Account-based marketing is a savvy strategic approach to sales and marketing. Savvy because it uses highly targeted and personalised communication to win new business or nurture specific companies. Account-based tactics are more personalised, targeted and cost-efficient than the typical “spray and pray” campaigns sent to wider, more random contacts.
Why spend marketing budget to blanket the market when you know which type of companies are potential customers? Account-based tactics put you in front of key decision-makers so that you can nurture and increase sales and revenue. Why not become more focused on your marketing efforts by using account-based marketing? It’s widely considered the best performing marketing channel for B2B companies.
The structured approach of account-based marketing takes your marketing from a wide, random approach to a market of one. And definitely one who is interested and a potential buyer for the long term. And it gets even better. Almost all B2B solution providers have found that account-based marketing delivers more ROI than any other marketing tactic.
And why not? Account-based marketing is incredibly precise, accurate and targeted when compared to typical inbound and outbound campaigns. That’s what makes it easy to measure ROI. And more and more marketers are taking advantage of it.
According to a study conducted by the Information Technology Services Marketing Association ( ITSMA):
77 percent of B2B marketers think that account-based marketing has generated more success from their targeted accounts.
Account-based marketing initiatives now account for over a quarter of total marketing budgets
B2B marketers have begun to deploy the sophisticated tactics of account-based marketing by targeting across multiple tiers
Even though account-based marketing is not new, only 52 percent have implemented any relevant initiative
More and more B2B marketers have implemented account-based marketing overall and they claim markedly improved ROI when compared to traditional strategies. And the benefits increase as marketers gain experience and implement tactics which work the best for their own markets and industries.
The study also showed that 99 percent of marketers see better ROI from using account-based marketing techniques as opposed to all other forms of marketing programs. As many as 45 percent of survey participants—with fewer than three years of account-based marketing experience—have realized twice the ROI amount than they saw with typical lead-gen marketing. 80 percent of companies that have been working account-based marketing for over three years are seeing dramatically improved ROI.
Account-based marketing principles have become an important influence on the way B2B companies go to market overall and are upping their budgets to account for the strategies. In fact, one third of the companies that are using account-based marketing have dedicated one third of their budgets to it.
Companies are dedicating sizeable shares of their total marketing budgets to ABM
And while it is proven that account-based marketing delivers the highest ROI for B2B marketers, it’s important to understand why. First off, you have close coordination with both the sales and marketing teams focused on the same goals. There is incredible momentum in that. And while everyone would love to see immediate results, there is a caveat that true hefty ROI results take time.
Account-based marketing is not a marketing campaign, but rather a highly focused program for the entire enterprise. There are key accounts to get on board and be nurtured for the long term. This is quite different from the lead-generation campaigns most businesses are familiar with. But positive results are demonstrable even early out of the gate which creates the enthusiasm to keep investing and supporting an account-based marketing strategy.
It is with time, then, that ROI becomes greater and greater. Nurtured customers will prove their loyalty to a business that focuses on their pain points and need for better solutions. This personalised way of doing business—all across the enterprise, not just in sales and marketing—will only strengthen key account relationships and set the stage for better ROI.
When customers feel valued and the relationship is solid, there is less need for marketing investments with them. The sales continue with less marketing investment and ROI increases. When account-based marketing strategies are scaled, B2B marketers can accomplish more with less. Plus, the same number of account people can reach more people in the key accounts and upsell for constantly improved ROI.
It is clear that account-based marketing works but marketers have to understand the momentum that must build over time. Customers have to be nurtured and account people need to harvest more from key accounts. That’s when stellar ROI shows up. So, start today. Build on early results and keep working the strategy. You’ll see much better ROI and now you know how to get there.
How to drive profit from Account-Based Marketing
There’s a time for spray and pray marketing: For casting your net wide when sharing news in the expectation that a small percentage of recipients will have that ‘aha’ moment. But let’s face it, when the emphasis is on delivering immediate results (and timely opportunities), then the more targeted your activities the better.
Which is, of course, the central promise behind Account-Based Marketing (ABM). With it comes the ability to deliver more meaningful and relevant messages that are tailored to a precise audience. But then you already knew that. What you possibly don’t know so well are the key factors behind a successful ABM programme or the main pitfalls to avoid.
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