The global ABM market is expected to surpass $1.6 billion by 2027, which means having an efficient account-based marketing workflow ready to go could be one of the best tools in your arsenal. Because account-based marketing tactics can take more time and planning than broader campaigns, the more organized you can be, the better.
What should a successful workflow look like? How many steps should it contain and where should you start? This guide will walk you through some of the basics and give you a template to work from so you can create the workflow that’s right for you.
What we’ll cover in this guide
- What is an account-based marketing workflow?
- What is the goal of an account-based workflow?
- What benefits does an account-based workflow offer?
- How to establish an ABM workflow step-by-step
- The perfect addition to your ABM workflow toolbelt
What is an account-based marketing workflow?
If you haven’t already, you should check out our ultimate guide to account-based marketing. It has everything you need to understand the intricacies of ABM! We’ll start with a brief refresher, though.
Well, how does ABM work?
The main account-based marketing process is also known as the “land and expand” method. This means you focus on landing a client and nurturing that relationship to encourage more sales down the line. This could be more sales with that specific relationship or expanding out to make use of your client’s network, driving more business for yourself.
Essentially, you look at your existing clientele instead of digging into broad demographics, creating significantly more customized campaigns for them.
The general concept is to focus on building, maintaining, and nurturing relationships with targets on a more individual level first. Once that relationship is strong, you can leverage it to find other targets where you’ll start the process all over again. The hope is that by customizing your efforts on this scale, you’ll land better, more profitable customers who can provide more value to you over a lifetime.
What’s the goal of an account-based marketing workflow?
A workflow, generally speaking, is a consistent set of clearly defined steps to build a marketing campaign or project. An account-based marketing workflow is your roadmap to getting an ABM campaign off the ground.
One of the biggest hurdles of ABM is how much work goes into it, and it can be easy to get tangled in all the tasks that need doing. The goal of incorporating a clear workflow into your account-based marketing playbook is simple: it’s to give your team a clear step-by-step process to success.
What benefits does an ABM workflow offer?
The benefits of having a thorough ABM workflow are tied to many of the benefits of applying ABM tactics. For instance, an account-based marketing plan can lead to a faster sales process, and having a clear and organized workflow will only help you achieve that goal.
Basically, if your processes are clear, it means your teams can work more efficiently, and if they can work more efficiently, you’ll get the faster overall sales process you’re looking for. Many ABM strategies can also be extremely cost-effective because they narrow the scope of your search to targets that are most likely to convert. Plus, the more you practice your workflow, the better it will become—so long as you’re iterating on your process.
Ultimately, a smart account-based marketing workflow is just another way to improve your strategy’s chances for success.
How to establish an ABM workflow from start to finish
Now that you know what an account-based marketing workflow is and why it’s important to your overall strategy, let’s walk through the steps it takes to create one!
1. Identify and research target accounts
Start by looking at your ideal customer profile (ICP) and use that to see what potential customers might match it. Once you have this preliminary list, you can sort your targets into various categories from your highest priority—those most likely to convert or those with the potential to bring in the most revenue—to your lowest priority.
Now you’ll have a good idea of where to start your research. Start with your highest priority targets and really dig into what makes them tick. You should take into account everything from the kind of content they post and interact with to the core concerns of their industry and their placement within it.
Considering all of these factors will help give you a clearer picture of your target’s wants, needs, and concerns. Knowing that will tell you how best to market to them!
2. Figure out how to segment and personalize your approach
Tailoring content to address targets’ specific needs is crucial, which means you need to have an organized way of collecting and sorting your targets. You’ll want to account for the four key marketing segmentation variables when you do this: demographic, geographic, psychographic, and behavioral. This helps you account for more than just the basic stats and view them as whole entities.
The benefit here is that the specific differences between your targets are more straightforward, allowing you to customize your approach to each of them a little more easily. Once your targets are sorted, you can begin creating custom content experiences for them with platforms like Zoomforth.
3. Nurture and engage target accounts
Because your relationship will begin with a much more intentional and curated experience, some reps report a 58% improvement in retaining customers. That means less churn and more longevity, which can in turn lead to more stable revenue streams. In order to maintain this, you need to continually engage with your targets, not merely demand that they engage with you.
This can be as simple as responding and engaging with their own posts on social media. On the other hand, you can be more thoughtful, such as acknowledging their own work anniversaries and milestones with work-appropriate gifts. The important thing is to be a presence in their work life, not only appearing when you need them to purchase from you.
4. Measure performance and iterate on workflow
Regularly analyzing your results and progress to improve performance is key—the long-term success of all your hard work relies on it. Closely tracking all the usual suspects (downloads, lead scores, email opens, etc.) can be a big help to see if the template you’ve created is doing its job.
Using a KPI scorecard might be a great help in this respect. It should allow you to easily share the campaign’s progress, keeping everyone on the same page. It also means it will be easier to pivot if you’re not seeing the overall results you want.
Let Zoomforth be a part of your ABM workflow toolbelt!
With these ideas in mind, you’re ready to start creating your next account-based marketing campaign. And, while you’re at it, why not invest in the perfect ABM tool?
Zoomforth offers more than just analytics, it also has easy-to-understand dashboards and tons of easy ways to customize every page. That’s because we’re a leader in the world of custom content experiences and microsite creation, and we’ve got what you need to get your ABM campaign off the ground.
Create, build, publish, and track the success of your ABM sites with our easy-to-use platform. Don’t wait—request a demo today!
