Getting started with Account Based Marketing

Lead Identification

Companies visit your website from different marketing channels. These companies are identified and tracked by Salespanel. Leads who fill out a webform are also identified and tracked. This is the first step of the ABM funnel.

Lead Segmentation and Qualification

Based on profile and activity data, leads are then segmented and qualified. For example, a company can set up a segment for leads from large companies who have shown interest in Enterprise solutions by visiting relevant pages on your website.

Message Personalization

When target accounts visit your website, they are sent personalized messages through live chat based on their profile and behavior data. If they are qualified for a segment, they can also get personalized messages based on that. For example, if your lead is identified as a small startup, you can open conversations by showing them a relevant case study.

Personalized Remarketing

Let’s get back to the example mentioned at the start of this article. When you need a new pair of shoes, Google just happens to know which shoes you might be interested in and shows them to you through adverts. They are able to do this by analyzing the data they have gathered about you to understand what you are interested in. ABM brings this to the B2B world. With ABM, you can show relevant retargeting ads to your leads across different advertising platforms like Google, Facebook, Linkedin etc. For example, if a lead is interested in a particular use case of your product, you can show content that are related to the use case across different marketing channels.

Profile Data

The main step in the data enrichment process is to identify your lead, know their job role, and find where they work. This information helps you determine if your lead belongs to your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP). It is also used to qualify and segment your leads. For example, if you sell enterprise products, a lead from a small company may not be a good fit for you. The profile data also helps you reach the decision makers and show relevant content to them.

Lead Tracking Data

A lead needs to be tracked from the moment they enter the sales funnel. Knowing where the leads came from and what they did on your website is key for an ABM strategy. A lead from your highly targeted Linkedin ad maybe worth more to you than someone who found you through your post on Twitter. Also, the pages they visit show how interested they are and what they are looking for. Someone who continues to use your free trial after they have found out your pricing is probably interested in buying. If someone is reading enterprise case studies, he/she may be an enterprise customer. The tracked information also helps you create reports and know if your strategy is working as expected. Real-time lead tracking also helps in triggering actions at the right moments.

Inaccurate Data

As previously mentioned, data is the backbone of the ABM strategy. As a result, inaccurate data can have negative effects in your sales process. Imagine that you have wrong/outdated information about a lead. What if your lead changes his company and is no longer relevant to you? This would mean that you are chasing the wrong person to a dead end and wasting resources. Also, relying on one data metric instead of a group of them can be risky. The entire system will depend on the accuracy of that single metric. Using an effective combination of data points minimizes the risks. The data risk can be minimized by utilizing the right software solutions.

Complications With Implementation

Not only ABM takes months to implement properly, it also changes your entire sales structure. This means that your marketing team needs to be properly trained to correctly implement this strategy. Your business might also need new employees who can adapt well with the new strategy.

GDPR and Data Protection Laws

A system heavily reliant on data and customer tracking means that your company is storing and using customer data. This warrants a concern and a need to stay compliant with data protection laws. You (as a data controller) need to stay GDPR compliant. Your data processor and provider also needs to be GDPR compliant. Salespanel is a GDPR compliant solution and we also help our customers stay GDPR compliant.

Setting Up the Right Qualifiers

Lead qualification is the process that filters out ABM eligible leads for you. This means that the qualifiers need to be right or your conversion rates will severely be impacted. To set up the right lead qualification system, you need to truly understand your customer profiles and set up the right qualifiers to prioritize them. It might also take some A/B testing and optimizations to get it right. This, however, is a one time process. Once set up, you are good to go.

The various challenges may sound scary but they can be dealt with. After all, the increase in ROI and a better sales cycle can make everything worth it for you.