From SEO and paid ads to social media and email marketing, B2B marketers have an endless array of tactics to raise brand awareness and generate leads. And while traditional lead generation efforts appear to be beneficial from a numbers and budget standpoint, there’s a way better option when it comes to driving better quality leads and overall ROI: account-based marketing (ABM).
ABM is not a novel concept. But over the past dozen years, ABM strategies have become much more sophisticated, making the return on one’s ABM investment that much more impressive. ABM is so effective, 70% of marketers report using as part of their overall marketing strategy.
Therefore, if maximizing lead quality and conversion rates happen to be on your B2B wish list, it certainly wouldn’t be a bad idea to step away from more traditional methods of lead generation and use ABM-focused strategies instead. Not only does ABM pack a bigger punch when it comes to driving purchase-intent leads; it also plays a huge role in creating profitable opportunities that ultimately boost conversion for B2B businesses.
Need more convincing? Here are three key reasons why ABM should be your go-to strategy for driving valuable lead gen ROI.
1. Optimized Engagement
While traditional lead generation methods leverage mostly organic, brand-owned channels for content distribution, ABM takes a more strategic approach, using outbound communication channels like email, social media, paid digital advertising, and SDR outreach to deliver targeted, relevant messaging. And unlike the one-size-fits-all strategy typical of traditional lead generation, ABM takes a highly personalized approach. In fact, 56% of marketers strongly agree personalized content is key to ABM’s success. Here’s why:
ABM allows B2B marketers to segment customers into individualized accounts. And because of this strategic classification system, they’re better able to tailor content according to the needs and preferences of these customized segments. In doing so, B2B marketers create more opportunities to engage directly with target audiences on a personal level, which helps generate more high quality, purchase-intent leads. Even McKinsey Research reports 71% of consumers today expect companies to deliver personalized interactions, and 76% get frustrated when it doesn’t happen.
2. Better Lead Quality
Traditional lead generation programs act like a funnel: marketing teams cast a wide net to bring in as many leads as possible, then whittle down that hefty list to a smaller group of qualified leads using a scoring system or other criteria. After that, marketers continue to nurture those qualified leads to determine the most purchase-intent ones of the bunch. Finally, the remaining leads get passed over to sales to initiate contact.
When all’s said and done, this traditional lead gen approach typically garners an average conversion rate of 3.5%, which leaves a lot to be desired.
In comparison, ABM takes a more targeted approach. Instead of casting a wide net, marketers and sales teams come together to create a shared framework that determines how well potential leads align with their ideal customer profile (ICP) and whether those accounts express enough intent to meet the requirements of a sales qualified lead. From there, teams can pare down this list even further, identifying specific people from those qualified accounts to engage, nurture, and convert (Note: make sure to check out our three-step process for identifying key accounts).
And though ABM takes a lot longer to execute than traditional lead gen programs, its strategic approach drives major long-term benefits, as marketers themselves can attest. Research shows 86% of B2B marketers experience improved win rates, while 75% drive greater ROI from ABM programs versus traditional lead generation initiatives. Plus, by working together to identify key accounts, sales and marketing ultimately strengthen team alignment, which helps B2B companies speed three-year revenue growth by 24% and three-year profit growth by 27%.
3. Higher Sales Value
Sure, ABM targets fewer prospects than traditional B2B lead gen, but because those contacts come from prioritized accounts, their potential sales value is considerably higher. Targeting specific purchase-intent contacts from a priority account gives B2B sales teams the chance to land an enterprise-level deal, which drives valuable revenue to the bottom line. That’s opposed to courting individuals through traditional lead gen campaigns, which usually culminates in smaller-scope sales and less revenue.
Also, ABM reduces customer churn, which averages around 5% for most B2B companies. With an ABM-focused lead gen strategy, sales and marketing teams build deeper, more personal relationships with customers, thereby creating more opportunities to upsell, cross sell, and improve the overall customer experience.
Summary
Unlike traditional lead generation tactics where quantity is emphasized over quality, ABM is proven to strategically grow your pipeline, penetrate key accounts faster, maximize resources, and improve customer retention. And as new technologies evolve to make ABM a more streamlined, results-driven system, B2B marketers will, in turn, become much more effective at identifying, engaging, and converting top-quality leads, achieving higher-value deals, and driving all-important ROI.
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Learn more about enhancing ABM efforts and creating better campaigns with our on-demand webinar, A Match Made in Heaven: First-Party Data and ABM Strategies.
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