B2B Sales Supercharge: Automate Your ABM Like a Pro

Ditch the manual grind! Our ABM automation with HubSpot to unlock B2B sales growths skyrocket engagement & conversions.

Today, the essence of marketing lies in personalization — targeting the right individuals, at the right place, at the right moment. Account-based marketing (ABM) follows this principle closely and has been gaining traction. In fact, according to a 2024 State of ABM survey, 94.3% of participants are utilizing an ABM approach.

This makes ABM a crucial tactic, especially for those selling high-value B2B products or services to a limited pool of companies with multiple stakeholders. The key to effectively expanding these strategies lies in the use of ABM automation tools.

Below, we’ll guide you through the process of streamlining your account-based marketing strategy with the help of these tools.

What is ABM Automation?

ABM Automation is an autonomous B2B marketing technique facilitated by marketing software. Its objective is to engage businesses with multiple decision-makers on a large scale, employing tailored content and interactions to sway their purchasing decisions.

The Benefits of ABM Automation

1. Scalable Acquisition Strategy
2. Shorter Sales Cycle
3. Enhanced Alignment Between Marketing and Sales
4. Improved Customer Retention

1. Scalable Acquisition Strategy

Automation inherently allows for scalability. By automating ABM strategies, your marketing team can reallocate their time towards nurturing specific accounts and customizing interactions for each decision-maker involved. This means your business can expand without the constraints of manually managing each account.

2. Shorter Sales Cycle

Here’s a scenario: With a narrowed focus on select accounts, your sales team can be more strategic about advancing leads through the sales cycle. If a particular marketing tactic proves successful with an account, the sales rep can concentrate their efforts on clinching that deal. ABM automation streamlines this process, allowing for quicker deal closures and, consequently, shorter sales cycles.

3. Enhanced Alignment Between Marketing and Sales

Often, the synergy between marketing and sales teams is more aspirational than real. However, an automated ABM approach necessitates and fosters a closer alignment between these two sectors to effectively seal deals.

The marketing team is tasked with generating content that empowers the sales team, who in turn are responsible for nurturing those relationships and finalizing transactions. Without this collaborative effort, the ABM strategy would fall short. Automation tools like RollWorks help synchronize these efforts by mass-producing relevant content and tracking accounts throughout the sales journey, keeping both teams on a unified path toward their objectives.

In essence, automating your ABM strategy not only refines the marketing process but also aligns it more closely with sales objectives, leading to a more efficient and successful business operation.

4. Enhanced Customer Loyalty

In account-based marketing, personalizing marketing and sales content for each account is crucial. However, maintaining this level of personalization manually is challenging and often leads to a gradual shift towards more generic content, weakening the customer relationship over time.

ABM automation changes this dynamic. By automating elements like emails and direct mail campaigns throughout the customer lifecycle, you can continually strengthen the bond with your clients, leading to increased customer retention and satisfaction.

Account-Based Marketing Automation Steps

1. Define your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP).
2. Identify your target accounts.
3. Sync your ABM with marketing automation and CRM software.
4. Develop your campaigns.
5. Customize your content.
6. Personalize your interactions.
7. Establish a dashboard for monitoring progress.

1. Define your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP).

Kickstart your ABM by pinpointing your ideal customer profile. Think of this as a more organization-focused version of a buyer persona.

Determine the types of companies you’re aiming for, considering factors like company size, revenue, industry, and location. Utilize ICP workflow templates available in platforms like HubSpot’s ABM software to recognize patterns and classify companies in your database according to how closely they match your ICP.

This step is crucial for organizing and prioritizing your target accounts effectively using your ABM software.

2. Identify your target accounts.

With your ICP defined, you can now set up your target accounts in your ABM platform.

Labeling "Target accounts" allows for easy management and segmentation in your Target Accounts dashboard. For instance, HubSpot’s ABM software lets you tag accounts and rank them using the ICP Tier property, distinguishing between high-priority "Tier 1" accounts and others.

Advanced ABM software might also offer AI-driven suggestions to automate the discovery of companies that align well with your criteria.

3. Sync your ABM with marketing automation and CRM software.

Before launching your ABM campaigns, ensure your ABM software is integrated with both your marketing automation tools and CRM system.

With platforms like HubSpot, access to various ABM features might require certain subscriptions like Marketing or Sales Pro.

This integration is vital for automation. If your ABM tool doesn’t communicate with your email marketing or ad tools, automation becomes unfeasible. Similarly, without CRM integration, tracking the transition of leads to accounts and measuring the ROI of your campaigns would be challenging.

By connecting these tools, you bring together ICP research, target accounts, content creation, and customer management in one centralized location.

4. Develop Your Campaigns

Once your ABM and marketing tools are in place, it’s time to craft your campaigns.

Begin by determining which channels to utilize and what triggers will activate automated workflows.

Start by identifying where your target accounts are most active online. For instance, you might launch an advertising campaign targeting specific job titles or companies on platforms like LinkedIn and Facebook.

Next, consider the customer journey and establish automated workflows accordingly. You might set a task for a sales rep when someone from a target account engages with an email, your website, or blog.

5. Customize Your Content

The goal of ABM is to provide tailored marketing campaigns. This means creating specific content and using automation tools for audience segmentation.

For instance, HubSpot’s ABM tools allow you to use company lists for ad audiences or target companies directly with LinkedIn ads.

Once you’ve defined your ICP, tailor your content to resonate with your target audience. While your ABM content will resemble other marketing materials, it’s now focused on specific accounts and businesses, aiming to address their unique needs and pain points.

6. Customize Your Interactions

Part of your ABM strategy involves working closely with your sales team to customize their interactions with target accounts.

Automation tools are invaluable here, and that’s why your CRM and ABM software must be in sync.

For example, tools like HubSpot’s ABM and Sales Hub can automate follow-up emails and tasks based on prospect behavior.

However, even with a focus on automation, ensure that sales outreach and content remain personalized and relevant.

7. Monitor with a Dashboard

The final step in automating your ABM approach is to track and assess your efforts. Use your ABM software to create a dashboard that provides an overview of your target accounts, including company score, open deals, total pipeline, and identified decision-makers.

If your software offers company scoring, utilize it to prioritize efforts based on properties you’ve defined in your software.

Also, consider implementing A/B testing in your early ABM automation phases to discern which messaging resonates best with your ICP.

While ABM requires careful planning and collaboration, employing ABM software tools — especially those integrated with your CRM and marketing automation systems — can significantly streamline and amplify your strategy.

FAQ 1: What is Account-Based Marketing (ABM) Automation?

Answer:
ABM Automation is a B2B marketing strategy using software to target and engage businesses with multiple decision-makers. It personalizes content and interactions at scale to influence purchasing decisions, streamlining repetitive tasks and ensuring focused, efficient marketing and sales efforts.

FAQ 2: What are the key benefits of ABM Automation?

Answer:
The benefits of ABM Automation include scalable acquisition strategies, shorter sales cycles, better marketing and sales alignment, and stronger customer retention through personalized engagement and efficient processes.

FAQ 3: How do you define an Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) in ABM?

Answer:
An ICP in ABM is a detailed description of a company most likely to benefit from your product, focusing on criteria like company size, revenue, industry, and location, guiding the targeting and prioritization of marketing efforts.

FAQ 4: How does content personalization work in ABM?

Answer:
Content personalization in ABM involves creating tailored marketing messages for each target account based on specific needs and characteristics, using automation tools for segmentation and delivering relevant, effective content directly to decision-makers.

FAQ 5: Why is it important to integrate ABM with CRM and marketing automation software?

Answer:
Integrating ABM with CRM and marketing automation enhances efficiency, personalization, and measurement. It ensures seamless communication, tailored strategies based on customer data, and a unified platform for tracking campaign effectiveness and ROI.