Strategic partnerships that benefit and grow each side of the table are the goal of the LAMP method. This method looks to the future potential of relations with specific accounts instead of only paying attention to what has happened in the past or what currently exists. It focuses instead on targeted accounts that may give the highest ROI for the extra resources devoted to strengthening the partnership. This is not a process for general account management. The purpose of the process is to create stronger partnerships with some of your most important accounts.

Paul Gruhn summarized it well by breaking up LAMP into a few distinct phases and activities. Using this method, companies can become partners with their largest accounts, limiting the risk of losing the account while simultaneously gaining a more strategic position.īefore looking too closely at how relevant LAMP is today, let’s take a look at the core concepts of LAMP and what makes it different from regular account management principles. LAMP works well for B2B companies who are looking to gain a strong competitive edge over others in their industry. It’s not an effective method for B2C companies, because it’s focused on providing a higher level of service to specific accounts. Large size and large importance do often overlap in many B2B companies, but they may not always, so you should focus on those customer accounts that you can’t afford to lose.īecause of this distinction, LAMP can be effective for B2B companies of all sizes and in most industries. It refers to those accounts with the largest importance to your company rather than those with the largest size. But, in this context a large account is not necessarily one of your biggest accounts. Sometimes the word “large” can throw off potential companies from using this method. The core concepts have been widely debated, but are generally still applicable in today’s business world. This account management process is an excellent framework for key account managers today. One notable example is the Miller Heiman Large Account Management Process (LAMP).

Many plans have been suggested over decades of time, but only a few have stuck around until today. You need to have a process in place and a plan to follow if you’re hoping to hit it big with one or more of your accounts. Good account management is never an accident.

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