The Most Powerful B2B Marketing Approach You’re Not Using

As Account-Based Marketing (ABM) gains traction as a powerful B2B approach, senior leaders are recognising its ability to prioritise high-value accounts and build personalised, data-driven marketing strategies. Here’s a comprehensive guide on creating an ABM strategy tailored for business leaders, with a professional tone that speaks to the value of tools like LinkedIn Sales Navigator and HubSpot CRM in facilitating effective ABM.

Covered in this article

Defining Your Target Accounts
Personalising Engagements
Aligning Sales and Marketing Teams
Implementing Account-Specific Campaigns
Measuring Success with Targeted Metrics
Refining and Scaling the ABM Strategy
Final Thought
FAQs

Defining Your Target Accounts

The foundation of an ABM strategy lies in selecting high-value target accounts. These accounts should align closely with your business’s ideal customer profile (ICP) and represent significant revenue opportunities. LinkedIn Sales Navigator is an invaluable tool for this stage. It enables you to:

• Filter and find accounts based on industry, company size, location, and other criteria.
• Identify decision-makers and key influencers within target companies.
• Monitor changes in roles or company structure that may impact account priorities.

Combining Sales Navigator’s insights with HubSpot CRM's contact and account data can help establish a refined list of high-potential accounts.

Personalising Engagements

Personalisation in ABM goes beyond names on emails; it’s about aligning content and messaging to the specific needs, challenges, and goals of each account. Here’s how to structure personalised engagement:

• Identify Pain Points: Analyse industry trends, company-specific news, and account pain points to craft messaging that resonates deeply.
• Use HubSpot CRM for Segmentation: Organise target accounts into segments within HubSpot based on their stage in the sales funnel or specific attributes (e.g., industry, role).
• Craft Tailored Content: Develop content tailored to each segment, such as targeted blog posts, case studies, or webinars that speak directly to the client’s challenges and objectives.

Aligning Sales and Marketing Teams

For ABM to succeed, sales and marketing must work in tandem to ensure a seamless journey for target accounts.

• Collaborative Planning: Start with joint planning sessions to align on account goals, messaging, and key metrics. Use HubSpot’s CRM features to track interactions, allowing both teams to stay informed of account progress and needs.
• Shared Playbooks: Establish shared sales and marketing playbooks that outline engagement strategies for each account. This structured approach ensures a cohesive experience for the target account, building trust and credibility.
• Sales Navigator’s Role: LinkedIn Sales Navigator can be pivotal for the sales team to maintain timely, personalised connections with decision-makers, enriching marketing’s outreach efforts with up-to-date account insights.

Implementing Account-Specific Campaigns

Campaigns are the tactical components of ABM. Each target account requires specific, targeted campaigns to engage effectively. Here’s how to structure these campaigns:

• LinkedIn Sponsored Content: LinkedIn’s advertising platform is ideal for reaching decision-makers with customised content. Sponsored content and InMail messages allow for direct, one-to-one communication

  Ready to elevate your ABM strategy? Contact Velocity today for expert guidance tailored to drive growth with precision and impact.

   
• HubSpot’s Automation: Use HubSpot to create automated workflows that send personalised emails, updates, and nurture sequences tailored to each account. HubSpot’s reporting tools can provide insights into engagement, which can then be adjusted to increase effectiveness.
• Account-based Retargeting: Retarget account members with tailored ads that reinforce your messaging, keeping your brand top of mind.

Measuring Success with Targeted Metrics

An ABM strategy requires a metrics-driven approach to measure the impact on revenue, relationships, and growth. Traditional marketing metrics like impressions or clicks can take a backseat, with an emphasis on KPIs specific to ABM:

• Engagement Metrics: Track engagement across touchpoints, such as email opens, LinkedIn interactions, and responses to personalised offers.
• Pipeline Growth and Velocity: Monitor how quickly target accounts move through the sales funnel, identifying stages that may need additional engagement.
• Relationship Health: HubSpot CRM’s contact tracking and LinkedIn Sales Navigator’s connection insights provide a clear picture of relationship status and growth, helping refine strategies for deeper engagement.

Refining and Scaling the ABM Strategy

An ABM strategy is dynamic, requiring regular refinement based on real-time data and campaign outcomes. Periodically review campaign data and account interactions to understand what resonates best. Insights can help you scale ABM initiatives for broader applications across similar high-value accounts.

Final Thoughts

Crafting an ABM strategy demands a focus on relationship-building and a tailored approach for high-value accounts. By leveraging LinkedIn Sales Navigator for precise targeting and HubSpot CRM for integrated data-driven campaigns, senior leaders can drive meaningful engagement with key accounts, fostering long-term growth and solidifying a competitive edge.

Ready to elevate your ABM strategy? Contact Velocity today for expert guidance tailored to drive growth with precision and impact.

FAQs About ABM 

1. What is Account-Based Marketing (ABM)?

ABM is a marketing approach focused on high-value target accounts, offering personalised strategies to drive engagement and revenue.

2. Why should senior leaders consider ABM?

Senior leaders can use ABM to build focused, data-driven strategies for high-value accounts, leading to deeper engagement and revenue growth.

3. How does LinkedIn Sales Navigator aid in ABM?

LinkedIn Sales Navigator helps identify decision-makers, monitor company changes, and filter target accounts for precise engagement.

4. How can HubSpot CRM be used in ABM?

HubSpot CRM enables account segmentation, contact tracking, and personalised automated workflows, enhancing ABM efforts.

5. What are the effective metrics for measuring ABM success?

Key ABM metrics include engagement rates, pipeline velocity, and relationship health, which provide insights into account interactions and growth.

6. How can sales and marketing teams align in ABM?

Sales and marketing teams can align by sharing playbooks, planning sessions, and tracking interactions in HubSpot for a cohesive account approach.

7. Can ABM strategies be scaled?

Yes, ABM strategies can be refined based on data and scaled to engage similar high-value accounts effectively.