five customers by sales revenue.** Then analyze the strengths and weaknesses of these five key accounts, and help them solve problems accordingly.

For example, if all five sell rice but only Customer A performs well, it indicates rice isn't unsellable—others just aren't doing it right. The distributor can summarize Customer A's approach to improve the others.

**Traditional trade has many customers; distributors should identify 10% as key accounts. For instance, with 1,000 outlets, the top 100 are key.** Among these 100, find the top 20 by sales. Customer issues often share commonalities. By analyzing sales data, problem points, cost inputs, and product mix of these 20, you can provide precise guidance to all key accounts.

Traditional trade often holds ordering meetings, but resources are limited. Distributors should allocate resources where they matter most, typically inviting the top 20% of customers. For example, with 5,000 outlets, invite 200 to the meeting, with one salesperson responsible for only four customers, providing one-on-four service.

The purpose of ordering meetings isn't just to collect money but to engage key accounts. We'll detail this in a future article.

**Special channels typically have high-volume customers but few in number, so all can be treated as key accounts and given priority.** Channels are continuously segmenting; distributors seeking growth should view special channels as excellent opportunities. Products sold in special channels are usually mid-to-high-end, with corresponding price points, and profit margins are typically 2–5 percentage points higher than traditional channels. Examples include factories, hospitals, schools, post offices, and government agencies.

For instance, a trading company partnered with the post office, participating in Youlego's holiday promotions. By developing strategies to engage these customers, sales experienced explosive growth.

Another channel is fresh food supermarkets, which many distributors may not treat as a separate channel. Fresh food supermarkets often have twice the foot traffic of regional stores, making them a significant channel that has evolved into a distinct model.

**For fresh food channels, typically select the top 30 customers for focused investment. This channel requires dedicated effort and cannot be managed with traditional trade concepts.**

These are the four channels for positioning key accounts. Once positioned, develop corresponding strategies for each.

#### -02-
**Five Strategies for Key Accounts**

For key accounts in each channel, use data analysis to identify key issues—from product mix, gross profit, and expense ratios to overall support. Then implement targeted strategies to drive overall sales growth.

**1. Priority Service**

**Inform salespeople and clerks that key accounts are VIP customers; all their needs should be met as much as possible, with excellent service.** Key accounts have high service standards, so continuously refine based on their needs. Match resources promptly and adjust policies as progress is made, making key accounts feel valued.

**2. Dedicated Follow-Up**

**Track key accounts closely with a dedicated table recording service indicators, and assign someone specifically to follow up.**

For example, a trading company partnered with PetroChina, assigning one clerk and one salesperson solely to this special channel, with dedicated financial staff tracking and reconciling accounts.

Additionally, key accounts often have credit terms, so distributors should establish a complete receivables tracking mechanism. Ensure dedicated personnel manage and track receivables, as key account amounts are large. Timely collections significantly aid cash flow.

**3. Regular Business Reviews by Senior Management**

For major accounts like PetroChina, salespeople may not even get to see the boss. Therefore, distributors should personally conduct business reviews and market analyses with key accounts quarterly.

Before meetings, prepare thoroughly—gather data in advance, even create a PPT. Show customers what support you've provided, what comprehensive activities were conducted, how many promotional staff were allocated this quarter, and the results. Then, have the customer review their quarterly sales, and finally, plan together for the next quarter.

These actions are often what distributor owners miss—they don't regularly summarize for key accounts. Plans are developed through communication. This not only shows respect but also communicates the actions you've taken to help their business. If you don't articulate these efforts, customers may take them for granted and remain unaware of the resources you've invested.

**4. Focused Resource Allocation**

**Distributor resources are limited; ensure investments yield returns.** Especially for key accounts, prioritize resource allocation, support their promotions, and invest in expenses.

Of course, investment shouldn't be blind; it should be planned. Create a table listing company strategies, invest based on actual conditions, and record post-investment sales. Analyze data to identify areas for improvement.

**5. Timely Sales Data Feedback**

**Since key accounts contribute a large share of total sales, track their sales data promptly.** Analyze data every three days or weekly, and provide timely feedback.

For example, if a customer's sales dropped 5% last week, use the report to identify the cause—whether it's due to objective factors or poor sell-through—and promptly develop solutions.

**In Conclusion:**

In summary, **with limited market growth, distributors must leverage existing channels and customers, seeking growth around key accounts.** Analyze their strengths and weaknesses from data, focus on winning key accounts, and provide excellent service. Ultimately, this will make key accounts larger, your sales bigger, and profits higher.


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