Glossary

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W

Account ownership

Determines who can sell to which accounts.

These rules govern which sales representative can call on which accounts. In other words, account ownership rules prevent reps from stepping on each other’s toes (internal fighting) and calling on the same accounts (unprofessional.)

In many organizations, only one sales rep may sell to each customer or account. These rules can be complex depending on the nature of your business, but most newer sales teams just need some basic, written rules.

Account ownership rules should contain:
1. Conditions for owning accounts
2. Conditions for removal of ownership
3. Process for removing ownership and notifying reps

It’s always best to automate ownership and removals in your CRM. This saves the busy-work and ensures rules are enforced. If not automated, sales management needs to make case by case rulings which are time-consuming and always end up upsetting someone.

Account ownership rules are important to every organization with more than one person selling. Small sales team rarely worry about account ownership, but with a long enough timeline (or scale) issues always occur.