In B2B marketing, it’s important to choose the right account-based marketing (ABM) software for effective ABM campaigns. The right software supports your unique business and marketing goals. It provides the capabilities you need to execute your ABM campaigns. And its capabilities and interface align with your team’s proficiency. However, with a huge selection of tools available to you, choosing the right software can be challenging.
Investing in the wrong ABM platform can be costly. It can hinder your campaign’s success and waste valuable resources like time, effort and campaign costs.
In this blog, we’ll explain the ABM software options available to you, so you can make an informed choice that drives your ABM efforts towards success.
What to consider when choosing an ABM software platform
Before you can begin account-based marketing, you must evaluate the tools that will support your efforts. Fortunately, there’s a variety of ABM software on the market. This means there’s a solution out there that matches your budget and specific requirements. When making your selection, also consider your organization––your people, your processes and your existing technologies. This ensures the smooth flow of data and supports campaign management, measurement and optimizations.
Beyond these core considerations, your choices should also account for the following factors:
Budgetary considerations
ABM software comes in a range of prices, from a few hundred dollars to several thousand per month. You’ll need to evaluate your budget and consider the value a solution offers your organization. Remember to factor in potential return on investment (ROI) when assessing the cost of ABM platforms.
Tailored features and functionality
To ensure your account-based campaigns are effective, you must investigate the specific features and functionalities offered by each ABM software platform. Consider the tools and capabilities you require. These might include personalized content creation, account-based advertising, email automation, campaign management, etc. Ensure that the platform you choose aligns with your unique campaign goals. This allows you to efficiently launch targeted strategies.
Also, evaluate your team’s expertise in ABM and select a platform that suits their proficiency level. If your team is new to ABM, look at tools with user-friendly interfaces and comprehensive customer support. An intuitive platform that comes with training resources and responsive customer service will speed up onboarding and enable your team to use the software effectively.
Integration capabilities
When making your decision, be sure to consider the marketing technology (martech) and sales software your organization uses. Opt for an ABM platform that integrates with your existing systems. This ensures data can move smoothly between tools, streamlining your processes so your ABM efforts are more efficient and effective.
Advantages of selecting the right ABM software
The right ABM software can enhance your ABM efforts, strengthen your relationships with high-value accounts and drive revenue growth. Selecting the right platform offers many more benefits, including:
Better personalization
Effective personalization is the foundation of ABM. The right software makes personalized experiences possible and scalable. Features for content creation, dynamic messaging and account-based advertising allow you to tailor your outreach to individual accounts. This ensures you deliver relevant and impactful messages that resonate with the specific needs of the decision-makers within your target accounts. This level of personalization fosters deeper engagement, strengthening relationships and increasing the likelihood of conversion.
Enhanced targeting precision
ABM software enables precise targeting by allowing you to identify and prioritize high-value accounts based on criteria like firmographics (organization demographics), technographics (information about an organization’s technology stack) and intent data (an indication of an organization’s readiness to buy). Advanced segmentation and account scoring enable you to focus your ABM efforts on the most promising accounts, so you can strategically allocate your marketing resources such as time, personnel and budget. This approach maximizes your efficiency, minimizes wasted efforts and accelerates your revenue generation.
Improving efficiency
The right ABM software automates campaign execution, streamlining your efforts and minimizing the time and resources involved. It includes features like email automation, campaign management and reporting for consistent messaging and real-time insights about performance. This minimizes repetitive tasks and manual efforts so your team can put more time into strategic planning and nurturing relationships.
Effective measurement and analytics
ABM software should have measurement and analytics capabilities that allow you to understand how effective your campaigns are and make decisions based on that data. The right technology provides comprehensive reporting dashboards and attribution models. These features will help you track engagement and understand the impact of your ABM initiatives and attribute revenue to specific actions or touchpoints. With these insights, you’ll be able to continuously refine your strategies, optimize your campaigns and determine where best to put your resources to generate a higher ROI.
Seamless collaboration and alignment
ABM platforms often support collaboration and alignment within your organization. The right solution enables your marketing and sales teams to work together within the platform, fostering better communication and providing visibility into your ABM activities. This helps to break down silos, driving a consistent customer experience and unifying team efforts toward the same goals.
ROI
The primary advantage of selecting the right technology is the cost efficiency and ROI it brings to your ABM efforts. By enabling you to accurately target high-value accounts and personalize your outreach, it helps to optimize your spend, helping you to avoid wasting efforts (and money) on unproductive activities. By streamlining processes, automation and reporting, it increases productivity while reducing manual activities. In addition to those cost-saving advantages, an ABM tool that offers the ability to track and measure campaign impact also assists in making data-driven decisions regarding budget allocation. All these add up to drive revenue growth and deliver a higher return on your ABM investments.
Top ABM tools
Reputable industry sources have done the legwork for you in terms of software research and insights. They can guide you through selecting an advanced technology like ABM software. The following tools have been recognized by Garner and G2 for their functionalities, user satisfaction and ability to drive successful ABM initiatives:
6sense has been the leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for ABM Platforms for three consecutive years. This software is a revenue intelligence platform that leverages artificial intelligence (AI) to help account-based marketers predict which accounts are most likely to buy. It’s known for strong sales and marketing alignment, its ability to identify and engage with target accounts, and its ability to measure and report on results.
Demandbase is a close second in the Magic Quadrant. It helps ABM marketers to identify, qualify and engage with their most important accounts. It’s recognized as a comprehensive platform that’s known for strong integrations with other marketing and sales systems and its ability to help ABM teams achieve their goals.
Terminus is a new entrant to the Magic Quadrant, but it has quickly made a name for itself as a strong ABM platform. It helps ABM marketers orchestrate campaigns across all channels. It’s known for ease of use, a strong advertising capability and its ability to help ABM teams meet their goals.
ZoomInfo is a well-known provider of sales and intelligence data that has recently expanded to include an ABM platform. Its ABM solution is known for its ability to identify and engage with target accounts.
Madison Logic is a marketing automation software that has recently expanded to include an ABM platform. This solution helps marketers build and execute personalized campaigns. Its ABM tool is known for its ability to help teams manage ABM campaigns and measure their results.
LeanData is an ABM orchestration software that helps align sales and marketing teams around the most important accounts. It’s known for its automated lead routing, sales forecasting and account management capabilities.
Other popular marketing platforms with ABM capabilities include:
Marketo Engage is a marketing automation platform. Its audience segmentation, campaign management and reporting features enable marketers to create highly targeted campaigns. However, its advanced features may require additional setup and customization to meet specific ABM requirements.
Adobe Target is a comprehensive marketing automation platform with ABM capabilities. It enables ABM teams to create and manage audiences, track campaign performance and measure results. It integrates with other Adobe marketing solutions. However, leveraging its full capabilities requires a high level of expertise.
Adobe Campaign Standard is another marketing automation platform with ABM capabilities. It differs from Adobe Target in that it focuses on email marketing, so it may require additional integration for a comprehensive ABM strategy.
Oracle Eloqua is an enterprise-level marketing automation platform with integrated ABM capabilities. It supports audience segmentation, campaign management and reporting. Its strength lies in its powerful capabilities, performance and scalability. However, it’s a complex software with advanced features that demands a high level of expertise from users.
Salesforce Pardot is a marketing automation platform for small and mid-size businesses. It includes ABM capabilities like audience segmentation, campaign management and reporting features. It integrates with the broader Salesforce system, enhancing alignment between sales and marketing reals. However, its customization options are somewhat limited in comparison to enterprise-level platforms.
HubSpot CRM is a customer relationship management (CRM) platform with ABM capabilities. With lead management, sales pipeline management and reporting features, it enables marketers to align ABM strategies with sales activities. However, its ABM functionalities are basic compared to dedicated software platforms.
Embrace B2B marketing expertise for ABM success
With so many options available, it can be challenging to select the right ABM solution to fit your specific business needs, abilities and budget. That’s where Elevation Marketing comes in.
With over 23 years of experience implementing successful ABM strategies for B2B organizations, we have a deep understanding of the complexities and nuances of different ABM software platforms. We can guide you through the maze of options and recommend the most suitable solution for your business. Contact us today and let us help you identify a solution that aligns with your ABM strategy and business goals.
