Download our eBook Account Based Marketing: Flipping the funnel
When I first heard the term account-based marketing (ABM) it sounded straight forward enough. Those of us who work in B2B have been targeting and building relationships with key accounts for years. But the more I looked into it, the more confusing and mysterious it seemed.
My journey started with a webinar that promised to show how you could increase both revenue and return with ABM. The webinar was sponsored by a call center company and they spent the entire hour focused on dialing for dollars. Next, I went to a meet-up, where companies providing ABM services could connect and share insights about how they are doing ABM. The majority of attendees produced physical gifts that you could customize and give to your targeted accounts. Then, I met a company that said they used neuro linguistic programming (NLP) to write compelling messages that the client simply could not refuse. These companies were dramatically different from one another. Yet they all claimed to be doing ABM.
The truth is they are all doing elements of an ABM approach–and so are thousands of technology vendors whose software helps to do elements of ABM at scale.
So what is Account-based marketing?
According to Forrester, it is a strategy focused on a company or set of companies that uses deep account insights to inform tactics. It is supplemented by technology that enables personalized contextual marketing at the individual and account level. In other words, ABM is a B2B marketing approach that’s hyper-focused on key accounts.
It’s an approach that’s catching fire. Between 2015 and 2016, the number of companies adopting an ABM approach doubled. And that number is expected to nearly double again this year, with good reason. According to DemandBase, 92% of B2B marketers using ABM say it is key to their success. And Forrester predicts that companies that adopt an ABM strategy will outdistance the competition.
ABM is gaining momentum because it works. In fact, it has gained so much momentum, that it has become something of a global movement. At Audienz, we’re proud to be part of that movement. We’ve recently trained our whole staff in ABM best practices. We’re working with Microsoft and Aprimo on ground breaking partner-led ABM pilots, and we’ve developed a methodology to help our clients advance their ABM efforts, no matter where they are in the ABM journey.
If you want to go beyond the hype and learn more about how ABM and demand generation work together to fuel success, download our eBook Account Based Marketing: Flipping the funnel or email us at ideas@audienz.com.
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