Account-based marketing (ABM) is often hailed as the golden ticket to higher ROI, shorter sales cycles, and better alignment between sales and marketing teams. But what happens when the reality doesn’t live up to the promise? Despite the hype, many companies find that their ABM strategy falls flat, leaving them with wasted resources, frustrated teams, and underwhelming results.
Here’s the truth: If your ABM campaign isn’t delivering ROI, it doesn’t mean the approach is wrong—it means the execution needs a closer look. From misaligned goals to lack of personalization, even the smallest gaps can derail your efforts. The good news? Each of these pitfalls can be identified and fixed.
1. Misaligned Sales and Marketing Teams
The foundation of any successful ABM strategy is alignment. If sales and marketing are working in silos, you’re setting yourself up for failure.
- The Problem: Marketing identifies target accounts, but sales teams don’t engage or prioritize them.
- The Fix: Align both teams early. Establish shared goals, create joint accountability, and hold regular check-ins to stay on track. Tools like account scoring systems and shared dashboards can ensure everyone is working toward the same objectives.
When sales and marketing teams are truly aligned, ABM becomes less of a “marketing program” and more of a unified strategy.
2. Targeting the Wrong Accounts
You can’t achieve ROI if you’re going after the wrong audience. The success of your ABM campaign starts with precise targeting.
- The Problem: Overly broad or outdated account lists waste time and resources.
- The Fix: Refine your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) and use data to identify high-value accounts. Look at firmographics, buying behavior, and intent data to focus your efforts on accounts most likely to convert and deliver ROI.
Remember: ABM isn’t about volume; it’s about quality. Prioritize accounts that matter.
3. Lack of Personalization
ABM thrives on delivering the right message to the right person at the right time. Without personalization, your campaigns will feel generic and fail to resonate.
- The Problem: Sending broad, one-size-fits-all content to targeted accounts.
- The Fix: Tailor your messaging to address specific pain points, goals, and industries for each account. Use insights from intent data and past behavior to craft hyper-relevant content.
Personalization isn’t just adding a name to an email—it’s about showing your audience that you understand their unique challenges.
4. Weak Measurement and Reporting
If you’re not measuring success correctly, it’s hard to know what’s working and what isn’t.
- The Problem: Tracking vanity metrics like clicks or opens instead of ROI-driving KPIs.
- The Fix: Focus on metrics that matter, like pipeline velocity, deal size, and revenue influenced. Implement closed-loop reporting to understand the full impact of your ABM efforts.
Clear measurement allows you to optimize campaigns and prove value to stakeholders.
5. Insufficient Content Strategy
Content is the fuel of ABM. Without a strong content strategy, you’ll struggle to engage your target accounts at every stage of the journey.
- The Problem: Content doesn’t align with account needs or the buyer’s journey.
- The Fix: Develop targeted content for every stage—awareness, consideration, and decision. Use case studies, personalized emails, webinars, and account-specific landing pages to keep your audience engaged.
The right content builds trust, educates decision-makers, and drives conversions.
6. Unrealistic Expectations
Many companies expect overnight success from their ABM programs. When results don’t show up quickly, they assume ABM doesn’t work.
- The Problem: Unrealistic timelines and expectations undermine long-term ROI.
- The Fix: Treat ABM as a marathon, not a sprint. Set clear, achievable goals over time and celebrate small wins along the way. Building relationships with high-value accounts takes time, but the payoff is worth it.
Final Thought
If your ABM strategy isn’t delivering ROI, it doesn’t mean you should abandon ship. By identifying the pitfalls and fine-tuning your execution, you can turn your program around and achieve the results you’ve been aiming for.
Start with alignment, refine your targeting, and focus on delivering value at every stage. When done right, ABM is one of the most powerful tools in your B2B marketing arsenal.
Ready to unlock the true potential of ABM?
Let Pintip Media help you identify the gaps and drive results with strategies that deliver measurable ROI.
