ABM empowers startups to maximize ROI, accelerate sales cycles, and strengthen client relationships by delivering highly personalized marketing to key accounts. Leveraging tools like Salesforce and Marketo help startups drive targeted growth and efficiency.
Here are the core trends in ABM expected to remain highly relevant, with real-time B2B data and examples.
1. Hyper-Personalization at Scale
Personalization has been at the core of ABM for quite some time now, but in 2025, the trend will be the hyperscaling of personalization. This entails leveraging factors such as data analytics, artificial intelligence, and machine learning to provide highly personalized experiences to individual accounts.
A recent survey conducted by Evergage showed that 98% of marketing executives regard personalization as a way to enhance customer interactions, while 74% observed a rise in sales. As AI and machine learning advance, B2B companies can leverage vast amounts of data to better understand their accounts, identify preferences, and address unmet needs.
One such example is Salesforce, which employs an AI framework known as Einstein to filter its clients’ data and then offer them relevant content of interest and special offers, if any, at that crucial account. Due to this, there has been a positive impact, such as increased sales productivity by 21% and an overall return on investment improvement in the marketing aspect by 43%.
2. ABM and AI Integration
While AI is already being used in some ABM approaches, its implementation will become even more common in the future, which will help marketers manage their campaigns and optimize outcomes. AI can help identify target accounts, forecast their behavior, and deliver valuable content at the right time.
Forrester’s study reveals that AI in marketing can streamline the task by 30% and boost the chance of closing by 25%. The use of AI capabilities for predictive analysis in the context of ABM, as well as utilizing its tools for decision-making, should not be underestimated when the company is moving from the pilot phase toward large-scale ABM implementation.
IBM’s Watson is a notable example, where AI-driven insights are used to identify high-potential accounts and tailor marketing messages accordingly. This approach has significantly enhanced IBM’s ability to engage with key decision-makers and accelerate the sales cycle.
3. Account-Based Experience (ABX)
Account-Based Experience (ABX) is in fact the next step in the evolution of ABM that is aimed at offering a coherent and integrated approach to customers. ABX is centered on the customer, making sure every touch point is meaningful.
A survey conducted by Demand Gen Report revealed that 79% of B2B buyers consider the experience a firm offers as valuable as its goods and services. From the above analysis, it can be seen that greater emphasis on ABX would improve the condition of relations between business and customers, which in turn leads to loyalty.
ABX has been successfully deployed at Adobe, with the company establishing the perfect cohesion of its marketing, sales, and customer support sections for the benefit of its enterprise customers. They have implemented a sweeping approach that has led to higher rates of customer retention by 30%.
4. Intent Data Utilization
The use of intent data will prove essential in 2024, given that firms will continue to face challenges in identifying signs that commonly indicate a prospect is ready to purchase. Intent data reveals when the specific accounts that you are targeting for your solution are out shopping, meaning that engagement is timely.
According to Gartner, companies that utilize intent data witness a 2x increase in revenue from ABM accounts. The results showed a four-fold increase in deal size and an improvement of 70% in win rates. Marketing becomes easier since intent data reveals information on the accounts that are actively exploring the topics relevant to a company’s solutions.
Bombora is an intent data provider that works with companies such as Cisco to help identify and target high-intent accounts. Hence, intent data has helped the Cisco company focus on its sales and its efforts to secure more customers, resulting in better conversion to sales.
5. Video Content Dominance
Video content will remain a crucial aspect of ABM approaches as it provides a unique approach to sharing value propositions and fostering relationships with key accounts.
According to the most recent Wyzowl survey called The State of Video Marketing 2023, 87% of video marketers who contributed to the survey said that video marketing is profitable. Video content is a great addition to B2B marketing as it increases interest and allows for expressing the value created by the company in a better way.
In particular, personal videos in HubSpot ABM are used to manage key accounts. These approaches have brought about an increase in response rates of 49% and a 33% improvement in deal closure times.
6. Collaborative ABM Strategies
Marketing and sales are two critical departments that will need to forge even stronger links in the future. The coordination of these teams guarantees that the strategies developed in each organization fit within the strategic model of ABM and that both departments have the same objectives.
A LinkedIn report shows that 58% of firms state that synchronization of sales and marketing positively affects customer loyalty, and 36% affirm that it increases the probabilities of sales success. This makes it possible to have a centralized approach towards identification and selling to key accounts.
This trend has been exemplified by Atlassian, which has very closely integrated its marketing and sales departments. It has made ABM campaigns integrated and resulted in conversion rates of leads to customers of 20%.
Editor’s Note!
Such trends determined in ABM indicate shifts of focus that can be expected in the future and refer to the individual approach, the active use of technology, and cooperation. All these trends, if adopted by B2B companies, and with real-time data being the key, will give the companies implementing this strategy the best shot at achieving greater success in their ABM endeavors.