You might probably hear of account-based marketing if you work in sales and marketing. Otherwise, you might be wondering what it is.
In a nutshell, ABM is a sales and marketing method wherein you zero in on a particular account. These accounts can be companies in a specific niche.
Sure, it does look like another form of marketing. However, ABM is about personalizing your marketing message for a specific business. It is like sending an email newsletter to an IBM executive that is different from the one you sent to the CFO of Oracle.
Moreover, the success of your ABM campaign relies on the coordination between your sales and marketing teams. Hence, it would help if you were using a proprietary ABM advertising platform.
Aside from that, keeping these six account-based marketing tips in mind can come in handy:
Have a List of Target Accounts
What’s excellent about ABM is that you only need to target accounts. It’s the difference between targeting every CFO in the tech and startup niche versus reaching out to the CFO of Cisco. Even if you have to target every person in that company, that is still a fraction compared to everyone who works in the industry.
It also makes sense to get help from a reliable B2B data service provider. The benefits don’t just lie in focusing on your target list’s key details. They can also give look-alike lists that will match specific characteristics of your ideal demographic.
Accuracy is essential to leverage your account lists and boost your sales efforts. Inaccuracies can be pretty costly, especially in terms of time and money. So, you want to talk with the right decision-makers in the companies you’re reaching out to.
Assess Your Existing Client Journey
Thanks to digital marketing and marketing automation, communications have become streamlined and buyer-led. Sellers have relatively fewer opportunities to meet buyers in person, even virtually.
Contacts are expecting you to influence them in more advanced ways. That’s why you must develop a positive, more personalized client experience.
By “client experience,” we mean a sales funnel that can compel your target accounts to buy your products or services.
You should also use the understanding you have in key accounts in mapping out the structure of the customer journey and give a sense of coherence. You should also look for any inconsistencies and get rid of friction points.
You should also coordinate your communications across all touchpoints. This explains why ABM relies heavily on coordinating your sales and marketing teams.
Tailor Your Content to Key Accounts
Whatever content you choose to produce, what’s important is that it is tailored for your target accounts. Your content should also correspond to a particular stage in a client’s journey.
Hence, you can target your blog posts to HR managers who are unaware that they have employee onboarding issues. Meanwhile, you can tailor your newsletters and downloadable content for HR managers who want to solve their employee onboarding issues. Lastly, your product demo and pricing page is for those considering hiring your services.
Regardless, the key here is to provide value and address the pain point of the individuals in your target accounts.
Engage Prospects Through Direct Mail
Another way to effectively engage prospects is via direct mail. But just like with your public content, you must tailor this to your target accounts.
And since it is direct mail, ensure that it is personalized. It is like sending an email with “Hi HR managers!” as a salutation versus mentioning the HR manager’s name. Plus, your mail should talk about how you can help an HR manager solve the pain point of their company.
Keep in mind that the goal of ABM is engaging on a personal level with individuals at your target account. Thus, you should put in the effort to stand out so that you can make a lasting impression.
Invest in Paid Advertising
If you’re targeting specific companies or individuals to get them on your site, then a great source is paid to advertise.
Overall, paid ads can be excellent when driving traffic to your site and building brand awareness. You can also use this when displaying ads on social media, where your target individual accounts hang out.
However, keep in mind that your target individual accounts can be anywhere online. Hence, you should be strategic in running your paid advertising campaign.
Stay in Front of Your Target Accounts Using Retargeting
While the account-based marketing tactics on this list allow you to connect with your target accounts, the rationale here is to stay on top of their minds. So, should they need the products and services you offer, the first provider they will turn to is you.
That’s where retargeting comes in. Google lets you show ads to people who previously interacted with your brand or visited your site before. Tailor ads based on what users did on your site to keep your messaging relevant to their interests and where they currently are in the buyer’s journey.
These ABM strategies can highly impact how your company can gain key customer accounts. Moreover, you can save time and money attracting, onboarding, and retaining your dream clients.
