Why account-based marketing is a natural fit for cleantech
The pandemic has seen the world pivot to remote working, which is tricky for any business relying on in-person contact for sales. Against this backdrop, account-based marketing is a gift to cleantech, offering a more targeted approach.
At the risk of sounding like an ad for a dating app, making meaningful connections is key in cleantech marketing. Business-to-business (B2B) marketing in the energy sector often involves high-value sales with long lead times, where the personal touch counts for a lot.
Add in the complication of multiple funding parties and stakeholders, plus novel products and services, and businesses can often find it hard to make headway with clients. Fortunately, account-based marketing (ABM) is perfectly placed to help.
Creative software giant Adobe defines ABM as “a focused approach to B2B marketing in which marketing and sales teams work together to target best-fit accounts and turn them into customers.”
In practice, this means identifying key decision makers and tailoring marketing initiatives to their needs. In the energy sector, where you may have met many of the people you want to sell to at trade shows and other events, this personalised approach is important.
That said, ABM is being used widely in other sectors, too. Last year, 70% of marketers claimed that they used ABM. Research shows that companies employing the technique are 67% better at closing deals, with the tech sector favouring ABM in particular.
Using ABM in energy
Like in technology, major purchase decisions in the energy sector involve multiple stakeholders, which can slow down the sales process. Typically, a sale starts at a low rung in the decision-making ladder before finding its way to the person signing off on the deal.
With ABM, this process is shortened because prospects can be nurtured simultaneously. ABM also helps identify the best point of contact within an organisation, enabling you to build stronger relationships.
ABM is also suited to the fast-paced world of cleantech because it’s innovative and has a built-in responsiveness. Partly, this is down to its personalised nature. Instead of one-size-fits-all, marketers set out to create tailored messaging to targeted accounts, so your message can change when the circumstances do.
Done well, the rewards from ABM are huge. Companies that use ABM have seen up to a 208% increase in revenue, with accounts moving quickly through the sales pipeline before and after lead conversion.
ABM is said to provide the highest return on investment of all B2B marketing strategies: 91% of organisations that use it see an increase their average size of the deal, with 25% reporting an increase of more than 50%.
Depending on the size of your targeted account list, data could be segmented based on factors such as the size of the company, services, revenue, number ofemployees, competitors and annual spend.
Resource on tap
This hyper-focussed, micro-data aspect of ABM means that it’s possible to unearth specific behaviours that may signpost a prospect’s eagerness to buy. It’s a unique deep dive that’s essential for engagement and momentum.
Tapping into this opportunity requires dedicated resources, not just for account handling but also for the development of sales support materials such as case studies, white papers, blogs, brochures and email campaigns.
Focusing on specific needs, pain points and data, these resources are vital when it comes to crafting bespoke messages for targeted accounts.
This requirement for resources, be it for lead nurturing, collateral production or data analysis, could be the only stumbling block for some marketing teams in the energy industry. But at Tamarindo we canprovide support in all these areas.
In many engagements, we already work with client sales teams and so we are well versed on the fundamentals of ABM. As a communications agency, we also employ ABM tactics to build relationships with the press and other audiences. If you’re interested about learning more, then speak to us now.