5 Common ABM Marketing Mistakes to Avoid

Account-based marketing (ABM) has become a hot topic among business-to-business (B2B) companies in recent years. As the name suggests, it involves a strategic and methodological marketing approach that focuses on personalized messages and processes for specific accounts. Rather than using the same marketing approach on all prospects, for instance, AMB encourages companies to approach each account differently.

When performed correctly, ABM can yield higher conversions while promoting a more productive and efficient sales cycle. But if you're thinking of using ABM in your marketing strategy, you'll want to avoid making the following mistakes.

#1) Misalignment Between Sales and Marketing

An ABM approach requires an alignment between sales and marketing departments. If these departments are out of sync, you'll face an uphill battle trying to utilize ABM. Sales and marketing teams should work together to define goals, marketing automation, milestones, etc. The marketing team must then work to nurture prospects through the sales cycle, while the sales team works to close the deal.

#2) Not Prioritizing Accounts

Another common ABM mistake is failure to prioritize accounts. Different accounts have different "values," with some being more likely or ready to make a purchase than others -- and these are the accounts you should prioritize. If a prospect has expressed interest in buying your product or service in the near future, you should focus your ABM efforts on him or her; otherwise, that prospect may grow cold, resulting in a lost sale.

#3) Performing Account Followups Manually

With all of the automation tools available to B2B companies, there's really no reason why you should follow up with prospects manually. Granted, there are a few exceptions in which manual followups are preferred, but automating this task the rest of the time can free up valuable resources for your company.

#4) Not Using Customer Relationship Management

Don't make the mistake of overlooking Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software. This is perhaps the single most important and useful ABM tool at your disposal. It allows you to manage your professional relationships by seeing which stage prospects are at, what they've purchased in the past, when you've last spoken to them and more. All of this information is invaluable in customizing your marketing messages and ultimately selling your product or service.

#5) Ineffective Reporting

Reporting is essential in ABM, and failure to use it effectively could hinder your ability to sell products or services to prospects. Assuming you have CRM software, it probably has reporting features built in. Additionally, however, you can run reports from your website, social media accounts and other third-party software.

How can you yield better results from new accounts? You already know who are your best customers. You even have a profile or proforma of who they are and why they are great customers. Put that proforma to good use by creating a Custom Lead Generation list. This is a great service by SalesLeads that allows you to get the most of your current customer base by finding sales leads and contacts that are reflective of your proforma. It's a great way to use the features of ABM and CRM to generate more interest and business in a shorter amount of time.