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Why Should Businesses Incorporate Conversational Marketing in ABM?

Do you target your high-value clients using account-based marketing? Have your sales and marketing teams gathered all the data required to set up a marketing campaign for your valuable clients? Well, if you have hit the start button, then you should be well-versed with conversational marketing strategies, too.

What Is Conversational Marketing?

Conversational marketing is a one-to-one conversation with the client or customer to provide them with an enhanced shopping experience. This conversation can include chatbots, live chats, filling up contact forms, or feedbacks.

Conversational marketing helps in generating leads, revenue, and personal connection with the customers. This approach also helps in understanding the pain points of the customer at a personal level. As a result, this personalized approach attracts the customer, enhances their buying journey, and makes them feel connected to the brand.

What Does Conversational ABM Mean?

Conversational marketing, when incorporated in ABM, is known as conversational ABM. And it is an essential step in enhancing the client’s journey through conversational ABM.

Conversational ABM is an essential aspect of account-based marketing. When targeted clients click on the ad campaigns or visit your website, they must receive a tailored treatment.

Let us explain this with a basic shopping example.

Assume that you are an owner of a luxury brand that sells cars. Your brand needs a public figure and, you have been targeting a couple of high-value clients for the same. You have been using ABM strategies to get to them. Finally, one day, one of them walks into your store. So what do you do?

Of course, you have the best salesperson attend to them. This salesperson knows everything about the client and addresses their pain points through a lucid and formal conversation. As a result, the client feels that you have made efforts to know them and address their challenges. They understand that for you; they are more than just a customer.

This personalized conversation constructed with the help of research data is known as conversational ABM.

Importance of Conversational Marketing in ABM

“Conversational marketing is about leveraging the power of real-time conversations and two-way dialogue to engage customers and seamlessly move them through your marketing and sales funnels. This could be online chats, social media channels, or live brand experiences, but the end goal is the same — engaging with customers one-on-one to stand out from the competition and humanize your brand.”- Nicole Bojic, SVP of strategy at InVision Communications:


Conversational marketing is of extreme importance. Conversational ABM helps you stand out in your client’s vision. Once the client visits your website or clicks on the link curated for him, your team needs to be super ready to provide them a personalized experience.

This approach of conversational marketing will help to:
  • Connect the client to the brand
  • Build rapport with the client
  • Make the client feel that you are well-versed with their pain points and challenges.
  • Build a personal relationship with the targeted businesses
  • Ensure conversion and client retention

How to Strengthen ABM Using Conversational Marketing

Conversational ABM is developed in the most personalized and formal way.

Conversational marketing in ABM is carried out through chats, calls, or in-person meetings. It is always better for a real person to have a conversation with the client in real-time instead of using chatbots. Align strategies so that your team instantly connects to the targeted client as soon as they visit your website or click on the relevant link.

They should have a personalized approach right from the beginning.

The best way to keep the clients connected is by involving them in a formal conversation while addressing their challenges and pain points. The live chat option has limitations, so your team should know when to switch from chats to audio or video calls. But, again, do this while keeping in mind the convenience and comfortability of the client.

Whatever the mode of communication is, you need to consider the following points while initiating conversation ABM.
  • Direct your sales team instantly to start the conversation as soon as the target account lands on your website. It may include enabling push notifications through emails, messages, or any other conversational marketing solutions.
  • Ensure that the welcome messages and conversations are streamlined with the research and ad campaigns. The client should feel connected, in sync, and cohesive.
  • Greet your target accounts with human-led chats over automated chats. This step amplifies a seamless customer experience.
  • Sculpt the conversation totally about the buyer’s account. They should feel that you have made great efforts to know them and address their challenges.
  • Your content needs to be customized to address their specific needs.
  • Know when to upgrade from a chat conversion to an audio/video call to take things forward.
  • Go beyond basic conversations and show how much the client matters to you.
  • Do everything to provide them with a premium and over-the-top sales experience.

And the Conversation Leads to Conversion.

Based on a survey by DemandGen Report, 95% of target accounts said they would choose the solution provider who helps them navigate through each step of the conversion process.

Conversational ABM is a critical step for a successful ABM. Thus, ensure you prepare your sales and marketing team for the best conversational approaches. This will eventually lead to successful engagement and conversion of the targeted clients.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is conversational marketing?

Conversational marketing is encouraging conversations that are client-centric. These one-to-one conversations are designed to provide a personalized and premium customer experience. The conservations are aligned with the research and specifically address the pain points of the customer.

What is ABM strategy?

Account-based marketing is a marketing strategy that concentrates on creating strategies and targeting high-value clients. This client list for ABM is curated while keeping in mind that these are the most likely to convert. The strategy consists of gathering maximum data about the client and creating tailored ad campaigns or pitches for them.

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How to Create an Effective AI Marketing Strategy?

Article | August 8, 2022

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FAQs What are the challenges in the AI-based ABM strategy? Managing, protecting, and enriching data obtained from CRM and other customer support systems can be challenging. How can AI help in strengthening your ABM strategy? AI helps with personalizing content, automation, ABM optimization, and providing predictive insights for lead conversion. What does a strong AI-based ABM strategy do for your business? A strong AI-based ABM strategy helps with account profiling, analytics, reporting and hyper-individualized content, which leads to increased lead conversion. { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "FAQPage", "mainEntity": [{ "@type": "Question", "name": "What Are the Challenges in the AI-based ABM Strategy?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Managing, protecting, and enriching data obtained from CRM and other customer support systems can be challenging." } },{ "@type": "Question", "name": "How Can AI Help in Strengthening Your ABM Strategy?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "AI helps with personalizing content, automation, ABM optimization, and providing predictive insights for lead conversion." } },{ "@type": "Question", "name": "What Does a Strong AI-based ABM Strategy Do for Your Business?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "A strong AI-based ABM strategy helps with account profiling, analytics, reporting and hyper-individualized content, which leads to increased lead conversion." } }] }

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The Strategy of Direct Mail in ABM

Article | June 21, 2022

When a package arrives at your doorstep, you get excited as a child, no matter what age you are! Some people express their excitement, while some are really good at hiding it. But inquisitiveness and curiosity are natural feelings. Imagine building up these feelings in the mind of the decision-makers of businesses that you are targeting. So, yes, you will stand out in the crowd and, they will notice the gesture, no matter how small or big it is! Coming back to the point, we are talking about the strategy of direct mails in account-based marketing. This strategy has proved to be a success for many organizations practicing ABM. So what exactly is direct mail in ABM and, are there any successful ways or ideal examples to follow? Let us see in detail. What Is Direct Mail in ABM? We are aware that account-based marketing is a strategy that involves targeting, personalization and conversions. But what happens when we make tangibility a part of the above process? Well, the results are impressive. An Infotrends report stated that the e-mail response rate increased from 7.5% to 9.5% with a multi-channel ABM strategy. But, the biggest challenges of ABM are delivering a personalized customer experience, choosing the target accounts, and deciding on the correct content. Thus, direct mail can help you deal with the challenge of delivering a personalized customer experience. A direct mail strategy delivers personalized objects, messages, and more to the targeted organization’s decision-makers. The best part about direct mail is that you can get as creative as you want. Plus, it ensures that the top team notices your efforts. “Direct mail is the new black in B2B. There is nothing more personalized than a handwritten note with a personalized direct mail that is fully customized for your prospect or customer.” - Sangram Vajre, CMO of Terminus. Let us have a look at the best ways to incorporate direct mail in your ABM strategy. Ideas to Implement Direct Mail in ABM Remember, no matter what personalized goodies you plan to send to the concerned people, ensure that: You have a bold, clear, and obvious call to action. Your message is short, simple, and direct. Your strategy should be less is more. You have added the extra personal touch in your mail. Once you have devised the direct mail strategy, here are some things that you need to keep in mind before implementation. Determine the Stage in the Buyer’s Journey Before sending direct mail to your target account, know where they stand in their buyer’s journey. Let us consider these three stages. Awareness Stage If your buyer is in the awareness stage, you need to target all the organization’s decision-makers. Sending them goodies that get them together might be a good idea. For example: Send a box with a personalized message about your company to one and send the key to another. Or you could gift puzzles pieces to each one that needs them to come together to decode the message. Demo Stage Congrats! If you reached the demo stage with the target account. Now, if you’re finding it difficult to set an appointment with them, use direct mail to get their attention. For example: Send them a box with a clock ticking and a surprise to be opened at some given time. As if a demo can be scheduled at that time and claim the gift! 2.1.3 Final Stage You have closed the deal and are all ready to start the dealings. But some small things seemed to be stuck from the buyer’s end. This is where your research will prove handy. You need the search for a particular likeness about the decision-maker and lure them. It will help you get their attention and close all the pending work. For example: Send them a password-protected gadget and, they can access that only after the deal is complete. 2.2 Know the Decision-makers It is an essential aspect in determining the direct mail that you need to send. You should be well aware of the receiver's likes, dislikes, hobbies, and personal traits. Thus, use social media and everything possible from the sales team to create the best effect. Determine the Factors for Conversion Lastly, when the package opens, it should immediately connect to the individual. Thus, when you design or assemble the package, ensure that it connects immediately. Moreover, it should address the pain points and challenges and align with the company’s goals. Thus, determine the factors that directly affect them and, you will provide the best solutions. For example: If you are a hiring agency, give them a complete puzzle with just one piece missing. And a couple of options for the missing piece. Once they fit the right piece in, your puzzle says, “Having trouble finding the right person, we will help your hire!” And ensure that you send a personalized note to every individual along with the common goal of the message. Benefits of B2B Direct Mail Marketing No doubt, personalization will elevate your direct mail strategy, thus promising enhanced customer involvement. But there are other prominent benefits of B2B direct mail marketing. Lets us have a glance at them. Higher account engagement Less wastage of resources Higher win rate Shorter sales cycles Create strong connections The improved success rate of ABM strategy Ideal Examples of Direct Mail in ABM Some organizations have nailed it correctly when it comes to direct mail marketing. Here are a few examples. The Perry Process (Image Courtesy: Pinterest) The Perry Process is a renowned company that deals with used machinery and equipment for 80 years and continues to do. Thus, it wanted manufacturing companies to sell their unwanted and excess equipment in return for cash. So keeping this message in mind, they included fake money inserts with a flyer that said, ‘Don’t throw away your money.’ Hence, it succeeded in sending across its message most realistically! Schott Solar Schott Solar is a company that produces solar panels. Their solar panels came with a 20-year warranty. (Image Courtesy: D&AD) To amplify the selling, they included a 20-year warranty calendar along with the solar panel. The calendar stuck out 60 centimeters from the wall, thus delivering the desired message! Wrapping It Up So no matter what business you deal with, innovation and creativity are the way to easy conversions! Thus understand your customers and give them what they want in a quirky style. Frequently Asked Questions What is direct mail in account-based marketing? Direct mail is a tangible ABM strategy wherein products are mailed directly to customers. These products are personalized and have a direct marketing message. Examples of such products are postcards, catalogs, personal goods, coupons, samples, and more. What impact does direct mail create on the receiver? A study by scientists reveals that if a person receives a physical product, it leaves a deeper footprint on the brain. Thus, a direct mail strategy is sure to get you noticed by your customer. And the best part is that the more creative and personalized you get, the better impact it creates! Can a simple postcard count as a direct mail strategy? Of course, it can. If it sends a clear message of your marketing campaign, is personalized, and instigates the customer to take action, it is a successful direct mail strategy. Always remember, the size or price of the direct mail does not matter, but the impact it creates does! { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "FAQPage", "mainEntity": [{ "@type": "Question", "name": "What is direct mail in account-based marketing?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Direct mail is a tangible ABM strategy wherein products are mailed directly to customers. These products are personalized and have a direct marketing message. Examples of such products are postcards, catalogs, personal goods, coupons, samples, and more." } },{ "@type": "Question", "name": "What impact does direct mail create on the receiver?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "A study by scientists reveals that if a person receives a physical product, it leaves a deeper footprint on the brain. Thus, a direct mail strategy is sure to get you noticed by your customer. 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Building an Account-centric Organization Part II

Article | July 5, 2022

In Part I of this article, we discussed the importance of the ABM foundation, ideal momentum of change, team training, and analyzing data to understand the performance of your ABM strategy. In this part, we will look at how CX, sales enablement, a strong team and consistency matter in successfully transforming your organization into an account-centric one. ABX: Endorse Experience Focus on the kind of experience you want to offer your target account. Offer them a customized and account-centric experience. Involve every department at a granular level to achieve an excellent customer experience. Enablement: Sales Resources Are Vital Support your sales teams through communication that works for them. Provide them with the right tools, content, insights, and data, even if they know how to do their job. Support and motivate them to close more deals. Consistency: Checking What’s Working Review your performance weekly and discuss outcomes with your teams—improvements, hurdles, and failures included. A full view of your strategy will show you where you need to make changes so you can fix them and make your ABM efforts work. Experience: Hire ABM Experts Executing ABM can be an overwhelming experience if you are new to it. Consider bringing in someone who has already run some successful ABM campaigns to make the process smoother. Doing this will guide and support your long-term efforts. Businesses and Customers Reap Rewards When an organization focuses solely on its target accounts, it achieves: Higher conversions and ROI Effective target audience reach Reduced customer attrition Business growth Synchronization in cross-functional teams Competitive edge in the market When target accounts choose an account-centric company, they get: Customized solutions to their pain points Support throughout the buying journey Excellent customer experience Long-term business association An ITSM Firm Addressed Revenue Concerns with an Account-Centric Approach A British IT service management (ITSM) analytics SaaS firm re-evaluated its ABM efforts to address revenue concerns. It increased relevance across all channels — LinkedIn profiles, content, and messaging to directly address decision-makers. It aligned its sales and marketing teams. Furthermore, it changed its focus to improving customer interactions along the buying journey. As a result, it gained customers like GoDaddy, British Airways, and JCPenney. A larger firm with a presence in North America, the UK, Europe and APAC acquired it as a part of a business expansion strategy. Wrapping It Up Amber Bogie, ABM Strategy Lead at Degreed, says, “In terms of attribution, if it's an ABM account, and it's seeing success, I'm attributing that to a company-wide effort of focusing on the right accounts using an ABM strategy.” Amber Bogie, ABM Strategy Lead at Degreed, says, “In terms of attribution, if it's an ABM account, and it's seeing success, I'm attributing that to a company-wide effort of focusing on the right accounts using an ABM strategy.” Remember, ABM works differently for different organizations. Therefore, there is not a one-size-fits-all approach, so you need to zero in on what works best for your organization to get everyone on board to achieve ABM success.

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ABM in Marketing Account-based marketing (ABM) is diametrically opposite of traditional marketing. Instead of targeting all kinds of customers with generic content, it targets only the most lucrative accounts using personalized content. This concentrated targeting results in more conversions, longer business associations, expansion, and account retention. In an interview with Media 7, Clive Armitage, CEO of Agent3, said, “If you are not utilizing the power of data, technology and content then you are failing to be a modern marketer.” ABM leverages firmographic data (basic info), technographic data (data about the kind of technology the lead uses), intent data (lead behavior), and engagement data (data gained through form filling, and event attendance) to target accounts and segment them based on priority. A 2020 benchmark study by the Information Technology Services Marketing Association (ITSMA) found that 76% of companies reported a higher ROI with ABM than other marketing types. How Does ABM Contribute to Revenue Growth? ABM drives higher ROI and measurable sales using marketing campaigns created by both sales and marketing teams. A successful ABM strategy has components like these: Targeting the right accounts and managing them Cross-channel engagement Measuring and dynamically optimizing the ABM programs using specialized dashboards to map targets, programs, and revenue metrics created by an account-based marketing software ABM helps scale business revenue in the following ways: Shows a Clear ROI Businesses prefer precise results from their marketing strategies. ABM prioritizes ROI. It gives the highest ROI compared to any other B2B marketing strategy because it targets the highest-value accounts that meet defined criteria through custom campaigns addressing their needs and pain points. Helps with Resource Allocation ABM focuses only on high-value accounts. Consequently, companies can allocate their resources better and save time and money. Engages the Audience Personalized content means targeted accounts see only the content they can relate to so there is increased engagement and interaction. Can Be Tracked Every Step of the Way ABM metrics can be tracked every step of the way, so there is a clear idea of what is working and what isn’t. Important metrics include ROI, engagement, awareness, target account reach, and influence. Aligns Sales and Marketing Teams ABM aligns sales and marketing teams by helping them find common ground for their goals and objectives. 5 Must-ask Questions about ABM Strategy Implementation Account-based marketing questions about ABM technology and strategy arise when businesses transition from traditional lead generation techniques to ABM. The following five must-ask questions about account-based marketing can be the keys to transitioning to ABM: How to Create an ABM Strategy That Works? To create an ABM strategy that works, follow these steps: Define your target accounts. Identify the key decision-makers of your target accounts. Personalize your content to cater to your target accounts. Choose appropriate channels to approach your target accounts. Formulate campaigns to engage the target accounts. Measure the success of your campaign using correct metrics. What Things Should You Consider Before Allocating a Budget for ABM? It is pretty challenging to find the correct answer to this question. The cost of tools, channels, and individual items keeps varying. Money spent on-field events, content creation to cater to target accounts, ads, trade shows, research, and intent data collection factors into budgeting. To make budgeting easier, consider bifurcating the expenses into categories like technology (CRM, marketing automation systems, and data management platforms), human resources (data analysts, social media associates, and content strategists), events (one-on-one meets, trade shows, and webinars), media campaigns and direct mail. How to Decide on the Size of the Target Accounts? The size of your target accounts depends on your business goals (acquisition, retention, expansion), team size, and initiatives on an organizational level. Tiering accounts into three categories using data, technology, and thorough research has worked out for several businesses. Tier 1: These are the accounts that fit your ideal customer profile (ICP) bill perfectly and have high strategic value. Tier 2: These accounts have an excellent ICP but lower lifetime value. Tier 3: These accounts meet only some criteria of ICP. Pursue these accounts but don’t go overboard to get their business. What Metrics Should Be Used to Map ABM Success? The biggest advantage of an ABM strategy is that its success can be measured. To measure this success, you need to focus on important KPIs like: Engagement: This includes email metrics, social metrics, consumption rates, and offline activity metrics. Awareness: This KPI measures how aware your target accounts are of your brand, how credible they think it is and how they respond to it. Influence: Measure how your ABM campaign contributes to the lead conversion rate, and increase the frequency and volume of your lead interactions. Target Account Reach: With the help of ABM tools, this KPI measures the percentage of the target account’s engaged decision-makers. ROI: Mapping ROI is essential for assessing the success of an ABM strategy. ABM gives better ROI as compared to other marketing strategies. Other metrics to consider are value, customer retention, and sales metrics. Who Should Be on the ABM Team? To begin with, your ABM team should have leadership that knows ABM and its implementation. Key decision-makers from the marketing, sales, and operations departments should be on this leadership team. It should work on setting goals, overseeing the implementation of the ABM strategy, and mapping its success. How DocuSign Used ABM to Increase Their Customer Engagement and Sales Pipeline by 22% “We have more awareness and educational content that’s reaching our non-engaged accounts. And we will dedicate a lower level of spend to that program so that we are prioritizing our spend on our more engaged accounts.” - Perri Gardner, Director of ABM, DocuSign. By using ABM to target high-value accounts and categorizing their spending based on the value of those accounts, DocuSign increased their customer engagement and sales pipeline by 22%. Conclusion Transitioning from a traditional marketing strategy to account-based marketing is vital to drive ROI, engagement, brand awareness, and influence. Correctly implementing an ABM strategy contributes to revenue growth through quicker lead conversions, proper allocation of resources, and a targeted approach. FAQ What is the first step in implementing an ABM strategy? The first step of implementing the ABM strategy is to define the accounts you want to target. Is ABM better than a traditional lead-based marketing strategy? Yes. As of 2021, 70% of marketers are using ABM and are seeing a remarkable increase in their ROI. What does an ABM strategy depend on? An ABM strategy depends on high-quality intent data. Content personalization, account segmentation, and lead nurturing cannot be achieved without it.

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Optimizing ABM with Personalized Landing Pages

Article | August 8, 2022

Introduction The application of AI marketing technology is picking up pace because of its many advantages. According to a 2020 Deloitte survey, 74% of AI adopters agree that AI will be a part of all their enterprise applications by 2023. What does an AI-based marketing strategy look like, and how do you make the most of it? This article gets into the nitty-gritty of AI marketing technology and how to implement it in ABM so you can maximize your business performance and outputs. AI’s Role in Marketing Thanks to its accuracy, B2C businesses use AI marketing technology to target their customers with product or service recommendations. The following are some use cases of AI-based B2C marketing: Personalization AI helps businesses with their 1-to-1 marketing strategies by personalizing their content to cater to every segment. Event Communication Emails informing customers of upcoming sales, special access, or exciting offers are sent out via AI technology. Weekend offer emailers, special discount codes, and new product updates are a result of event communication automation so that customers can be informed before time about upcoming events. Real-time Content Trending topics, investments, event promotions, webinars, customer feedback, product availability, bestselling combo, weather reports, and new blog post updates are provided in real-time to maintain an active connection with customers. Businesses do this by using the ‘open time content’ AI technology. Manually executing 1-to-1 marketing strategies is nearly impossible, impractical, and does not see much success. AI helps streamline these strategies and executes them effortlessly. What Goes into Creating an Effective ABM Strategy? For an ABM strategy to work, businesses need to follow these steps: Preparing for the ABM Strategy Organizational readiness is crucial for implementing ABM. Make sure you have a budget and an achievable timeline to execute the strategy, team members who can anchor it, and an understanding of ABM metrics so you can make the most of it. Synergy Between Marketing and Sales Teams Your sales and marketing teams should be in sync and not at loggerheads due to account-level communication issues. Discussing the benefits of ABM with both the teams beforehand and coming to a strategic agreement to implement ABM can help them align their goals while executing the ABM strategy. Identifying Target Segments Your ABM strategy can do wonders for your business only if you have a precise segmentation of data. Use dimensions like business size, annual revenue, current spending, projected spending, targeted products, geography, open opportunities, closed opportunities, etc., to identify your target segments. Zeroing-in on a Priority Having a clear priority helps you streamline your ABM strategy. It should either be acquisition (acquiring new accounts), retention (retaining existing accounts), or expansion (expanding the scope of accounts). Without a clear priority, any ABM strategy may not yield expected results because the efforts won’t be concentrated towards a single goal. Leveraging AI in ABM Strategy In an interview with Media 7, Daniel Englebretson, founder of Khronos, spoke about AI’s impact on the future of ABM. “From my perspective, B2B marketers have faced countless challenges that have formed the basis of new technology – problem brings a solution. I expect AI will solve identity resolution, resolve data challenges, and enhance targeting. I expect AI will address 1:1 content at scale, unlocking the rapid deployment of 1:1 brand experiences.” Introducing AI into your ABM strategy can help you in the following way: Content Personalization Once you know your customer’s pain points and interests, you can focus on providing them personalized solutions, products, or services they desire. Of course, personalizing content is complex, but AI makes it easier by offering the technological capacity to deliver what your customer wants. Efficient Resource Management Without customer profiling, an ABM strategy cannot achieve the expected output. AI can assist with data crawling the internet to find out important customer information. Also, it segments data acquired from CRM, which gives you more information about a customer than any other generic data. This data is helpful for lead qualification and creating heavily personalized content for a customer. Since AI does all the heavy lifting, you can allocate your resources to building and nurturing a relationship with the customer. Automation AI-based marketing in ABM generates automated insights for lead generation. It also highlights campaign performance related to specific, high-value accounts and suggests steps to engage a prospect. Digital marketing and automation are a dynamic duo where AI brings about intelligent marketing automation. Efficient email campaigns are run when executed by automation. Email marketing companies like MailChimp target customers based on insights to achieve more conversions. When AI and big data use CRM data, large chunks of user information can be collected from different platforms. This information can help with formulating a successful ABM strategy. ABM Optimization and Predictive Insights To analyze intent, AI processes data in real-time and gives predictive insights to help with ABM optimization. As a result, it is easier to merge data from different sources with AI-enabled tools, achieve predictive analysis, manage recommendations in real-time, and understand competitor strategies through social media. AI can also interpret images correctly. Enhancing Communications Use AI for building a strong relationship with your customer. Personalizing communication by using customer data can be easily achieved with AI. What Is the Future of AI-enabled ABM Strategy? ABM, with an AI marketing strategy, has a bright future ahead of it. Demandbase recently conducted a survey in which they found that 80% of marketers had plans to integrate AI into their ABM marketing strategy. Another survey conducted by MarketingProfs concluded that businesses that used AI in their ABM strategies had 59% higher closing rates as compared to others. They saw a 58% increase in their revenue and a 52% increase in their conversions. Ways Salesforce's AI Einstein Aided U.S. Bank in Growing Revenue The U.S. bank used Salesforce’s sales cloud AI, Einstein, to boost their revenue. Their lead conversion rate increased 2.35 times after implementing Einstein. They were able to create a model to predict lead conversion. They did this by using Einstein to search through customized historical lead data. “We work to build high-quality, personalized relationships between our customers and their financial advisors or commercial bankers. There is nothing that replaces that person-to-person interaction. What AI allows us to do is augment that relationship. We can provide our teams with better data and smarter insights, which helps them establish stronger relationships.” – Srini Nallasivan, Chief Analytics Officer, U.S. Bank Summing It Up AI-based marketing can enhance your ABM strategy only if qualitative data is available. Therefore, businesses will need to have clear marketing goals and turn data into an asset. FAQs What are the challenges in the AI-based ABM strategy? Managing, protecting, and enriching data obtained from CRM and other customer support systems can be challenging. How can AI help in strengthening your ABM strategy? AI helps with personalizing content, automation, ABM optimization, and providing predictive insights for lead conversion. What does a strong AI-based ABM strategy do for your business? A strong AI-based ABM strategy helps with account profiling, analytics, reporting and hyper-individualized content, which leads to increased lead conversion. { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "FAQPage", "mainEntity": [{ "@type": "Question", "name": "What Are the Challenges in the AI-based ABM Strategy?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Managing, protecting, and enriching data obtained from CRM and other customer support systems can be challenging." } },{ "@type": "Question", "name": "How Can AI Help in Strengthening Your ABM Strategy?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "AI helps with personalizing content, automation, ABM optimization, and providing predictive insights for lead conversion." } },{ "@type": "Question", "name": "What Does a Strong AI-based ABM Strategy Do for Your Business?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "A strong AI-based ABM strategy helps with account profiling, analytics, reporting and hyper-individualized content, which leads to increased lead conversion." } }] }

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Core ABM

Conversational ABM: Bolstering Revenue through Engagement

Article | June 21, 2022

When a package arrives at your doorstep, you get excited as a child, no matter what age you are! Some people express their excitement, while some are really good at hiding it. But inquisitiveness and curiosity are natural feelings. Imagine building up these feelings in the mind of the decision-makers of businesses that you are targeting. So, yes, you will stand out in the crowd and, they will notice the gesture, no matter how small or big it is! Coming back to the point, we are talking about the strategy of direct mails in account-based marketing. This strategy has proved to be a success for many organizations practicing ABM. So what exactly is direct mail in ABM and, are there any successful ways or ideal examples to follow? Let us see in detail. What Is Direct Mail in ABM? We are aware that account-based marketing is a strategy that involves targeting, personalization and conversions. But what happens when we make tangibility a part of the above process? Well, the results are impressive. An Infotrends report stated that the e-mail response rate increased from 7.5% to 9.5% with a multi-channel ABM strategy. But, the biggest challenges of ABM are delivering a personalized customer experience, choosing the target accounts, and deciding on the correct content. Thus, direct mail can help you deal with the challenge of delivering a personalized customer experience. A direct mail strategy delivers personalized objects, messages, and more to the targeted organization’s decision-makers. The best part about direct mail is that you can get as creative as you want. Plus, it ensures that the top team notices your efforts. “Direct mail is the new black in B2B. There is nothing more personalized than a handwritten note with a personalized direct mail that is fully customized for your prospect or customer.” - Sangram Vajre, CMO of Terminus. Let us have a look at the best ways to incorporate direct mail in your ABM strategy. Ideas to Implement Direct Mail in ABM Remember, no matter what personalized goodies you plan to send to the concerned people, ensure that: You have a bold, clear, and obvious call to action. Your message is short, simple, and direct. Your strategy should be less is more. You have added the extra personal touch in your mail. Once you have devised the direct mail strategy, here are some things that you need to keep in mind before implementation. Determine the Stage in the Buyer’s Journey Before sending direct mail to your target account, know where they stand in their buyer’s journey. Let us consider these three stages. Awareness Stage If your buyer is in the awareness stage, you need to target all the organization’s decision-makers. Sending them goodies that get them together might be a good idea. For example: Send a box with a personalized message about your company to one and send the key to another. Or you could gift puzzles pieces to each one that needs them to come together to decode the message. Demo Stage Congrats! If you reached the demo stage with the target account. Now, if you’re finding it difficult to set an appointment with them, use direct mail to get their attention. For example: Send them a box with a clock ticking and a surprise to be opened at some given time. As if a demo can be scheduled at that time and claim the gift! 2.1.3 Final Stage You have closed the deal and are all ready to start the dealings. But some small things seemed to be stuck from the buyer’s end. This is where your research will prove handy. You need the search for a particular likeness about the decision-maker and lure them. It will help you get their attention and close all the pending work. For example: Send them a password-protected gadget and, they can access that only after the deal is complete. 2.2 Know the Decision-makers It is an essential aspect in determining the direct mail that you need to send. You should be well aware of the receiver's likes, dislikes, hobbies, and personal traits. Thus, use social media and everything possible from the sales team to create the best effect. Determine the Factors for Conversion Lastly, when the package opens, it should immediately connect to the individual. Thus, when you design or assemble the package, ensure that it connects immediately. Moreover, it should address the pain points and challenges and align with the company’s goals. Thus, determine the factors that directly affect them and, you will provide the best solutions. For example: If you are a hiring agency, give them a complete puzzle with just one piece missing. And a couple of options for the missing piece. Once they fit the right piece in, your puzzle says, “Having trouble finding the right person, we will help your hire!” And ensure that you send a personalized note to every individual along with the common goal of the message. Benefits of B2B Direct Mail Marketing No doubt, personalization will elevate your direct mail strategy, thus promising enhanced customer involvement. But there are other prominent benefits of B2B direct mail marketing. Lets us have a glance at them. Higher account engagement Less wastage of resources Higher win rate Shorter sales cycles Create strong connections The improved success rate of ABM strategy Ideal Examples of Direct Mail in ABM Some organizations have nailed it correctly when it comes to direct mail marketing. Here are a few examples. The Perry Process (Image Courtesy: Pinterest) The Perry Process is a renowned company that deals with used machinery and equipment for 80 years and continues to do. Thus, it wanted manufacturing companies to sell their unwanted and excess equipment in return for cash. So keeping this message in mind, they included fake money inserts with a flyer that said, ‘Don’t throw away your money.’ Hence, it succeeded in sending across its message most realistically! Schott Solar Schott Solar is a company that produces solar panels. Their solar panels came with a 20-year warranty. (Image Courtesy: D&AD) To amplify the selling, they included a 20-year warranty calendar along with the solar panel. The calendar stuck out 60 centimeters from the wall, thus delivering the desired message! Wrapping It Up So no matter what business you deal with, innovation and creativity are the way to easy conversions! Thus understand your customers and give them what they want in a quirky style. Frequently Asked Questions What is direct mail in account-based marketing? Direct mail is a tangible ABM strategy wherein products are mailed directly to customers. These products are personalized and have a direct marketing message. Examples of such products are postcards, catalogs, personal goods, coupons, samples, and more. What impact does direct mail create on the receiver? A study by scientists reveals that if a person receives a physical product, it leaves a deeper footprint on the brain. Thus, a direct mail strategy is sure to get you noticed by your customer. And the best part is that the more creative and personalized you get, the better impact it creates! Can a simple postcard count as a direct mail strategy? Of course, it can. If it sends a clear message of your marketing campaign, is personalized, and instigates the customer to take action, it is a successful direct mail strategy. Always remember, the size or price of the direct mail does not matter, but the impact it creates does! { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "FAQPage", "mainEntity": [{ "@type": "Question", "name": "What is direct mail in account-based marketing?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Direct mail is a tangible ABM strategy wherein products are mailed directly to customers. These products are personalized and have a direct marketing message. Examples of such products are postcards, catalogs, personal goods, coupons, samples, and more." } },{ "@type": "Question", "name": "What impact does direct mail create on the receiver?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "A study by scientists reveals that if a person receives a physical product, it leaves a deeper footprint on the brain. Thus, a direct mail strategy is sure to get you noticed by your customer. And the best part is that the more creative and personalized you get, the better impact it creates!" } },{ "@type": "Question", "name": "Can a simple postcard count as a direct mail strategy?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Of course, it can. If it sends a clear message of your marketing campaign, is personalized, and instigates the customer to take action, it is a successful direct mail strategy. Always remember, the size or price of the direct mail does not matter, but the impact it creates does!" } }] }

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Core ABM

Building an Account-centric Organization Part II

Article | July 5, 2022

In Part I of this article, we discussed the importance of the ABM foundation, ideal momentum of change, team training, and analyzing data to understand the performance of your ABM strategy. In this part, we will look at how CX, sales enablement, a strong team and consistency matter in successfully transforming your organization into an account-centric one. ABX: Endorse Experience Focus on the kind of experience you want to offer your target account. Offer them a customized and account-centric experience. Involve every department at a granular level to achieve an excellent customer experience. Enablement: Sales Resources Are Vital Support your sales teams through communication that works for them. Provide them with the right tools, content, insights, and data, even if they know how to do their job. Support and motivate them to close more deals. Consistency: Checking What’s Working Review your performance weekly and discuss outcomes with your teams—improvements, hurdles, and failures included. A full view of your strategy will show you where you need to make changes so you can fix them and make your ABM efforts work. Experience: Hire ABM Experts Executing ABM can be an overwhelming experience if you are new to it. Consider bringing in someone who has already run some successful ABM campaigns to make the process smoother. Doing this will guide and support your long-term efforts. Businesses and Customers Reap Rewards When an organization focuses solely on its target accounts, it achieves: Higher conversions and ROI Effective target audience reach Reduced customer attrition Business growth Synchronization in cross-functional teams Competitive edge in the market When target accounts choose an account-centric company, they get: Customized solutions to their pain points Support throughout the buying journey Excellent customer experience Long-term business association An ITSM Firm Addressed Revenue Concerns with an Account-Centric Approach A British IT service management (ITSM) analytics SaaS firm re-evaluated its ABM efforts to address revenue concerns. It increased relevance across all channels — LinkedIn profiles, content, and messaging to directly address decision-makers. It aligned its sales and marketing teams. Furthermore, it changed its focus to improving customer interactions along the buying journey. As a result, it gained customers like GoDaddy, British Airways, and JCPenney. A larger firm with a presence in North America, the UK, Europe and APAC acquired it as a part of a business expansion strategy. Wrapping It Up Amber Bogie, ABM Strategy Lead at Degreed, says, “In terms of attribution, if it's an ABM account, and it's seeing success, I'm attributing that to a company-wide effort of focusing on the right accounts using an ABM strategy.” Amber Bogie, ABM Strategy Lead at Degreed, says, “In terms of attribution, if it's an ABM account, and it's seeing success, I'm attributing that to a company-wide effort of focusing on the right accounts using an ABM strategy.” Remember, ABM works differently for different organizations. Therefore, there is not a one-size-fits-all approach, so you need to zero in on what works best for your organization to get everyone on board to achieve ABM success.

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Core ABM

Marketers Given Marginal Grades for ABM-Driven Revenue Growth

GlobeNewswire | January 25, 2024

Seeding and harvesting the sales pipeline — the process of acquiring, capturing, qualifying and converting business opportunities — are essential to the growth and profitability of B2B marketers across every industry and geographic sector. Marketing is largely responsible for driving this business process, yet nearly two-thirds of lead gen and engagement strategies are underperforming. A new Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Council report, produced in collaboration with WM America, entitled “Fire Up Your Revenue Generation Engine,” covers critical aspects of lead generation and engagement. This includes models and metrics for tracking and measuring performance, best practice demand-gen execution, ways to score effectiveness, and more. The latest CMO Council research finds scores of marketers falling behind in lead scoring, account-based marketing, accelerated pipeline, and intention-based marketing. Key findings from a Q4 survey of over 170 B2B marketing, sales, revenue, growth, demand gen and campaign execution leaders include: 63% say marketing must own and optimize a company’s revenue-generation engine 64% say their lead gen and engagement strategy underperforms 78% of highly evolved marketers are satisfied with their accelerated pipeline, compared to only 15% of lesser evolved marketers “In today’s competitive data-driven environment, marketers should no longer be satisfied with paltry returns on their sizable lead-gen and ABM investments,” the report notes. “It’s time to turn the tables on inefficient, ineffective, and outdated practices for anticipating, adapting, and responding to customer needs and opportunities.” “Marketers must climb the evolutionary ladder and leave behind outmoded and dated practices,” notes CMO Council executive director, Donovan Neale-May. “Using AI-derived, intention-based buyer data and advanced sales intelligence are among the ways growth marketers bring more precision, predictability, and performance to B2B account marketing investments.” The CMO Council’s research revealed the top five skill sets contributing to improved ABM-driven business outcomes: Better segmentation and precision targeting of buyers and influencers On-demand customer business intelligence and personal buyer insights Tighter integration of demand gen, channel, direct sales, and support teams Greater utilization of tools and data sources for richer prospect profiling Proactive and timely pre-sales follow up and cultivation strategies The CMO Council has uncovered widening gaps in performance between highly evolved marketers and lesser evolved marketers. Gaps are occurring in four core capabilities: lead scoring, account-based marketing, accelerated pipeline, and intention-based marketing. This report tiers factors that make up a model for better identification, engagement and conversion. The model coincides with the CMO Council and WM America’s thought leadership initiative to advance lead revenue science practices through a certified Lead Evaluation and Assurance Process, or LEAP model. “Marketers will need to take a few LEAPs of faith in the coming months, because sticking to the status quo is just not practical or possible anymore. As data becomes more critical than ever before, CMOs need to extend their visions for innovation and forward-thinking strategies,” according to Lee Salem, WM America’s Vice President of Sales. Methodology The report is based on a survey of over 170 heads of B2B marketing, sales, revenue, growth, demand gen and campaign execution in Q4 2023. It also included content from in-depth interviews with executives from Netline, Autodesk, T-Mobile, NTT, ABM Consortium, TechTarget, IBM, B2B Marketing, Reachdesk, Momentum ITSMA, and Xometry. About the CMO Council The Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Council is dedicated to high-level knowledge exchange, thought leadership and personal relationship building among senior corporate marketing leaders and brand decision-makers across a wide-range of global industries. The CMO Council’s 16,000+ members control more than $1 trillion in aggregated annual marketing expenditures and run complex, distributed marketing and sales operations worldwide. In total, the CMO Council and its strategic interest communities include over 65,000 global marketing and sales executives in over 110 countries covering multiple industries, segments and markets. Regional chapters and advisory boards are active in the Americas, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa. The Council’s strategic interest groups include the Customer Experience Board, Digital Marketing Performance Center, Brand Inspiration Center, Marketing Supply Chain Institute, GeoBranding Center, and the Coalition to Leverage and Optimize Sales Effectiveness (CLOSE). To learn more, visit https://www.cmocouncil.org. About WM America WM America is a leading B2B marketing company specializing in targeted in-market demand generation. The intent database at WMA tracks the intent behavior of over 75 million business professionals globally, 24X7. The database is segmented into 3,300 categories. WMA keeps around-the-clock track of buying signals from each category in this database. Based on this extremely strong foundation of data points, the company delivers precisely targeted prospects for focused marketing. Accurate keyword search enables deriving of active content consumption and opt-in content downloads. WMA's deep search ensures accurate and targeted information delivery that helps craft successful, cutting-edge marketing strategies. For more information, visit www.wmamerica.com

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Buyer Intent Data

ON24 Recognizes 2023’s Leaders in Digital Engagement

Business Wire | January 24, 2024

A recent Forrester survey found that more than 60% of B2B buyers base their final purchase decision solely on the digital content and experiences companies provide. That’s why thousands of B2B companies choose ON24 (NYSE: ONTF), a leading digital engagement platform for B2B sales and marketing that helps enterprises generate data-driven insights and deliver cost-effective revenue growth. Today, ON24, announced the industry-leading digital experiences of 2023 that drove ROI for their organizations. “At ON24, our goal is to propel business success through digital engagement, with our customers at the core. We take pride in helping our customers drive deeper engagement with their target audiences and extract meaningful insights that result in revenue growth,” said Callan Young, CMO, ON24. “It is our honor to recognize the leading organizations that exemplify excellence in leveraging our platform to create digital experiences that not only meet but surpass their audience’s expectations.” The following organizations were recognized for delivering outstanding digital experiences on the ON24 platform in 2023: Danfossdrove product growth and customer retention by leveraging distributor, reseller and customer data to optimize its webinar and digital engagement program. FloQastinfluenced 82% of event pipeline in Q3 and created 120+ new active opportunities by routing high-quality leads from in-experience demo requests directly to sales. Global X ETFsincreased qualified, high-value leads in Australia by 22%, by integrating ON24 engagement data with their CRM and using the platform’s personalization capabilities. Informaticascaled a live event into a hybrid experience across three key regions simultaneously, driving registration and delivering a consistent customer experience on a global scale. Infopro Digitalincreased conversion rates and registrations by automating processes on the ON24 platform and making real-time adjustments based on customer feedback. Kasperskydrove product adoption and business growth by creating new relationships with prospects and fostering existing relationships with customers. KnowBe4generated over $300k in pipeline through an ON24-powered digital experience. The National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA)achieved 100% participant satisfaction for its unique and impactful digital experience powered by the ON24 platform. PowerSchoolachieved record-breaking registration rates, 75 CTA clicks, over 400 poll responses and 300+ content downloads during an educational experience with ON24. S&P Globaldoubled marketing qualified leads and boosted engagement by designing an ON24 digital experience personalized to different customer segments. Tata Consultancy Servicesdrove revenue growth with record-high registrations for their webinar on ON24, resulting in 70% attendee participation across 30 countries. Texthelpsourced leads during a webinar series and converted at least 70% of them into marketing-qualified leads within 30 days. TOPdeskincreased revenue and improved its customer engagement by 7% YoY and extended the shelf life of its content with an on-demand hub. TravelMediaGroupclosed three deals from a single digital experience by creating a seamless and engaging customer experience on ON24. UCBachieved a 50%+ attendee conversion rate by enhancing the HCP’s experience and integrating ON24 engagement data with its business intelligence system. UnitedHealthcareachieved an 80% cost savings, increased attendee score and engagement with a new digital engagement strategy and an always-on content hub. Wood PLCsourced leads, increased audience engagement and automated continuing professional education credits on ON24, across different time zones. ZoomInfosurpassed webinar benchmarks by generating a record number of marketing-qualified leads and 190 scheduled demos, resulting in 10 closed-won deals. To learn more about 2023’s leaders in digital engagement, watch the on-demand webinar here. About ON24 ON24 is on a mission to re-imagine how companies engage, understand and build relationships with their audience in a digital world. Through our leading sales and marketing platform for digital engagement integrated with generative AI, businesses use our portfolio of webinar, virtual event and content experiences to drive engagement and generate first-party data, delivering ​revenue growth across the enterprise – from demand generation to customer success to partner enablement. ON24 powers digital engagement for industry-leading customers worldwide, including 3 of the 5 largest global technology companies, 3 of the 6 largest US banks, 3 of the 5 largest global healthcare companies, and 3 of the 5 largest global industrial manufacturers, enabling organizations to reach millions of professionals a month for billions of engagement minutes per year with all the first-party data being captured, generated and integrated from one place. ON24 is headquartered in San Francisco with global offices in North America, EMEA, and APAC. For more information, visit www.ON24.com.

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ABM Accounts

Bloomreach and Sonepar to Power Continued Search Relevance for Customers

Business Wire | January 12, 2024

Bloomreach, the platform fueling limitless e-commerce experiences, today announced Bloomreach Discovery will continue to power product discovery for Sonepar, the global world leader in B-to-B distribution of electrical products, solutions, and related services, as the companies renew their existing partnership. With Bloomreach Discovery’s AI-driven search and merchandising capabilities, Sonepar enables customers around the world to find what they want to buy — when, where, and how they want. “Sonepar is pleased to partner with Bloomreach as we continue to pursue our next stage of digital transformation,” said Fabrice del Aguila, SVP Digital Factory, Sonepar. “We look forward to leveraging Bloomreach’s expertise in product discovery as we become the first global B2B electrical distributor in the world to offer the best omnichannel experience to all our customers.” Sonepar leverages Bloomreach Discovery to drive personalized experiences across its omnichannel platform. Using rich data to refine search results, Bloomreach Discovery helps customers easily discover the products they want. It also accounts for a range of attributes and quantitative search queries, creating a search experience that is not only personalized, but personalized to the unique needs of B-to-B buyers. “We’re thrilled to continue our partnership with Sonepar,” said Jordan Roper, General Manager and Head of Product, Bloomreach Discovery. “The B-to-B space has so much to gain from digital transformation, and Sonepar is a leader in making that transformation a reality. We’re proud to join them on this journey and look forward to continuing to support their omnichannel experience with the fast ROI and relevance of Bloomreach Discovery.” Learn more about how Bloomreach Discovery and Sonepar are working together to drive success. About Bloomreach Bloomreach personalizes the e-commerce experience. Its data engine unifies real-time customer and product data so businesses understand what customers really want. By connecting that understanding to every channel, the e-commerce experience becomes limitless — reflecting a changing customer as they shop. Amplified by the speed and scale of Loomi, Bloomreach's AI for e-commerce, this creates endless new paths to purchase, greater profitability, and fast business growth. Bloomreach products include: Engagement, a marketing automation platform; Discovery, an e-commerce search solution; Content, a headless CMS; and Clarity, AI-powered conversational shopping. The company has multiple AI patents and serves 850+ global brands including: Albertsons, Bosch, Puma, and Marks & Spencer. About Sonepar Sonepar is an independent family-owned company with global market leadership in B-to-B distribution of electrical products, solutions and related services. Through a dense network of brands spanning 40 countries, the Group has an ambitious transformation agenda to become the first global B-to-B electrical distributor to provide a fully digitalized and synchronized omnichannel experience to all customers. Drawing on the skill and passion of its 44,000 associates, Sonepar had sales of €32.4 billion in 2022. www.sonepar.com

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Core ABM

Marketers Given Marginal Grades for ABM-Driven Revenue Growth

GlobeNewswire | January 25, 2024

Seeding and harvesting the sales pipeline — the process of acquiring, capturing, qualifying and converting business opportunities — are essential to the growth and profitability of B2B marketers across every industry and geographic sector. Marketing is largely responsible for driving this business process, yet nearly two-thirds of lead gen and engagement strategies are underperforming. A new Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Council report, produced in collaboration with WM America, entitled “Fire Up Your Revenue Generation Engine,” covers critical aspects of lead generation and engagement. This includes models and metrics for tracking and measuring performance, best practice demand-gen execution, ways to score effectiveness, and more. The latest CMO Council research finds scores of marketers falling behind in lead scoring, account-based marketing, accelerated pipeline, and intention-based marketing. Key findings from a Q4 survey of over 170 B2B marketing, sales, revenue, growth, demand gen and campaign execution leaders include: 63% say marketing must own and optimize a company’s revenue-generation engine 64% say their lead gen and engagement strategy underperforms 78% of highly evolved marketers are satisfied with their accelerated pipeline, compared to only 15% of lesser evolved marketers “In today’s competitive data-driven environment, marketers should no longer be satisfied with paltry returns on their sizable lead-gen and ABM investments,” the report notes. “It’s time to turn the tables on inefficient, ineffective, and outdated practices for anticipating, adapting, and responding to customer needs and opportunities.” “Marketers must climb the evolutionary ladder and leave behind outmoded and dated practices,” notes CMO Council executive director, Donovan Neale-May. “Using AI-derived, intention-based buyer data and advanced sales intelligence are among the ways growth marketers bring more precision, predictability, and performance to B2B account marketing investments.” The CMO Council’s research revealed the top five skill sets contributing to improved ABM-driven business outcomes: Better segmentation and precision targeting of buyers and influencers On-demand customer business intelligence and personal buyer insights Tighter integration of demand gen, channel, direct sales, and support teams Greater utilization of tools and data sources for richer prospect profiling Proactive and timely pre-sales follow up and cultivation strategies The CMO Council has uncovered widening gaps in performance between highly evolved marketers and lesser evolved marketers. Gaps are occurring in four core capabilities: lead scoring, account-based marketing, accelerated pipeline, and intention-based marketing. This report tiers factors that make up a model for better identification, engagement and conversion. The model coincides with the CMO Council and WM America’s thought leadership initiative to advance lead revenue science practices through a certified Lead Evaluation and Assurance Process, or LEAP model. “Marketers will need to take a few LEAPs of faith in the coming months, because sticking to the status quo is just not practical or possible anymore. As data becomes more critical than ever before, CMOs need to extend their visions for innovation and forward-thinking strategies,” according to Lee Salem, WM America’s Vice President of Sales. Methodology The report is based on a survey of over 170 heads of B2B marketing, sales, revenue, growth, demand gen and campaign execution in Q4 2023. It also included content from in-depth interviews with executives from Netline, Autodesk, T-Mobile, NTT, ABM Consortium, TechTarget, IBM, B2B Marketing, Reachdesk, Momentum ITSMA, and Xometry. About the CMO Council The Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Council is dedicated to high-level knowledge exchange, thought leadership and personal relationship building among senior corporate marketing leaders and brand decision-makers across a wide-range of global industries. The CMO Council’s 16,000+ members control more than $1 trillion in aggregated annual marketing expenditures and run complex, distributed marketing and sales operations worldwide. In total, the CMO Council and its strategic interest communities include over 65,000 global marketing and sales executives in over 110 countries covering multiple industries, segments and markets. Regional chapters and advisory boards are active in the Americas, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa. The Council’s strategic interest groups include the Customer Experience Board, Digital Marketing Performance Center, Brand Inspiration Center, Marketing Supply Chain Institute, GeoBranding Center, and the Coalition to Leverage and Optimize Sales Effectiveness (CLOSE). To learn more, visit https://www.cmocouncil.org. About WM America WM America is a leading B2B marketing company specializing in targeted in-market demand generation. The intent database at WMA tracks the intent behavior of over 75 million business professionals globally, 24X7. The database is segmented into 3,300 categories. WMA keeps around-the-clock track of buying signals from each category in this database. Based on this extremely strong foundation of data points, the company delivers precisely targeted prospects for focused marketing. Accurate keyword search enables deriving of active content consumption and opt-in content downloads. WMA's deep search ensures accurate and targeted information delivery that helps craft successful, cutting-edge marketing strategies. For more information, visit www.wmamerica.com

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Buyer Intent Data

ON24 Recognizes 2023’s Leaders in Digital Engagement

Business Wire | January 24, 2024

A recent Forrester survey found that more than 60% of B2B buyers base their final purchase decision solely on the digital content and experiences companies provide. That’s why thousands of B2B companies choose ON24 (NYSE: ONTF), a leading digital engagement platform for B2B sales and marketing that helps enterprises generate data-driven insights and deliver cost-effective revenue growth. Today, ON24, announced the industry-leading digital experiences of 2023 that drove ROI for their organizations. “At ON24, our goal is to propel business success through digital engagement, with our customers at the core. We take pride in helping our customers drive deeper engagement with their target audiences and extract meaningful insights that result in revenue growth,” said Callan Young, CMO, ON24. “It is our honor to recognize the leading organizations that exemplify excellence in leveraging our platform to create digital experiences that not only meet but surpass their audience’s expectations.” The following organizations were recognized for delivering outstanding digital experiences on the ON24 platform in 2023: Danfossdrove product growth and customer retention by leveraging distributor, reseller and customer data to optimize its webinar and digital engagement program. FloQastinfluenced 82% of event pipeline in Q3 and created 120+ new active opportunities by routing high-quality leads from in-experience demo requests directly to sales. Global X ETFsincreased qualified, high-value leads in Australia by 22%, by integrating ON24 engagement data with their CRM and using the platform’s personalization capabilities. Informaticascaled a live event into a hybrid experience across three key regions simultaneously, driving registration and delivering a consistent customer experience on a global scale. Infopro Digitalincreased conversion rates and registrations by automating processes on the ON24 platform and making real-time adjustments based on customer feedback. Kasperskydrove product adoption and business growth by creating new relationships with prospects and fostering existing relationships with customers. KnowBe4generated over $300k in pipeline through an ON24-powered digital experience. The National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA)achieved 100% participant satisfaction for its unique and impactful digital experience powered by the ON24 platform. PowerSchoolachieved record-breaking registration rates, 75 CTA clicks, over 400 poll responses and 300+ content downloads during an educational experience with ON24. S&P Globaldoubled marketing qualified leads and boosted engagement by designing an ON24 digital experience personalized to different customer segments. Tata Consultancy Servicesdrove revenue growth with record-high registrations for their webinar on ON24, resulting in 70% attendee participation across 30 countries. Texthelpsourced leads during a webinar series and converted at least 70% of them into marketing-qualified leads within 30 days. TOPdeskincreased revenue and improved its customer engagement by 7% YoY and extended the shelf life of its content with an on-demand hub. TravelMediaGroupclosed three deals from a single digital experience by creating a seamless and engaging customer experience on ON24. UCBachieved a 50%+ attendee conversion rate by enhancing the HCP’s experience and integrating ON24 engagement data with its business intelligence system. UnitedHealthcareachieved an 80% cost savings, increased attendee score and engagement with a new digital engagement strategy and an always-on content hub. Wood PLCsourced leads, increased audience engagement and automated continuing professional education credits on ON24, across different time zones. ZoomInfosurpassed webinar benchmarks by generating a record number of marketing-qualified leads and 190 scheduled demos, resulting in 10 closed-won deals. To learn more about 2023’s leaders in digital engagement, watch the on-demand webinar here. About ON24 ON24 is on a mission to re-imagine how companies engage, understand and build relationships with their audience in a digital world. Through our leading sales and marketing platform for digital engagement integrated with generative AI, businesses use our portfolio of webinar, virtual event and content experiences to drive engagement and generate first-party data, delivering ​revenue growth across the enterprise – from demand generation to customer success to partner enablement. ON24 powers digital engagement for industry-leading customers worldwide, including 3 of the 5 largest global technology companies, 3 of the 6 largest US banks, 3 of the 5 largest global healthcare companies, and 3 of the 5 largest global industrial manufacturers, enabling organizations to reach millions of professionals a month for billions of engagement minutes per year with all the first-party data being captured, generated and integrated from one place. ON24 is headquartered in San Francisco with global offices in North America, EMEA, and APAC. For more information, visit www.ON24.com.

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ABM Accounts

Bloomreach and Sonepar to Power Continued Search Relevance for Customers

Business Wire | January 12, 2024

Bloomreach, the platform fueling limitless e-commerce experiences, today announced Bloomreach Discovery will continue to power product discovery for Sonepar, the global world leader in B-to-B distribution of electrical products, solutions, and related services, as the companies renew their existing partnership. With Bloomreach Discovery’s AI-driven search and merchandising capabilities, Sonepar enables customers around the world to find what they want to buy — when, where, and how they want. “Sonepar is pleased to partner with Bloomreach as we continue to pursue our next stage of digital transformation,” said Fabrice del Aguila, SVP Digital Factory, Sonepar. “We look forward to leveraging Bloomreach’s expertise in product discovery as we become the first global B2B electrical distributor in the world to offer the best omnichannel experience to all our customers.” Sonepar leverages Bloomreach Discovery to drive personalized experiences across its omnichannel platform. Using rich data to refine search results, Bloomreach Discovery helps customers easily discover the products they want. It also accounts for a range of attributes and quantitative search queries, creating a search experience that is not only personalized, but personalized to the unique needs of B-to-B buyers. “We’re thrilled to continue our partnership with Sonepar,” said Jordan Roper, General Manager and Head of Product, Bloomreach Discovery. “The B-to-B space has so much to gain from digital transformation, and Sonepar is a leader in making that transformation a reality. We’re proud to join them on this journey and look forward to continuing to support their omnichannel experience with the fast ROI and relevance of Bloomreach Discovery.” Learn more about how Bloomreach Discovery and Sonepar are working together to drive success. About Bloomreach Bloomreach personalizes the e-commerce experience. Its data engine unifies real-time customer and product data so businesses understand what customers really want. By connecting that understanding to every channel, the e-commerce experience becomes limitless — reflecting a changing customer as they shop. Amplified by the speed and scale of Loomi, Bloomreach's AI for e-commerce, this creates endless new paths to purchase, greater profitability, and fast business growth. Bloomreach products include: Engagement, a marketing automation platform; Discovery, an e-commerce search solution; Content, a headless CMS; and Clarity, AI-powered conversational shopping. The company has multiple AI patents and serves 850+ global brands including: Albertsons, Bosch, Puma, and Marks & Spencer. About Sonepar Sonepar is an independent family-owned company with global market leadership in B-to-B distribution of electrical products, solutions and related services. Through a dense network of brands spanning 40 countries, the Group has an ambitious transformation agenda to become the first global B-to-B electrical distributor to provide a fully digitalized and synchronized omnichannel experience to all customers. Drawing on the skill and passion of its 44,000 associates, Sonepar had sales of €32.4 billion in 2022. www.sonepar.com

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Events