In 2020, only 15% of B2B marketers were using Account-Based Marketing (ABM). By the following year, that number had skyrocketed to 70%.
The success of ABM goes beyond increased deal sizes and a better ROI. It offers other benefits like a more efficient use of budget and better engagement with both prospects and customers.
Regardless of objective, all ABM campaigns share common attributes including personalization, specific targeting, and an aim to deeply engage, not just sell. To those ends, video can be a strong tool that delivers all of these attributes and should undoubtedly be a part of ABM strategies.
WHAT IS ABM?
HubSpot defines ABMas “a strategic approach that focuses on high-value accounts in a market or business.” Indeed, its focus on personalization better addresses a segment’s unique needs and use cases, and it better prepares an account for sales outreach.
Traditional B2B demand generation uses the funnel approach, casting a wide net to attract a large number of leads before engaging the most qualified prospects. In contrast, ABM inverts the funnel. It begins by selecting key accounts, and then engages them through various touchpoints and interactions customized specifically for those accounts.
BENEFITS OF ABM
BUDGET EFFICIENCY
With ABM, target accounts are researched and identified as having a high likelihood of conversion. Budget and resources can then be focused on these accounts rather than a large pool of prospects—many of whom will never convert.
However, the laser-like focus on specific accounts can come with a tradeoff. Traditional demand gen may have lower conversion rates, but it also generates more brand awareness that can pay off later. Depending on your business and industry, consider reserving some budget for campaigns that maintain brand recognition and recall with general audiences.
BUYER JOURNEY ALIGNMENT
Today’s B2B buyers are more informed, empowered, and independent than ever before. Rather than taking a traditional linear path, they often circle in and out of buyer stages, skip steps, or explore other solutions in parallel.
An autonomous approach to research and early decision-making can often evade traditional lead scoring models. Against this backdrop, ABM is more effective partly because of its focus on creating opportunities to explore content, rather than creating rigid paths to consume content.
Certainly, opportunities for content exploration are still “mapped” and based on data. But the goal is to engage accounts in a more holistic manner rather than merely directing them toward the next prescribed action. Lead scoring can accommodate this by measuring sequences of engagements rather than isolated interactions.
WHAT IS ABM VIDEO?
With traditional demand gen, top of the funnel videos are focused on building brand awareness for a wider pool of prospects. Common examples could include product sizzles that cover a variety of value props and outcomes.
As prospects move further down the funnel toward the consideration phase, the videos gradually become more specific. These videos may include content like product demos and how-tos focused on specific outcomes and features designed to help prospects decide on particular solutions.
ABM starts specific, based on research around the challenges, pain points, and opportunities for each particular company. The goal is not just to sell, but to build confidence that you understand their unique circu