Account-based marketing (ABM) is a B2B marketing strategy that has been growing in popularity. Recognizing its potential, 94% of B2B marketers are already using ABM in their core strategies. This surge in adoption can be attributed to the advantages it provides. This includes improved win rates, customer retention and lifetime value. In addition, when you compare it to other marketing efforts, ABM offers a superior return on investment (ROI), boosting sales revenue, deal size and contract value.
Because of its capacity to drive business opportunities, organizations today are allocating an average of 29% of their marketing budgets toward ABM. Its gaining momentum makes it clear that this personalized and strategic B2B marketing approach isn’t just a passing fad.
In this article, we’ll explain what ABM is, explore its advantages and examine the challenges it might present. We’ll also discuss approaches to ABM, lay out the steps for successful implementation, and share a few tips to help you make the most of your ABM plan.
What is an ABM strategy?
Account-based marketing is a B2B marketing method that targets and engages with specific high-value accounts rather than focusing on a broad audience. It uses personalized marketing tactics tailored to the decision-makers, influencers and gatekeepers within those accounts.
ABM strategies align sales and marketing teams to facilitate targeting, establish strong relationships and drive business growth. It aims to fully understand the needs and pain points of each decision-maker, empowering marketers to develop highly pertinent content and foster deep relationships. This improves the chances of converting prospects into loyal, long-term customers.
Benefits of using an ABM strategy
An ABM strategy provides businesses with the following advantages:
Increased sales revenue: ABM efforts can drive revenue growth up to 208%.
Improved marketing ROI: 97% of marketers believe ABM has a higher ROI than other marketing tactics.
Enhanced customer experience: ABM improves customer interaction, loyalty and long-term value. Studies show that 85% of marketers say that ABM aids them in maintaining and expanding client relationships.
Improved sales and marketing coordination: ABM promotes alignment between sales and marketing teams with 82% of B2B marketers reporting enhanced collaboration.
Deeper understanding of customers: ABM enables marketers to develop more thorough insight into their target audience with 83% of marketers noting that ABM boosts engagement.
Competitive edge: ABM surpasses other marketing strategies in offering a competitive advantage according to 87% of ABM marketers.
Different approaches to ABM
The various types of ABM provide flexibility in choosing the right approach based on your business and marketing objectives, the characteristics of target accounts and resources available to your marketing teams. These approaches include:
One-to-one (1:1) ABM: This method delivers individualized experiences to each target account. It requires in-depth research and customization to meet the unique requirements and challenges of key individuals within each account. The aim of 1:1 ABM is to foster connections, boost interactions and secure new business opportunities from high-value accounts.
One-to-few (1:few) ABM: This method targets a small group of accounts with similar characteristics. It offers more scalability than 1:1 ABM while still maintaining a personalized touch. The goal of 1:few ABM is to target a set of accounts with tailored messages and experiences, guiding them toward conversations and forming lasting relationships.
One-to-many (1:many) ABM: Also referred to as programmatic ABM, this method focuses on reaching out to a larger group of accounts that share common features or belong to the same industries. It uses automation and scaled personalization to deliver relevant content and engage with multiple accounts simultaneously. The goal of 1:many ABM is to enhance brand visibility and educate the audience within this broader selection of accounts, sparking interest and consideration.
Account-based experience (ABX): This approach provides a cohesive and personalized experience with target accounts across all touchpoints and engagements. It goes beyond traditional marketing practices, encompassing sales, customer success and other teams to improve the customer journey. ABX aims to deliver a consistent experience that exceeds customer expectations and leads to greater satisfaction and loyalty.
Role-based marketing (RBM): This approach targets job roles or titles within specific accounts with messaging that addresses their unique challenges and interests. The objective of RBM is to connect with individuals in influential positions through relevant and compelling content that aligns with their specific responsibilities and goals.
Opportunity-based marketing (OBM): This approach pinpoints sales opportunities or deals within accounts. It aligns marketing efforts with the sales cycle, nurturing and influencing opportunities to move them toward successful closure. The purpose of OBM is to assist sales teams with insights and support to expedite the progress of opportunities and boost revenue growth.
The 9 steps to building a successful ABM strategy
An effective ABM strategy follows established steps and best practices. These steps will help you effectively drive engagement, develop deeper relationships and meet your ABM goals.
Step 1: Set clear goals
The first step in crafting any effective marketing or campaign plan is to have a solid grasp of how it contributes to achieving your business goals and marketing objectives. This involves setting out measurable targets for your AMB efforts, whether it’s boosting revenue, acquiring new customers or expanding existing accounts. Aligning your strategies and actions with these objectives will help you maintain focus and monitor progress efficiently.
Step 2: Identify target accounts
Conduct research and analysis on potential clients to pinpoint target accounts based on factors like revenue potential, industry sector, company size, growth prospects and how well they fit strategically. Use market studies, customer information and sales tools to gather data and insights for selecting target accounts. Ensure that the chosen accounts are in line with your business goals to increase the chances of conversion.
Step 3: Build personas and messaging
Develop buyer personas for key decision-makers and influencers within the target accounts. This means performing interviews, surveys and data analysis to fully understand their roles, challenges, motivations, objectives and preferences. Then, design messaging frameworks that directly address their needs, goals and preferences. Tailor your messaging to different stages of the buyer’s journey.
Step 4: Selecting the right approach
Evaluate and choose an ABM approach based on your goals, available resources and audience characteristics. Take into account factors like the number of target accounts, how personalized you want to be and how scalable your approach needs to be. Also consider your budget, team skills and available technology when making your decision.
Step 5: Select the channels, strategies and tools carefully
Examine the preferred communication channels and consumption habits of your target accounts. Choose the channels and strategies they’re most likely to interact with––these might include personalized emails, social media targeting, webinars and landing pages. Also consider the marketing automation platforms, data management tools and analytics you’ll use to streamline and enhance your ABM efforts.
Be sure your channel tactics include paid advertising and a variety of channels:
- Account-based advertising (ABA): Use ABA platforms to deliver personalized ads to specific accounts or decision-makers. Data-driven insights will help you craft personalized campaigns across different digital platforms and boost brand visibility.
- Multi-channel engagement: Employ a mix of channels and strategies to interact with your target accounts. This might include emails, direct mailers, social media, events and ad campaigns for an integrated ABM experience.
- Omnichannel engagement: Better yet, adopt an omnichannel strategy to engage your target accounts. Integrate online and offline channels for a seamless experience across different touchpoints. This means combining personalized emails, direct mail, social media interactions, events and webinars, account-specific landing pages and targeted advertising to ensure a cohesive ABM experience at every stage of the buying journey.
Step 6: Align sales and marketing efforts
Encourage teamwork and harmony between your sales and marketing departments by using a shared Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system like Salesforce or HubSpot as the single source of truth for customer information. This streamlines the lead handoff process and aligns both teams toward common objectives. Regular communication and feedback loops help in sharing insights to enhance account engagement. This collaborative approach strengthens the effectiveness of your ABM strategy and leads to better results.
Step 7: Kick off targeted campaigns
Craft account-specific campaigns based on buyer personas, messaging themes and preferred channels. Develop personalized, targeted content that addresses unique needs and challenges. Marketing automation tools will assist you with campaign management and lead nurturing. Keep an eye on performance metrics, track engagement levels and make real-time adjustments to campaign tactics for optimal results.
Step 8: Measure and optimize
Define key performance indicators (KPIs) to monitor the success of your ABM initiatives. Be sure to analyze the data you gather to understand how your AMB efforts impact account engagement levels, conversion rates, pipeline velocity and revenue attribution. Continually improve your strategies, messaging and tactics based on these insights. Conduct A/B testing for fine-tuning.
Step 9: Nurture and expand
Create nurture programs for your target accounts to deliver ongoing value and personalized interactions. Use customer advocacy initiatives, referral campaigns and account-based cross-selling and upselling tactics to expand your ABM efforts. Consistently evaluate your impact and adjust your approach based on customer feedback and goals.
Common ABM challenges and mistakes
Achieving success with an account-based marketing strategy requires a blend of expertise, thorough planning and access to the appropriate tools. Without these, your business may fall short of its intended results.
The following mistakes and challenges can significantly affect the effectiveness of your ABM strategy:
Lack of alignment between marketing and sales teams: Successful ABM involves more than your marketing team. It demands close cooperation between marketing and sales teams. Failing to establish an approach with shared objectives can lead to ineffective ABM campaigns.
Inadequate data and targeting: ABM requires accurate and complete data to pinpoint the right accounts. Using insufficient or outdated data may lead to targeting the wrong accounts or missing out on valuable opportunities.
Failing to customize content and messaging: ABM stresses the importance of tailored interactions with target accounts. Errors arise when marketers neglect to personalize content and messages for accounts, resulting in generic or irrelevant communication.
Inadequate technology: Effective ABM uses data, automation and omnichannel strategies provided by ABM platforms and marketing automation tools. It can be difficult to select the right tool—you’ll need ABM software with the right capabilities, an intuitive interface and that integrates into your marketing technology (martech) stack for continuous data flow.
Excessive reliance on technology: While technology enables ABM efforts, human interaction is also crucial. Over-reliance on technology at the expense of strategy and personal touch can result in ineffective campaigns.
Lack of scalability: Implementing ABM across multiple accounts can be resource-intensive. Scaling ABM initiatives without proper planning and infrastructure may result in challenges and decreased efficiency.
Insufficient measurement and attribution: Evaluating the success and impact of ABM campaigns can be difficult. A common oversight is failing to establish metrics and attribution models to accurately gauge the effectiveness and ROI of your efforts.
Failure to involve key stakeholders: Successful ABM relies on collaboration with sales, marketing, customer success and executive teams. If these stakeholders aren’t involved throughout the process, you’ll struggle with alignment and campaign effectiveness.
Ineffective account nurturing: ABM is much more than outreach. It’s a long-term engagement strategy that requires ongoing nurturing. Failure to do so can lead to missed opportunities and impact your success.
Choosing the wrong ABM approach: Selecting too broad or too narrow of an approach may waste resources, dilute messaging and diminish the impact of your efforts.
Choosing the wrong ABM team: Successful ABM requires a team that has an intimate knowledge of your business, industry and audience. Many B2B companies struggle to get results when they work with B2C marketers or ABM agencies that don’t understand their unique needs.
Expecting immediate results: ABM success takes time. It’s a long-term strategy that requires dedication, flexibility and constant monitoring, measurement and optimization.
Partner with ABM experts
Successful ABM strategies require a combination of expertise, deep audience knowledge and proficiency in ABM technologies. If you’re ready to begin building meaningful connections with your target audience, partner with an experienced account-based marketing agency like Elevation. Contact us today and learn how our B2B expertise and proven ABM strategies will drive your revenue growth.
