ABM, DBM
AND GEN AI. OF COURSE
These days, a survey isn’t a survey if it doesn’t include something about GenAI.
The same goes for Account Based Marketing (ABM) if you work in the B2B marketing space.
These days, a survey isn’t a survey if it doesn’t include something about GenAI.
The same goes for Account Based Marketing (ABM) if you work in the B2B marketing space.
In fact, last year, we established some surprising outcomes related to ABM, and we wanted to try and validate these further:
said they wanted to be treated as a high-value account, with personalised attention by tech vendors.
knew and understood what ABM was
were very or quite positive towards being approached via ABM.
said they wanted to be treated as a high-value account, with personalised attention by tech vendors.
knew and understood what ABM was
were very or quite positive towards being approached via ABM.
Yet, the number one frustration with both marketing and sales approaches is that they were too generic and not relevant enough.
So, your customers want ABM, and you are probably trying to provide it.
Yet many are not feeling the benefit.
We felt that too much time was being spent on ABM frameworks and planning, and not enough on executing the communications. And if you’re not communicating, no-one is going to the feel the benefit.
So, we took a slightly different angle in 2024, to ask your customers more about their experience and impact felt from your ABM activities:
Really understood our business and our needs
Deliver good experiences through content and creativity
Try to maintain a consistent ongoing relationship, rather than a one-off interaction
Take a cookie-cutter approach that isn’t personalised at all
Whilst most responses agreed that ABM was creating experiences that it is intended to create, there was still a healthy number (61%) who had experienced a cookie-cutter and non-personalised approach. This is even though 89% still say they want to be treated as a high-value account – almost the same as last year.
What about Deal Based Marketing (DBM)?
It has traditionally been difficult to assess the impact of marketing-led approaches during the RFP or bid process – what we at Differentiated refer to as Deal Based Marketing. It's unlikely that the content or marketing strategy surrounding the deal will be responsible for a deal won – nor should it be (that’s the job of the substance of the response). However, via less structured feedback, we know that there is huge value in the creativity and craft that marketing approaches can bring to a bid.
In 2024 we qualified this further:
of IT decision makers say they value a marketing-led approach for both incumbent and prospective providers
say for prospective providers
for incumbent providers only.
of IT decision makers say they value a marketing-led approach for both incumbent and prospective providers
say for prospective providers
for incumbent providers only.
Overall...
see the value in a marketing -led approach.
Importantly...
say they have experienced this kind of marketing-led approach within a bid
and if they have experienced it a huge...
say the solution providers taking this approach were ultimately successful in winning the contract.
Overall...
see the value in a marketing -led approach.
Importantly...
say they have experienced this kind of marketing-led approach within a bid
and if they have experienced it a huge...
say the solution providers taking this approach were ultimately successful in winning the contract.
You and AI.
As we mentioned, no survey in 2024 is going to miss out on asking about GenAI.
In the market of marketing itself, we know that GenAI for content creation is huge – so huge that it’s the default use case for almost every agency and brand working in B2B marketing these days.
But are your customers happy about it? Well, yes, quite happy in the main. We asked how they feel about GenAI being used for different types of content creation:
As you would expect, people are generally positive about GenAI being used to create content, but they become less positive about it the more relevant, targeted or personalised the content is (in ABM for example). Most people are quite positive as opposed to very positive. They’re not quite ‘ecstatic’, nor are they completely ‘meh’, indicating that GenAI applications still have some way to go to truly impress.
say humans will always create better content than GenAI.
At Differentiated, we think that GenAI for content creation is important, but the real opportunity will be in the way it can be used to create richer and more personal experiences for a reader. Are we right?
71% would be interested in using GenAI tools to engage around marketing content from solution providers. More importantly, 73% say humans will always create better content than GenAI.
So yes, this lines up with our view.
