Account-based marketing, ABM, is an excellent way for B2B businesses to boost their ROI compared to other marketing types. However, how do you integrate social media with it? How can you use social media to streamline your ABM strategies? What best practices do you need to utilize to achieve significant results? This post will walk you through handy tips on how as a B2B business, you can integrate social media with your account-based marketing. Let’s get on with it.
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1. Create a clear audience persona
Find out what you want from your target accounts or companies. You can start by analyzing 20-30% of your existing clients if you need more time. What is it in them that’s bringing you recurrent revenue? Make sure to map their demographics, revenues, technologies, industries, and company sizes. Make sure to write down the specifics because that’s what ABM is about. You can start filtering company profiles using social media platforms. LinkedIn is a fantastic platform for B2B businesses- you can begin to filter industries and companies you want to work with. You can also look for profiles and employees that you want to target. Once you know who your target accounts are, it will be so much easier to create sales messages, write relevant content, and reach out to other platforms.
Now is a great way to start if you haven’t considered adding social advertising campaigns to support your ABM program. For just a couple of thousand from your budget monthly, you can stay on top of the minds of your target accounts during their entire buyer journey. It would be best if you also were considering platforms like Facebook and LinkedIn for these paid social campaigns. Both of these platforms let you create custom audiences by uploading CSV files of your target accounts. You can then expand your audience with “lookalikes,” to reach more people. In the same way, you can use video ads and incorporate them into your lead generation forms. LinkedIn is a lot better at targeting companies and titles. On the other hand, with Facebook, you can expand your reach with lower cost-per-click.
ABM is about having a more personalized, specific, and targeted approach. You can publish social media content that addresses your target accounts’ pain points. Suppose you’re targeting the top firms in your area. Make sure to come up with a list, visit their site, social media accounts, etc. Then, come up with a detailed report of the biggest mistakes these companies are making or their struggles. Afterward, create a lead magnet that explicitly solves these problems. Not only will you be able to engage these target accounts effectively, but you can also send segmented sales messages. You can also set up ad campaigns based on that specific lead magnet. If you get the audience selection and research phase right, it’s easier for you to get the best ROAS.
4. Personalize the messaging
When perusing your target contact’s profile, find any patterns and interests that usually stick out, whether personal or professional. Let’s say they’re interacting with posts about travel. You can also comment on how you love traveling and offer travel recommendations. After connecting with them about personal interests at least three or four times, you can mention what you want to talk about, like improving the way they work.
5. Engage and build relationships
Again, make sure that you try to foster communications first before you offer anything. Make sure you are their advocate and validate their business ideas or passions. You can even reshare and reference their content on your social media posts. The main goal here is to focus on long-term business associations, which start with building and nurturing personal relationships. The deal size of any ABM campaign out there guarantees it’s worth your time. However, you can create deep relationships at the same time.
6. Refine your blog content
By having social insights about your target accounts, you can easily update your editorial calendar to create blog posts tailored to their interests, needs, and wants. In the same way, you can also look for ways to make your prospects the star of your content. Let’s say you mention your target companies in one of your posts, reference their executives, or include their blog posts in industry roundups. You can even invite them to contribute to their blog. If you make your content about them, they’ll surely take notice.
7. Keep track of your performance and improve
Whether it’s ABM or any other marketing strategy, ensure that you constantly track necessary vital metrics. Always measure your progress. To avoid being overwhelmed, set regular intervals wherein you can monitor your strategy and make necessary changes. Key metrics you can track are the engagement of your targeted traffic and leads created via content marketing. If these metrics aren’t up to the mark, you might want to reconsider a few things. The most important thing with your abm marketing campaigns is to get your target audience and marketing messages right. If these things aren’t aligned, your efforts will fall short. So, ensure you regularly monitor these metrics and focus on improving.
Update social listening platforms, or Google alerts to include the brand handles of your target accounts, as well as relevant contacts and keywords. The data you connect will give you invaluable insights into what these companies are talking about and what’s being said about them. This eventually becomes a foundation for creating a content marketing approach that’s tailored for buyers.
Final Thoughts
So there you have it. Those are some of the effective ways that B2B businesses can integrate their social media and ABM marketing together, and reap the results. We hope you employ some of these tactics in your ABM social media marketing campaigns. Remember that ABM is about personalizing your marketing messages to align with each account, allowing you to maximize your efforts.
