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1. Targeting

What is account-based marketing (ABM)?

Account-based marketing (ABM) is an approach where you pick a short list of target companies and run tailored outreach to several people at each one, instead of sending the same message to a wide list. Results are measured by account, not by individual contact.

The parts

  1. A short target listUsually dozens of accounts, not thousands. You choose them because they match your profile and are worth the extra effort.
  2. Several contacts per accountA purchase involves more than one person. Reach the people who use the product, run the team and approve the budget.
  3. Tailored messagesEach account gets a message that refers to its own situation, not a generic template.
  4. Account-level measuresCount accounts that replied or booked a meeting, not just the number of emails opened.

Worked example: Fleetnote runs outreach by account

Fleetnote is a made-up fleet-telematics vendor. It picks a set of target accounts, contacts several people at each and counts results by account.

By hand

  1. Fleetnote selects 25 target accounts and finds 4 contacts at each.
  2. Contacts to reach: 25 x 4 = 100.
  3. 7 accounts had at least one reply: 7 / 25 = 28%.
  4. 3 accounts booked a meeting: 3 / 25 = 12%.
Target accounts25 accounts
At least one reply28%
Meeting booked12%

Share of the target accounts at each stage

How to apply it

  1. Pick a small set of accounts that match your ideal customer profile and show a reason to act.
  2. Find two to five relevant people at each account and note what each one cares about.
  3. Write a short, specific first message per account and vary the angle by role.
  4. Track replies and meetings per account and review the list every few weeks.

Mistakes to avoid

  • Calling a large list "account based" when every account gets the same template.
  • Contacting only one person per account and stalling when that person is silent.
  • Judging success by email opens instead of by accounts that moved forward.

Ideal customer profile

An ideal customer profile (ICP) is a written description of the type of company that gets the most value from what you sell and is easiest to win and keep.

Read more

Multichannel outreach

Multichannel outreach means contacting one prospect on several channels, for example email, LinkedIn and the phone, following a plan for which comes when.

Read more

Intent data

Intent data is information about what a company or person has been doing that suggests they may be looking for a solution, such as reading about a topic, visiting a pricing page or hiring for a related role.

Read more

Questions

How is ABM different from regular outbound?
Regular outbound sends to a wide list of contacts. ABM focuses on a short list of accounts and tailors the outreach to each one.
How many accounts should I target?
Enough that you can write something specific for each. For a small team that is often a few dozen at a time.
Does ABM work with cold email?
Yes. Cold email is one channel for reaching several people at a target account, often alongside calls or professional-network messages.

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