You know lead generation is crucial to your company. But as marketing has changed, spray-and-pray no longer works. Customers nowadays seek customized experiences. Where account-based marketing comes in. ABM targets a specific group of accounts for marketing. Instead of casting a broad net for leads, you choose firms that suit your product or service. Then you create campaigns for them. A better, more effective approach to producing high-quality leads.
ABM may need more upfront effort to set goals and strategy. However, prioritizing your time and resources may boost your ROI. Your leads will be more likely to become long-term clients. You’ll strengthen connections for future cross-selling and upselling. This article will explain how to build an account-based marketing strategy and run campaigns that will encourage your target accounts to communicate to you.
What Is Account-Based Marketing (ABM)?
ABM is a strategic approach to business marketing that focuses sales and marketing efforts on targeting and engaging key accounts. Rather than casting a wide net, ABM zeroes in on high-value accounts and tailors strategies and messaging to resonate with them.
ABM may require more work upfront, but by concentrating your efforts on high-value accounts, you can generate better quality leads and accelerate the sales cycle. If done well, ABM can be very effective for gaining new customers, growing existing accounts, and improving lifetime value. For targeting lead generation, ABM is a strategy that delivers.
Why ABM Is Effective for Lead Generation
Account-based marketing (ABM) targets important accounts for sales and marketing. ABM targets high-value prospects that suit your solutions, unlike broad-based lead generation initiatives.
ABM cuts through noise
Targeting particular accounts lets you adapt information and communication to prospects’ needs. This generates higher-quality leads since you’re attracting actual customers.
ABM improves closure rates
Deeply understanding a prospect’s pain points and priorities leads to more meaningful dialogues. Your sales staff will be able to show how your product fits important needs.
ABM increases deal sizes
Strategic accounts typically have greater budgets and more complex needs. By focusing your efforts on these valuable relationships, you can land bigger deals that drive significant revenue.
ABM builds loyalty
An account-based approach fosters strong, long-term partnerships. As you deliver tailored solutions to meet key objectives, you become a trusted advisor. This bond between your company and the account often leads to upsells, cross-sells, case studies, and client referrals.
In today’s cluttered marketplace, ABM is essential for any company that wants to boost lead generation through targeted prospecting. While a broad net may seem an easy way to draw in large volumes, a spearfishing approach will land you the big fish that truly matter. By concentrating your efforts on high-potential accounts, you’ll achieve the sales and marketing results that fuel real growth.
How to Identify Your Ideal Accounts for ABM
To successfully implement an ABM strategy, you need to identify companies that make sense as your target accounts. The ideal accounts for your ABM efforts should meet the following criteria:
A Clear Need for Your Solution
Look for companies that could benefit greatly from your product or service. Maybe they’re struggling with a problem that you can solve, or their business would be significantly enhanced by what you offer. These companies will be motivated to connect with you.
A Fit With Your Strengths
Choose companies that match up well with your core capabilities and the solutions you provide. If you excel at helping mid-sized service businesses expand into new regions, don’t target major enterprises. Focus on companies where you can deliver maximum value.
Openness to New Ideas
Forward-thinking companies that value innovation are more likely to be open to your message. Look for businesses with a track record of implementing new technologies, services, or strategies to gain a competitive edge. They’ll be receptive to how you can help them evolve and improve.
In a Growth Phase
Fast-growing companies often have greater needs, so they make ideal ABM targets. Identify businesses that are expanding into new markets, launching new products, hiring more staff, or merging with or acquiring other companies. Their changing circumstances mean they’re more open to input from solution providers like you.
Decision-Making Authority
For your ABM outreach to be effective, you need to connect with people who have the power to evaluate and purchase from you. Look for companies where key decision-makers and budget-holders can be identified and reached. If authority is too decentralized, it will be difficult to make headway.
By focusing your ABM strategy on companies that meet these criteria, you’ll be targeting accounts you have the best chance to win. With the right accounts in your crosshairs, you can craft highly customized campaigns to capture their interest and spark new opportunities.
ABM Tactics to Target Key Accounts and Contacts
ABM tactics allow you to target key accounts and contacts with precision. Some proven ABM tactics include:
Targeted Content
Develop content specifically tailored to your key accounts’ needs and pain points. Things like case studies, whitepapers, blog posts, and videos discussing their industry challenges will resonate most. Make sure any content is optimized for search with account names and relevant keywords.
Personalized Outreach
Do research on your target accounts and contacts to craft highly personalized outreach. Mention shared connections or experiences to build rapport and speak to their specific priorities or challenges. Personalized video messages or handwritten notes also make a memorable impression.
Account-Based Advertising
Use advertising platforms to target your key accounts and their decision-makers. Options include:
- Display ads on websites they frequent
- Social media ads targeting their titles, functions, or companies
- Pay-per-click search ads show when they search topics you discuss
- Retargeting to reach them after they’ve visited your site
Events and Sponsorships
Attend industry events your key accounts are likely to be at, whether in-person or virtual. Sponsoring events where your target accounts will be speaking or attending is also a great chance for visibility and face time. Set up a booth to start conversations, collect contact info, and give out useful resources.
Coordinated Outreach
For large accounts, coordinate outreach across your sales, marketing, and customer service teams. Different voices and outreach types mean more opportunities to engage key stakeholders. Work together on timing, messaging, and next steps to avoid looking disorganized or spammy. Review insights from each interaction to determine the best ways to follow up.
Measuring ABM Success and ROI for Lead Gen
To determine if your ABM efforts for lead generation are paying off, you need to measure your success and calculate the ROI. Some of the key metrics to track include:
Opportunities Created
How many new opportunities, such as requests for proposals or product demos, have you generated from your target accounts? Track the number of new opportunities month over month and year over year to see if you’re making progress.
Revenue Impact
Ultimately, the goal of an ABM program is to drive new revenue from your key accounts. Measure how much revenue can be directly attributed to your ABM activities. For example, if you secure a new customer that you targeted, track the revenue from that deal. Compare revenue generated from target accounts versus non-target accounts to determine the impact.
Win Rates
See if your win rates with target accounts improve over time. As you engage target accounts through multiple touchpoints, build relationships, and become a trusted partner, you should see higher win rates. If not, you may need to re-evaluate your strategy.
Customer Satisfaction
Survey your customers from target accounts to gauge their satisfaction and see if it improves year over year. High satisfaction means you’re meeting their needs and building loyalty, which leads to more opportunities, higher win rates, and greater revenue over the long run.
By regularly measuring these KPIs, you can make data-driven decisions about your ABM strategy and investments for lead generation. See what’s working, make changes as needed, and prove the value of your ABM program through quantifiable ROI.
Conclusion
The fundamentals of how ABM may create high-quality leads by targeting important accounts are here. You’ll get more conversions and sales by marketing to your key accounts. Stop spending time and money on generic marketing. You may personalize your ABM message to resonate with key decision makers at your target clients.
ABM takes more prior effort to identify and investigate target accounts. But the reward is great. Waste reduction, ROI increase, and real-world partnerships. What’s not to love? ABM is for serious lead generation and sales growth. Target accounts that will purchase from you instead than shooting in the dark. Your sales staff and bottom line will thank you. Start ABM and watch your lead generation soar!
