Account-Based Marketing (ABM) represents the perfect fusion of B2B sales and marketing, combining the strengths of both functions to create highly effective, targeted campaigns.  

The seamless collaboration between these two revenue-generating teams is what makes ABM so impactful, which is why more and more companies are investing in it to drive business growth from high-value accounts. 

We’ve used ABM strategies to drive serious results for clients with highly targeted audiences—combining laser-focused messaging with extremely specific targeting to reach the right businesses, with the right story, at the right time to drive actions.  

The result: boosted click-through rates, higher campaign engagement, and an overall lift in the impact of our marketing for clients focused on driving business growth. 

What is Account-Based Marketing? 

ABM flips the traditional marketing funnel upside down—rather than casting a wide net to attract potential leads, ABM zeroes in on key accounts that are most likely to convert into long-term, profitable customers.  

Each account is treated as its own market, with customized messaging delivered directly to decision-makers. The goal: driving highly specific conversions with messaging created specifically for each business being targeted. 

How is ABM different from traditional campaigns? 

Most marketers are familiar with “buyer personas,” which are semi-fictional representations of a brand’s ideal customer. These personas are incredibly useful for crafting campaigns, writing ad copy, and designing visual assets.  

In customer-focused campaigns, every piece of content is addressed to one of these research-based personas. 

In ABM, the approach to personalizing content is similar– but instead focuses on specific businesses. Rather than targeting general personas, ABM campaigns utilize tailored marketing materials to meet the unique needs, challenges, and aspirations of a each specific business target.  

How Does an ABM Campaign Work? 

Every ABM campaign looks slightly different depending on the nature of the business and its target accounts. The basic structure remains mostly consistent, but for the sake of specificity and clear illustration, let’s use a real example.  

This past year, we designed and deployed an ABM campaign for healthcare technology leader Outset Medical.  

The goal of the campaign was to raise awareness among specific audiences within specific hospitals for Outset’s flagship product Tablo. We deployed an ABM strategy specifically built to reach the right audiences, deliver impactful messaging where it counts, and ultimately drive more leads among Outset’s highly specific audiences. 

Here’s how we made it happen. 

Step 1: Identify Key Accounts

The first phase of this ABM campaign was to finalize a list of target accounts. As engineers of medical technologies, Outset knew – with clinical precision – which hospitals and healthcare systems they wanted to reach. In some cases, they even knew the names of the administrators they hoped would engage with our ads.  

This intel combined with factors like revenue potential and likelihood to convert was essential as our marketing and sales teams collaborated with the client to establish which accounts would be targeted.  

Step 2: Conduct Interviews and Research 

Once the accounts were identified, our teams conducted stakeholder interviews and in-depth market research. This included discussions with regional Outset sales representatives who work in the areas near our target accounts.  

These sales interviews yielded indispensable, real-world insights into what the decision-makers at their local hospital prioritized, and it resulted in a more personalized campaign that integrated field-tested talking points and spoke to real pain points expressed our target audiences. 

Step 3: Step Craft & Launch Personalized Marketing Creative 

For his campaign, our content creation process was divided into three stages.  

First, we worked with the experts at Outset to write a downloadable eBook that would educate healthcare professionals – specifically those working in ICUs – about Tablo.  

Then, we designed a landing page that would give an overview of that downloadable resource and entice users to request access to it. And finally, we produced a series of advertisements that would direct our audience to the landing page. 

Leveraging the information we gathered during the research phase, all of our marketing creative felt precisely tailored to the target accounts. Everything was meticulously crafted to capture the attention of people with the influence to drive profitable outcomes for Outset.  

The ads highlighted the company’s unique value propositions, and the longer-form content addressed the challenges faced by real hospitals and healthcare systems. 

These finalized ads were published across multiple platforms, ensuring that our targeted accounts could be reached wherever they happened to be, whether on mobile or desktop.  

Step 4: Track Performance & Gather Insights 

Like any marketing strategy, measurement was critical to the success of this ABM campaign.  

And because the ultimate goal was to combine the strengths of sales and marketing to convert targeted accounts, the user insights gathered during the marketing portion of the campaign had to be accurate and useful to salespeople who would be approaching these leads in person.  

To accomplish this, we used tools like LeadLander to gather firmographic data on the accounts that clicked through the ads, visited the landing page, and downloaded the eBook resource. This provides sales with actionable data, enabling them to prioritize leads and focus on accounts with the highest likelihood of converting. 

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Outset ABM Campaign Performance Data at a Glance: 

3.5M

Total Impressions

78,548

Total Clicks

2.3%

Overall Click-Through Rate*

*The average Click-Through Rate (CTR) for a display ad in 2024 is 0.5-1% for reference. So, this was quite good. 

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Top Engaged Job Functions by Click Volume:

44%

Healthcare

15%

Healthcare – Nurse

9%

Director, VP, or C-level role

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Respect for the privacy of the specific targeted accounts prevents the sharing of deeper insights and data (i.e., hospital names and user behavior) but just based on the overview of the performance given above, we deemed the campaign to be impactful and absolutely worthwhile. 

What Are the Ideal Business Outcomes of an ABM Campaign? 

Looking beyond stats and figures towards a bigger picture, any successful Account-Based Marketing campaign should deliver results in three key areas. Continuing with the example we’ve been describing thus far, here is what that success would look like: 

1. Targeted Engagement: High-value healthcare accounts should engage with personalized ads that address their specific needs and challenges. This engagement would result in strong click-through rates and drive decision-makers to visit the landing page, ultimately leading to a high number of content downloads and form submissions. 

2. Actionable Insights: The marketing and sales teams gather detailed data on account behavior, allowing them to prioritize follow-up efforts. With insights into which accounts are most engaged and what types of content resonate most, the sales team can tailor their outreach to focus on the most promising leads. This refined targeting will increase the likelihood of conversions. 

3. Enhanced Sales and Marketing Collaboration: A critical success factor for any ABM campaign is strong collaboration between sales and marketing teams. Both teams must align on shared goals, messaging, and targeted accounts. This ensures a cohesive and efficient approach to driving business. When sales and marketing teams are fully synchronized, they work together toward a common goal, creating a more effective strategy to achieve campaign success. 

Why Do Our Clients Invest in ABM? 

Outset is not alone in their desire to engage in more finely tailored marketing campaigns. Over the years, we’ve seen a steady rise in the number of clients utilizing ABM, and it’s easy to see why. This approach offers numerous benefits, including: 

• Higher ROI: ABM focuses a company’s efforts on reaching high-value accounts. This approach helps businesses build deeper relationships, close larger deals, and generate more revenue from fewer, but more impactful, accounts. 

• Personalized Customer Experiences: ABM enables businesses to create a VIP-like experience for their most important prospects. In today’s competitive market, where personalization is key, this approach helps companies build trust and stand out from competitors. 

• Efficient Use of Resources: ABM is about quality, not quantity. By focusing on the accounts that matter most, businesses make the most of their marketing budgets and resources, ensuring that time and money are spent on efforts that have a direct impact on revenue. 

• Improved Interdepartmental Alignment: One of the biggest benefits of ABM is the alignment it fosters between sales and marketing teams. Both departments work together to identify target accounts, craft messaging, and track campaign performance. This collaboration leads to a more cohesive strategy for driving business. 

Conclusion & Key Takeaways 

Account-Based Marketing focuses on creating highly targeted strategies that use account-specific insights to boost conversions among high-value prospects. By flipping the traditional marketing funnel 180 degrees, ABM engages a few key accounts, fostering meaningful interactions that lead to profitable outcomes. 

The winning ABM formula combines: 

• Ad creative customized based on market research 

• Studious data tracking and user behavior analysis 

• Strong collaboration between sales and marketing teams 

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“Tablo is an exciting product, particularly in critical care settings, but our field sales team can’t be everywhere at once. demandDrive reached key hospitals, helping to provide data back to our team to inform them of HCP priorities and pain points ahead of each meeting.”

Nicole D. Arsenault
Director, Digital Marketing & Brand at Outset Medical

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ABM is an investment in precision, personalization, and teamwork, driving significant results by focusing on the right leads and delivering tailored messaging. For B2B organizations, ABM provides a strategic path to success by blending marketing expertise with sales intelligence.