If you work in the B2B market, chances are you’ve heard the acronym ABM pop up. Maybe in a marketing strategy meeting, on LinkedIn, or perhaps from a sales rep asking, “Can we do more ABM next quarter?”
But what does ABM actually stand for?
ABM stands for Account-Based Marketing, and it’s exactly what it sounds like: a focused marketing strategy built around targeting high-value accounts.
This approach is especially powerful for industrial companies. When selling to a niche audience, your leads are too valuable to waste on generic campaigns. You need precision, a way to connect with the exact people who are ready to buy.
In this blog, I’ll break down how ABM works, how to build a strategy that delivers results, and how industrial B2B teams can use it to close bigger deals faster.
What Does ABM Stand For? (And Why It Matters in B2B)
ABM stands for Account-Based Marketing.
Account-based marketing is a strategy in which your marketing and sales teams work together to target a defined list of high-value accounts rather than trying to attract as many leads as possible.
ABM is all about quality over quantity.
Instead of building broad campaigns that speak to an entire industry or vertical, ABM focuses your efforts on the exact companies you want to land, and delivers personalized messaging to the decision-makers within those companies.
This is especially valuable for industrial B2B companies.
When your sales cycle is six months or longer, you need buy-in from three to five different stakeholders, and when you’re working in a market where only a handful of companies are truly a good fit, ABM makes sense.
ABM helps you:
- Prioritize prospects that are the most promising
- Build stronger relationships with key contacts
- Reduce wasted spend on leads that were never going to convert
"The market is shifting. Buyers expect a more personalized, informed experience, and ABM delivers just that. It’s where we’ve seen the best, most consistent results for our industrial clients."
— John Heritage, CEO, Evenbound
How to Build an ABM Strategy for Industrial Companies
Building a successful account-based marketing strategy doesn’t have to be overwhelming. It’s really about focusing your time and effort on the accounts that matter most, and delivering content and outreach that’s genuinely useful to them.
Here’s how to get started:
Step 1: Define Your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP)
You must know who you're targeting before you launch any campaigns. That’s where your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) comes in.
For industrial companies, your ICP might include things like:
- Industry type (e.g., food processing, automotive manufacturing, energy)
- Facility size or production volume
- Type of equipment they use (especially if it aligns with your offerings)
- Regulatory or compliance pressures they face
- Signs of operational inefficiency or aging infrastructure
Check out HubSpot’s ICP worksheet to dive deeper.
Step 2: Align Sales and Marketing Teams
ABM doesn’t work unless your sales and marketing teams are rowing in the same direction.
That means both sales and marketing must be:
- Collaborating to build the ICP
- Sharing intel on target accounts
- Agreeing on what success looks like for each campaign
For example, your sales team may notice a facility manager opening emails about equipment failures. Marketing can step in with a targeted case study or resource addressing that exact issue. That kind of coordination builds trust and moves deals forward faster.
Note: Effective sales and marketing alignment is proven to increase revenue by 208%.
Step 3: Create Personalized Content and Campaigns
Once you know your ICPs, it’s time to speak directly to them. That means developing content that’s tailored not just to the industry, but to the individual account.
For industrial buyers, this could look like:
- Application-specific product guides
- Videos showing how your solution works in their environment
- ROI calculators based on their operating conditions
- Technical spec sheets with pre-filled data
- Personalized emails from your sales rep, linking to educational blogs or relevant case studies
The goal is to make every touchpoint feel like it was created just for them, because it was.
Step 4: Launch, Monitor, and Adjust
ABM isn’t a one-and-done tactic. Once your campaigns are live, you’ll want to track how each account is engaging.
Key metrics you should track include:
- Email opens and clicks
- Page visits from key contacts
- Content downloads
- Meeting requests or replies
With HubSpot, you can track engagement at the account level and make real-time adjustments. If a contact isn’t biting on your initial outreach, maybe a different message is needed.
4 ABM Best Practices for Industrial B2Bs
If you invest in a B2B ABM strategy, you want to ensure you're doing it right, especially in industrial sectors where time and resources are tight. These best practices will help you maximize your efforts and move the needle with high-value prospects.
1. Keep Your ICP Updated
Markets shift. Teams change. Technology evolves.
Your Ideal Customer Profile isn’t something you build once and forget about. Revisit it regularly based on feedback from your sales team and changes in your target industries. If you notice more leads converting from a particular segment (say, mid-sized fabrication shops instead of massive manufacturers), use that insight to refine your targeting.
2. Personalize Content Without Overcomplicating
You don’t need to reinvent the wheel for every account. Start with modular content you can adapt for different industries, applications, or pain points.
For example:
- Send a short, targeted email that links to a relevant blog or case study based on the type of system they’re currently using or their industry.
- Customize a capabilities sheet with their company name, logo, and relevant product lines highlighted
It’s not about being fancy—it’s about being relevant.
3. Speak to Both Technical and Business Stakeholders
In industrial B2B, there’s often more than one person influencing the sale. A plant manager might care about uptime, a maintenance lead might want to simplify operations, and a CFO wants ROI.
Your campaigns should reflect that.
Build out messaging and content that speaks to each role in the buying committee. When everyone feels heard, your chances of closing the deal increase.
4. Work as One Team
The most successful ABM campaigns I’ve seen are the ones where sales and marketing are truly in sync.
That means:
- Sales shares real-time feedback from conversations
- Marketing adapts campaigns based on what’s resonating
- Everyone agrees on which accounts to prioritize and what the goals are
When that kind of collaboration clicks, ABM stops feeling like a marketing tactic and starts delivering tangible business results.
Why ABM Works So Well in Industrial Markets
Account-based marketing isn’t just a trendy strategy—it’s a practical fit for industrial companies dealing with long sales cycles, complex buying committees, and niche audiences.
Here’s why ABM works for industrial markets:
You’re Not Wasting Time on Low-Fit Leads
Let’s be honest—most broad marketing campaigns pull in a lot of noise. With ABM, you’re focusing on accounts you’ve already qualified. That means less chasing dead ends and more time spent on prospects that actually match your business model.
You Build Trust With the Right People Early
Industrial buyers don’t make snap decisions. They do their homework, loop in engineers, and often go through multiple layers of approval. ABM allows you to start those conversations early, with messaging that speaks directly to stakeholders’ concerns.
You Speed Up the Sales Process
When you tailor your content and outreach to the account’s exact needs, you reduce friction in the buying process. They don’t have to dig for answers because you’re already serving them up. That makes it easier for your champion to advocate for your solution internally and for the decision-makers to get on board.
You Create Opportunities for Expansion
ABM isn’t just for new business. It’s incredibly effective for upselling and cross-selling, too. If you’ve already landed an account, targeted ABM campaigns can help you introduce additional product lines, new services, or contract renewals.
Final Thoughts: Is ABM Right for You?
If you’re still wondering whether ABM is worth it, here are a few questions to consider:
- Do you sell high-value products or services with long sales cycles?
- Are you targeting a relatively small number of ideal accounts?
- Do you often need buy-in from multiple stakeholders to close a deal?
- Are your sales and marketing teams ready (or willing) to collaborate more closely?
If you answered yes to most of these, there’s a good chance ABM could help you focus your resources, shorten your sales cycle, and win more of the business you want.
Ready to Land the Clients That Matter Most? Let’s Talk ABM.
If you’re serious about targeting better-fit accounts and closing deals faster, ABM is worth a closer look.
At Evenbound, we’ve worked with industrial companies that were tired of wasting time on low-quality leads. Once they shifted to an account-based approach, everything changed. Their marketing felt more focused. Their sales team stayed engaged. Most importantly, they started closing the right kind of deals.
Interested in seeing some real-life results we’ve helped our clients achieve? Take a look at the case studies below!
- How We Grew This Cleanroom Company into a Global Powerhouse with 350% Revenue Growth
- How We Helped a Global Chemical Company Track $8 Million Worth of Closed Deals
- How Our Long-term Partnership Grew Monthly Traffic by +600%
If you’re ready to see what ABM could look like for your business, let’s talk!
