In today’s fiercely competitive B2B landscape, account-based marketing (known as ABM) has become a game-changer, allowing innovative companies to focus their marketing efforts on high-value accounts rather than only targeting a broad audience. ABM is a strategy centered on your marketing and sales teams collaborating to identify and engage with specific target accounts, creating highly personalized campaigns to drive conversions and revenue. For entrepreneurs at emerging and enterprise brands alike, ABM offers an opportunity to focus attention on the target accounts you are best equipped to serve. A 2023 report by Gartner found that effective ABM strategies can increase pipeline conversion rates by as much as 14%, presenting a substantial opportunity for growth.
Here’s the problem most leaders face with ABM: Traditional approaches emphasize expensive tech stacks and campaigns that only play the long game — which are often doomed to fail in environments that champion quick wins or a change in direction. The good news? With a "scrappy" strategy, even businesses with limited resources can harness the power of ABM to grow faster and smarter. I recently spoke to Lauren St. Amand, EVP and head of marketing at StarCompliance, a leading provider of compliance software solutions to the global financial services sector, about how small businesses can leverage ABM. She suggested that SMBs do not need to invest in the latest and greatest martech stack to get started with ABM. According to her, one can leverage data analytics to measure the effectiveness of campaigns and optimize programs as an essential component of any mature ABM program. Start small by developing relevant organic content, leveraging low-cost digital tools like Terminus, and even creating employee advocacy programs to help expand your brand via social channels.
1. Focus on Key Accounts Before Building Tools
An effective ABM strategy always starts with focusing on the right target accounts. Rather than spreading your energy across a wide spectrum of potential customers, narrow your focus to the companies that have the greatest potential for growth. This targeted approach allows you to channel your resources and efforts more efficiently, ensuring that you reach the most promising prospects. Start by asking: What characteristics do your most successful clients share? Are there certain industries, company sizes, or pain points you’ve solved effectively in the past? You don’t need expensive data tools for this; basic CRM data, LinkedIn insights, and a dose of intuition are often enough to identify promising accounts without the need for costly tools.
PitchBook offers a perfect example of this strategy in action. Facing ambitious sales goals, it analyzed more than 2,000 accounts using data and machine learning to find those most likely to convert. By combining internal data with current metrics, it was able to prioritize and target the accounts that mattered most. As a result, PitchBook’s website visits from target accounts increased by 79%, and active engagement skyrocketed by 220%. This data-driven approach not only improved their targeting precision but also resulted in a more efficient allocation of resources, highlighting the importance of starting with a focused approach on identifying high-potential target accounts that match your business objectives.
2. Detect Readiness Triggers
Not every account is ready to engage at the same time. This is where identifying readiness triggers becomes essential. Readiness triggers refer to specific actions or behaviors that indicate an account is ready to engage, such as visiting a key page on your website, downloading content, or attending a particular event. By gathering and analyzing this data, you can prioritize accounts that show signs of interest and engagement, enabling timely and relevant outreach. This approach ensures that your marketing efforts are directed towards accounts that are more likely to convert, rather than wasting resources on those that are not yet ready to engage.
For instance, I used our 4D activation plays during a session at #B2BMX to create 26 sales opportunities. With 348 attendees registered for the session, I was able to leverage real-time data from the event app, which provided key information such as company name, job title, and other sessions they attended. This data allowed me to target participants more precisely, reaching out to those most engaged and interested in my content. The insights gleaned from their behavior at the event directly informed my targeting strategy and helped create actionable sales opportunities. By focusing on readiness triggers, you can ensure that your outreach is both timely and relevant, significantly increasing your chances of success.
3. Craft Highly Relevant Messages Addressing Specific Needs
Once you’ve identified triggers, it’s time to craft messaging that addresses the specific pain points of each account. This personalized approach is at the heart of ABM, as broad, generic messaging simply won’t cut it. To do this effectively without overcomplicating the process, create modular content that can be quickly tailored to different accounts. For instance, use case studies from similar industries to showcase how you’ve solved comparable problems, or craft personalized email templates that can be adjusted to reflect the latest news or company updates. This level of personalization makes your outreach far more impactful than a one-size-fits-all approach.
A McKinsey report from 2023 found that personalized marketing can reduce customer acquisition costs by up to 50%, boost revenue by 5% to 15%, and increase ROI by 10% to 30%. These statistics underscore the importance of personalized messaging in an ABM strategy. By speaking directly to the unique needs and pain points of each account, you can significantly increase engagement and conversion rates. Use industry-specific case studies and tailored email templates to enhance the relevance and impact of your communication, ensuring that your messages resonate with your target accounts and drive action.
4. Guide Prospects to Targeted, Actionable Pages
Once you’ve grabbed the attention of your target accounts with highly relevant messaging, the next step is to guide them to landing pages with clear, actionable next steps. These pages should be product-specific and highly relevant to the prospect’s identified needs. You don’t need a high-budget web development team to make this work; tools such as Unbounce or Leadpages allow you to quickly build professional, targeted landing pages. For example, if you’re targeting a company that’s expressed interest in a particular product feature, your landing page should focus solely on that feature and include testimonials or case studies from similar businesses.
DocuSign exemplifies this approach. To ensure its most important prospects always saw relevant content, the company personalized landing pages and CTAs based on the prospect’s industry. This strategy led to a 22% increase in pipeline and tripled DocuSign’s click-through rates on industry-specific calls to action. By aligning the landing pages with each account’s needs, DocuSign effectively directed high-value prospects toward conversion. This tailored approach increases your chances of conversion by offering a streamlined path for decision-makers to follow, ensuring that your marketing efforts are both effective and efficient.
5. Keep It Simple — Begin Small and Increase Gradually
Perhaps the most important thing to remember is that ABM doesn’t need to be over-engineered. Start small by choosing a handful of target accounts and running pilot campaigns that focus on one or two channels. The advantage of ABM is its scalability. Once you see success with a few accounts, you can gradually expand your efforts, leveraging existing resources and data to optimize and expand your strategy. This approach allows you to fine-tune your tactics and ensure that your efforts are both effective and sustainable.
"In a budget-restrained environment, ABM success hinges on strategic targeting, personalization, and leveraging existing resources," St. Amand said. "For example, instead of spending budget on new data acquisition, you can leverage your existing CRM data to identify pre-defined target accounts with your sales team. Even with a small ad budget of $1,000, you can create tailored retargeting ads with LinkedIn aimed at decision-makers in a small number of accounts that can generate high-value leads that convert into a major client." By starting with a few target accounts and pilot campaigns focusing on one or two channels, you can gradually scale your efforts as successes are realized.
Unlock the Power of ABM, One Step at a Time
In today’s highly competitive B2B landscape, account-based marketing (ABM) has emerged as a crucial strategy, enabling companies to focus their marketing efforts on high-value accounts rather than casting a wide net. ABM involves the collaboration of marketing and sales teams to identify and engage specific target accounts, creating tailored campaigns that drive conversions and revenue. For both emerging and established brands, ABM provides a way to focus on the accounts best suited to their offerings. According to a 2023 Gartner report, effective ABM strategies can boost pipeline conversion rates by up to 14%, offering significant growth potential.
Yet, many leaders struggle with ABM due to the emphasis on expensive technology and long-term campaigns, which often fail in environments demanding quick results. The upside? Even businesses with limited resources can adopt a "scrappy" approach to ABM and achieve faster growth. I recently spoke with Lauren St. Amand, EVP and head of marketing at StarCompliance—a leading provider of compliance software for the financial services sector—about how small businesses can make ABM work. She advises that SMBs don’t need the latest technology to start with ABM. Instead, they can use data analytics to measure campaign effectiveness and optimize strategies. Begin with creating relevant organic content, utilizing low-cost digital tools like Terminus, and developing employee advocacy programs to extend your brand’s reach through social channels.