How to Allocate ABM Budgets Effectively

Want better results from your ABM budget? Here’s how to make every pound count.

Account-Based Marketing (ABM) focuses on targeting high-value accounts, making budget allocation critical. Follow these steps to maximise ROI from your ABM efforts:

• Set Clear Goals: Align ABM goals with business objectives using the SMART framework (e.g., increase engagement with tier-1 accounts by 20% in six months).
• Prioritise High-Value Accounts: Segment accounts into tiers based on revenue potential and engagement signals. Focus most resources on tier-1 accounts.
• Allocate Budgets by Tier: For a £100,000 budget:
  • Tier 1: 60–70% (£60,000–£70,000) for personalised engagement.
  • Tier 2: 20–30% (£20,000–£30,000) for scaled personalisation.
  • Tier 3: 10% (£10,000) for automated campaigns.
• Track Cost-Per-Engagement (CPE): Calculate CPE to measure campaign efficiency and adjust efforts for better results.
• Use Tools and Communities: Leverage ABM platforms like ABM Answered for insights, data, and collaboration.
• Monitor and Adjust: Use real-time dashboards and quarterly reviews to refine your strategy and reallocate funds as needed.

Account Based Marketing (ABM) - How to set an ideal budget

Step 1: Set Your ABM Goals and Priorities

Before deciding how to allocate your budget, it's essential to define clear objectives. Your goals will guide whether you focus on creating personalised content, investing in premium account intelligence tools, or equipping your sales team with advanced resources.

The numbers make it clear: aligning sales and marketing teams can significantly impact results. Companies that achieve this alignment see a 38% increase in sales win rates and a 36% boost in customer retention. Additionally, 74% of ABM programmes lead to notable revenue growth when executed effectively.

"Clearly defined account based marketing goals are not just important - they are critical for driving measurable success." – Metranomic ABM

Connect ABM Goals with Business Objectives

Your ABM goals should directly support your company’s broader objectives. This ensures every pound spent contributes to meaningful outcomes. Start by identifying your organisation’s key priorities for the year. Are you aiming to expand into new markets, increase average deal sizes, or lower customer acquisition costs? Once these are clear, align your ABM strategies accordingly. For instance, if your focus is on growing revenue from existing clients, you might prioritise account expansion and upselling initiatives.

To refine your goals, use the SMART framework: ensure they are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. Instead of a vague objective like "boost engagement with target accounts", aim for something more precise, such as "achieve a 20% increase in engagement with tier-1 accounts within six months."

Collaboration is the backbone of successful ABM. When marketing, sales, and customer success teams work together, the entire programme benefits. Sharing the cost of ABM tools with your sales team can also position the investment as part of a sales enablement initiative, rather than solely a marketing expense.

"ABM is about the overlap, not the handoff. Think about it this way: A successful ABM approach enables your marketing team to provide air cover and targeted programs as you, the sales team, are going outbound to target accounts." – Danilo Nikolich, Sr. Director of SDRs at RollWorks

Once your goals are aligned and measurable, the next step is to prioritise high-value accounts.

Focus on High-Value Accounts

To maximise your efforts, it’s crucial to focus on accounts with the greatest revenue potential and strategic importance. Start by creating a detailed list of potential accounts, dividing them into two main categories: customers and prospects. Within each category, further segment accounts into high-priority and low-priority tiers based on factors like revenue contribution and strategic value.

Category	Sub-Category	Description
Customers	High-priority	Key clients contributing significantly to revenue and showing high engagement
Customers	Low-priority	Clients with lower revenue contributions or less strategic importance
Prospects	High-priority	Qualified leads with strong interest and high conversion potential
Prospects	Low-priority	Unqualified leads requiring further nurturing and qualification

For a more precise approach, create a scoring system based on criteria such as revenue potential, strategic value, sales cycle length, customer fit, and engagement levels. Analyse your top 25% of accounts by revenue contribution to establish a benchmark. Accounts exceeding this threshold should receive the majority of your ABM resources and budget.

Data plays a crucial role in identifying the right accounts. Without reliable data to shape your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP), you risk misallocating resources.

"Without strong data driving your ICP, you'll miss the mark. You won't be able to identify the right accounts, and you'll be back to spraying and praying." – Hussam AlMukhtar, Senior Director of Customer Expansion at ZoomInfo

It’s worth noting that 40% of businesses face challenges in gathering account and contact data for ABM programmes. Investing in high-quality data and account intelligence early on can help you sidestep this common issue.

To ensure your sales team remains focused, consider setting practical limits on the number of tier-1 accounts they manage. For example, you might cap tier-1 accounts per representative to allow for deeper engagement with the most promising leads. Meanwhile, tier-2 and tier-3 accounts, which require less individual attention, can be handled in greater numbers.

Lastly, establish a regular review process - quarterly reviews work well for many organisations. Stay flexible and be ready to adjust your account lists more frequently if major changes occur in your ICP or market conditions.

Step 2: Group Accounts Using Tiers

When it comes to allocating ABM budgets, grouping accounts into tiers is a smart way to ensure resources are used effectively. By segmenting accounts based on their potential value, you can focus your efforts where they matter most, ultimately boosting ROI.

Targeting high-value leads can be a game changer. Research shows this approach can cut wasted sales time in half and drive revenue growth by over 200%. On top of that, 84% of marketers say ABM helps strengthen relationships with existing customers and increases customer lifetime value.

"Tiering your accounts allows you to allocate resources and personalisation efforts according to each account's potential value. This ensures you're investing the most time and energy into the accounts that are most likely to drive significant revenue for your business."– Megan Heuer, VP of Research at SiriusDecisions

Set Criteria for Account Tiers

Building effective account tiers starts with a thorough evaluation of multiple data points. The best systems combine several types of data to create a full picture of an account's value:

• Firmographic data: Factors like company size, industry, revenue, and location.
• Technographic information: Insights into the technology they use and their existing tech stack.
• Engagement signals: Indicators such as website visits, content downloads, event attendance, and keyword searches.

Engagement and intent signals are especially valuable for understanding an account's readiness to buy. For instance, an account showing frequent website visits or high interaction with your content might deserve a higher tier, even if their firmographic data doesn’t initially stand out.

Ultimately, revenue potential should guide your decisions. This means looking at lifetime value, growth potential, and expected deal size to weigh both short-term and long-term opportunities. For example, Invoca used a mix of firmographic data, paid search spend, and traffic patterns to categorise accounts into tiers.

Factor	Description
Firmographic Data	Industry, company size, location
Technographic Information	Technology stack compatibility
Engagement Levels	Website visits, content downloads, events
Revenue Potential	Lifetime value, growth trajectory

Once you’ve defined your tiers, you can move on to budget allocation.

Distribute Budget by Tier

After setting your criteria, the next step is to allocate your budget based on each tier’s revenue potential. The general rule is simple: Tier 1 accounts, with the highest revenue potential, should receive the largest share of your budget.

Here’s a common breakdown for a £100,000 annual budget:

• Tier 1 accounts: These are your top priorities with significant revenue potential and strong buying signals. Expect to allocate 60–70% of your budget here, which translates to £60,000–£70,000. This allows for highly personalised engagement, such as custom events, tailored content, and direct mail campaigns.
• Tier 2 accounts: These accounts show moderate revenue potential and intent signals. Around 20–30% of the budget (£20,000–£30,000) should go here. Strategies include scaled personalisation efforts like industry events, targeted advertising, and semi-customised content.
• Tier 3 accounts: These represent longer-term opportunities with lower initial value and early-stage signals. Allocate roughly 10% of your budget (£10,000). Engagement at this level often involves automated campaigns, such as programmatic ads, email sequences, and digital content distribution.

Account Tier	Budget Allocation	Example (£100,000 Budget)	Typical Activities
Tier 1	60–70%	£60,000–£70,000	Custom events, personalised mail, tailored content
Tier 2	20–30%	£20,000–£30,000	Industry events, targeted ads
Tier 3	10%	£10,000	Automated campaigns, digital content

It’s important to stay flexible. Review your tiers quarterly to ensure they reflect changing engagement levels or new insights. For instance, a Tier 3 account showing increased activity could warrant a promotion to Tier 2 or even Tier 1. This dynamic approach ensures your resources are always aligned with the best opportunities.

Step 3: Calculate and Track Cost-Per-Engagement (CPE)

After setting up strategic allocation and tier-based budgeting, the next step is to understand your Cost-Per-Engagement (CPE). This metric is crucial for ensuring that every pound spent delivers meaningful interactions with your target accounts. By calculating your CPE, you can identify which campaigns are genuinely effective and delivering value.

How to Calculate CPE

To figure out your CPE, simply divide the total campaign cost by the number of engagements it generated. Engagements can include actions like clicks, views, likes, shares, comments, or signups. For example:

• A campaign costing £5,000 that generates 500 meaningful engagements results in a CPE of £10.
• A £2,000 LinkedIn campaign producing 5,000 less valuable interactions has a CPE of around £0.40.

These examples highlight how focusing solely on broad engagement metrics can obscure the true cost of acquiring meaningful, high-quality interactions. Defining what counts as a "valuable engagement" should be a key part of your strategy.

Establishing Performance Benchmarks

Setting realistic CPE benchmarks allows you to evaluate your campaign performance and fine-tune your budget. Research in the UK shows that benchmarks can vary depending on the industry. Here’s a quick look:

Industry Sector	Typical CPE Range	Performance Indicator
Financial Services	£0.31 – £0.62	Higher due to compliance considerations
Retail	£0.15 – £0.39	Lower costs, broader engagement
Healthcare	£0.23 – £0.54	Reflects complex decision-making processes
Education	£0.15 – £0.46	Variable based on institution size
Telecommunications	£0.19 – £0.42	Competitive market dynamics

A CPE under £0.15 suggests highly efficient targeting. If your CPE falls between £0.15 and £0.39, your engagement is cost-effective. However, a CPE between £0.39 and £0.62 might indicate areas for improvement, and anything above this range could signal the need for better targeting or creative adjustments.

It’s important to note that ABM campaigns often have a higher CPE compared to general marketing efforts. This is because ABM focuses on smaller, more specific audiences with personalised content. A higher CPE can still be worthwhile if it leads to qualified leads from high-value accounts. On the other hand, a low CPE from unqualified interactions may not provide much business benefit.

Monitoring your CPE regularly can uncover trends, such as rising costs due to message fatigue or reductions thanks to improved targeting. These insights are invaluable for making informed adjustments to your campaign budgets.

Step 4: Distribute Budgets Across Campaigns

Now that you've established your CPE benchmarks, it’s time to allocate your budget wisely. The key is to invest proportionally across campaigns based on the revenue potential of each account. Start by evaluating each account’s potential before deciding how to distribute funds.

Match Budget to Revenue Potential

Your investment should align with the projected deal size of each account. For example, if you’re targeting an account worth £500,000, you might allocate between £2,000 and £4,000 for personalised content and targeted campaigns. On the other hand, a £2 million opportunity could justify a more substantial investment, such as £10,000–£15,000, to execute a comprehensive, multi-channel engagement strategy.

"ABM is about calculating revenue per account, then investing appropriately to achieve that return".

For high-value accounts, the scale of investment can be even more striking. One example includes a client who allocated £50,000 to secure a single high-value account.

Your spending should also reflect the complexity of the account. Factors like the number of decision-makers involved, the intricacy of your product, and the organisational structure of the target company all play a role. Enterprise sales that span multiple departments often require a larger budget to ensure meaningful engagement.

This method builds on your tiered account grouping, ensuring that accounts with the highest potential receive the attention - and resources - they deserve.

"Never let your budget dictate the accounts you go after; always target the businesses that are most likely to make a purchase, even if that means targeting fewer".

This philosophy reinforces the idea that focusing on quality over quantity is essential when dividing campaign budgets.

Reserve Funds for High-Impact Opportunities

Effective ABM strategies also include setting aside a portion of the budget as a contingency fund. This reserve allows you to act quickly on unexpected, high-value opportunities. For instance, if a dream account starts showing buying signals or if market conditions create new openings, you’ll have the flexibility to respond without hesitation.

A tiered budget approach can help you structure these contingency funds effectively:

• Tier 1 (Essential): Covers core campaigns, ensuring consistent engagement with your primary target accounts.
• Tier 2 (Growth): Adds budget for accounts that show increased engagement or are advancing through the sales funnel.
• Tier 3 (Innovation): Reserves funds for testing new channels, addressing urgent opportunities, or pursuing accounts outside your original target list.

It’s also wise to reserve funds for existing clients who show growth potential. Research indicates that acquiring a new customer costs five times more than retaining an existing one, and selling to current clients is 50% easier than selling to new prospects. If a current client expresses interest in additional services or demonstrates signs of expansion, having contingency funds ensures you can act quickly with targeted campaigns.

Balancing your spending between account research - like mapping decision-makers and identifying challenges - and engagement with personalised content is critical. Keep an eye on how you’re using your contingency funds. If you frequently find yourself reallocating resources from underperforming campaigns to high-value accounts, it might be time to reassess and refine your account selection criteria.

Flexibility and constant monitoring are your allies as you fine-tune your strategy and optimise your spending.

Step 5: Use Tools and Resources for Better Efficiency

Make the most of your budget by tapping into specialised ABM tools. Platforms like ABM Answered provide strategic resources that stretch your pounds further and help you achieve more impactful results.

According to data, 97% of marketers reported higher ROI with ABM compared to other marketing approaches, and 60% of companies using ABM saw at least a 10% revenue boost. The secret lies in using tools that enhance your strategy, offering deeper insights and enabling highly targeted engagement.

Explore ABM Answered's Video Library and Tools

ABM Answered offers over 1,000 video solutions packed with expert insights - delivering actionable advice at a fraction of the cost of traditional consultancy. These videos are designed to provide immediate answers to budget challenges.

The platform also features battlecards, research tools, and personalised video games to help you pinpoint high-value accounts quickly. By focusing your efforts on the most promising targets, you avoid wasting resources on accounts with low potential. This approach not only saves money but also boosts engagement quality.

Additionally, ABM Answered includes Reddit-based research tools that uncover your target accounts' pain points without the need for costly market research. Armed with this intelligence, you can craft campaigns that are more precise, lowering your cost-per-engagement while improving conversion rates.

Leverage ABM Communities for Shared Success

Beyond tools, ABM Answered's collaborative community provides a space to exchange real-world insights and strategies. Peer-to-peer learning within this network eliminates the need for expensive trial-and-error processes, offering proven tactics that have already delivered results in actual campaigns.

The platform also hosts an incubator programme where marketers can co-develop tools, sharing the development costs while creating solutions tailored to their needs. Expert interviews and curated content further offer strategic guidance, often replacing the need for pricey consulting services.

Networking within the ABM Answered community opens doors to partnerships and shared resources. By connecting with marketers targeting similar industries, you can pool research costs, co-create content, and even coordinate campaigns - helping everyone involved reduce expenses while achieving better outcomes.

This collaborative approach ensures that every pound spent works harder, delivering immediate results while fostering long-term growth. By sharing feedback and refining tactics together, the community enables continuous improvement and sustained success.

Step 6: Monitor and Adjust Your Budgets

Managing your ABM budget effectively isn’t a one-and-done task. It requires ongoing attention to ensure resources are being used wisely and opportunities for growth are seized. Regular monitoring not only prevents overspending on campaigns that underperform but also helps identify areas where additional investment could yield better results.

According to research, organisations with advanced ABM programmes are 70% more likely to see a significant revenue impact compared to those with weaker measurement systems. This success comes from their ability to track results in real time and respond quickly with data-driven decisions. The key is to use tools that offer real-time visibility into your performance metrics.

Track Spending with Real-Time Dashboards

Real-time dashboards are your go-to resource for keeping tabs on ABM budgets. These platforms pull data from various sources like your CRM, marketing automation tools, website analytics, and advertising platforms to give you a complete picture of your spending. They make it easier to track crucial metrics such as account engagement, pipeline speed, cost-per-engagement, and ROI. Visual aids like charts and heatmaps help you spot trends and take action when needed.

Set up dashboards that integrate data from your key tools and focus on metrics that directly influence budget decisions. For example, track revenue, sales-qualified leads (SQLs), pipeline velocity, and engagement scores. You can even set up automated alerts to flag unusual spending patterns, so nothing slips through the cracks.

Schedule Regular Budget Reviews

A quarterly review process aligned with UK financial reporting periods is a smart way to stay on top of your ABM budget. These reviews give you the chance to compare your actual spending against projections and assess how well your campaigns are meeting business goals. By doing this regularly, you can spot spending patterns over time and make more informed decisions.

Use these reviews to identify which account tiers are consistently delivering strong results and which might need a different approach. This allows you to reallocate resources effectively, ensuring your budget supports the areas with the highest potential for success.

Adjust Budgets Based on Results

Once performance data starts coming in, use it to refine your budget allocations. Companies with strong measurement frameworks are 2.5 times more likely to hit their ABM targets. This is because they’re able to make quick adjustments based on actual results.

Keep an eye on key performance indicators to guide your decisions. For example, if a campaign is consistently outperforming expectations, consider gradually increasing its budget to scale up what’s working. On the other hand, underperforming campaigns should be reviewed carefully - sometimes a small tweak can turn things around before cutting funding entirely.

Sales and marketing teams can also provide valuable input here. Sales teams, in particular, might have insights into account readiness that your dashboards can’t capture. Incorporating this feedback ensures your budget adjustments are aligned with what’s happening on the ground.

Top-performing ABM programmes typically deliver a 7:1 ROI, compared to an average of 3:1. If your adjustments are moving you closer to that higher benchmark, you’re heading in the right direction. Keep fine-tuning your allocations to maximise your return on investment.

Conclusion: Maximise ROI Through Smart ABM Budgeting

Allocating your ABM budget wisely isn’t about spending more - it’s about spending smarter. The six steps outlined earlier serve as a roadmap for making strategic decisions that not only enhance engagement but also keep costs in check. This approach creates a foundation for both immediate wins and sustainable growth down the line.

"Account-based marketing is not about marketing to accounts. It's about marketing to people within those accounts." - Sangram Vajre, co-founder and chief evangelist at Terminus

This insight underscores the importance of thoughtful and targeted budgeting. Success lies in focusing on the accounts most likely to convert, while staying flexible enough to adjust spending based on real-time performance data. Also, don’t underestimate the value of retaining your current customers - doing so can boost profits by 25-95%. Balancing efforts between nurturing existing relationships and acquiring new accounts is key.

With tools like ABM Answered, offering a library of over 1,000 video solutions and a collaborative community, executing sophisticated ABM strategies has become far more accessible. These resources help you avoid common missteps and tap into expert advice, making your campaigns more efficient and impactful.

By following these structured steps, you can turn budgeting into a growth driver rather than a cost burden. Shift your focus to account-level engagement, pipeline velocity, and revenue impact, steering clear of vanity metrics. Regular reviews tied to UK financial reporting periods will keep your strategy aligned, while real-time data monitoring allows you to seize opportunities as they emerge. Companies that master this blend of strategic foresight and tactical flexibility consistently outperform their peers.

Smart ABM budgeting transforms spending into a powerful growth strategy. Stick to these principles, remain committed to refining your approach, and you’ll not only hit today’s targets but also set the stage for long-term success.

FAQs

How can I align my ABM goals with my company's business objectives effectively?

To ensure your Account-Based Marketing (ABM) strategy aligns seamlessly with your company's overall business goals, start by pinpointing your organisation's top priorities. Whether it’s driving revenue growth, breaking into new markets, or boosting customer retention, your ABM efforts should directly contribute to these larger objectives.

The next step is to focus on ideal customer profiles (ICPs) and high-value target accounts that match these priorities. Choose accounts that show strong potential for delivering impactful outcomes, like higher revenue or long-lasting partnerships. Consistently evaluate your ABM performance against these goals and make data-informed adjustments to stay on track.

Strong collaboration between sales and marketing teams is non-negotiable. When these teams work hand in hand, they can craft a unified approach, enhance customer engagement, and keep ABM efforts tightly aligned with the company’s strategic vision.

What is the best way to create account tiers in ABM, and how does it affect budget allocation?

Creating Account Tiers in ABM

Defining account tiers is a key part of Account-Based Marketing (ABM) that helps ensure your budget is spent wisely. To do this effectively, you need clear criteria for each tier, typically based on factors like potential revenue, engagement levels, and strategic importance. Most often, accounts are grouped into three tiers:

• Tier 1: These are high-value accounts with the most revenue potential and strategic significance.
• Tier 2: Accounts in this tier have moderate potential and importance.
• Tier 3: Lower-value accounts that require less personalised attention.

This tiered structure allows marketers to focus their resources where they’ll have the most impact. For example, Tier 1 accounts usually get the lion’s share of the budget - about 60–70% - to fund tailored campaigns and deepen engagement. By concentrating on these high-value accounts, businesses can maximise their marketing investment and achieve better returns, while still addressing the needs of accounts in lower tiers.

How can I calculate and use Cost-Per-Engagement (CPE) to optimise my ABM campaigns?

How to Calculate Cost-Per-Engagement (CPE) in ABM Campaigns

To figure out your Cost-Per-Engagement (CPE) for Account-Based Marketing (ABM) campaigns, simply divide the total campaign cost by the number of engagements. Engagements can include actions like clicks, comments, shares, or conversions. For instance, if you spend £1,000 on a campaign that generates 200 engagements, your CPE would be £5 per engagement.

Knowing your CPE is crucial for assessing how efficiently your campaigns are performing. A lower CPE indicates you're getting more engagement for every pound spent, showing that your efforts are paying off. Use this data to fine-tune your approach, prioritise activities that perform well, and maximise the return on your marketing spend.

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