As the saying goes, the times they are a-changin'—and that's especially true of the B2B market.
Today, the B2B buyer is firmly in the driver's seat. So when 77% of B2B buyers consider the purchase process complex and difficult, B2B marketers need to get creative to attract and support prospects.
One innovative approach to gaining traction is the account-based demand engine, which focuses marketing efforts on specific high-value accounts and delivers personalized experiences.
Through six questions and answers, this article discusses the aligning of sales and marketing teams and adopting a unified approach so businesses can thrive in the evolving B2B landscape.
What are the key components of an account-based demand engine?
The account-based demand engine can be broken down into five core components, which I like to call "STEAM":
- First and foremost, developing a clear Strategy is essential. Doing so enables you to define your objectives and determine the best approach to achieving them.
- Second, it's crucial to identify your Target audience. By thoroughly understanding your audience and investing in the creation and distribution of relevant information, you can make a significant impact.
- Third, active Engagement is vital. It involves interacting with your audience to gain a deeper understanding of their needs and interests. It also entails creating compelling content such as curated stories, content hubs, and landing pages.
- The fourth step is Activation. At this stage, the digital engine passes the baton to the human channel, enabling the identification of engaged individuals and prioritizing valuable prospects.
- Finally, the fifth step is Measurement. Regularly measuring and analyzing the performance of each component of the engine and distribution programs is crucial. Doing so allows for continuous improvement and optimization through regular review and collaboration with the scrum team.
The account-based demand engine brings together all those elements, which are often fragmented within B2B organizations today.
How has the B2B buying process evolved over the years?
A decade ago, there was a significant emphasis on aligning sales and marketing teams; they often viewed each other as two separate entities. However, over time, it became apparent that their objectives and efforts are more similar than different. That understanding is now much more widespread.
The current focus is on recognizing the importance of convergence, because operating in isolation wastes valuable time and energy while producing misleading outcomes. For example, celebrating the acquisition of 10,000 Marketing-qualified leads (MQLs) at the end of a quarter is meaningless if the resulting pipeline remains uncertain.
It's time for us to acknowledge that true success lies in joining the efforts of Sales and Marketing, understanding their shared objectives, and embracing convergence. By doing so, we can enhance efficiency and achieve meaningful results.
How does "convergence" relate to the account-based demand engine?
In our case, we start with defining the problem and desired outcomes for our clients. Then, we analyze competitors, map customer journeys, conduct propensity modeling, and develop a play-to-win process. We also focus on digital strategy and creative concepts and work with a scrum team for campaign activation.
When convergence is done correctly, it brings all these elements together like a symphony, ensuring the right thinking and outcomes at each step.
Solving the problem requires an integrated approach. Too often, marketers get too tactical and focus solely on great content without defining the target, which often leads to results that fall short. It's essential to understand that that's just one piece of the puzzle, and we need a holistic perspective to achieve the most critical objectives.
The B2B buying market is now more complex, so how can B2B marketers overcome that challenge?
The best account-based demand engines tackle the complexity challenge head-on, using first-party buyer insight and account intelligence to curate and deliver highly relevant stories that simplify the process for the buyer, bridge the gap between digital and human selling, and ultimately build the foundations to drive qualified opportunities and pipeline from the right accounts.
The average number of touchpoints along the buyer journey has climbed from 17 to 27 since 2019. Marketers must make each interaction feel cohesive and insightful for clients every step of the way.
I know that sounds a bit poetic, but it's a process. Everybody wants to skip to the end and talk about pipeline and revenue and say, "Well, if my content's great, I'll get a strong pipeline and revenue," yet those people are missing the middle 60-70% of the work needed to produce results.
At every step of the journey, marketers need to pause and think, "What should be next?" or "What's going to move this buyer forward in the process?"
Online content is a vortex, and it's easy for your content to get lost in the mix. What is the role of high-quality content in B2B account-based demand generation?
- Today's buying process is complex and challenging, and the problem lies not in the lack of content but in the abundance of low-quality, irrelevant content. The solution is "better" content:
- An increasing number of decision-makers and new generations are entering the B2B buying process; content must therefore cater to a diverse buyer group across multiple departments.
- To develop high-quality content that attracts top-tier potential buyers, thorough research is essential. It's crucial to have a deep understanding of the subject matter before writing, ensuring accuracy and informativeness.
- In addition, it's important to identify the data markers that signal value and to personalize content in order to provide potential buyers with the most relevant information possible depending on their buyer journey up to that point.
However, although great content is crucial, it's only one piece. It's not the ultimate solution or the sole determinant of success.
Why is it important to deliver the right information via the right channels to targeted customers in the buying process?
Driving demand is crucial for business performance and growth. After creating great content, marketers must ensure the right audiences see it.
However, with many factors to balance in the process, many of us make the mistake of solely focusing on syndicating our content across various channels without considering the target audience or engagement strategies.
Once the right content has been put in front of the right audiences and they have begun to engage with it, our job as marketers is to connect those in who are research mode with subject-matter experts through the intersection of human and digital channels.
At what point does it become clear there's a need to contact potential buyers who have engaged with your content directly?
It's an art more than a science, and human behavior is the biggest variable. If there were a guaranteed formula for success, everyone would be doing it already.
MQLs are often misunderstood as the end of the marketing journey, but that's an outdated perspective. B2B marketers need to be instead focused on trying to unlock the secrets of buyer activity—specifically by measuring it and acting upon data trends—to achieve success.
MQLs indicate first-party engagement and intent, but it's crucial always to consider what comes next.
Not all MQLs require immediate follow-up, especially if they are not the appropriate decision-makers for a specific solution. On the other hand, a significant percentage of MQLs, from 35% to 64%, never receive a follow-up action. That can't happen either, as it means a considerable number of signals generated through content syndication are left to dissipate.
What is the overall objective at the core of this model?
Building an account-based demand generation engine is about eliminating silos, not just between sales and marketing but also within individual marketing tactics.
By converging those tactics into an integrated model, you ensure they work together harmoniously, magnifying the value at each step.
B2B marketers can no longer rely on single, short-term tactics for miraculous results; instead, we must embrace the power of an integrated engine. That convergence fosters consistency, efficiency, and effectiveness across marketing efforts, leading to tangible and measurable outcomes.
