Account-Based Marketing

Account-based marketing (ABM) is the latest trend dominating the world of digital marketing, and for a good reason. The strategy is known to provide higher returns than most other marketing approaches. A Demandbase report found that 60% of B2B companies have successfully seen a revenue increase of 10% just after a year of implementing the account-based marketing strategy.

The time is ripe if you still haven’t jumped on the Account-Based Marketing (ABM program) bandwagon. But before you get started with account-based marketing tactics, it’s important to learn what exactly it is.

What is Account-Based Marketing?

Account-based marketing is a strategic approach in which key accounts are targeted directly in their customer journey. Instead of the typical one-to-many marketing strategy, ABM campaigns allow you to market directly to the target accounts as units of one.

The ABM approach starts with identifying the right accounts and their compilation in the account list. The key stakeholders in these specific companies are then targeted through various marketing channels based on their buyer personas.

Instead of designing broad-reaching content marketing campaigns that target a wider net of potential customers, you get an opportunity to address the specific needs and pain points of a defined group of accounts. Here’s how it works –

• Start by aligning your marketing team with the sales team.
• Identify the ideal customer profile.
• Find out who are the key decision-makers for each specific account.
• Identify the needs and challenges of every account to personalize the message accordingly.
• Choose the best channels for communicating the message to individual accounts.
  

Why is Account-Based Marketing important?

With the growing competition in the digital space, it’s more important than ever to adopt new inbound marketing strategies for enhancing customer experience and increasing revenue potential. This is why many B2B marketers are gradually shifting to account-based marketing programs. With account-based marketing, you can focus on building relationships with every type of account by crafting high-quality content that addresses their specific needs.

Suppose you are selling a high-end SaaS product. One way to market it would be by employing a blanket approach, where your target audience comprises both SMBs and enterprises. While some of them might need your expensive product, your marketing efforts in targeting all of them would not amount to much.

With an account-based marketing approach, you can slow down and approach high-value target accounts with a targeted marketing message. Your ABM efforts will allow you to engage each individual (involved in the purchase decision) in a more personalized way. And when the content is personalized, buyers will be more open to your outreach efforts.

Benefits of Account-Based Marketing

• Allows personalization: The most significant benefit of ABM is that it will enable you to take a more personalized approach with both new and existing customers. When you show your leads that you understand their problem and provide meaningful content, their engagement levels are bound to increase.
• Nurture relationships: Account-based marketing allows you to build and maintain relationships with key contacts in each target account. This paves the way for continued collaboration and increases the trust between your customer and you throughout the sales cycle.
• Faster decision-making: The advantage of ABM strategy is that it gives you direct access to the decision-makers, thereby speeding up the decision-making process.
• Increased ROI: Since you are marketing directly to high-value accounts, you can eliminate unqualified prospects. When you’re able to lower your risks and save time, you will naturally be able to benefit from a higher ROI.