Account Based Data
Article | June 29, 2023
We all know that account-based marketing means targeting the best customer accounts, creating personalized marketing campaigns, and getting to the conversion stage.
Though these steps may sound easy, it takes a lot of brainstorming to implement them to convert the accounts that matter the most. To know more about these steps, you can read six hard-hitting lessons for the ABM strategy.
This article will talk about the best and correct ways to implement ABM plans with examples.
But first, let us briefly inform you about ABM and how it works.
Brief Introduction to ABM
Account-based marketing is a marketing strategy implemented by B2B marketers to concentrate on their exclusive clients. First, the sales and marketing team collaborates to collect the maximum data about specific clients. Then these clients are targeted with personalized marketing campaigns on various platforms.
Thus, account-based marketing allows you to utilize your workforce and resources efficiently. It also helps to market your products to a handful of customers who have a 90% chance of conversion.
Now, let us see the correct ways to implement ABM for various B2B industries.
Ways to Implement ABM Plans with Examples
We have specifically chosen the four best ways to implement ABM in B2B marketing strategy. These are the core strategies that have worked for B2B and are sure to work for you too.
But first, look at these wise words from Maliha Aqeel, Director of Global Communications at Fix Network World.
'One of the most common mistakes companies make is implementing a brand strategy that isn’t aligned to the organization’s overall business goal.'
So before implementing any marketing plan, ensure that your brand strategy, marketing campaigns, and everything else aligns with the overall business goals.
Identify Exclusive Accounts
It is the root of your ABM strategy. Your fruits of labor will be decided by the correct places you plant these roots.
So basically, when you are filtering your clients/customers for ABM, here are the key factors to be kept in mind;
Choose the correct industry.
Know the size of the organization.
Identify the needs, challenges, and pain points of the organization.
Know the timelines and hierarchy of their decision-making process.
The answers to these questions will help you to recognize the target accounts precisely.
Example:
Vidyard is a video platform that helps businesses transform communications and drive more revenue through the strategic use of online video. It collaborated with SmartBug Media to change the video experience for users worldwide. Thus, they can target the correct customers on Hubspot. In addition, they help customers to make videos an integrated part of their marketing campaigns and other processes.
Craft Tailored Content
Every filtered account for ABM will have unique needs, demands, challenges, and pain points. Thus, you have to craft content to address the customers directly. They should instantly recognize that you understand them and have built solutions exclusively for their challenges.
You should also be ready with different content for different stages of the buying journey. And remember to design content for customers even after they convert. It helps you to be ready for the retention stage.
Like Mark Emond, Founder and President at Demand Spring quotes;
“Content is at the heart of great marketing today. It needs to educate, inspire, and convert. It must be tied to the unique rational and emotional needs of each target persona.”
Example:
Intridea executed an excellent content strategy to target the advertising giant Ogilvy. First, they rented a billboard right across Ogilvy’s Manhattan office. The billboard said, “Ogle this, Ogilvy.” Intridea also placed its logo and company URL at the bottom of the quirky line. This exclusive content got them an appointment with Ogilvy’s CEO!
Use Marketing Automation Tools
There are various personalization tools available to assist you in ABM. These tools provide centralized data collection and data analysis. They also coordinate your marketing campaigns across all platforms.
Example:
Growsteak is a Vietnamese company that provides advertising and digital marketing solutions. However, it faced several challenges like lead generation and competitor analysis. Thus, they incorporated Hubspot’s Partner Program. It not only helped them overcome their challenges but also generated 5,166% more leads overall.
Measure the KPIs
You need to measure the metrics once you implement ABM. It is one of the essential factors of a successful ABM strategy. However, these metrics are different from traditional marketing. Thus, you need to keep a hawk’s eye on them.
Some of the KPIs to consider are;
Is the current coverage of key clients sufficient and, is it growing?
Are there known or anonymous visits to your site? Have they increased?
Is the incoming traffic getting converted?
How much is the depth of engagement?
Has the strategy made it easy to get appointments of the target accounts?
Wrapping Up
The success of account-based marketing depends on research and personalization. The more effort you put in to know your clients, the closer you get to convert them. Thus, make use of the abundant data and accurately target your potential customers!
Frequently Asked Questions
Is ABM more successful than traditional marketing?
Yes. Compared to traditional marketing methods, ABM has proved to create wonders and save a lot on time, resources and workforce. It has also guaranteed a better success and conversion rate for the sales and marketing teams.
How important is personalization in marketing?
Personalization plays a prominent role in ABM. A trust factor builts if you can address the challenges and pain points of the client with personalized solutions.
Also, personalization ensures a higher rate of getting appointments and conversions of the targeted accounts.
Can SMBs also implement ABM?
Of course. SMBs have a higher chance of growing if they plan their marketing strategy along with ABM. It will allow them to understand the market and their customers from the very beginning. And once they have converted the customers, retention will be an easy task.
{
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "FAQPage",
"mainEntity": [{
"@type": "Question",
"name": "How do small business owners use technology to improve their business?",
"acceptedAnswer": {
"@type": "Answer",
"text": "Small businesses can use technology in multiple different ways. For instance, they can use technology to connect with their customers, communicate with their employees, sell their products or services, better coordinate between the employees, simplify manual work, and many more."
}
},{
"@type": "Question",
"name": "How much do small businesses spend on technology?",
"acceptedAnswer": {
"@type": "Answer",
"text": "Small businesses should acknowledge a few technologies in their business operations. Below are the mentioned requisites:
Cloud computing
Mobile applications
HR software
Drones
Emails
Data Security"
}
},{
"@type": "Question",
"name": "What are the latest business technologies?",
"acceptedAnswer": {
"@type": "Answer",
"text": "The latest and trendy technologies that are in widespread use in the business world are mentioned below:
Internet of things (IoT)
Virtual & augmented reality
Artificial intelligence
Mobile technology
Blockchain
3d printing
Robotics & automation
Drones"
}
}]
}
Read More
Buyer Intent Data
Article | August 23, 2022
ABX is about quality, not quantity.
The traditional metrics that have been used to gauge ABM success are not useful in the experience-centric realm. The new and more complex benchmarks for measuring success revolve around:
Relationship analytics
Journey analytics
Attribution analytics
Once you’ve successfully closed accounts, you want to make sure you understand which ABM programs helped to contribute to that sale so you can rinse and repeat. This is where you can evaluate how a vendor measures ABM success and the entire Account-Based Experience. You will want to choose a vendor who can help you optimize your programs from the top of the funnel to the bottom, and grow your customer’s lifetime value.
Some examples of metrics to measure include the volume and velocity of an account as it makes its way through the buyer journey. This helps you understand whether your programs are engaging enough as well as whether your sales cycle is too long.
A strong ABM vendor will also have different methods for measuring attribution since not all businesses are alike, and marketers love seeing attribution models so they can measure the success of their marketing efforts and ROI.
Other metrics to consider include advertising campaigns and website visits – but with an account-based lens. After all, you want to understand whether your advertising is reaching the right accounts and which accounts are engaging on your website. If you find you’re short-staffed, some ABM vendors offer strategic services to help you with your ABM strategy and measurement. To learn more about vendor onboarding and support, read the next section.
Because ABX has a different set of metrics than ABM, when it comes to measuring the performance of the ABM solution from the vantage point of the customer experience, the scope also changes.
The vendors on your shortlist should, among other features:
Offer a dashboard to measure ABM impact from across the funnel.
Track volume, velocity and conversion metrics for each journey stage.
Offer customizable subscriptions for all custom reports.
People and account based heatmaps.
Allow you to combine first party, third party, firmographic and technographic data for segmentation and reporting.
Allow you to compare the performance of different audiences or account lists and evaluate the impact of specific programs.
Enable you to see the engagement and activities that influenced the different stages of a deal cycle.
Measuring a journey and a relationship in the long term requires measuring as much data as possible, so find out if they also:
Centralize your existing data sources in one location?
Track B2B metrics by account?
Track and report on anonymous first-touch visitors by account?
Have strategic services in place to help you set up ROI reporting based on your strategies? Allow you to compare different timeframes for account stages?
Provide advanced BI capabilities for ABM?
The point of measuring is to take action based on knowledge and insights, and having an ABM solution that allows you to bring together all of the relevant data points for your decision-making is pivotal for the success of your business. Our agnostic Definitive Guide to Choosing an Account-Based Marketing Platform provides you with checklists like the one above as well as the reasoning behind the need for each of the features outlined in the ebook. Check it out and take advantage of the printable list we put together for your own use at the end of the guide.
ABX is about quality, not quantity. The traditional metrics that have been used to gauge ABM success are not useful in the experience-centric realm. The new and more complex benchmarks for measuring success revolve around:
Relationship analytics
Journey analytics
Attribution analytics
Once you’ve successfully closed accounts, you want to make sure you understand which ABM programs helped to contribute to that sale so you can rinse and repeat. This is where you can evaluate how a vendor measures ABM success and the entire Account-Based Experience. You will want to choose a vendor who can help you optimize your programs from the top of the funnel to the bottom, and grow your customer’s lifetime value.
Some examples of metrics to measure include the volume and velocity of an account as it makes its way through the buyer journey. This helps you understand whether your programs are engaging enough as well as whether your sales cycle is too long.
A strong ABM vendor will also have different methods for measuring attribution since not all businesses are alike, and marketers love seeing attribution models so they can measure the success of their marketing efforts and ROI.
Other metrics to consider include advertising campaigns and website visits – but with an account-based lens. After all, you want to understand whether your advertising is reaching the right accounts and which accounts are engaging on your website. If you find you’re short-staffed, some ABM vendors offer strategic services to help you with your ABM strategy and measurement. To learn more about vendor onboarding and support, read the next section.
Because ABX has a different set of metrics than ABM, when it comes to measuring the performance of the ABM solution from the vantage point of the customer experience, the scope also changes.
The vendors on your shortlist should, among other features:
Offer a dashboard to measure ABM impact from across the funnel.
Track volume, velocity and conversion metrics for each journey stage.
Offer customizable subscriptions for all custom reports.
People and account based heatmaps.
Allow you to combine first party, third party, firmographic and technographic data for segmentation and reporting.
Allow you to compare the performance of different audiences or account lists and evaluate the impact of specific programs.
Enable you to see the engagement and activities that influenced the different stages of a deal cycle.
Measuring a journey and a relationship in the long term requires measuring as much data as possible, so find out if they also:
Centralize your existing data sources in one location?
Track B2B metrics by account?
Track and report on anonymous first-touch visitors by account?
Have strategic services in place to help you set up ROI reporting based on your strategies? Allow you to compare different timeframes for account stages?
Provide advanced BI capabilities for ABM?
The point of measuring is to take action based on knowledge and insights, and having an ABM solution that allows you to bring together all of the relevant data points for your decision-making is pivotal for the success of your business. Our agnostic Definitive Guide to Choosing an Account-Based Marketing Platform provides you with checklists like the one above as well as the reasoning behind the need for each of the features outlined in the ebook. Check it out and take advantage of the printable list we put together for your own use at the end of the guide.
Read More
Programmatic ABM
Article | June 9, 2022
ABM influences key accounts that show buyer intent. This influence is internal (B2B through personalized content) and aims to sway decision-makers who green-light a purchase.
In an interview with Media 7, Mark Emond, Founder & President of Demand Spring, talked about the importance of content in marketing.
“Content is at the heart of great marketing today. It needs to educate, inspire, and convert. It must be tied to the unique rational and emotional needs of each target persona.”
ABM’s focused approach leads to faster lead conversions and a higher ROI. However, B2B marketers still face the following challenges in their marketing strategy:
Maximizing Marketing Efficiency
B2B marketers must consistently drive higher ROI on their efforts while working within a limited budget.
Improving Customer Experience
Cutting through the noise of thousands of competitors and delivering an enhanced customer experience is challenging.
Generating Trust in Customers
Marketers need to humanize their approach and reach a level of undeniable authenticity to generate trust in the minds of customers.
Why Should You Use Influencer Marketing in ABM?
According to a CSO Insights report from Marketing Charts, brands fail to incite enough trust in their target audience. Interestingly, it is what the subject matter experts and third-party influencers from the industry say that counts. So, external influence is driving purchase decisions. Internal influence, though crucial, cannot sideline external influence and how it impacts sales and key decisions.
When you integrate ABM with influencer marketing, you co-create relatable, impactful content with relevant influencers to encourage your target accounts to move ahead in the sales funnel. An influencer becomes a credible touch point, powerful enough to convert a lead. The influencer’s performance-oriented content resonates with the target audience, engages, educates, and informs them of the strong points of your business, creating a strong foundation for lead conversion.
Here is how it can help strengthen ABM strategy:
Increases Content Authenticity
The words of a trusted subject matter expert or third-party niche content creator hold more weight than static website content or brand ads. Their followers trust them and consider their views authentic. If such relevant influencers create content with you, your target audience is bound to be positively influenced. This leads to higher conversions and ROI, qualitative reach, and better engagement.
Attracts New Audiences
Influencers attract new audiences that are similar to your ideal customer profile (ICP). Interactions, content promotions, and publicity can create brand awareness generate more interest in your brand.
Encourages Brand Advocacy
Positive reviews, customer success stories (voice of customer), testimonials, and word-of-mouth publicity that comes from influencers and their followers promote brand advocacy. Influencers also create incentives for referrals, thus bringing in better engagement.
Humanizes the Buyer Experiences
B2B storytelling is the key to conversions. It has more impact than any other form of advertising. Influencers humanize the buyer experience by sharing their opinions, reviews from other businesses, and highlighting success stories through their content. This content is impressive as compared to any other content the brand hosts and promotes.
B2B Influencer Content is Priceless
B2B influencer content has high value because it has third-party credibility that attracts trust across all brand channels. Another advantage is that you can easily access the creativity of the influencer without having to hire someone. All the content that influencers publish on their platforms is brand content, highlighted with the voice of the customer. Influencer marketing generates traction and engagement for businesses.
Integrated Influence
Influence can be integrated through social media marketing, content marketing, PR, SEO, branding, and ABM.
How to Create a Powerful, Influencer-based ABM Marketing Strategy?
Brainstorm a Strategy
To make the most of influencer-based ABM marketing, you need to streamline a process and strategy. Find the answers to these two crucial questions:
1. Who influences your target audience?
2. Which topics interest your target audience?
Once you find the answers to these questions, you can zero in on a relevant influencer and approach them to participate in creating/co-creating high-quality marketing content (text, podcast, video, interactive). Integrate the content and publish it on brand channels, and influencer channels. Promote the content via blogs, ads, other influencers, and brand sites to target your key accounts. Monitor the promotions (URLs, engagement) and adjust the campaign for maximum output. Most importantly, create and nurture relationships with industry influencers for future campaigns.
Understand the Demand
Understanding the demand of the target audience through keyword research and data analysis can boost the results of an influencer marketing campaign. Offering audiences solutions to their problems or information that will help them scale their business assist in lead nurturing and conversions.
Identify Ideal Influencers
Choosing a suitable influencer can help kick start your influencer campaign powerfully. An ideal influencer should be proficient in their domain, passionate about content creation, capable of publishing content across platforms, popular in the industry with keen followers, and knowledgeable and eager to promote content across different channels in different formats.
You can employ software to identify and qualify relevant influencers who create credible, high-quality content on the topic you want to promote. Filter influencers based on how much they charge and how well they align with your company values and brand voice. Focus on creating a long term association.
Shuffle the Content Formats
By shuffling between marketing content formats like blog articles, live video, third party analyst reports, videos, case studies, webinars, podcasts, industry presentations, infographics, and interactive content, the target audience can be engaged on multiple channels, and data can be collected to analyze which formats work best.
Remain Connected with Influencers
As a B2B marketer, you should connect one-on-one through email, phone, or in-person meetings with influencers frequently. You should monitor and engage with influencers on social media when they mention your brand.
By interacting with and sharing relevant influencer content on social channels, you can build a community and promote advocacy through continued partnership and engagement. Additionally, you can recycle content made by influencers to show you value the association.
Sixty-three percent of marketers believe they would have better marketing results with an influencer marketing program, while seventy-four percent of marketers agree that it improves customer and prospect experience with the brand.
How Cherwell Software Witnessed a 437% Year-over-year Increase in Content Shares?
Colorado-based Cherwell Software is an IT Service Management (ITSM) company. It engaged TopRankMarketing to create an influencer marketing campaign with the aim of increasing brand awareness, targeting CIOs, CTOs, and IT Directors of companies for business, and increasing sales and revenue.
With the help of the content 15 ITSM thought leaders created and amplified across five channels, Cherwell Software saw a 170% growth in their audience views and a 437% year-over-year increase in their content shares.
Key Takeaways
In B2B marketing and ABM, influencer marketing can help reach customers you would have otherwise missed. Engaging in an influencer marketing platform to maximize ABM strategy outputs is crucial to remaining ahead in the race.
FAQ
What characteristics should a good B2B influencer have?
A good B2B influencer should be proficient, passionate, popular, a dedicated content promoter and creator.
How does influencer marketing help B2B marketers?
Influencer marketing can help B2B marketers target key accounts by leveraging content created by industry experts.
Read More
Article | April 10, 2020
As COVID-19 became increasingly widespread in the U.S. last month, Senior Account-Based Marketing Manager Kristin Kolb had to quickly shift her department’s planned Q1 pilot. Originally, it had involved direct mail that the Matillion team was going to send to target audiences in their office. Kolb said they decided on an alternative digital approach, upping the ante with personalization efforts. “You don’t need the latest and greatest technology or idea to create a hypothesis and run a small test to see if it works,” Kolb said. Billtrust’s Director of Revenue Marketing Deirdre Mills also champions personalization. While she believes that ABM is more of an art than a science, she ties relevant prospect information into program data, keeping company initiatives in mind.
Read More