What Are the Best Channels for Account-Based Marketing?
Discovering the Best Channels for Your Account-Based Marketing
Account-based marketing (ABM) is a strategy that focuses your attention on a set of target accounts. It’s also become a bit of a buzzword in the world of marketing.
Most B2B marketers are familiar with ABM as a concept – some of you may have dabbled with an ABM agency or two. However, in our experience as an ABM agency of 20+ years, there are a few persistent questions we hear B2B tech and SaaS businesses continue to ask when first implementing an account-based marketing programme.
One of the most common is this: '“What are the best channels for your ABM strategy?” In this article, we will peer into account-based marketing and explore the best channels to help you reach your target audience effectively.
What is account-based marketing (ABM)?
Before we delve into the channels, we must sacrifice some of your will to live to the SEO gods and dial into what account-based marketing is all about. Let’s fire through this:
ABM is a strategic approach that focuses on targeting specific accounts rather than casting a wide net.
It means tailoring your marketing efforts to resonate with the needs and pain points of individual companies or key decision-makers within those companies.
It’s gained significant traction recently as businesses recognise that being human and personalising marketing strategies work – and your targets hate you less for it.
ABM seriously works. B2B companies using account-based marketing strategies can boast revenue that’s over 200% higher than businesses that don’t. Generic mass marketing campaigns aimed at broad audiences are out. The precise and strategic ABM approach is very much in.
In a nutshell, instead of sending out generic advertisements to a wide range of businesses, ABM identifies a select number of high-value accounts that would benefit the most from your product. By tailoring your marketing efforts specifically to these accounts, you increase the likelihood of capturing their attention and ultimately securing their business.
The principles of account-based marketing
The key principles of ABM are personalisation, precision (and personalisation), and persistence (and personalisation). Personalisation is critical. It cannot be overstated. Because the whole reason account-based marketing is so effective is that you deliver tailored messages and content that resonates with your target accounts. It goes beyond sticking in a little ‘@FIRSTNAME@’ in your communications (we’ve all done it; everyone gets a little lazy sometimes). True personalisation involves understanding their pain points, challenges, and goals, then (and only then) crafting messages that speak directly to those needs.
In comes precision. In ABM, precision means identifying key accounts and key decision-makers within those accounts. This requires thorough research and analysis to determine which companies are most likely to benefit from your product or service. By focusing only on these key accounts, you can allocate your resources more effectively and increase your chances of success.
Persistence is the third principle of ABM. We’re not talking 30 cold emails, each getting progressively more passive-aggressive and/or weepy. We’ve done the research; no one wants that and it just pisses people off. Instead, the emphasis lies on maintaining consistent and engaging communication throughout the buyer's journey. ‘Engaging’ being the operative word. Because ABM is not a one-time interaction but a long-term strategy that requires ongoing engagement and nurturing. By staying top-of-mind with your target accounts, you build trust and credibility and increase your chances of converting them into loyal customers.
The benefits of account-based marketing
The boring principles are out of the way – let's talk about the good stuff, the benefits. Focusing on specific accounts and tailoring your marketing efforts means you’ll:
Earn the trust of key accounts
Position yourself as a valuable partner
Increase your chances of closing deals
But wait – there’s more. Sales and marketing alignment is one of the biggest challenges related to B2B marketing efforts. Around 38% of B2B businesses struggle with it (though we suspect that’s more). But ABM closes that rift, helping you to align your sales and marketing efforts.
Historically, these two departments have often operated independently, leading to miscommunication and missed opportunities. However, with ABM, sales and marketing teams work together to identify target accounts, develop personalised messaging, and coordinate their efforts to maximise impact. By aligning your sales and marketing teams through ABM, you get:
Better inter-team collaboration
A more effective sales function
A much higher return on investment
In conclusion, account-based marketing helps you build stronger relationships (both internally and externally), align sales and marketing efforts, and ultimately increase your chances of success.
Identifying and segmenting your target audience
Before you can decide which the best channels for ABM are, you need to know your audience. It’s not always a fun task, but it’s one of the fundamentals of ABM – a well-defined target audience is crucial to maximise the effectiveness of your ABM strategy.
The importance of a well-defined target audience
A well-defined target audience helps you focus your efforts on the right accounts and ensures that you address the specific pain points and challenges they face. Your understanding of your audience is the difference between hyper-relevant messaging that resonates with them…and watery, vapid, uninspiring drivel that, even after your 29th email, fails to incite even a mote of rage because it’s so dull.
Identifying accounts is another one of the biggest ABM-related challenges businesses face (33% have tremendous trouble identifying accounts).
Imagine you're a software company offering a project management tool. Your target audience could be businesses in the technology sector who struggle with managing multiple projects simultaneously. By identifying this specific audience, you can tailor your messaging to highlight how your tool can streamline their project management processes, saving them time and increasing their efficiency.
That’s a start, but that’s entry-level ABM. You can (you must) go deeper.
How might evolving technologies in your target’s sector change project requirements and timelines? And how might that change by business?
Do they have to coordinate multiple teams and stakeholders?
Is there potential for conflicts and communication gaps in cross-functional projects, and how can you specifically address them?
There are many facets. Your job is to find them first.
Furthermore, a well-defined target audience allows you to allocate your resources effectively. Instead of casting a wide net and hoping for the best, you can concentrate on the accounts most likely to convert. This targeted approach saves you time and money and increases your chances of success.
How to segment your audience for account-based marketing
Segmentation is the key to success when it comes to ABM. It’s not complicated, and it can be straightforward. Just do this:
Clearly state what you aim to achieve through account-based marketing
Use customer surveys, market research, CRM data, and other sources to gather insights
Laugh at, and then throw away generic demographic data
Prioritise finding behaviour patterns, interests, and pain points
Repeat steps 2-4 for your existing customer
Look for similarities between your best customers and the data on your new targets
Put the target accounts that share characteristics of your existing customers in one bucket ‘A’ and put the rest in bucket ‘B’
Continue to research/look for similarities between companies in bucket ‘B’
Repeat this until you are satisfied you have popped every potential account into a bucket
Those are your segments. Now, you can tailor your messaging to each bucket. Keep looking back at what you’ve done; you’ll learn along the way. Chances are, you’ll shift some of these accounts around buckets as you learn more and see your assumptions destroyed. It happens – embrace it; it’s all part of the process.
A note: included in what you learn about your audiences should be the channels they engage with most. Where do they hang out? Where do they go to find information? Who do they trust the most, and how do they like to engage with your/similar content? The research you do forms the foundation for how you choose the best channel to reach them on.
Marketing channels - examples and use cases
You’ve got a well-defined, well-segmented audience. Nice one. But what marketing channels can help you reach them effectively?
When it comes to marketing, the possibilities are endless. From traditional methods to digital strategies, you have many channels to choose from to connect with your target audience.
Traditional marketing channels and when to use them
Traditional marketing channels, such as direct mail, out-of-home (OOH), and events, still play a vital role in Account-Based Marketing (ABM). Some, more than others. While digital marketing has gained significant popularity in recent years, traditional methods continue to hold their ground.
OOH is the bread and butter of marketing/advertising. It’s a reminder of the good old days, the classics. Original gangster (OG) creativity. Madmen-style stuff. For interesting OOH examples, have a gander at Oatly’s recent forced perspective stunts in France. It’s a stunner, like most of their marketing (and ties in nicely with more modern marketing efforts, too…but more on that later). This marketing gets remembered, the pieces that most often go ‘viral’ and the fantastic for awareness. It’s also less used in B2B circles.
Another classic is direct mail. Most people think of these as those dodgy pamphlets your local church stuff through your unwilling letterbox. But some brands like Nestlé® show us how it’s done with their brilliant KitKat Chunky ad riff on those useless red Royal Mail ‘something for you’ slips. Like with OOH, direct mail is most often associated with awareness-focused marketing. It creates a lasting impression and shows your commitment to building a meaningful relationship.
Then you have events. Despite not usually being lumped in with the examples from' ‘Ad-land’ above, events take awareness a step further. They provide an opportunity to engage with decision-makers face-to-face and build meaningful connections. They’re more focused and yet also more subtle. While that may seem oxymoronic, it just works. Especially with events centred around audience and content.
In a world dominated by virtual interactions, the value of in-person events cannot be overstated. Attending industry conferences and trade shows or hosting your own events allows you to showcase your products or services, establish thought leadership, and network with key stakeholders. But it must be subtle, and it must provide value first. No one wants to attend a lecture on your platform. Trust us.
Digital marketing channels and when to use them
You can’t ignore the power of online marketing channels. Digital marketing offers a vast reach and enables you to target your audience more precisely than some examples above.
Email marketing is a highly effective channel that allows you to deliver personalised messages directly to the inboxes of key decision-makers. By crafting compelling email campaigns tailored to the specific needs and pain points of your target accounts, you can capture their attention and drive engagement. But it’s nuanced, and it deserves the right attention. These aren’t blanket cold emails (those are a curse, but you can fix them, and they do have a place). And they’re not just an engagement tool; they’re a fact-finding one, too.
Social media advertising is another powerful digital marketing channel that enables you to reach a wider audience and build brand awareness. In fact, social media is the most popular marketing channel according to B2B and B2C marketers (used by 44% of respondents). Platforms like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter offer sophisticated targeting options, allowing you to narrow your audience based on demographics, interests, and behaviours. This precision targeting ensures that your message reaches the right people at the right time, increasing the likelihood of engagement and conversion.
Furthermore, social media platforms provide an opportunity for two-way communication. By engaging with your audience through comments, direct messages, and polls, you can foster community and establish your brand as a trusted industry leader.
As you explore these marketing channels, it's important to remember that each channel has its own strengths and weaknesses. A successful marketing strategy often involves a combination of traditional and digital channels, tailored to your target audience and business objectives.
So, whether you're sending personalised direct mail packages, hosting industry events, crafting compelling email campaigns, or engaging with your audience on social media, the key is to create a cohesive and integrated marketing approach that resonates with your target accounts.
Evaluating the best channels for account-based marketing
Half (50%) of UK B2B marketers state that buyer-driven, cross-channel campaigns were their go-to strategic marketing approach. And from a reach perspective, that makes total sense. But it’s not all about reach – especially if you’ve segmented as hard as you can. You should know where target people.
So, is it now about cost? Data tells us that most (22%) B2B marketers believe Facebook to have the best return on investment (ROI), compared with an even three-way split between Instagram, TikTok and YouTube. And only 7% believe that LinkedIn, ‘the’ B2B platform, is the most cost-effective.
With myriad channels at your disposal, how do you evaluate the best ones for your ABM strategy?
You do this:
Review your customer data: Look at the data you've collected about your target accounts. Determine which channels are most popular in each segment, consider which channels have driven past engagement and conversion, and identify how you can tweak your ABM strategy for each.
Evaluate the channel's reach: Remember that part about clearly stating what you want to achieve? Look at that again. Then, analyse the potential reach of each marketing channel. Then, check which fits best with your campaign goals. Consider these questions:
Are you aiming to reach a broad set of people?
Are you trying to reach fewer people on a more intimate level?
Which channels have the most extensive reach for those accounts?
Check the channel's relevancy: Consider the best channels for your chosen content format. Do your target accounts prefer long-form or short-form content? Should you focus on more visual channels, like social media, or perhaps more analytical, like email marketing?
Prioritise customisation and personalisation: Account-based marketing pivots on your ability to demonstrate your knowledge and understanding of accounts. You must be able to create tailored, personal messaging with the channel you choose. So, ask yourself, can you demonstrate your understanding of each account and connect your message with a particular pain point or business goal through it? Choose the channel that best lets you use your knowledge.
Assess the channel's level of intimacy: Consider how well the channels and formats you choose match the level of intimacy you want to establish with each target account. Would a personal meeting or phone call build a better relationship than an impersonal email blast?
It’s a hard one to quantify this, so here’s a little example. Let’s take LinkedIn. It’s not as personal as direct in-person meetings, but it allows for professional networking, building trust, and sharing insights through thought leadership. You can leverage LinkedIn to establish connections, engage in discussions, and provide valuable information during a brand’s research process if you’re savvy.
Analyse the cost per lead: Evaluate each channel's cost per lead and adjust your tactics or messaging to maximise ROI. You will want to look at the cost per lead compared to conversion rates and customer lifetime value. Reach also plays a key element here.
Experiment and refine: Plan to optimise, monitor your channel performance and experiment frequently to refine your marketing strategy. This is a game that never ends. There’s an even chance that the best channel to reach your audience right now might not be in a few years’ time.
Above all, don’t be afraid to ask your customers. Sign someone new? Ask them what about your outreach got them keen. In our experience as an ABM agency, we ask where they see the most traction in marketing and which channels perform best for them before we start a project. We don’t always get the clearest answer.
Never stop monitoring, never stop learning.
Account-based marketing is an iterative process. Continuously monitor the performance of your ABM campaigns and be ready to adjust your strategy accordingly. Pay attention to customer feedback, market trends, and industry insights to keep your ABM game strong.
It sucks, but this is now where you have to go and do a lot of the groundwork yourself. Account-based marketing is a game of individuals; there is no ‘right’ answer regarding the best channel. It depends on your audience, goal, and commitment level.
Put in the work now. Then, leverage the right channels and tailor your marketing efforts to specific accounts, and you’ll achieve remarkable results and drive business growth.
Or if you can’t be bothered to do all that, you could always hire an agency *cough cough*.