ABM Voices: How to Elevate Your GTM with Account-based Intelligence (ABI)

Dylan Freier | Senior Manager, ABM Matillion

How to Elevate Your GTM with Account-based Intelligence (ABI)

Did you know that only 56% of new businesses¹ make it to the 5-year mark?

It’s common to see B2B companies struggle with their Go-to-Market strategy. But you don’t have to be one of them.

Savvy marketers can strengthen their GTM² by deploying Account-based Intelligence (ABI) - but what exactly is ABI, and how can you deploy it to reveal your blindspots, and transform your Go-to-Market strategy?

^{1 Small Business Trends | 2 Demandbase}

Uncovering your ABM blind-spots

If you’ve worked in Account-based Marketing for a while, you’ll already know the extent to which low-quality data can hold you back.

There are a lot of data-based blindspots that we all face.

In fact, 37% of marketers lose money³ as a result of poor marketing data quality.

35% are dealing with inaccurate targeting⁴, as 25% of a typical B2B database is inaccurate⁵ at any given time.

Additional challenges may include:

Data scattered across systems, where disparate systems make it tough to find the right targeting info.
Inaccurate or incomplete data, where gaps in your sales teams’ data force you to go to market blindly.
Spam and wasted resources, where poorly qualified, and disengaged prospects or leads create a waste of time and resource

If these challenges sound familiar, your organization isn’t alone—and Account-based Intelligence may provide the data-backed insight you need to fill in those gaps, and connect with leads at a targeted, personal level.

^{3 Marketing Evolution | 4 Marketing Evolution | 5 Demandbase}

The proof is in the proverbial pudding:

The main reasons B2B companies deploy Account-based Intelligence is to pinpoint quality leads, create personalized content, research accounts, and quantify results.

What Is Account-based Intelligence?

Put simply, Account-based Intelligence blends and deploys a range of B2B data.

In ABM, you can use ABI data to measure a prospect's behavior and intent, and as a goal; use that context to identify opportunities sooner, pursue deals quicker, and fuel growth.

Done well, ABI involves a deep understanding of first-party and third-party data.

Quick reminder of what each one is:

First-party data: Includes your own owned data, collected from your audience through your own channels.

First-party data may include insights from your:

CRM
Web data
Ad metrics
Marketing automation platform

Third-party data: collected and shared compliantly by a third party, separate from your company’s relationship with your audience (e.g. intent data from say Cyance, 6Sense, Terminus, etc.).

Third-party data tends to include insights from:

Technographics
Hierarchy and grouping data
Social platforms
Company details

Your first-party is typically easier to locate, which is why third-party data is often the piece of the puzzle that ABMers are missing.

This is where Account-based Intelligence comes in; providing a framework for building truly effective interactions with prospects and customers.

How can you deploy Account Intelligence?

First, note that privacy is paramount.

It’s integral to source and implement your data ethically, and vet any third parties with whom you’re thinking of working to make sure they meet (if not exceed) the governance and regulatory requirements of data use in your region.

From there, you can develop your data strategy and outline the scope and depth of the data you collect.

Automation tools and AI software can help to ensure compliance while:

Conducting email validations on CRM contacts.
Collecting and matching data (via first- and third-party sources) with the right accounts.
Cleansing your data on a quarterly basis or biannual basis.
Addressing missing fields and adding technographic data.
Eliminating duplicates and adding missing data.

And once these activities are automated; accurate, dependable, and comprehensive data-driven ABM is well within reach.

Will Account-based Intelligence benefit my GTM?

Account Intelligence promotes a next-level go-to-market strategy that aligns with sales. The benefits of deploying this practice include:

Empowering your entire Sales team with cloud-based insights.
Driving sales and increasing retention by personalizing the buyer experience.
Determining the exact times accounts are ready to make a purchase.
Creating high-impact messaging by leveraging top-quality, accurate data.

In summary, no matter what stage of the Marketing lifecycle you consider, Account-based Intelligence just makes sense.

The good news is that it’s easy to gather this valuable information and put it to work for your business.

Want to learn more about Account-based Intelligence? Check out our Insight 'Account-based Intelligence unlocks ABM success' for 5 steps to using Account-based Intelligence tech for ABM success.

Read the Insight