Strategy and operating model

• ABM fits small TAMs with ACVs of $50k or more
• ABM shifts from campaign to aligned operating model
• Growth breaks in handoffs between functions
• Buying groups replace leads as the unit of work
• Motion should match account value, from 1:1 to 1:many
• AI scales relationship programs, but executive access needs insight
• Marketers on sales calls close the funnel gap

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Targeting and scoring

• Target lists shrink to about 50 accounts per rep
• A shared Target 10 list aligns AEs and BDRs
• Scoring starts by defining best customers by growth
• Marketing-built, sales-reviewed lists fix the top bottleneck
• Relationship layers beat crowded high-intent accounts
• Buying committees of 6 or more lift win rates by 17%
• DiscoLike and LinkedIn Companies Hub speed niche discovery

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Signals and intent

• Account-level intent hides multiple buying groups
• Buyers are 61% through their journeys before contact
• Initially preferred vendors win 55% of the time
• Signal timing lifts outbound response to 32.7%
• A $90K 6sense contract yielded almost no pipeline
• Views split on whether intent data helps or restrains revenue
• Breakout alerts Slack owners on pricing page visits

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AI and tooling

• Claude workflows cover ads, account briefs and CRM signals
• An internal Claude Code app delivers research and ready emails
• Cheap data and AI make ABM accessible through Clay
• Demandbase AI cut TeamViewer briefs from 30 to under 10 minutes
• AI-powered Kitchen automates account mapping and ads in minutes
• Gartner’s 2026 Magic Quadrant shows no platform covers full ABM

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Paid and channel execution

• Cost caps and audience cleanup lifted penetration 390%
• Retargeting audiences deliver 63% cheaper demo requests
• Stale audiences and off-target leads waste LinkedIn budget
• Weekly AI-generated ads counter ABM ad fatigue
• Gifting plus immediate SDR outreach delivered 7x ROI
• Founder-led event outreach achieves roughly 6% reply rates

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Measurement and accountability

• Dashboards track progression, penetration, engagement and outcomes
• Four ABM layers drove £300k+ in pipeline
• A 3-day launch sprint plus 90 days prevents stalled programs
• Pipeline-accountable marketing teams need seven planning questions
• GTM roadmaps should tie leadership goals to segment execution
• ABM Academy targets attribution, budget and stack sprawl

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Thanks to Emilia Korczynska, Dan Rosenthal, Ivan Falco, Vincent Plassard, Fivos Aresti, Jan Rasmussen, Sabih Ahmed, Alex Gluz, Matt Green, Katya Tarapovskaia, Matteo Fois, Thomas Paris, Gabrielle Stott, Saad Khan, Drew Teller, Sam Borst, Suzzette Giron, Corrina Owens, Maria Scheifler, Vladimir Blagojević, Patterson Yeoh, Brian Carroll, Kerri Amodio, Babis Pavlakis, Burcu Erbey, Barney Woodbridge, Nicole Baldassarre, Cody Schneider, Clement Thibault, Ronit Yawalkar, Yann Sarfati, MariAnne Vanella, Joel Harrison, Steve Armenti, Branko Boro, Enoch Pakanati, Lisa S., Mario Hernandez, Paul Gibson, Nick Bonfiglio, Sloan Newman, Mark Deacon, Aizaz Tanveer, Kristina Jaramillo, Shannon T., Rudy Parker, Marcelo Romanelli, Rikard Jonsson, Anjleena Dewan, Chelsea Hyde Shelley, Firuzan Akici, Saif Shaikh, Adam M. Root, Liz Olson, Bret Boatright, Jim Christen, David Connors, Davis Potter, Nick Holmes à Court, AJ Wilcox, George Rekouts, Francis Eneji, Louise Jefferson, Al Torres, Sachin Gupta, Korina Milanja, Bev Burgess, Andrei Zinkevich and Philip Ilic and everyone else who contributed insights to this edition. Find the full list of posts and voices on LinkedIn: