Have you ever heard of Account Based Marketing? Well, let me tell you: if your business model is B2B-focused, you should be very interested in it.
And that’s the case not because I say so, but because it’s one of the most effective strategies for anyone who works with companies. And I’ll tell you why in this post.
But first, remember that… There are plenty of marketing techniques, but not all of them work for every market segment, or for every niche or audience.
That’s why, before you implement a specific technique and invest time, money and effort in it, I recommend that you research and find out which ones work best in businesses similar to yours.
Specifically, today I invite you to take a closer look at the ABM strategy, used to win large companies as customers. And you’re going to learn:
- What Account Based Marketing really is.
- How it relates to Inbound Marketing.
- The steps to follow to implement this type of strategy.
- How you can make your emails more appealing to the accounts that will receive them.
· What Is Account Based Marketing, or ABM?
Account Based Marketing is a new strategy that works differently from what we’re used to in traditional marketing. Maybe it’s something new for you, but pay attention, because it’s here to stay, and those who have tried it say it delivers great results.
► Account Based Marketing: Definition
This strategy is aimed especially at those who work in the B2B market. And it can be defined as a customer acquisition tactic that focuses on large accounts.
Account Based Marketing is a strategy, aimed at the B2B market, that is based on personalizing campaigns to win large accounts.
Until now, most of the strategies we’ve used in traditional marketing were based on capturing the attention of a particular audience and earning its trust in order to turn as many people as possible into customers.
With Account Based Marketing, the rules of the game are different. This strategy focuses all its efforts on targeting the companies or accounts we really want to work with.
That is, if you want to work with company X, you’ll have to create a personalized campaign for that account. All the content you create, your communication plan, your media plan and everything else must be aimed specifically at that company.
► Account Based Marketing vs Inbound Marketing
First of all, I want to tell you that you don’t have to choose just one of them. In fact, you’ll see that depending on your goals and the environment you work in, you’ll need to use one strategy or the other.
And to make it clear, below you can see the differences between the two:
● Market. Inbound Marketing is geared toward the B2C market and Account Based Marketing toward the B2B market. In other words, the former targets the end consumer and the latter targets companies.
● Campaign reach. If you create a campaign based on IM, your goal will be to reach as many people as possible and capture as many leads as possible. But if you do it under the ABM umbrella, your goal will be to reach the company you want as a customer. And in this case your campaign will be more specific and personalized.
● Focus of action. Professionals who work with Account Based Marketing direct all their attention to one specific account, while those who work with Inbound Marketing closely follow a broad segment of the market.
In short, the main difference between the two is that IM targets a very large market and ABM a much more specific one, although that doesn’t mean the effort involved is any smaller.
On the other hand, they also share some similarities, such as the need in both to create content tailored:
- To the type of audience they’re aimed at, once you’ve analyzed and defined it.
- To the stage of the buying process this audience is in.
· How Does Account Based Marketing Work?
Now that we’ve defined in detail what Account Based Marketing is and what it involves, it’s time to implement it, as long as this is the strategy that suits you best.
And to that end, I’m going to describe a very condensed 6-step process that will give you a mental outline of how Account Based Marketing works.
Let’s get started!
► Identify the accounts you want to target
Earlier, I told you that ABM focuses on capturing the attention of large companies. So, in this first phase your task will be to identify those that can bring the most value as customers.
To do this, the decision-makers in your business or, where applicable, your marketing and sales departments will need to get together to filter companies and define the ones you want to work with.
It has to be a joint effort, because both departments have information that is useful for making this decision.
Questions like these can help you filter faster:
- What characteristics should the accounts you want to work with have?
- Of the companies you know, which ones match those characteristics?
- Which companies visit your website or fill out the contact form? Do they open your emails?
- Which ones have called in recent months asking for information?
► Analyze the background of the companies you’ve identified
Once you know which companies you want to target, you need to understand how they work.
That is, what organizational structure they have, who makes the decisions and how… That way you can craft the right message to capture their attention in a personalized way.
► Create specific content for your priority accounts
Just as in Inbound Marketing, in Account Based Marketing you’ll need to create valuable content to get closer to the company you want as a customer.
And to do that, you’ll have to:
- Research the account you’re targeting in depth.
- Identify which stage of the sales funnel they’re in.
Only then will you be able to create content that interests them and catches their attention. But don’t forget the most important thing: personalization. Here this factor is key, and it’s what will bring you closer to, or take you further from, the success of your campaign.
► Determine the media channels for each account
Here you should consider which ones they use most, whether traditional (television, radio, print press…) or digital (social media, Google…).
That information will help you focus your advertising efforts in the right place. That is, where you’re most likely to be seen.
► Launch your segmented campaign
With all the information you’ve gathered in the previous steps, it’s time to launch your campaign. Through it, you’ll reach the account you want as a customer and capture their attention so that they want to work with you.
► Analyze the results thoroughly
Measure how the campaign performed once it ends. The information you get will help you optimize and adjust the next campaigns you work on and achieve better results.
This phase is essential in any strategy you implement, because you not only improve the actions you carry out, you also make more efficient use of the budget you allocate.
· Ideas for applying ABM in your email campaigns
Email marketing is one of the best tools for capturing attention and maintaining a relationship with your potential customers. That’s true in Inbound Marketing, and it’s just as true in Account Based Marketing.
That’s why you need to be careful with the emails you send and, above all, with the way you address the company you want as a customer.
Below, I’m going to give you some ideas you can include in your emails to get closer to the company and help its members feel comfortable with you:
► Hint that you’ve done your homework on the company
This will show that you’re interested in everything to do with them. That you’re not just getting in touch to sell them something, but that you want to get to know their background, services and values in depth… and that you’ve even been a customer!
Imagine you’re interviewing someone to fill a job opening and they don’t even know what your company does. What would your impression of that candidate be? Definitely not a good one. And that’s exactly the impression you must avoid giving the account you want to win over.
► Create specialized content for your target
As I told you earlier, the content you create in an ABM strategy must be specialized for the account you’re targeting. And that means, for example, that you can draw on data about their company, success stories, improvements they could adopt…
You must create unique content that only interests them and shows that your services are truly tailor-made for their company.
► Personalize your emails
You can apply this in both the subject lines and the body of the email. And I don’t just mean putting the recipient’s name in the greeting. I mean that in the email you should talk about aspects that concern only that company, come across as approachable, include data specific to the company…
► Make your emails look handcrafted
By this I mean don’t use a ready-made template or the default format that comes with email marketing platforms. Even if you use a platform of this kind, make the email look as if you had written it personally, from your own email account, for that company.
This will make them feel “special,” make them think you’re devoting valuable time to them, that you take care of your relationships, that you care about your customers… Because, after all, automation distances you from all of this.
► Be transparent and honest
That is, don’t be a “snake oil salesman” or an infomercial host. Right from the start, show honestly what you can do for the company. I’m sure you have great solutions for them, so show them all the benefits honestly.
In every email you send, avoid making unrealistic promises or creating false expectations. The consequences can be worse than not winning this customer in the end, significantly damaging your reputation and your brand image.
· Account Based Marketing: Conclusions
Are you ready to launch your Account Based Marketing strategy? In this article you’ve learned about aspects that will help you take the first step toward winning the large accounts you want as customers.
It has points in common with traditional strategies, but the specialization and personalization of campaigns are what make it different and more effective at delivering results within the B2B market.
What did you think? If that’s you, and you work in an environment aimed at businesses, or B2B, you should put it into action today. Remember to check the notes for this article!
This technique takes customer targeting to the extreme, aiming at very specific accounts instead of a broad audience.