4 Key Functions of Account-based Marketing (ABM) Solutions

Mark Bridges
4 min readJul 7, 2022

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ABMs are useful for implementing the ABM methodology. By utilizing the ABM approach, we can automate and streamline the lengthy process of identifying target accounts and reduce the effort, time, and expense required to court these prospective clients.

ABM systems facilitate the creation of the most qualified leads, development of customized purchasing journeys, enhancement of the lifetime value of customers, and the maintenance of a healthy pipeline of promising accounts. To better target and prioritize communications with key accounts, these solutions can be combined with other Sales and Marketing systems, such as CRM or Marketing Automation platforms.

ABM solutions fine-tune Marketing and Sales departments beyond standard Branding and lead generation techniques. Prior to executing a personalized Marketing Strategy, these systems aid in identifying the correct target accounts. ABM solutions are utilized to acquire new clients, cultivate current and future prospects, and expand enterprise accounts.

ABM solutions have the following 4 main functions:

  1. Account Management
  2. Account Intelligence
  3. Account-based Advertising
  4. Digital Personalization

Let us delve further into these fundamental functions.

Account Management

The most essential function of ABM solutions is the efficient management of key accounts. ABM Strategy requires strong collaboration between Marketing and Sales, identification of prospective accounts and their compatibility with our offerings, and prompt feedback on the outcome of negotiations with the account to close a deal. ABM systems record this information, optimize its distribution between various units, and establish Marketing or Sales funnels or pipelines.

The ABM software integrates with Sales and Marketing automation systems and stores customer data in databases. This is accomplished by creating an account record in the CRM system. ABM provides stringent administrative control over the origin of account information, its updates, duplicate entries, and missing data. Account Management Solution enables the creation of target lists, termination of unsuitable accounts, purchase decisions, engagement and conversion data, and the storage and evaluation of clicks.

Account Intelligence

The succeeding essential function of ABM solutions is to evaluate account-relevant data in order to qualify leads. ABM has taken over the traditional “large funnel” concept with a narrower Marketing funnel based on data and a more targeted evaluation of accounts prior to their becoming leads. Account Intelligence solutions enable the qualification of leads by analyzing important and relevant qualifying data, connect marketers to prospective accounts, and permit the maintenance of a more accurate target account list.

These solutions prioritize sales intelligence data (such as the contact information and organizational structure of a target account) and account intelligence data (sector, geography, IT setup, capital spending history, IP addresses, and customer intent data). Account Intelligence systems are typically flooded with obsolete or irrelevant data. Advanced Account Intelligence systems circumvent this issue with account data feeds that are automatically updated. To distinguish between purchasing signals and market noise Manufacturers of Account Intelligence systems have developed lead qualifying systems to track ideal accounts. They achieve this by employing distinct company and buying signal criteria, algorithms based on benchmarks and behaviors, and Machine Learning to identify prospects with high close rates or high engagement.

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Mark Bridges

I blog about various management frameworks, from Strategic Planning to Digital Transformation to Change Management. https://flevy.com