First up at Rainmaker 2018, we were delighted to have Andrea Clatworthy, the doyenne of Account-Based Marketing, running through the key building blocks of a successful ABM program.

My takeaways:

1. it is a strategic exercise;
2. it is crucial that marketing and sales are working together;
3. consistency! - to the extent of having ‘transfer windows’ when account  marketers are allowed to change their key accounts;
4. deep engagement with the issues and needs of your accounts;
5. it is all about the insights - see 3 & 4.

But also the big question when looking to launch an ABM program - why bother?

And the answer was that with customers being increasingly well-informed (a process that technology will only continue) it is critical that you reach out to them before they formally engage. If 57% of the sales journey is over before you are even contacted, then engaging (or making yourself known as a player in your space) is absolutely key.

And one final point she made, not an obvious one, is that in an ABM or a ‘Rainmaker’ program, people are more important than process. 

A happy ray of light for us humans in the world of machine learning, AR, AI, VR ...

Full video here