If you’re a B2B marketer worth your salt, you’ll probably already know: Account-Based Marketing (ABM) is kind of a big deal. It’s a strategic approach to sales and marketing that uses targeted and personalised communication to win new business from a specific company or account. As a method of marketing, it’s become increasingly popular, and there’s a very good reason for that: ABM gets results.
So, for those of you who want to get your hands on some of those results – and who want to do so as efficiently and effectively as possible – here are 10 ABM statistics you simply can’t ignore. They’ll show you why integrating ABM into your B2B marketing strategies is so important, plus, our Director Renaye Edwards shares her insight on how to keep ABM on top form.
Ready? You’d better be. Prepare to be ABM-azed…
IT GETS MORE THAN IT GIVES
When it comes to return-on-investment (ROI), ABM is streaks ahead. Being able to track your ROI is essential for every aspect of your business, but that’s particularly true for the marketing department. ABM has been proven as one of the most effective marketing channels for generating a positive return – without splashing out too much.
Research has found that 87% of marketers have seen their ABM initiatives consistently outperform other marketing strategies and investment, with 30% of those surveyed claiming that the difference was significant.
IT’S A REVENUE-MAGNET
Naturally, the main goal of any marketing initiative is to generate revenue. And when it comes to doing so, ABM cuts the mustard. In fact, according to certain data, companies using ABM strategies generate over 200% better revenues for their marketing efforts than those who don’t. It’s the undisputed revenue champ.
There’s no escaping the fact that ABM needs commitment – this type of programme needs time and attention. But the rewards speak for themselves, something worth considering if you’re trying to get buy-in support from the c-suite.
ABM = KUDOS
The relationships that you form with your customers are absolutely crucial, and it’s fundamentally important to foster them as best you can. ABM is a sure-fire way of doing just that. Organisations that use ABM have reported an 80% improvement in their customer lifetime value. Kudos indeed.
REKINDLING THE SPARK
A client relationship is like a marriage. And like a marriage, if you want it to last, you have to keep things interesting. You must ensure you’re doing everything you can to not only maintain but improve these relationships in any way you can. ABM is proven to do just that, with 85% of marketers claiming it provided significant improvement to their ability to retain and expand existing client relationships.
IT’S THE RISE OF THE DREAM TEAM…
As well as boosting your client relationships, ABM has the ability to mend one of the more traditionally spikey internal relationships, too: sales and marketing. Though they’re two business departments that should be closely connected, that’s not always the case, and if they’re singing from two different hymn sheets, it’s your business that will suffer. Thankfully, ABM can help align the two departments under one goal, and that is a fundamentally good thing. B2B marketers with closely aligned sales and marketing operations can see a 24% faster three-year revenue growth and a 27% faster three-year profit growth.
…AND THE DREAM TEAM IS REAL
In fact, ABM is so effective in aligning the two departments that 91% of those marketing teams using an ABM programme said that they had become ‘tightly’ or ‘somewhat or moderately’ aligned with sales. That’s a vast majority.
Collaboration and alignment between sales and marketing is critical for success – I can’t emphasise this enough! So play to your strengths, share knowledge, work together right from the very first kick-off call to make ABM a partnership for everyone.
IT’S PERSONAL
The fact that ABM speaks personally, on a human level to individual target accounts is key. Even in the digital age, 89.5% of B2B sales are still completed by a person, and there’s no doubt that kind of intimate touch pays off.
IT’S SO HOT RIGHT NOW…
ABM is officially blowing up. In a recent survey, just 6% of B2B respondents said they’re not doing ABM in any form. It’s no longer a case of stealing a march on your competition – it’s a case of keeping up…
AND THE TEMPERATURE KEEPS RISING
The modern business world is becoming increasingly enamoured with the powers of ABM, to the point where more than 60% of all companies are planning to implement an ABM programme within the coming year.
LIKE WE SAID, IT’S KIND OF A BIG DEAL
More than 90% of B2B marketers worldwide now say that ABM is ‘extremely’ or ‘very’ important to their overall marketing efforts. It’s a great stat, but we can’t say we’re surprised – we’ve been saying it for years!
If I could only give one piece of ABM advice, it would be this – ABM is a marathon, not a sprint. Take the time to do your planning and research properly, that way you’ll have a campaign with brains and beauty.
SO, THERE YOU HAVE IT
10 great reasons to get your next ABM campaign off the ground ASAP. And if you are thinking of diving in, you’ll find no better experts than Digital Radish to guide you. We’re creative ABM masters, highly skilled in the not-so-dark arts of this highly targeted method of marketing. Find out more about our ABM programmes here.
Selbey Anderson Group of agencies