Plans for every account
Fifty account plans means none are kept up to date. Choose the few that justify the work.
Free sales template
Account plan template
An account plan template sets out what you know about one important account, what you want to achieve there, who you need to reach and the dated actions that will get you there. Use it for your top prospects and your biggest customers, and review it monthly so it stays a working plan rather than a slide.
What it is and when to use it
An account plan is a territory plan for a single company. It is worth the effort for a small number of accounts: large prospects with several possible buyers, and existing customers with room to grow. For most AEs that means five to fifteen plans, not fifty.
The core of the plan is the stakeholder map. Large deals are rarely lost on product. They are lost because the seller only knew one person, that person left or lost the argument internally, and nobody else had heard of you. Mapping every relevant person, their influence, their view of you and your last contact shows the gaps in black and white.
For prospects, the plan is about getting in: the trigger, the entry point and who to reach next. For customers, it is about value and growth: what they bought, what results they got, what else they could use and what could put the renewal at risk.
Who uses it
Account executives
Plan entry into a large prospect, or growth and renewal at a key customer.
Sales managers
Review the plans for the biggest accounts monthly and spot single-threaded deals.
SDRs working account-based programs
Use the stakeholder map to know who else to reach at an account the AE is already working.
The account plan template
Every section and column, with what to write in each. Use the fill-in version below to type straight into it and copy, print or download the result.
1. Account overview
| Field | What to write |
|---|---|
| Account | Company name, industry, size, locations and parent company if any. |
| Current relationship | Prospect, active opportunity, customer since a date, or lapsed customer. What they buy today, if anything. |
| Their priorities this year | From annual reports, news, job ads and conversations. What are they trying to achieve or fix? |
| Why they should work with us | The link between their priorities and what you do, in one or two sentences. |
2. Goals for this account
| Field | What to write |
|---|---|
| 12-month goal | For example: first contract signed, renewal secured, expansion into a second business unit. |
| This quarter | The next milestone that moves you towards the 12-month goal. |
| Revenue at stake | Current revenue, plus the opportunity you are pursuing. |
3. Stakeholder map
Everyone who could influence a decision. Gaps in this table are the plan's biggest risk.
| Name and role | Influence | View of us | What they care about | Last contact | Next step |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Economic buyer | High, medium or low | Champion, supporter, neutral, sceptic or unknown | Their priority in a line | Date | Action and date |
| Day-to-day owner | Influence | View | Priority | Date | Next step |
| Technical or IT | Influence | View | Priority | Date | Next step |
| Procurement or finance | Influence | View | Priority | Date | Next step |
4. Opportunity map
Where you could help, by business unit, site or problem.
| Business unit or area | Problem or need | Our offer | Estimated value | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Area | What they need | What we would sell | Dollar value | Not started, exploring, opportunity, won |
| Area | Need | Offer | Value | Status |
5. Risks and competitors
| Risk | Likelihood | Impact | What we will do |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single-threaded relationship | High, medium or low | High, medium or low | Reach two more stakeholders this quarter |
| Competitor or incumbent | Likelihood | Impact | Response |
| Budget or restructure | Likelihood | Impact | Response |
6. Action plan
| Action | Owner | Due | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| What will be done | AE, SDR, manager, founder or delivery | Date | Open or done |
| Action | Owner | Due | Status |
| Action | Owner | Due | Status |
Fill it in online
Type into the template, or load the worked example and edit it. Nothing you enter is stored or sent anywhere: it stays in this browser tab until you copy, download or print it.
Empty fields copy as {{placeholders}} so you can see what is left to fill in.
Worked example
An Australian B2B company using outsourced SDRs. The company is described, not named, and the figures are illustrative.
Worked example: a national 3PL prospect for a warehouse automation company
A Sydney company sells warehouse robotics and pick-to-light systems. Its AE is targeting a national third-party logistics provider with eight warehouses. An outsourced SDR team booked the first meeting with the operations manager at one Melbourne site. The AE built this plan after that meeting.
The account is described rather than named. Names, values and dates are illustrative.
1. Account overview
- Account
- National 3PL, about 1,200 staff, eight warehouses in NSW, VIC, QLD and WA, owned by a private equity firm.
- Current relationship
- Prospect. One meeting held with the Melbourne site operations manager.
- Their priorities this year
- Annual report and job ads point to cost per pick, labour shortages at peak and winning two large retail contracts up for tender next year.
- Why they should work with us
- Our pick-to-light rollout at a similar site cut pick time and temporary labour at peak. That maps directly to cost per pick and the retail tenders.
2. Goals for this account
- 12-month goal
- Pilot signed at the Melbourne site, with a business case for two more sites.
- This quarter
- Site walk in Melbourne and a meeting with the national operations director.
- Revenue at stake
- Pilot around $180,000. Three-site program around $900,000.
3. Stakeholder map
| Name and role | Influence | View of us | What they care about | Last contact | Next step |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Melbourne site operations manager | Medium | Champion | Peak season labour | Last Tuesday | Site walk, 14 May |
| National operations director | High | Unknown | Cost per pick across sites | Never | SDR to call, mention the Melbourne conversation |
| Head of IT | Medium | Unknown | Warehouse management system integration | Never | AE to send integration summary via champion |
| Chief financial officer | High | Unknown | Payback period for the owner | Never | Business case after the site walk |
4. Opportunity map
| Business unit or area | Problem or need | Our offer | Estimated value | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Melbourne warehouse | Peak pick speed | Pick-to-light pilot | $180,000 | Exploring |
| Sydney and Brisbane warehouses | Same problem, bigger volumes | Rollout after pilot | $720,000 | Not started |
5. Risks and competitors
| Risk | Likelihood | Impact | What we will do |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single-threaded relationship | High | High | SDR and AE to reach national operations director and head of IT by end of May |
| Incumbent automation vendor at two sites | Medium | Medium | Ask the champion what those sites like and dislike |
| Owner freezes capital spend | Low | High | Build the case on payback within one peak season |
6. Action plan
| Action | Owner | Due | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Book Melbourne site walk | AE | 14 May | Done |
| Call national operations director | SDR | 20 May | Open |
| Send integration summary to head of IT via champion | AE | 22 May | Open |
| Draft one-page business case | AE and founder | 31 May | Open |
What to notice
- The stakeholder map showed the deal depended on one site manager. Three of the four people who decide had never heard of the company, which became the main goal for the quarter.
- The SDR is part of the action plan. A call to the national operations director that references the Melbourne conversation is a warm call, not a cold one.
How to use it, step by step
- Choose the accounts. Pick five to fifteen: the biggest prospects with several buyers, and the customers with the most growth or renewal at stake.
- Write the overview from research. Annual reports, news, job ads and your notes. Focus on what the account is trying to achieve this year.
- Set a 12-month goal and this quarter's milestone. Specific and dated, with the revenue at stake.
- Map every stakeholder. Include people you have never spoken to. Mark influence, view of you and last contact.
- Map the opportunities. By business unit, site or problem, with an estimated value.
- List risks and actions. Each risk gets a response, and each response becomes a dated action with an owner.
- Review monthly. Update last contact dates and actions. A plan with stale dates is a warning sign.
Common mistakes
Only mapping people you know
The people you have not met are the risk. Put them in the map with 'unknown'.
No dated actions
Without owners and dates, an account plan is research, not a plan.
Forgetting existing customers
Renewals and expansion need plans too, especially where one person holds the relationship.
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Want the meetings, not just the template?
Nousu Collective runs phone-first outbound for B2B companies selling into Australia, New Zealand and Singapore, with Australian callers in-house in Sydney. Our outsourced SDR service builds the list, runs the calling, email and LinkedIn cadence and books qualified meetings into your calendar. If you only need calls made, see cold calling or appointment setting.
In our data from 218,000+ dials into Australian businesses, Australian callers booked 1.3 meetings per 100 dials, against 0.3 for offshore teams. Pricing is starting at $7,000 a month.
FAQ
Account plan template questions
Straight answers from the team that runs outbound for Australian B2B companies.
Still have questions?
Book a 30-minute callAn account overview, the account's priorities, goals for the next 12 months and quarter, a stakeholder map, an opportunity map, risks and competitors, and a dated action plan with owners.
Usually five to fifteen per AE: the largest prospects with several possible buyers and the customers with the most growth or renewal at stake.
A list of everyone who could influence a decision at the account, with their role, influence, view of you, what they care about, your last contact and the next step. It shows where you are single-threaded.
Monthly for active accounts, and after any big change such as a new leader, a restructure or a lost deal.
A territory plan covers all the accounts a seller owns and decides where to spend time. An account plan goes deep on one account.
SDRs can research and reach the stakeholders the AE has not met, using what the AE already knows to make the call relevant. That is how account-based outbound works in practice.
Need a team to run the plan?
Book a 30-minute call. We will map your market and buyers and show you what a phone-first campaign would book.
Starting at $7,000 a month. Exact fee quoted after a 30-minute call.