B2B sales is a whole different ballgame. Usually, 5-7 decision-makers are involved in the process, and closing the deal here means efficient management of all these high-value accounts. This is where account-based selling comes in.
If you’ve heard about account-based marketing (ABM), this is much like that. But the focal point of account-based selling is very different.
What is Account-Based Selling?
Account-based selling is a sales strategy in which every target account in a company is treated as a market of one. Instead of targeting single leads/contacts within a company, you have to identify several target accounts. And then, the marketing team and sales reps/SDRs use outreach campaigns to try and nurture these individual accounts through the sales funnel.
Effective account-based selling is only possible through cross-functional team collaboration. While the marketing and sales teams are crucial, a comprehensive account-based selling strategy also requires the involvement of sales development, customer success, product engineering, finance, and the R&D team.
Why is Account-Based Selling important?
When using account-based sales development (ABSD), it is important to note that this differs from the traditional lead-based sales process. In the latter, your salespeople would try to sell your product/service to as many people as you can without understanding the pain points or needs of your buyer personas.
On the other hand, the account-based approach is more personalized and targeted for lead generation and conversion. It can be very useful when your target companies are large organizations. Account-based selling methodology works because it appeals to the needs and requirements of all the key stakeholders in a key account. If executed well, the account-based sales approach results in higher conversion rates, lower customer acquisition costs, and significant improvement in KPIs (customer lifetime value, lead-to-opportunity ratio).
Benefits of Account-Based Selling
By now, you might be familiar that it’s difficult to determine a company’s readiness to invest in your product/service when you have a single point of contact. It’s possible that they might not even be the key decision-maker in the organization. With account-based selling, you can go after high-value accounts that’ll help facilitate conversions.
Here are some of the main benefits of successful account-based sales -
Your sales and marketing team members wouldn’t have to spend precious time and effort on prospects that are not the right fit.
More time to research and create personalized messages for the target account list, allowing you to close deals more effectively.
Lesser dependency on an individual stakeholder. The multi-touch approach means there is no risk of the deal falling through if a target account is unavailable.
Is Account-Based Selling for you?
Consider the following points to decide if you want to switch to account-based selling –
Your customers: If your clients are small and medium-sized enterprises, account-based selling might not be the best approach for you. Before employing the ABS approach, look at the average contract value and average deal size.
Ideal customer profile: For account-based selling to work, you need to have sufficient data about the ideal customers.
Number of stakeholders: If you find that there are multiple stakeholders involved in the purchase decision, it would make the most sense to have multiple touchpoints through ABS strategy.
Average sales cycle: Account-based approach is a good choice if your average sales cycle lasts around 3 to 4 months.