Marketers know the struggle of trying to do it all on a shoestring budget, especially post-pandemic. If you’re a marketer keen on ABM for your company, here are some tips for how to convince your executive team that it’s worth the investment. 

1. Have a clear plan – know how ABM will fit into your overarching strategy 

One of the most important ways to prepare to sell your executive team on ABM is to have a clear plan. You should be able to speak with confidence on how ABM will fit into your overarching marketing strategy, and how it can benefit the existing martech programs already in use. There’s nothing more embarrassing than selling your team on a solution only to backtrack later when it doesn’t work out as you had hoped.

2. Tailor your pitch to the people you’re talking to

Your message should be different based on who you’re talking to. Ask yourself:

  • What’s their level of ABM knowledge?
  • What’s their key concern / goal?
  • What’s their communication style?

Don’t assume one has existing knowledge on ABM. Start with a brief overview to keep everyone along for the ride while you give your pitch. As you plan your pitch, speak to your audience’s concerns, and how ABM aligns with their goals. Stay mindful of your audience’s communication style, incorporating media such as ebooks, case studies, videos, or blogs when you think they’ll engage with it and find the information valuable. 

3. Anticipate roadblocks

You likely can guess what roadblocks may crop up along your path. Perhaps there are often many stakeholders and projects get passed back and forth until they’re dead in the water; maybe your budget is tight, maybe your team is short-staffed and it just doesn’t seem like the right time. Ask yourself how to bypass these roadblocks. If there are many stakeholders, whose buy-in should you go after first? If the budget is tight, can you promise a specified ROI? If your team is short staffed, can ABM implementation help your team become more efficient? Think these things through ahead of time and you’ll shine when it comes time to get down to brass tacks.

4. Get cross-departmental buy-in. 

ABM is as much for sales as it is for marketing, so securing buy-in from your sales department thought leaders sets you up for success when  selling to your executive team.