The difference between doing and understanding ABM.

Everyone wants Account-Based Marketing. But hardly anyone knows how to do it…

When ABM actually makes sense:

ABM isn’t for everyone. You don’t need a million-euro budget, but you do need a solid commercial foundation.

• ABM only works if:
• • Your sales cycle takes at least 2 to 3 months.
• • The average customer value or LTV is at least €30,000
• • Multiple stakeholders are involved in the purchase (Buying Committee)
• • Trust and brand preference are decisive in the selection

ABM Checklist 2025 – where it goes wrong?

• 1. No Clear ICP
• Without a clear ICP, you’re working based on assumptions.
• Solution: Analyze your top 10 won and lost deals.

• 2. Starting Too Fast and Too Broad
• Starting with thousands of accounts without segmentation leads to dilution.
• Solution: Start small. One sector. One goal. One ABM team.

• 3. Sales and Marketing Don’t Work Together
• Without shared insights and KPIs, ABM fails.
• Solution: Use ABM syncs and a shared playbook/step-by-step plan (see template later in the article).

• 4. Content Lacks Connection
• ABM requires tailored content, not generic whitepapers.
• Solution: Thought leadership, cases, personalized videos.

• 5. Too Much Tech, Too Little Control
• Tooling without strategy is expensive and ineffective.
• Solution: Start with a lean stack: Sales Navigator, a CRM, and a source of intent data like LinkedIn Campaign Manager.

How to deploy ABM:

The IXTE ABM Framework: 7 Pillars for Structural Growth

• At IXTE, we work with a 7-pillar framework that supports a complete ABM approach. We have noticed that if one pillar is missing, the chance of success is almost zero.

• 1. Goals
• What do you want to achieve? New business, contract renewal, or pipeline acceleration?

• 2. ABM Team
• Marketing, sales, content, and data: all aligned.

• 3. ICP and Segmentation
• Based on data, not assumptions.

• 4. MVP Tech Stack
• Use only what’s necessary and keep it clear.

• 5. Follow-Up
• Focused on the entire buying committee.

• 6. Personalization
• This is where you make the difference.

• 7. Demand Capture
• Translate insights into pipeline.

Demand Generation & ABM: How They Work Together

Many organizations confuse Demand Generation with ABM. But they actually reinforce each other – if used at the right time.

Demand Generation is the starting point. It’s aimed at building brand awareness, trust, and education within your target audience. Think of:

• • Educational content: Create content that informs your audience about problems and solutions without directly promoting your service. Think webinars, podcasts, and educational videos.
• • Content series: Instead of individual content pieces, develop a series that tells a story or dives deep into a topic. This can be a blog post series, podcast series, or video series.
• • Distribution-focused: Focus on distributing your content on platforms where your ideal customer is, like LinkedIn, YouTube, and podcasts. The goal is to reach and engage as many people as possible.
• • Storytelling approach: Use storytelling to convey your message. People remember stories better than dry facts or product features.
• • Zero-click content: Offer valuable content without requiring people to leave their data first (ungated content). This lowers the threshold for consumption and sharing.

With this, you reach the 95% of your market that is (still) not actively looking. You create top-of-mind awareness with your ICP, without direct commercial pressure.

And then ABM comes into play as demand capture. When you see signs of high intent – like repeated website visits, engagement on LinkedIn, or direct interaction – you activate the ABM part.

Then you focus on a limited number of accounts with:

• • Highly personalized follow-up (not automated)
• • Tailored messaging per DMU role
• • Outreach focused on timing, relevance, and recognition of the prospect’s problem

You convert the demand that you first built through Demand Generation.

Together, these two elements form a powerful system:

• Demand Gen builds the market.
• ABM harvests at the right moment.

Account Tiering: Not Every Account Is Equal

Not every account deserves the same attention. That’s why at IXTE we work with three levels:

Tier 1: Strategic top accounts

• • Highest LTV
• • Complex decision-making
• • Strategic fit

Approach: 1-on-1 engagement, personalized campaigns, direct sales involvement, custom content focused on solutions.

Tier 2: Medium priority

• • Recognizable use case
• • Clear need
• • Match with ICP

Approach: 1-on-few campaigns with industry-specific content.

Tier 3: Broad audience for demand

• • Early stage in customer journey
• • Latent need
• • Long-term potential

Approach: 1-to-many approach. Educational content, LinkedIn campaigns, social nurturing, and Thought Leader Ads.

Tier 1:

Visibility is valuable, but follow-up during high intent is crucial.

ABM isn’t about volume but about precision. That’s why the work doesn’t stop once an account engages or consumes a piece of content. On the contrary – that’s when it really begins.

The key to results lies in structured, thoughtful follow-up that’s aligned with where the account is in the buyer journey. Not via standard follow-up emails, but with a plan that addresses the context, behavior, and priorities of the buying committee.

At IXTE, we work with a tactical follow-up playbook designed for ABM trajectories. The approach is personal, phased, and tailored to the type of account and the activation moment. Naturally, this playbook is aligned with the Sales team, so marketing and sales know exactly who does what, when, and why.

Example:

In Summary:

ABM works. But only if you see it as part of a complete system.

It’s not the starting point of your marketing approach, but the final stage of a well-prepared strategy.

• It works if:
• • You know exactly who you’re doing it for: with a sharply defined ICP and disqualification criteria
• • You work small and focused: with one target group, one campaign, and one team
• • Marketing and sales operate as one team: with shared insights, KPIs, and follow-up
• • You use Demand Generation to build trust and brand preference with your entire market
• • You then use ABM to convert that built-up demand at the right time into concrete conversations, demos, and deals.

First, you create momentum in the market. Then you turn it into pipeline. That’s the power of Demand Gen, ABM, and Signal Based Marketing – if they reinforce each other instead of operating separately.

ABM is not a tactic. It is a long-term system. And it works, provided you respect the sequence of the steps.

What do we do at IXTE?

• At IXTE, we help B2B organizations seize commercial opportunities that others don’t even see. We combine Demand Generation and Account Based Marketing to be visible and relevant precisely where your target audience is in motion.

• Our slogan ‘We open doors others miss’ means to us: the right message, at the right time, to the right people – before the competition even gets a seat at the table.

Want to learn more about successfully implementing ABM for your organization? Contact us at 010 – 600 2 600 or email us through the form below.