Account-Based Advertising Channels Guide: Which Channels to Use

Different channels reach different decision-makers at different stages of the buying journey. Account-based advertising requires a multi-channel approach.

This guide breaks down the main channels for ABM, with pros, cons, and best uses for each.

LinkedIn Ads

What it is: Native advertising platform on LinkedIn. Reach professionals by job title, company, seniority level.

Best for: - Reaching decision-makers by title (VP Sales, CFO, CMO) - Building thought leadership and awareness - Engagement-focused campaigns (webinar signups, demo requests) - Reaching multiple stakeholders at the same company

Pricing model: - Cost per click (CPC) or cost per impression (CPM) - Typical cost: $2-10 per click depending on audience - Tier 1 campaigns: $5K-$20K per month

Targeting options: - Company name (exact match or keyword) - Job title and seniority - Industry - School and skills - Audience expansion

Audience size: - Exact company targeting: 100-1,000 people per company (varies by company size) - Title targeting: 100,000s of people across industries

Best use case: Reach VPs and C-level at your Tier 1 accounts with thought leadership content.

Example campaign: "How VP Sales teams in SaaS improve pipeline with ABM" (carousel ad with 3 proof points, link to webinar sign-up)

Pros: - Precise professional targeting - High-quality audience (decision-makers) - Good for account-specific targeting - Reach multiple stakeholders at same company

Cons: - Expensive (highest CPL of all channels) - Requires quality creative to stand out - Limited inventory (can max out audience quickly) - Declining organic reach (forcing paid spend)

Budget allocation: - Tier 1: 40-50% of total advertising budget - Tier 2: 25-30% - Tier 3: Not recommended (too expensive for scaled)

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Google Ads (Search + Display)

Google Search

What it is: Text ads appearing on Google search results for specific keywords.

Best for: - Capturing demand (people actively searching for solutions) - Reaching decision-makers at right moment (intent signal) - Cost-effective CPLs (lower than LinkedIn) - Awareness + conversion together

Pricing model: - Cost per click (CPC) - Typical cost: $1-5 per click depending on keyword - Tier 1 campaigns: $3K-$10K per month

Targeting options: - Keyword matching - Geographic - Device type - Time of day - Audience refinement (company, job title with audience insights)

Best use case: Capture demand from accounts actively searching for your solution.

Example campaign: Bid on "account-based marketing software" and "ABM tools for B2B" to reach companies evaluating solutions.

Pros: - Lower cost than LinkedIn - Captures high-intent demand - Easy to measure ROI (clear conversions) - Works at scale

Cons: - Requires right keyword strategy (miss keywords = miss demand) - Highly competitive (bidding wars on popular terms) - Doesn't reach people not currently searching - Hard to target specific companies (unless using audience insights)

Budget allocation: - Tier 1: 20-30% of total advertising budget - Tier 2: 30-40% - Tier 3: 40-50%

Google Display Ads

What it is: Visual ads (image/video) appearing on Google Display Network (blogs, news sites, YouTube, etc.).

Best for: - Building awareness among target accounts - Retargeting website visitors from your target accounts - Frequency and brand building - Cost-effective reach at scale

Pricing model: - Cost per thousand impressions (CPM) or cost per click (CPC) - Typical cost: $0.50-$3 CPM depending on targeting - Tier 1 campaigns: $2K-$5K per month

Targeting options: - Company-based targeting (Google Audiences) - Industry - In-market audiences - Remarketing/retargeting - Contextual (keywords, placements)

Best use case: Show ads to employees from your target accounts across Google Display Network (as they browse other sites).

Example campaign: Show your ABM guide to people from Tier 1 accounts who visited your website but didn't convert.

Pros: - Very cost-effective (low CPM) - Good for frequency and brand building - Reaches decision-makers across web - Complements LinkedIn well (frequency)

Cons: - Hard to target exact companies (relies on data) - Lower conversion rate than search (awareness, not intent) - Requires creative quality - Hard to measure direct ROI

Budget allocation: - Tier 1: 20-30% - Tier 2: 30-40% - Tier 3: 20-30%

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Intent Data Platforms (6Sense, Demandbase, ZoomInfo)

What it is: Third-party platforms that track buying signals (website visits, content downloads, job changes, hiring) to identify companies in active buying stage.

Best for: - Identifying high-intent Tier 1 accounts (who's actively buying) - Timing your outreach to match buying signals - Finding net-new Tier 1 accounts beyond your initial list - Multi-stakeholder account identification

Pricing model: - Subscription: $20K-$200K+ per year depending on platform and usage - Usually tiered by number of accounts, contact records, features

Targeting options: - Buying signals (active researching, vendor shortlisting) - Industry and company size - Role and seniority - Job changes within accounts - Engagement scoring

Best use case: Identify when Tier 1 accounts are actively evaluating and time your outreach accordingly.

Example: Intent data shows Acme Corp is actively researching "ABM platforms." You trigger outreach from sales + run retargeting ads that week.

Pros: - Highest-intent targeting (real buying signals) - Identifies net-new opportunities - Helps time outreach for impact - Multi-stakeholder identification - Good for sales efficiency

Cons: - Expensive (significant annual spend) - Requires sales team to act on signals quickly - Data quality varies by vendor - Integration required with CRM and sales tools

Budget allocation: - Tier 1: Recommended ($50K-$100K annually) - Tier 2: Optional ($20K-$50K if budget allows) - Tier 3: Not recommended

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Email Marketing

What it is: Direct email to decision-makers with personalized content and sequences.

Best for: - 1-to-1 personalized campaigns to Tier 1 accounts - Account-specific nurture sequences - High personalization + low cost - Building direct relationship with decision-maker

Pricing model: - Email platform: $50-$500/month (depends on volume) - Personalzation cost: Time (marketer and sales team)

Targeting options: - Specific contact at specific company - Personalization: company name, role, use case - Sequencing: timed touches over weeks/months

Best use case: Send personalized email sequence to VP Sales at each Tier 1 account, with content tailored to their situation.

Example: "Hi [Name], I've been following [Company] and saw you recently hired for your sales ops team. Here's how other [Industry] companies structured their ABM program..."

Pros: - Highly personalized (highest relevance) - Very cost-effective (lowest cost per touch) - Direct relationship building - Easy to measure (opens, clicks, replies) - Works at scale for Tier 1 (if process is templated)

Cons: - Manual process (hard to scale beyond 50-100 accounts) - Delivery challenges (spam filters) - Requires good contact list (find decision-makers) - Timing dependent (needs follow-up from sales)

Budget allocation: - Tier 1: 30-40% of total advertising budget (personalization time) - Tier 2: 20-30% (semi-personalized sequences) - Tier 3: Not recommended

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Direct Mail and Account-Based Experiences

What it is: Physical outreach (packages, personalized gifts, invitations) to top accounts.

Best for: - Tier 1 only (high-value accounts only) - Breaking through digital noise - Creating memorable impression - Executive-to-executive outreach

Pricing model: - Cost per piece: $50-$500 depending on creativity - Tier 1 budget: $5K-$50K per account per year

Best use case: Send personalized gift/package to CEO/VP Sales at top 10 accounts during Q4 to drive year-end conversations.

Pros: - Stands out (everyone gets digital ads, few get physical mail) - Creates memorable impression - High perceived value - Great for relationship-building

Cons: - Expensive (only viable for Tier 1) - Requires creative execution - Slow (takes weeks to mail, land, act) - Hard to measure ROI directly

Budget allocation: - Tier 1: 5-10% of total budget (only top 10-20 accounts) - Tier 2: Not recommended - Tier 3: Not recommended

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Retargeting/Remarketing

What it is: Showing ads to people who visited your website, segmented by their company.

Best for: - Following up with warm leads (already visited your site) - Reaching multiple stakeholders at same company - Nurturing accounts between touches - Cost-effective frequency building

Pricing model: - Cost per impression (CPM): $0.50-$2 typical - Campaigns: $1K-$5K per month

Targeting options: - Website visitor from specific company - Page visited (pricing, product, case study) - Time since visit (only show to recent visitors) - Device type

Best use case: Retarget employees from your Tier 1 accounts who visited your website with a follow-up message.

Example: If someone from Acme Corp visits your pricing page, show them a "Schedule demo" ad the next day.

Pros: - Very cost-effective (low CPM) - Highly relevant (they visited, now they're warm) - Builds frequency with warm prospects - Easy to set up (just add pixel)

Cons: - Requires existing website traffic - Can feel creepy if overdone (frequency capping important) - Requires good creative - Low conversion alone (better as part of multi-channel)

Budget allocation: - Tier 1: 10-15% of total advertising budget - Tier 2: 10-20% - Tier 3: 20-30%

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Channel Selection Framework

Choose your primary channels based on your situation:

If you have: - Big budget + need to reach VPs: LinkedIn Ads primary - Intent data access + sales team to act fast: Intent data primary - Tight budget + need to start: Google Ads + Email primary - Tier 1 only (small list): Email + Direct mail primary - Mix of tiers: LinkedIn + Google Display + Email

Recommended starting channel mix:

For most companies: - 40% LinkedIn Ads (reach decision-makers) - 30% Google Ads (capture demand) - 20% Email (personalization) - 10% Retargeting (frequency)

For high-volume Tier 2/3: - 30% Google Ads (reach and scale) - 25% LinkedIn Ads (decision-maker reach) - 20% Google Display (frequency) - 15% Email (nurture) - 10% Retargeting

For Tier 1 only: - 40% Email (personalization) - 30% LinkedIn Ads (decision-maker reach) - 20% Direct mail (stand out) - 10% Retargeting (frequency)

Channel Comparison Table

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Channel Checklist

• [ ] Tier 1 channel mix identified (recommend: LinkedIn + Email + Retargeting)
• [ ] Tier 2 channel mix identified (recommend: Google + LinkedIn + Email)
• [ ] Tier 3 channel mix identified (recommend: Google + Display + Email)
• [ ] Budget allocated by channel
• [ ] Creative requirements documented
• [ ] Targeting setup tested
• [ ] Measurement plan (which metrics per channel)
• [ ] Multi-channel sequence planned (timing between channels)

Next Steps

1. Identify which channels you'll use for Tier 1, 2, 3
2. Set up audience targeting on primary channels
3. Create creative for first month
4. Launch pilot campaign with 1-2 channels
5. Measure and adjust before adding more channels

Choose your channels strategically, align them to your tiers, and coordinate messaging across channels. Multi-channel ABM drives better results than single-channel.

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See also

• How to Build an Account-Based Advertising Strategy
• Account-Based Ads Strategy