Account based marketing (ABM) isn’t magic—it’s just focused marketing. If you’re in B2B and tired of chasing leads that go nowhere, ABM is worth your time. But launching ABM in a tool like Ralph can get messy if you don’t think it through. This guide is for marketers, sales folks, or anyone who’s been handed the “do ABM” task and wants to skip the hype and get right to the good stuff.
Step 1: Get Clear on Why You’re Doing ABM (and If You Should Be)
Before you even log into Ralph, ask yourself: is ABM actually right for your company? ABM makes sense when you’re targeting a small-ish list of high-value companies. If your deals are low-ticket or you’re selling to the masses, traditional marketing will probably work better.
The red flags: - Your sales team can’t agree on what a “good” account is. - You’re hoping ABM will magically fix bad product/market fit. - You’re only doing it because the board said “do ABM.”
If you’re good to go, keep reading. If not, spend your energy fixing those issues first.
Step 2: Build a Realistic Account List
The best ABM campaign in Ralph will flop if you start with a garbage list. Don’t overthink this, but do avoid just exporting every company from your CRM.
How to build your list: - Sit down with sales and agree on 1–2 ideal customer profiles. Don’t get fancy—think: industry, company size, pain points. - Use Ralph’s filters to narrow down your list based on those criteria. Keep it manageable. A list of 30–100 accounts is a good starting point. - Double-check for duplicates, dead companies, or ones you know are a bad fit. This saves headaches later.
Pro tip: Don’t let marketing run off and build the list alone. If sales isn’t on board, you’ll fight about it for months.
Step 3: Map (Actual) People to Accounts
ABM falls apart when you treat companies like faceless logos. You need real humans.
In Ralph: - For each target account, identify key contacts: decision makers, influencers, blockers. - Don’t just grab every “VP” or “Head of X.” Look for people who actually engage with similar solutions. - If you don’t have enough info, use LinkedIn or your CRM to fill in the gaps. Ralph can pull in some data, but don’t expect miracles.
Skip: Spending hours building a 10-person contact list for each account. Start with 2–3 high-impact roles per company. You can always add more later.
Step 4: Get Your Messaging Tight (and Personal)
This is where ABM gets real. Generic drip emails won’t cut it.
- Work with sales to map out 2–3 core pain points for each account type. What’s actually keeping these companies up at night?
- Write messaging that speaks to those pains. No buzzwords. No “innovative solutions.” Just real problems and how you help solve them.
- Personalize, but don’t overdo it. A bit of customization (“noticed your company just raised a Series B…”) goes a long way. You don’t need a novel for every email.
In Ralph: - Use templates, but make sure you tweak them for each account segment. - Set up dynamic fields for company names, roles, and recent news if possible.
What to ignore: Don’t waste time on one-to-one “hyper-personalization” for every contact unless you’re selling six-figure deals.
Step 5: Build Multi-Touch, Multi-Channel Campaigns
One email isn’t ABM. You need to reach contacts in a few different ways.
- Use Ralph to coordinate emails, LinkedIn messages, and maybe even direct mail if it fits your style.
- Space out your touches. Don’t hit people every day—3–5 touches over a couple weeks is plenty.
- Mix up your content: share a relevant case study, invite them to a webinar, or offer a quick consult.
What works: - LinkedIn + email combos get better response rates than either alone. - Short, to-the-point messages. Nobody wants your ebook.
What doesn’t: - Overly aggressive sequences. You’ll burn bridges fast. - Relying only on automated emails. People can tell.
Step 6: Set Up Clear Reporting (That Sales and Marketing Both Trust)
Ralph gives you campaign analytics, but it’s easy to drown in data. Focus on what actually matters:
- Engagement by account: Are people opening, replying, or clicking?
- Meetings booked: The gold standard for most ABM.
- Pipeline created: Did your efforts actually move the needle?
Have a quick check-in with sales every week. Are the right accounts engaging? If not, tweak the campaign; don’t just “let it run.”
Pro tip: Ignore vanity metrics like “impressions” unless they tie directly to actual conversations.
Step 7: Iterate Ruthlessly
ABM isn’t set-and-forget. The first campaign probably won’t knock it out of the park. That’s normal.
- Review your results every 2–4 weeks. Which accounts are moving? Which are dead weight?
- Drop accounts that never engage and add a few new ones.
- Tighten up your messaging and channels based on what’s working.
Don’t be afraid to kill what isn’t working. ABM is about quality, not quantity.
Common Traps to Avoid
Some things marketers keep tripping over:
- Too big a list. You can’t run real ABM on 500 accounts. Start small.
- No sales buy-in. If sales doesn’t care about your accounts, neither will you.
- Over-automating. Automation saves time, but it can kill authenticity. Find a balance.
- Analysis paralysis. You’ll never have perfect data. Ship the campaign and learn as you go.
Wrapping Up
ABM in Ralph isn’t about fancy tools or buzzwords—it’s about focus and persistence. Start with a small, smart list. Keep your outreach relevant, not robotic. Meet with sales often and course-correct quickly. The simpler you keep it, the faster you’ll see real results. Don’t let “best practices” paralyze you—just get started, and improve as you go.