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Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Mid-Market Inside Sales Named Account Manager

💰 $ - $

SalesInside SalesAccount ManagementMid-MarketSaaS

🎯 Role Definition

The Mid-Market Inside Sales Named Account Manager (NAM) is responsible for managing a defined list of mid-market named accounts remotely, driving new business and expansion revenue through consultative selling, renewals, upsells, and cross-sells. This role combines quota-carrying inside sales responsibilities with strategic account planning, CRM-driven pipeline management, and close collaboration with solutions engineering, marketing, customer success, and channel partners to maximize account lifetime value (LTV) and net revenue retention (NRR).

Key outcomes include consistent quota attainment (ARR/MRR), sustained pipeline velocity, high customer retention, and measurable account expansion across a portfolio of mid-market clients. This role requires deep product knowledge, strong consultative selling skills, expert CRM use (Salesforce preferred), and the ability to manage multiple stakeholders and buying cycles virtually.


📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

  • Inside Sales Representative (ISR)
  • Sales Development Representative (SDR) promoted into an account role
  • Customer Success Manager transitioning into a revenue-focused role

Advancement To:

  • Senior Named Account Manager / Senior Account Executive
  • Field Account Manager / Enterprise Account Executive
  • Sales Team Lead / Manager, Inside Sales

Lateral Moves:

  • Customer Success Manager (CSM)
  • Sales Operations / Revenue Operations
  • Solutions Consultant / Pre-Sales Engineer

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

  • Own a named mid-market account list and drive quota attainment by identifying, developing, and closing new business opportunities within assigned accounts using a consultative sales approach tailored to each buyer persona.
  • Proactively manage and grow recurring revenue (ARR/MRR) by executing targeted upsell and cross-sell campaigns, identifying expansion opportunities, and converting product adoption into measurable revenue increases.
  • Build and maintain accurate, prioritized sales pipelines in Salesforce (or equivalent CRM), ensuring timely updates, opportunity stages, forecasted close dates, and clean data to support reliable weekly and monthly forecasting.
  • Develop and execute account plans for each named account including stakeholder maps, business objectives, buying triggers, risk assessment, and tactical playbooks to accelerate deals and minimize churn.
  • Conduct high-frequency outbound engagement (phone, email, LinkedIn, video) to influence buying committees, qualify opportunities, and accelerate deal progression using a mix of cadence automation and personalized outreach.
  • Manage renewal processes end-to-end for assigned accounts, proactively identifying renewal risks, negotiating terms, and partnering with finance and legal to close renewals on or ahead of time to protect revenue and retention metrics.
  • Deliver product demonstrations, ROI/business case presentations, and tailored proposals (including pricing and packaging recommendations) in collaboration with solutions engineering and product specialists to address specific customer pain points.
  • Execute disciplined pipeline hygiene and forecasting behaviors, including weekly pipeline reviews, quarterly business reviews (QBRs), and deal review sessions with the sales manager to ensure predictable revenue delivery.
  • Coordinate with Customer Success and Onboarding teams to ensure smooth post-sale transitions, accelerate time-to-value (TTV), and identify expansion signals arising from usage, adoption metrics, and customer feedback.
  • Negotiate commercial terms, contract renewals, and amendments with an emphasis on protecting margin, maintaining scalable discounts, and shortening sales cycles; escalate complex legal or pricing issues appropriately.
  • Leverage data and usage analytics to create targeted playbooks that convert usage into paid adoption, including targeted offers, feature bundles, and pilot-to-deal strategies designed for mid-market buyers.
  • Qualify and manage inbound leads for named accounts, rapidly converting Marketing Qualified Leads (MQLs) into opportunities through immediate outreach and consultative qualification frameworks (BANT/CHAMP/SCOTSMAN or company-specific).
  • Collaborate with Marketing on account-based marketing (ABM) programs, co-created campaigns, and personalized content to increase account engagement, event follow-up conversion, and pipeline velocity.
  • Maintain deep product and industry knowledge to position solutions in terms of outcomes, competitive differentiation, compliance, and total cost of ownership (TCO); act as a trusted advisor for technical and business stakeholders.
  • Use sales engagement platforms (e.g., Outreach, SalesLoft) to scale high-quality outreach sequences while maintaining personalization for named accounts and monitoring engagement metrics to refine messaging.
  • Serve as the primary commercial contact for C-level and mid-level stakeholders within named accounts, orchestrating multi-stakeholder virtual meetings and steering committees to align solution value with strategic initiatives.
  • Identify and recruit internal champions and external influencers within accounts to accelerate adoption and create internal sponsors for renewal and expansion opportunities.
  • Monitor and report on named account health indicators—usage, NPS/CSAT trends, support tickets, and product adoption—to proactively address churn signals and collaborate on remediation plans.
  • Execute targeted retention plays for at-risk accounts, including contract restructuring, incentive offers, executive engagement, and joint success plans to preserve revenue and maintain NRR targets.
  • Contribute to pricing strategy and packaging feedback by documenting market and competitive insights from named accounts and bringing those insights to product and pricing teams to influence roadmap decisions.
  • Participate in cross-functional initiatives such as pilot programs, beta tests, and product launches to provide account perspective, recruit pilot customers, and accelerate real-world validation and adoption.
  • Mentor junior inside sales colleagues by sharing best practices for account planning, deal structure, objection handling, and CRM discipline to elevate team performance and quota attainment consistency.

Secondary Functions

  • Support ad-hoc analysis and reporting requests for senior sales leadership, providing account-level commentary and insight during forecast reviews and quarterly planning.
  • Collaborate with sales operations to refine CRM workflows, opportunity stages, and reporting to improve sales efficiency and forecasting accuracy for the mid-market NAM organization.
  • Contribute to the development and continual improvement of sales playbooks, objection handling guides, and competitive battlecards specific to mid-market named accounts.
  • Participate in virtual and occasional in-person industry events, webinars, and trade shows to generate pipeline, strengthen relationships, and represent the company brand.
  • Provide feedback to product and marketing teams on feature requests, messaging gaps, and competitive positioning to influence go-to-market strategy and product enhancements.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

  • Proven expertise using Salesforce CRM for account management, opportunity tracking, pipeline management, and reporting; ability to create and maintain account plans and dashboards.
  • Strong proficiency with sales engagement platforms such as Outreach or SalesLoft to execute multi-touch cadences and measure engagement metrics.
  • Experience building ROI and business-case models for mid-market customers using Excel or Google Sheets, including contract value, payback, and TCO analyses.
  • Familiarity with SaaS commercial models (ARR, MRR, ACV, TCV), renewals mechanics, and subscription billing fundamentals.
  • Ability to deliver polished virtual product demonstrations and presentations using Zoom, Webex, or Teams and create slide decks that tell a compelling value story.
  • Competency with contract negotiation basics, pricing/discount strategy, and working knowledge of CPQ tools or quoting processes.
  • Data-driven approach to sales: comfortable using usage analytics, account health dashboards, and product telemetry to identify expansion opportunities.
  • Experience with LinkedIn Sales Navigator and modern prospecting tools for account research and stakeholder mapping.
  • Familiarity with account-based marketing (ABM) methodologies and coordinating ABM campaigns with marketing teams.
  • Basic understanding of integrations, APIs, and technical considerations that matter to mid-market buyers when evaluating SaaS solutions.

Soft Skills

  • Consultative selling mindset with the ability to uncover business outcomes, influence stakeholders, and craft tailored solutions that align to customer goals.
  • Exceptional verbal and written communication skills for clear, persuasive outreach and professional executive-level presentations.
  • Strong negotiation and objection-handling abilities; comfortable navigating complex commercial conversations to achieve win-win outcomes.
  • Excellent time management and organizational skills to manage multiple named accounts, synchronized selling motions, and simultaneous deal cycles.
  • High emotional intelligence, relationship-building skills, and customer empathy to build trust and long-term partnerships with mid-market clients.
  • Resilience and persistence in a quota-driven environment; ability to maintain focus and energy through long sales cycles and rejection.
  • Problem-solving orientation and strategic thinking to map solutions to business outcomes and overcome procurement, legal, or technical roadblocks.
  • Team player with cross-functional collaboration skills to align internal stakeholders (CS, SE, Marketing, Product) behind account plans.
  • Coachable mindset and continuous learning orientation to adopt new processes, tools, and selling techniques quickly.
  • Analytical mindset with the ability to translate data and account signals into actionable sales plays and measurable outcomes.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

  • Bachelor’s degree OR equivalent professional experience in B2B sales or account management.

Preferred Education:

  • Bachelor’s degree in Business, Marketing, Communications, Finance, or related field; MBA or relevant advanced degree is a plus.

Relevant Fields of Study:

  • Business Administration
  • Marketing
  • Communications
  • Finance
  • Information Systems / Technology

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range:

  • 3–7 years of progressive inside sales, account management, or quota-carrying B2B sales experience, with at least 2 years managing named accounts in the mid-market segment.

Preferred:

  • 5+ years in SaaS or technology sales with consistent quota attainment, demonstrable experience with renewals, upsells, cross-sells, and managing complex buying cycles across multiple stakeholders.
  • Prior experience using Salesforce CRM, sales engagement tools (Outreach/SalesLoft), and participating in ABM programs.
  • Proven track record of improving net revenue retention (NRR), shortening sales cycles, and converting trials/pilots to paid deployments in a mid-market book of business.