Running ABM Programs Without The Dedicated Technology

Shownotes

To get buy-in for anything, a strong business case is necessary. The way to do this is by understanding the value proposition, and genuinely understanding our customers and their needs. After acquiring the critical information, we build a narrative around it and present it to the team. Through this, the way to execution becomes clearer as those involved are now vested in the success of the project.

About the Guest

In her career spanning over ten years, Lubaina has been an Animator, Business Analyst, Project Manager, Product Marketer, and now an Account-Based Marketer. She has helped both product and business teams create a strong brand presence, powerful positioning, and a focused go-to-market strategy. Lubaina currently leads the Account-Based Marketing practice at Thoughtworks for its high-priority accounts. She has helped set up the ABM process for the organization and piloted its global ABM program, scaling it from 9 to 30+ accounts.

Connect with Lubaina Rangwala

Key Takeaways

• Thoughtworks is a global technology consultancy focused on problem-solving for businesses to thrive as a modern digital business.
• The power of storytelling should not be disregarded in business – it can turn out to be the critical ingredient to growth and expansion.
• Make sure that we have a clear understanding of what our value proposition is. We must be able to articulate that story to our leadership team and our customers.
• Being able to articulate the value proposition and then being able to share that story with our leadership team and our customers were key in getting buy-in.
• Marketing’s role in the sales cycle has been elevated in recent years, with emphasis placed on working with partners to help them understand what’s happening at the account strategy level. Marketing also needs to trust sales to have a productive relationship.
• Commonalities between groups of accounts across industries and domains can help identify which accounts to personalize content for. Knowing the priorities of a company’s CEO can also help group accounts for personalization.

Quote

“I think marketing having an executive voice has been really critical in elevating marketing contribution as well into the sales cycle.”

– Lubaina Rangwala

Highlights from the Episode

What were some of the challenges you were experiencing that drove you to consider ABM strategies?

When the company is expanding, we’re looking for new customers and new accounts to bring on board and reach our potential. Seeing how the speed of growth may not be as fast, ABM becomes a useful strategy for companies in these positions.

How were you able to build the case for ABM at Thoughtworks? (Leadership buy-in)

The first thing is that we wanted to make sure that we had a crystal clear understanding of what our value proposition is. And then once we had a good understanding of that, it was really important for us to be able to articulate that story to our leadership team and our customers. With this, the ability to articulate the value proposition and being able to share that story with our leadership team and our customers were key in getting the buy-in.

How have you found success with minimal use of technology?

When piloting ABM, in many cases, getting leaders or teams to spend money on marketing without proving anything is always a challenge because marketing spending is dependent on a lot of ROI. Our goal was to be very agile and lean with the ABM that we are doing. We picked up that practice of personalizing content and looking at client intelligence, institutionalizing what was already happening, and making it more visible at the leadership level.

How do you personalize content for your ABM programs at scale?

Commonalities between groups of accounts across industries and domains can help identify which accounts to personalize content for. Knowing the priorities of a company’s CEO can also help group accounts for personalization. Identify where they are in their digital journey and what offerings we have that could help them address those challenges.