10 years ago, ‘spray and pray’ was the de facto marketing strategy. Most B2B marketing teams were focused on casting their nets far and wide. So, they blasted out the same generic ads, emails, and content to everyone (and anyone) in their database.
It was a numbers game. Fill the funnel with enough leads, and you were bound to squeeze out a few customers, right? ?♀️
Thankfully, we’ve come along way.
The Rise of ABM
Account-based marketing started to take off in the mid-to-late 2000s. It caught on because it was different. ABM turned the traditional approach to B2B marketing on its head…literally.
Instead of the spray and pray approach, ABM helps you prioritize quality over quantity. Now you can focus on and target specific accounts that will help you hit your company’s revenue goals.
So what happens when you stop casting a wide net? And when you stop trying to stuff the funnel?
You get better engagement. And better opportunities. With ABM, you identify companies that you know would be a good fit to buy your product or service. Then you target those companies with personalized campaigns, with the ultimate goal being to convert those “target accounts” into opportunities for the sales team.
The Rise of Conversations
The adoption of ABM practices signals a fundamental shift in the market – the demand for more personal buying experiences. Because the way people prefer to communicate with businesses has evolved. Today’s buyers want their questions answered in real-time. They want to be able to start the conversation when it’s convenient for them. And they want to be treated like humans.
Conversational marketing helps ensure your buyers always have a seamless, consistent, and personalized experience as they move through your funnel.
What does this look like in real life? Instead of forcing people from your target accounts (a.k.a. your best leads) to wait for a response, you roll out the red carpet for them and use messaging to engage with them in real-time.
When ABM Meets Conversational Marketing
When you combine ABM and conversational marketing, the results are game-changing.
After you’ve done the hard work of identifying your target accounts, you don’t sit back and wait for conversations to happen. Instead, you create targeted messaging (like with with account-based ads) to get in front of those accounts.
And once stakeholders from those accounts arrive on your site, you are at-the-ready to recognize and welcome them to your site. It’s your job to answer their questions and exceed their expectations with content and information that is most likely to guide them down the funnel.
The Conversational ABM Playbook
Conversational ABM is a proven method for increasing engagement with your target accounts and creating more at-bat opportunities for your sales team.
That’s why we joined forces with Demandbase to write this guide.
We’re sharing our process for how to adopt conversational ABM. And for those of you who don’t have a lot of experience setting up integrated campaigns or using chat, don’t worry. We walk you through it all in just five steps.
Here’s a look at some of the questions this guide will answer?
- How do I identify companies that are both a good fit for my product and ready to buy?
- How do I segment those companies in a meaningful way?
- How do I craft personalized marketing messages to send to those companies?
- And once I succeed in getting people from those companies to visit my website, how do I engage with them and facilitate their journey through the sales funnel?
Now we have a question for you.
Are you ready to get started with conversational ABM?
