Account-based advertising (ABA) uses paid media platforms to reach target accounts and stakeholders with tailored creative and messaging. It bridges the gap between personal outreach (limited scale) and traditional advertising (limited targeting). Done well, it scales your ability to reach decision-makers while maintaining personalization.
Selecting the right accounts to pursue in your ABM program is perhaps the most consequential decision you’ll make. You could have brilliant messaging, flawless execution, and world-class coordination between sales and marketing, but if you’re targeting the wrong accounts, the results will disappoint.
Account-based marketing is fundamentally different from traditional demand generation. The targets are different (accounts not leads), the channels are different (multi-channel orchestration), and the success metrics are different too. Yet many organizations try to track ABM results using dashboards and metrics designed for traditional marketing. This gap between approach and measurement becomes a blind spot.
Intent data is expensive. Bombora starts at $20,000 per year. 6sense starts at $50,000. Demandbase is similar.
Sales cycle length is one of the most important metrics in B2B business. It determines cash flow, payback period, and team productivity. A company with a 12-month sales cycle has fundamentally different economics than one with a 4-month sales cycle, even if close rates are identical.
Sales development representatives are on the front lines of modern B2B growth. While marketing builds campaigns and inbound flows, SDRs convert opportunity into conversations. In account-based marketing environments, this role transforms. Instead of working inbound leads reactively, SDRs become strategists who orchestrate touchpoints, navigate complex buying groups, and accelerate accounts through the funnel.
In traditional sales, attribution is relatively straightforward. A prospect clicks an ad, lands on your site, fills out a form, and becomes a lead. That lead came from the ad. You measure conversion rate and cost per lead.
B2B ecommerce platforms face a unique challenge: most website visitors arrive anonymously. You don’t know who they are, what companies they represent, or whether they’re qualified prospects. This anonymity makes it difficult to personalize experiences, coordinate outbound marketing, or prioritize follow-up.
Account scoring is the foundation of ABM. It answers a simple question: which accounts should we focus on?
Terminus has been a major player in the account-based marketing space since 2014, known for its early focus on coordinating multi-channel campaigns around target accounts. However, the ABM landscape has evolved significantly. Teams now have more options, different pricing models, and specialized platforms addressing specific verticals or use cases.
Your Ideal Customer Profile is the foundation of every strategic decision your company makes. Which accounts to target. Which prospects to close. Which content to create. Which partnerships to pursue. Which product features to build. All flow from a clear understanding of your best customers.
Intent data is one of the most powerful innovations in B2B marketing over the past decade. In theory, it sounds simple: you know when a prospect company is actively searching for solutions in your category, so you reach out with perfect timing. In practice, using intent data well requires strategy.