What is account-based marketing (ABM)?

How account-based marketing works

Account-based marketing works by reversing the usual order: you pick the companies first, then decide how to reach the people inside them. Traditional demand generation casts a wide net and qualifies whoever responds; ABM decides in advance which accounts are worth the effort and spends it there.

The list usually comes from the ideal customer profile, narrowed by fit, deal potential and any existing relationship. For each account the team works out who sits in the buying group, what the company is dealing with now and which message is likely to matter to it.

• Agree a target account list with sales, with a named owner for each account.
• Map the buying group at each account: who decides, who influences, who uses the product.
• Plan the touches per account across ads, content, events, email and social.
• Hand over to sales with the context gathered, not only a list of names.
• Review engagement and pipeline account by account, then adjust the list.

The three tiers of an ABM campaign

An ABM campaign normally runs in one of three tiers, set by how much effort each account gets. One-to-one ABM treats a handful of strategic accounts as markets of their own, with research, content and events built for each.

One-to-few ABM groups a small number of similar accounts, for example regional banks facing the same new rule, and tailors the campaign to the shared situation. One-to-many ABM covers a longer list with lighter personalisation, usually by industry or role, and leans more on automation and advertising.

ABM vs account-based selling and account-based everything

ABM is the marketing half of the account-based approach, and account-based selling is the sales half: the same named accounts, worked by sellers through research, calls and personal outreach. The two only work well together, because a campaign that warms an account is wasted if no seller follows it up.

Account-based everything, sometimes called ABX or account-based experience, stretches the idea across the whole customer lifecycle. Customer success and support join in, so the account is treated consistently from first contact through renewal and expansion, not only while a deal is open.

What ABM orchestration means in practice

ABM orchestration is the work of coordinating every team and channel that touches an account so the touches add up to one story. In practice it is a shared plan per account that says who does what, in what order and what happens when someone responds.

Without it, a prospect can see an ad about one problem, get an email about another and receive a call from a seller who knows about neither. Many teams keep the plan in the CRM or a shared document and meet weekly to review the accounts that moved.

Where account-based marketing goes wrong

Account-based marketing goes wrong most often when the target list is too long to give real attention to, which turns ABM back into broad marketing with a new name. Close behind is a list marketing chose alone, so sales never works the accounts it warmed.

• Measuring leads and form fills instead of engagement across the buying group.
• Swapping the company name into generic content and calling it personalised.
• Ignoring existing customers and open deals when building the list.
• Giving up after one quarter, before longer buying cycles have had time to move.