ABM Trends in 2022: What to Watch For

This year was a good year for ABM. We saw the return of the data marketer, the growth of the marketing automation company, and so much more. In 2021, reports show that the number of marketers adopting an ABM approach increased by 15%, resulting in 70% of marketers stating that they've already launched an ABM program. Whether you've just decided to implement account-based marketing into your B2B strategy, or you're looking to revamp your current strategy for the new year, you'll want to make sure you're on top of the ABM trends for 2022.

However, before jumping into the forecasted trends for ABM, it's essential to take a look at the current trends in the space.

ABM Trends We Saw in 2021 (and that will continue into 2022)

ABM is a complex, yet highly effective sales and marketing platform that has been adopted by thousands of businesses across a variety of industries.

In 2021, the ABM space gained quite a bit of popularity as more and more B2B companies decided to take a more strategic approach to grow their business. There are many reasons why ABM took the spotlight amongst B2B marketing teams, including its ability to integrate and automate various marketing activities and significantly improve the B2B customer experience in a very uncertain time for many.

That said, some of the biggest ABM trends noticed in 2021 included:

Balancing Technology and Data with Empathy and Trust

One of the biggest trends we saw in the ABM space was the realization that technology and data are two critical elements to a successful ABM campaign, but they can't be your only focus. Empathy and trust are two critical components to winning over your prospects and closing deals, and your ABM strategy should reflect that.

This meant that marketing teams had to be methodical about how they collected and utilized their data when creating content and experiences that connected with their leads and customers and make sure that they created content in a way that was engaging and provided value.

Focusing on Comprehensive Experiences

As marketing and sales teams have learned over the last few years, it's critical to create an experience that connects and interacts with the customer rather than simply a piece of content when it comes to account-based marketing.

The ABM tools that are currently available have evolved to provide customers with a personalized experience based on their profile and the content that they've interacted with on their journey with your brand. By creating a consistent experience, and making that experience as frictionless as possible, you're able to keep your leads and customers engaged and interested in what you have to offer.

Building a Multichannel Presence

In 2021, the ABM space also focused heavily on multi-channel selling and marketing, or the ability to engage with your customers and prospects across digital, social, and physical channels.

This means you need to be able to track user journeys across all channels, identify gaps in your customers' experience, and make sure that you're meeting them where they are, rather than expecting them to come to you. This involves a lot of testing and using the right technology to track and segment your key data in real-time to quickly identify and address issues as they arise.

3 ABM Trends for 2022

There's a lot of talk about ABM trends for 2022 and beyond, and the industry is only getting more complex. That said, if you are looking to either dip your toes into ABM for the first time or completely revamp your 2020 ABM strategy for your B2B brand, then you'll want to make sure you stay ahead of the curve by making note of the following three ABM trends forecasted for 2022:

1. Developing Contextual Engagement and Less Prioritization of Click-Based Engagement

As more B2B brands are making the move to ABM, they quickly realize that there are many different ways to engage with their prospects and customers.

The goal of your ABM strategy is to be able to connect with your leads and customers where they are, which means you need to create content that is relevant to them.

This also means that you need to move away from click-based engagement, or advertising based on getting clicks or conversions. Instead, you should focus on creating highly relevant and valuable content for your leads and customers.

The more you can provide value to your leads and customers through content that speaks to their specific needs, interests, and goals, the more likely they are to convert.

Source: Hushly

2. Using Machine Learning/AI To Help Predict Revenue/Growth Opportunities

As we move into the new year, B2B marketing teams are increasingly leveraging AI to provide more accurate predictions of revenue and opportunities for future growth.

For a long time, marketing and sales teams had to spend a significant number of resources building out complex predictive models to help them predict customer behavior as well as what their revenue and growth could look like.

Now, thanks to the advancements in machine learning and AI, marketing and sales teams can use their data to predict revenue and opportunities in a matter of minutes. They can then use this data to better prioritize and focus their time and resources on the most likely opportunities.

Source: Forbes

3. Focusing on Creation of More Highly Targeted Subsets of Clientele to Drive Better Experiences

As the digital landscape continues to become more complex, we're seeing marketers and salespeople alike looking to create more targeted and segmented sets of leads and customers.

ABM has already made it possible for marketers to create more targeted groups of leads. This, in turn, allows them to focus their messages and resources on the individuals that are more likely to convert.

Get Started with ABM with Hushly's ABM Campaign Pages

If you're looking to get started with ABM, then you'll want to look into Hushly's Account-based marketing campaign pages.

These Campaign Pages are designed for B2B marketers and salespeople that want to use account-based marketing to connect with their audience and drive more qualified leads. The pages are designed to be easy to use and are simple to implement.

Curious how an ABM campaign page can help your brand? Then book your demo today!

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