The way businesses are tackling B2B marketing is changing with Account-Based Marketing (ABM). By treating individual accounts as the market of one, and developing a custom, personalized go-to-market strategy for each account, ABM enables businesses to concentrate their efforts on their most valuable prospects and develop stronger relationships that lead to successful outcomes.
This case study explains how one mid-sized SaaS company used ABM to address its marketing challenges, engage with its key accounts, and see tangible business growth. If you’re wondering how ABM might benefit your business, take a deeper dive into this strategy and its implications below.
Meet the Company
The company in question is not a very large SaaS business that focuses on project management for businesses. At its core, the company’s mission is to make it easier for teams to work together more efficiently by streamlining communication and sharing. They work mostly with large companies in industries including technology, finance, and retail.
The Goal
The company had two main objectives:
- Reach decision-makers at enterprise companies.
- Increase the top of the funnel leads volume in order to generate more conversions.
Even though the company had a great product in place, they realized their typical demand generation methods, such as (broad) email campaigns and generic digital ads, didn’t produce the engagement or sales growth they were aiming for from their most valuable accounts.
The Challenge
Even though they had a desirable solution, they had a hard time reaching high-value B2B prospects. Their old-fashioned advertising brought in low quality leads; leaving the sales team to sift through prospects who take too long to convert.
Key challenges included:
- Getting to the right people at target accounts.
- Standing out in a very noisy market filled with similar tools.
- Marketing and Sales efforts integration, for the best customer experience.
For such challenges, they required a more targeted and effective approach. Introducing Account-Based Marketing.
Developing an Effective ABM Strategy
Sensing that it was time to change up the game, marketing switched to an Account-Based Marketing model. ABM enabled the company to allocate resources toward focusing on a small and curated list of strategic accounts, instead of spraying and praying. It was a persona-based approach and the marketing and sales team worked together to win.
Key Components of Their ABM Strategy:
Identifying Target Accounts:
Leveraging intent data, and CRM analytics, the marketing team targeted 50 high-value accounts that fit best with their ideal customer profile (ICP). These included business size, revenue, industry, and current pain points.
Customized Content Creation:
The squad crafted hyper-targeted content against each target account. This consisted of personalized recorded video messages, personalized eBooks on how the account was overcoming their problems, and examples of industry-specific uses.
Relationship Building, Now Focused on the Account:
Marketing and sales efforts worked closely to develop a map of relationships at every target account. They revealed who are their target stakeholders (decision-makers, influencers, and sometimes champions) so they can add value in every step of the buying process.
Omnichannel Outreach:
The organization took an omnichannel approach; it combined email, LinkedIn ads, direct mail, and live events to make sure its message was heard by all the stakeholders involved in target accounts.
Tailored Landing Pages:
Every target account had a unique landing page created specifically for that account, tailored with personalized offers and messaging. This meant that readers could quickly grasp how the product directly addressed their specific needs.
Implementation
With the ABM campaign settled, the work started in earnest. Here is how the campaign played out:
Step 1: Teams Alignment
The marketing and sales team workshops set objectives, defined roles, and checked alignment. They created a joint dashboard to track KPIs, so that both teams stayed in sync during the campaign.
Step 2: Personalized Campaign Assets
The team generated assets namely:
- Personalized Videos: New videos were personalized and sent to targeted prospects through LinkedIn and email.
- White Papers – Mardoc: Inside Industry reports on how the SaaS offering helped solves industry specific problems.
- Direct Mail: Our target audience received a branded “starter kit” through the mail to create excitement and engagement.
Step 3: Omnichannel Rollout
The omnichannel campaign was phased in:
- Introductions on email and LinkedIn were made to warm up any leads.
- Targeted ads and direct mail steered interested prospects toward the next step.
“Dedicated account managers slotted in custom demos for potential customers who wanted to know more.”
Step 4: Tracking and Optimization
In order to efficiently measure results, the company monitored metrics on an ongoing basis – such as account engagement, click through rate and meeting requests. Components of the campaign that were underwhelming were quickly redeveloped and re-targeted.
The Results
The ABM effort delivered remarkable results, well beyond those of a traditional demand-gen program. Here’s what the company accomplished:
Improved Engagement
- Target account engagement up 200%
- Custom videos had an even higher 35% click-through rate
Streamlined Sales Process
“In the case of sales, reps told us that 75% of the meetings with those targeted accounts were good appointments, up from 50% prior to the campaign beginning,” Smith continued.
Accelerated Deal Closures
The sales timeline was compressed by 30% because potential clients came in with a clear understanding of what the product was worth.
Increased Revenue
Six months later, the company had landed 12 new enterprise customers, $1.5 million in new annual recurring revenue.
Greater Marketing and Sales Alignment
The business marketing campaign further cemented the link between sales and marketing and provided a more cohesive and cohesive revenue generation engine.
Why ABM Works
This is a great Account-Based Marketing success story in action. Because ABM zeroes in on a defined group of top-value targets and provides a personalized experience, it allows you to maximize ROI and cultivate meaningful relationships.
Lessons learned from this case study:
- Start Small: Work with a small number of accounts to get on top of before scaling.
- Codesign teams early: Marketing and sales alignment are key to your ABM success.
- Create Custom Everything: Custom content and messaging directly leads to higher engagement and conversions.
Is ABM Right for Your Business?
So, if you want to engage with valuable leads, reduce your sales cycle or get the most out of your revenue, Account-Based Marketing may be the kind of strategy you need to consider for your business.
Considering rolling out an ABM campaign? Begin by dissecting your ideal customer profile and creating a list of target accounts. And if you’re looking to kick your marketing into high gear with ABM, contact us today to see how we can help.
