Account-based marketing (ABM) is transforming the world of B2B sales and marketing due to its effectiveness in reaching high-value target accounts, but it is a difficult strategy to manage.
ABM has many moving parts that must move as a synchronized whole to bring success to your organization.
Fortunately, like any aspect of marketing, ABM comes easy with strategic planning.
Starting with your goals and laying out a specific plan is key to building an effective ABM campaign.
Here, we will break down the steps to put ABM mapping into practice within your organization and implement the correct process to make it happen.
Account-based marketing (ABM) is transforming the world of B2B sales and marketing due to its effectiveness in reaching high-value target accounts, but it is a difficult strategy to manage.
ABM has many moving parts that must move as a synchronized whole to bring success to your organization.
Fortunately, like any aspect of marketing, ABM is easy with strategic planning.
Starting with your goals and designing a specific plan is key to building an effective ABM campaign.
Here, we will break down the steps to put ABM mapping into practice within your organization and implement the correct process to make it happen.
Identify Key Decision Makers and Influencers
After identifying which accounts to target using account planning, the next step is to dig into the account to understand the organizational structure and how decisions are made. Starting with the top person in a functional area is a great place to start mapping roles.
The larger the account, the more difficult this task is, as many large organizations operate in a matrix environment where influence comes from many directions.
However, searching for these contacts and documenting their buyer role using HubSpot or an alternate record system will allow you to track and manage the information related to each contact. This will also enhance your ability to create unique experiences as part of your ABM program.
Gather Intel and Align Content
Understanding the needs and weaknesses of an account is an important input to your ABM engagement strategy. Whether it’s for content alignment or sales reach, align relevant communications with each stage of the buyer’s journey.
While gaining direct intelligence through discovery calls is a great way to explore account needs, you should use a wide range of sources to gather as much information as possible to fill any gaps.
Social listening, search intent, press releases, and Google alerts are great resources for leveraging information that can be used to gain insight into future account needs. Once well documented, these insights can be used to map marketing content and sales manuals to ensure that every interaction with the account is meaningful.
Document How Decisions are Made
Throughout the research and documentation process, you have been collecting data that will be useful to your marketing and sales teams. As you seek to advance the engagement process, a direct approach to the contacts within the account will be required. Make sure to add value and use best practices to improve the quality of this interaction to make it a seamless and valuable experience for the potential customer.
You’ve been gathering account intelligence through the planning process, so now is the time to put those activities into action. Before communicating, use LinkedIn or LinkedIn Sales Navigator to investigate the contact. Using outreach activities to fill data and intelligence gaps will help improve engagement and future interactions.
