Ultimate Guide to the 3 Types of Account Based Marketing

According to a study done by the Altera Group, 97% of marketers believed that they had a higher ROI from account-based marketing than other marketing campaigns. In a recent study from AI Multiple, it’s been estimated that 96% of organizations and companies consider ABM campaigns as the key driver to increase revenue in B2B sales. These studies really show that ABM has arrived, and many B2B companies are now integrating ABM campaigns into their sales and marketing strategies. But what is account-based marketing?

Account-based marketing is a data-driven customized B2B marketing approach that focuses on high-value accounts and delivers messages based on the specific pain points and needs of these accounts. By targeting high-value accounts, customized materials that can cut through the clutter of usual marketing materials for high-yield results can be developed. An ABM campaign targets the typical challenges of B2B companies such as the difficulty of identifying accounts well suited to your product and shortening sales cycles. The opportunities to apply ABM campaigns far beyond your key accounts have certainly grown in recent years. So, it’s very important to know more about B2B account-based marketing strategies especially in 2022.

Ultimate Guide to the 3 Types of Account-Based Marketing Campaigns

There are three main types of B2B account based marketing depending on the number of accounts you want to target and the strategic and financial value of the accounts:

One-to-One ABM (Strategic ABM)

One-to-one account-based marketing treats your most valuable targets as individual markets. It simply means engaging with each of them in a specific way. For instance, one-to-one ABM campaigns would involve targeting 5-10 key target accounts, the ones whose company would make your year or even change the direction of your business. The main resources required to engage with each account in a one-to-one ABM campaign are very significant. So, it’s essential that you have deep insights into the buying process of these target accounts.

By focusing on 10 accounts that you know are likely to buy your products or services, you can allot more resources to engaging with them, knowing that they are more likely to convert and deliver you great profit.

One-to-Few ABM (ABM Lite)

In this type of account-based marketing strategy, you must focus on second-tier named accounts. One-to-few ABM campaigns involve creating and grouping ideal customer profiles and segments. First, your sales and marketing teams can choose five to ten target accounts with similar needs, challenges, and characteristics. Then, teams can generate customized content for the targeted group.

Sales and marketing teams should also focus on key decision points including which accounts to target, which business issues to highlight, which campaigns to promote, and how to tailor existing content for these one-to-few programs and campaigns. One-to-few ABM is highly recommended for B2B companies with flexible budgets and the capacity to add extra tools and team members when needed.

One-to-Many ABM (Programmatic ABM)

One-to-many ABM is applied to a larger number of target accounts. According to ITSM, the average number of accounts for a one-to-many ABM campaign sits at around 100 accounts. To use this type of ABM strategy, you must categorize thousands of accounts based on their business needs, goals, and pain points. Some marketing and sales teams utilize CRM software or marketing automation tools to group these accounts accordingly. Then, they create customized content to target accounts based on their industry or other broad descriptions such as company size or area of expertise.

Furthermore, one-to-many account-based marketing campaigns require personalization. Yet, it does not require more time and financial resources. It is highly recommended for smaller companies with a limited budget.

B2B companies pushing to design, launch, and expand their ABM campaigns should understand the differences and implications of each type of B2B account-based marketing if they are to create an optimal strategy. They also need to ensure that sales and marketing teams are on the same page with the ABM strategies that they are taking.

Are you looking for the best account-based marketing services suitable for your business needs? Markable Solutions is your perfect choice. We make sure to test the client’s ABM campaigns to ensure they are effective so they can enhance the results over time. Interested? Talk to our team now! We’re happy to hear your story.