Prospecting is challenging for any B2B marketer. Finding the right contacts requires considerable effort, time, and dedication. To address this, 70% of marketers have embraced ABM (account-based marketing) practices in their daily workflow.
Now, this shift toward account based marketing in B2B identifies three critical factors in achieving profitable conversions:
Considering the abovementioned factors, one highly effective way to implement an ABM strategy is to create a target account list (TAL). Such an ABM list includes all the data-qualified accounts that fit your business in terms of:
– among other essential criteria. If you want to learn more about target account list building, we've got you covered!
Related Post: Why Is B2B Account Based Marketing Important?
Target account list building refers to creating a comprehensive list of qualified ICPs (ideal customer profiles). These profiles are collected by your marketing and sales team – along with other relevant departments. They contain every relevant detail about your ideal customer. Plus, they serve as a guide for your team to prioritize the following:
A well-curated TAL enhances your ABM efforts by providing valuable data-driven insights that help you understand which type of content, ad, or CTA (Call to Action) would be most effective for each targeted decision-maker. As such, you can tailor your follow-up process with a personalized experience for each individual.
A targeted ABM list can have an immediate impact on any B2B lead generation strategy, resulting in the following:
It may be challenging to establish a stable network among all internal data holders. However, the following benefits may encourage them to join in your ABM endeavors:
For Further Reading: Account-based Marketing Vs. Traditional B2B Marketing
An effective target account list-building process involves ten essential steps. Although the process is straightforward, each stage requires significant data-based decision-making. Plus, once the list is integrated into your marketing/sales process, making significant changes isn’t possible until the cycle ends. Hence, it's essential to give adequate attention to every step.
Establishing your ABM targeting strategy should be your priority. Here are three strategies you can leverage to target high-value accounts:
The most commonly used strategy is the one-to-few (used by 35% of marketers). This is because it enables you to implement ABM practices with a limited yet highly targeted range of contacts. Plus, it’s based on predictive analysis and industry knowledge.
However, a combined approach of all three strategies (also used by 35% of marketers) is equally popular. Why? Because it allows for a broader range of potential clients to be targeted.
Regardless of the strategy chosen, it is essential not to expand the list without a good reason. After all, ABM aims to focus on your highest-converting accounts.
As previously mentioned, crafting a targeted ABM list requires quality accounts as the essential ingredients. By gathering cross-departmental information, your marketing team can qualify ABM contacts based on specific criteria, such as the following:
Determining which criteria are most valuable to your business requires collaboration with your team. Additionally, it’s essential to find out if your account is already working with one of your competitors. In such cases, you must demonstrate the added benefits they would receive if they switch to your business.
To develop your targeted ABM list, start compiling a list of positive and negative attributes of your ideal accounts. List building for ABM is more challenging than creating a list of fantastic clients.
Why? You need to create something from nothing. Here are a few ways to start commencing your list building for ABM:
As you start to create your list, you may find yourself with either a list that is too small or too large.
Keep in mind that anyone can request a form from your website. However, you MUST focus on the few "best-fit" opportunities instead of several "good-fit" opportunities. As such, your list should comprise high-quality accounts. Hence, consider the following elements when creating your list:
Verifying your data sources is critical to ensure that your TAL accounts are accurate. It involves conducting thorough research. Only then can you confirm that the information gathered is reliable.
In fact, 54% of marketers use a combination of first and third-party data to create their TAL. Hence, it’s critical to verify your data’s quality. So, to validate your individual-based outreach strategies and decisions, consider the following information types:
NOTE: The data you acquire and validate may also be available to your competitors if they grow their TALs. To ensure the quality of your leads, it's best to segment them in a way that only your internal team can understand, conduct, and trigger.
Next, select the right individuals to reach out to. Take the time to research their job titles, skills, and hierarchy within the decision-making process. It will help you quickly identify and contact the relevant stakeholders.
To get even more insights into your contacts, consider looking into their:
You can use this information to create an "influence matrix." It will give you a deeper understanding of the account's purchasing and decision-making processes.
Once you've identified your target accounts and contacts, it's time to deliver relevant business insights. It means understanding each account's pain points, goals, and challenges. By providing interesting insights, you can build credibility and trust and, eventually, win more business.
Here are a few steps:
You need to update your accounts based on specific criteria. Why? It’ll enable your sales development team to engage with them efficiently.
Account segmentation aims to create highly personalized follow-ups. As such, you can quickly engage potential customers. To achieve this, we recommend you categorize your leads into the following tiers:
This comprises the top 10% to 20% of your list. They are the most profitable accounts. Why? They have demonstrated significant potential for a fast conversion.
As such, you should focus your marketing and sales efforts on this segment. How? By using frequent, direct, and targeted actions to close the business.
This tier will represent about 20% to 30% of your list. It consists of accounts that have shown a reasonable level of interest in your product. Sales could take place within the next twelve months. Thus, ensure to contact decision-makers monthly.
The marketing goal in this tier is to educate and shape how contacts understand:
This tier will likely make up 50% to 70% of your list. Such accounts may benefit from your product but they are currently not interested in making a purchase. Why?
Or
The conversion moment with them is too unclear to foster an active move. So, you can use passive actions in this case. Some of such strategies include – encouraging them to sign up for your weekly newsletter. It could lead to a sale eventually.
You can additionally consider these methods to segment your TALs as well:
Let's talk about how to segment your approach for ABM success:
You must ensure you have the necessary tools to maximize lead conversion from your ABM strategy.
Read More: How to Choose a B2B ABM Agency
To ensure the successful implementation of ABM, sales and marketing team alignment is a must. Establish harmony between both teams on the:
It requires a seamless transition for the customer from the initial acquisition as a lead to the final sale. As such, it ends up creating a custom buying experience.
Effective communication and finding common ground are key to improving synergy between these two departments. Additionally, it ensures the marketing team acquires leads that the sales team can successfully sell to.
NOTE: Generally, one marketer can remain aligned with up to 10 SDRs, and each SDR can manage up to 10 accounts.
A tech stack can be very helpful for ABM list building. Here's an explanation of the suggested tools:
Finally, managing a company's data is crucial in B2B. After all, large volumes of unprocessed data can accumulate in the CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system. This phenomenon is known as data exhaust.
Again, let’s assume your TAL is extensive. Then, your marketing team may face difficulties in executing personalized actions – due to data broadness.
So, to effectively manage your TAL, you can use a CDP (customer data platform). It enables B2B marketing teams to collect relevant sales and behavioral data. Plus, it helps continuously improve individual profiles as they move through the funnel.
A CDP also allows you to find, segment, and execute ICPs. In short, you provide your sales/marketing teams with a comprehensive platform by integrating your ABM list with a CDP. This platform gives access to all the profiles in every tier. It also analyzes data to engage each contact at the ideal pace.
Generating new business remains a top priority for B2B companies. And with various data management tools and marketing strategies available, defining your business goals is important. Creating a list of high-quality leads is a good starting point. However, it doesn't guarantee success in reaching them all on the first try.
The true test of the quality of your data lies in putting it into action – such as preparing a cold call script or an email response. Encourage your team to proactively engage with your leads list to achieve your end goals.
To ensure the effectiveness of your lead list, you can collaborate with your client acquisition teams or enlist the services of a B2B partner like Revnew. Revnew has demonstrated impressive results by partnering with Pointful Education – to successfully set up 80 appointments in just four months!
Related Post: Advantages of ABM Agency Partners
Determining the appropriate size for an ABM list can vary depending on your company's goals, resources, and target audience. In general, ABM lists typically range from 50 to 500 accounts.
However, some companies have had success with lists as small as 10-20 accounts for a highly targeted approach. Ultimately, the size of your ABM list will depend on the unique factors of your firm and its goals for the ABM strategy.
There are three types of ABM approaches to target accounts: