What ABM Is - And What It Absolutely Isn't
There’s a lot of noise out there about account-based marketing. I’ve been working in and around ABM since 2018. I started at Momentum ITSMA, one of the consultancies credited with pioneering the discipline. Whether or not you believe it was the first, what’s undeniable is the impact it had. We worked with the world’s biggest tech companies – Microsoft, Dell, Google, Infosys, State Street, Nutanix, Oracle – building programs that became industry case studies. Strategic ABM, at that level, wasn’t about lead gen tactics or intent data triggers. It was about changing how marketing and sales show up, together, in the world’s most important companies.
Since then, I’ve led ABM programmes client-side, and I’ve watched the discipline evolve. And if I’m honest, not all of it’s been good.
The rise of tech in the ABM space has brought scale, automation and more sophisticated targeting. But it’s also introduced a lot of confusion. Companies are buying platforms, running email nurtures to a target account list, and calling it ABM. It isn’t. And the risk is that in the rush to adopt, we’ve lost sight of what made account-based marketing such a smart, strategic approach in the first place.
So I want to reset the record. If you're doing ABM (or planning to) here’s what it really means, where it adds the most value, and why the fundamentals still matter more than ever.
ABM means treating an account like a market in its own right
Bev Burgess put it brilliantly in her latest book, some enterprise companies have the same revenue as a small European country. So why wouldn’t we treat them like markets of one?
Strategic ABM is built on this idea. You treat an individual company, or even a division, geography or unit within that company, as a standalone market. You research them, you profile them, you get under the skin of what they’re trying to achieve, where they’re going and what their buying signals are. You align your marketing and your sales efforts around that account. Not just to sell, but to help them achieve something. And in doing so, you create a real opportunity to win, grow, and retain that relationship.
It’s miles away from traditional funnel-based marketing. And that’s the point.
We’re not in a funnel anymore
Gartner calls it the “long hard slog”, a far cry from the neat, linear journey marketers used to map out. Today’s B2B buyer journey is anything but predictable. People don’t just glide from awareness to consideration to purchase. They move backwards, sideways, and sometimes go quiet for months.
Most of it happens without you in the room. The typical buying group has six to ten people, all with different priorities and measures of success. They’re doing their own research, building their own requirements, often before you even know they’re looking. By the time they get to you (if they do) you’ve already missed a big chunk of the journey.
ABM is about being in the room earlier. Not by spamming them with messages, but by building relationships, showing up where they are, and helping them connect the dots internally. Done well, ABM gives your sales team a head start, because the brand perception, the awareness of your capability, the sense that you understand them- that’s already been built.
Sales and marketing finally speaking the same language
One of the most powerful things about ABM is what it does inside your organisation. It breaks down the old silos. Sales and marketing stop working in parallel and start working in sync. Same objectives. Same accounts. Same measures of success. And when it’s truly embedded, you see a shift.
You co-create plans. You innovate together. You win and lose together. And you start to agree what good looks like - together.
That’s not just a cultural benefit. It’s commercial. Because now, everything you do is aligned to the same goal. ABM, at its best, becomes a shared, living experience around the account.
When and where ABM makes sense
Let’s talk about where ABM works best. Because despite the hype, it isn’t the right answer for every situation.
It’s a smart choice when:
You’re trying to grow in existing accounts: new regions, departments, or service lines
You’re going after a major new logo that matches your ideal customer profile
There’s a known opportunity in play (like a pursuit or RFP) and you need to displace a competitor
You’re trying to change perception: either to be considered for something you’ve not been known for, or to reposition your brand altogether
In all of these scenarios, the value of the deal justifies the investment. Because ABM isn’t cheap… and it shouldn’t be. But if you’re looking for sustainable growth, in the right places, it more than pays for itself.
Common misconceptions- and why they’re dangerous
There are a few myths I see cropping up again and again:
“ABM is just another type of campaign” - No. It’s a customer-first methodology that draws from every tactic in the toolbox. It’s about using what works, based on what your client actually needs.
“It’s just a sales team duplication” – No again. It builds on good account planning and brings it to life through insight, creativity, and tailored engagement.
“It can scale to every large account” – Not really. Strategic ABM is for the few, not the many. If you try to scale it without changing the approach, you just end up doing bad marketing to a list.
“It’s just marketing” – This one really matters. ABM isn’t a marketing initiative. It’s a growth initiative, delivered jointly by marketing, sales, and often customer success or delivery teams. If you’re not partnering with sales, it’s not ABM.
And most critically, if you don’t have customer intelligence at the heart of it - it’s not account-based! It’s just good targeted B2B marketing.
The stakes are high and so is the potential
Buyers are said to be 57% of the way through their journey before they engage with a vendor, and I’ve seen stats that suggest it’s even further along. Sales reps are said to get just 5% of a customer’s time across that whole journey.
That’s not a lot of room to play with.
ABM helps shift that dynamic. It makes sure you’re not starting from scratch when the conversation finally begins. It means the customer already knows who you are, what you stand for, and how you can help. Because you’ve already been showing up in the right way… long before the RFP dropped.
ABM works because it’s personal. It’s strategic. And it’s designed for the way people buy today. Done well, it’s not just about winning business. It’s about changing relationships, shifting perception, and building growth in the accounts that matter most.
And that, to me, is what makes it so powerful.
Let’s Talk.
If you’re navigating change — a merger, transformation, or a moment where brand and marketing need to lead, I’d love to help.
👉 Email me directly: andrews_samantha@hotmail.com
👉 Or message me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/samantha-andrews/