An account-based marketing (ABM) diagnostic is a valuable approach whether you are just starting your ABM journey, seeking to improve your existing approach, or scaling up. Catherine Ahern, a senior consultant with Inflexion Group and highly-experienced ABM practitioner, explains why this analytical approach could deliver the perfect programme for your organisation.
What is an ABM diagnostic?
An account-based marketing diagnostic is designed to assess the effectiveness of your ABM strategy and involves analysing various components of your current or planned approach to identify and benchmark your strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for improvement.
Inflexion Group consultants are all experienced practitioners, so we know what it is like to be in the shoes of an in-house ABM team. As external experts, we are in a unique position to sift through and analyse the documents, reports and plans that provide context on your current approach to enabling account-based growth and to speak knowledgably with key internal stakeholders about your current or planned ABM initiative. Once we understand your situation fully, we use interactive workshops to define, or refine, your ABM strategy. And while this process may seem painstaking, it has proven to be incredibly effective in designing the right ABM strategy. If you want your ABM programme to succeed, it is well worth the investment.
When is an ABM diagnostic useful?
An ABM diagnostic can be helpful at any stage of your ABM journey. Here are some examples of when clients have called on us:
- Performance benchmarking: To establish a baseline understanding of existing capabilities and identify gaps before launching an ABM programme or an assessment why current ABM efforts are not yielding the expected results.
- Market or business changes: When a business is undergoing a restructure or experiencing a significant development, or when something changes in the competitive landscape.
- Technology integration: When a team needs to ensure new tools are effectively integrated into their strategy or want to optimize the use of existing ABM technologies and plan a future technology roadmap.
- Sales and marketing alignment: To create a more joined-up approach to account-based growth, especially if there are currently challenges aligning sales and marketing teams around ABM initiatives.
- Scaling up: When planning to introduce ABM to new regions or markets, ensuring the strategy is robust enough to handle the increased scope.
What are the benefits of an ABM diagnostic?
An ABM diagnostic will ensure your strategy is robust, aligned with your business goals, and capable of delivering the impact you need. It will identify the strengths and weaknesses of your current or planned programme, improve alignment with account teams, leverage your technology and resources, and boost your programme effectiveness at scale. It will also identify any risks inherent in your current or planned approach, while recommending a robust approach to mitigating them, meaning that you can deliver, measure, and report an impressive return on investment from your programme.
If you would like to talk to us about an ABM diagnostic, please contact info@inflexiongroup.com.
