Be Thankful for Account-based Marketing this Holiday Season

Account-based marketing, or ABM, is what seemingly every B2B marketer has been talking about in 2016. And if you believe the experts and the surveys, it is something that marketers should be thankful for.

Talk is cheap, but real results are something that your should proudly shout your thanks to the hills.

More Than 70% See Real Results from ABM

Peter Isaacson, CMO of Demandbase, described it as "the cornerstone of most B2B marketing plans. In 2016, we saw more than 70% of B2B companies driving ABM programs to align their sales and marketing efforts, improve customer experiences, and accelerate their revenue gains."

That's a huge number of marketers who are thankful for results in all the places that are important to their organizations. Since these are all of critical value to B2B companies, and we all know what they mean, I'm just going to pull them out in a bulleted-list for you to review. No need to explain them, describe them, or even make you feel guilty that you are not focusing on them.

• Revenue
• Customer Experience
• Marketing Sales Alignment

Just a imagine a conversation with your CMO and other marketing leaders that begins, "So if I told you that by implementing account-based marketing into our marketing, we can grow revenue, improve customer experience, and help marketing alignment." What do you think the response would be?

57% Already Using ABM

If you are not currently using or evaluating an ABM solution, then the short list above should be the first step in convincing you. In a study by Argyle Executive Forum of marketing leaders, 57% were already using ABM, while another 28% percent were evaluating its use in the future. 

Does this mean you are being left behind if you are not in one of these two categories? It definitely does if your competition is in the first one. ABM means focusing on the right accounts. These are the ones that sales has indicated are more likely to buy.

When you incorporate ABM into your marketing automation solution it changes how things like lead scores can function. This is no longer an indicator of an individual's fit as a customer, but it is a roll-up of individuals into an account, and how likely that account is to become a customer.

84% See Higher ROI with ABM

ITSMA has reported that "84% of marketers who track return on investment (ROI) say ABM delivers higher ROI—often significantly higher—than any other marketing initiative."

Oh that elusive ROI. More and more CMOs are being held accountable for a positive return on investment on their marketing expenditures, and if ABM can improve that return, it is certainly a worthy option. If you are already following the principles of ABM, then you can be thankful for the higher ROI. If you are still in the exploratory phase, then this is another talking point to bring your marketing leaders to your side.

To get a better understanding of what other marketers are thinking about ABM and doing with it, download the Argyle Executive Forum report Account-Based Marketing: The New Star of B2B Marketing today.

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