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The differences between account planners and business development executives can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become an account planner, becoming a business development executive takes usually requires 8-10 years. Additionally, a business development executive has an average salary of $97,871, which is higher than the $71,823 average annual salary of an account planner.
The top three skills for an account planner include digital marketing, media sales and nielsen. The most important skills for a business development executive are business development, digital transformation, and customer service.
| Account Planner | Business Development Executive | |
| Yearly salary | $71,823 | $97,871 |
| Hourly rate | $34.53 | $47.05 |
| Growth rate | 19% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 82,798 | 189,950 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 82% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| Average age | 37 | 39 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 10 |
An account planner is someone who works primarily with clients on how to improve their accounts, sales strategy, and marketing. The account planner creates, develops, and maintains clients' accounts to increase sales and make them profitable. Included in an account planner's task is to monitor competition, determine problems in the actual marketing campaign, provide insight into the market's status, and offer suggestions on how to improve. The account planner also communicates directly with the client and actively works with them to achieve success.
A business development executive serves as a senior manager who drives company sales. Business development executives convince existing clients to buy more offerings and also source new clients. The focus of their job is on lead generation, prospect management, and customer acquisition. They collaborate with management in terms of sales objectives, planning, and prediction. The skills necessary for this job include customer service and relations, time management, strong written communication, and sales process experience.
Account planners and business development executives have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Account Planner | Business Development Executive | |
| Average salary | $71,823 | $97,871 |
| Salary range | Between $48,000 And $107,000 | Between $64,000 And $149,000 |
| Highest paying City | Harrison, NY | Phoenix, AZ |
| Highest paying state | Delaware | Arizona |
| Best paying company | Clifford Chance | |
| Best paying industry | Professional | Pharmaceutical |
There are a few differences between an account planner and a business development executive in terms of educational background:
| Account Planner | Business Development Executive | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 82% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Georgia | University of Georgia |
Here are the differences between account planners' and business development executives' demographics:
| Account Planner | Business Development Executive | |
| Average age | 37 | 39 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 38.6% Female, 61.4% | Male, 63.8% Female, 36.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 5.0% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 12.0% Asian, 13.2% White, 64.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% | Black or African American, 3.0% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 8.7% Asian, 8.2% White, 74.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 10% | 10% |