15 ABM Stats that Will Change How You Plan in 2020

That’s why, in this guide, we’re going to take a look at the increasingly popular trend of account-based marketing (ABM), offering 15 statistics from our own research (as well as a few others), that will make you want to change how you plan your marketing strategy this year.

You can download the full research report here. 

Choosing the strategy that’s right for you

1. Over three quarters (79%) of B2B marketers are using ABM in 2020.

2. Of those, 35% use one to few strategies (specialized targeting based on predictive analytics). A further 35% use a combination of this, as well as ‘one to one’ and ‘one to many’ strategies.

3. What’s more, half (49%) of marketers use personalization technology to boost their efforts and help to upsell to existing clients.

This many B2B marketers can’t be wrong, as such, it’s certainly worth considering this approach in your marketing strategy if you haven't already. But as these statistics show, there are a number of strategies and techniques you can use to get the best results. So before you take the leap, decide which strategy is going to be right for your business. You can use our comprehensive guide on how to run ABM effectively in 2020 to help you do this.

Learning to budget

4. Over a third (39%) of marketers struggle to allocate enough budget to ABM.

5. While a quarter (26%) find it hard to justify investment (which is likely due to poor ABM measurement techniques).

6. Yet, 53% of those using ABM plan to invest more in these techniques over the next year (provided they can get board level buy-in).

7. Which will go towards over half (54%) of B2B marketers using predictive analytics tools.

It’s clear that many marketers struggle with their budgeting and find it hard to justify investing in ABM, but armed with this knowledge, you can adapt your budgeting strategy early on to ensure you leave enough room for successful ABM and any new technologies (like predictive analytics tools) that you may also wish to invest in.

It can feel like a costly decision in the short term but can help to save you time and money in the long run by creating leads that are more likely to convert and by using fewer resources to do it.

Choosing target accounts and building relationships

8. Over half of B2B marketers (53%) want to use ABM to generate higher quality opportunities.

9. A further 53% want to build strong relationships with top tier clients.

10. However, 39% find it hard to determine which accounts to target.

Some of the key benefits of ABM are being able to build long-lasting relationships with clients to generate better leads and higher quality opportunities - and this is clearly a priority for many marketers. This is understandable, as building relationships can create a sustainable sales funnel and get rid of the unreliable blanket approach.

Once you’ve begun implementing these strategies, it’s a good idea to start reviewing existing client lists and identify segments within your CRM. What’s more, by detailing an ICP, you can find the right audience characteristics and use these to find the perfect customers for your campaign.

The results speak for themselves

11. Almost two thirds (60%) of companies that use ABM saw their revenue increase by at least 10% within 12 months and 1 in 5 of those experienced an increase of 30% or more - Demand Base

12. Implementing and leveraging ABM software could help pipeline growth by as much as 22% - Harvard Business Review

13. B2B marketers saw an increase in average annual contract value of 171% after implementing their ABM strategy - ABM Leadership Alliance

14. With 82% of prospects valuing content made for their specific industries, getting personal could really pay off and get you ahead of the competition. Marketo

15. Finally, 80% said they have seen higher average deal sizes on their ABM accounts when compared with their regular (non-ABM) accounts.

These statistics speak for themselves and go a long way to proving the benefits of ABM. Keep these in the forefront of your mind when you're planning your strategy this year. The results might not be instant, but over time you will certainly begin to see the benefits of implementing ABM and making these positive, targeted changes to your strategy.