No matter where you are on your ABX journey, know that transformation and performance ARE possible.
At Folloze, we’ve been on our own multi-year ABX journey, so I understand what you’re trying to accomplish. It can be hard and unforgiving. I’m here to say that you can do it and I’m going to show you how to get started with the help of my team. Let’s go!
ABX is a Team Sport: Align Your GTM Team Top-to-Bottom
A sophisticated ABX model can certainly lead to better results with less budget. But only if the partnership between sales and marketing is solid and thoughtfully mapped out with the digital demand engine in service to it.
- Create a set of shared metrics, revenue targets, and attribution model – no more MQA hand-offs and lack of follow-up
- Build the ICP, Target Account List, Pilot Plan – together
- Map marketing motions and sales plays to funnel stages and the customer journey
- Establish clear roles and responsibilities around the funnel, customer journey and all ABX processes
- Engage the CS team: a key source of intel on your existing customers and ABX impact
Next, let’s dive into the four stages of transformation—remember, be patient, these stages take time.
STAGE 1: Foundation. Define the Vision and Build the Plan.
How many of you are in the phase where sales kick over a list of target accounts each quarter and you’re running paid campaigns? Zero orchestration, zero strategy.
We found that…
We wasted ad dollars.
When we stood up our ABM strategy, within the first two quarters we reduced ad spend by 20% just by knowing where accounts were in their journey and targeting accordingly.
We couldn’t move accounts through the journey stages. Within the first month we increased brand lift by 5% in our MQA stage through targeted engagement campaigns.
Close rates were low because we were kicking over fence “MQLs” that downloaded content, not high-intent accounts. In the first two months we doubled our ICP meetings booked metric.
It took time to build our foundation - starting with sales and marketing alignment of our vision and plan then evaluating the gaps across people, process, and technology. It was clear that unless we did this “full funnel” we’d never see the results we needed.
STAGE 2: Pilot. Launch a pilot and rollout plan step-by-step.
The second year is where we really built our cross-functional go-to-market approach with the goal of continued enablement and alignment between marketing and sales.
Here’s an example of a 6 week pilot to demonstrate adoption and engagement.
Phase 1 is when the go-to-market leaders align to define the ideal state—where do we want to be and what does success look like to us. Then work together to build your structured plays and playbooks by defining your content, channels and GTM involvement. Then build the playbook across your people, process and technology. Phase 2 is when you select your duration, accounts, and if applicable your verticals. We highly recommend you keep it simple. Lastly, phase 3 is monitoring the pilots performance, optimizing where needed, socializing results, and planning the next component of ideal state.
We’ve created our “How We Folloze” webinar series, here's five how-to-videos to get you started:
- Align to company objectives.
- Build a target account list.
- Select paid media channels.
- Build personalized buyer journey.
- Measure ABM program and identify metrics for your ABM scorecard.
It was truly a relationship building year. Shout out to our Folloze sales leadership for leaning in during those times. Listen to this 3 minute clip on the importance of leadership buy-in and alignment.
Here’s some ways we drove alignment and the performance indicators we identified throughout our pilot.
- Team: Starting from the executive staff, to GTM leadership, to individual contributor level, we had to put the work in to align, drive strategy adoption, and cross-functional engagement. We hosted weekly pipeline meetings, peer-to-peer sessions, and 1:1s.
- Buyer engagement: We had to demonstrate our ABM strategy was a more effective way to drive engagement and we knew we had to show impact quickly to continue the buy-in. I remember speaking to our ABM quarterback and asking if this was truly going to work, and he said “yes, trust me.” You need to believe in your plan and test. Within the first few weeks we increased brand lift by 5% in our MQA stage through the targeted buyer experiences.
- Sales acceleration: We’re all in this game to deliver pipeline and revenue—lagging indicators of performance. Our leading indicators of success are around engagement, conversions, and meeting volume. In 6-8 weeks we saw a +200% increase in ICP meeting volume. We knew we were on the right track and had to stay the course.
Check out our “How We Folloze” series for a wealth of insights, tips, and tricks!
STAGE 3: Full-Funnel Acceleration. Operationalize workflows across the entire funnel.
2023 has been a year of “what the hell is happening?” and “what the hell are we doing?”, on a repeat cycle. That’s what happens when we grow and transform. And we’re here because of the strategy development Mary and the Infinite Edge Consulting (IEC) team helped us to boost every stage of the customer journey. Learn more about the IEC approach in Episode One. Other milestones in this journey have included key product integrations such as Folloze and Outreach. It has enabled us to accelerate engagement.
STAGE 4: Scale. Deploy personalized engagement programs at scale across the customer lifecycle.
Looking forward to 2024, our focus is on the deployment of personalized engagement programs at scale across the customer lifecycle and cross-functionally. Next year is truly an organizational shift to drive buyer engagement, and I cannot wait!
Watch this two minute clip to learn about the Folloze transformation journey.
As we evolve, transform, and adapt to volatile times, remember we’re in it together. We want to share what our teams and customers are learning during their transformation journeys. Plus, no matter where you are on your ABX journey, we’d love to hear what you’re experiencing. Get in touch with Folloze on LinkedIn.
P.S. Learn more about the webinar series “Transform to ABX Now”
When the economic landscape becomes a question mark, some marketers see disaster and others see opportunity. The willingness to rise to a challenge is one thing. But being well positioned to seize the moment in today’s chaotic market is another.
The reality is, performance is always possible. Each episode of the Folloze Transform to ABX Now webinar series showcases how sales and market front-runners navigate their transformation to ABX-driven pipeline generation, including our own Folloze story.
